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Apple has been experimenting with the Apple TV on and off this year with adding streaming content portals of their own content. Netflix has pushed some updates as well. In the 6 months or so I've owned one I've seen more activity in the last 6 weeks than in all the other months together. 6 months is not a long enough data set to be conclusive, but paired with Cooks' comments I wonder if internally they're starting to see what can they do with the box that's already there. They've pretty much shown they can add and remove additional content portals without an update, so they can introduce new content at any point, so the more interesting question isn't 'what features do we get next', but 'what content are they signing'. A shiny new piece of Apple kit is great, but the Apple TV in it's current incarnation is, well, fantastic. Would Siri support be nice? Sure. I'm not sure how much use I'd get out of it, Siri struggles recognising my North England accent on basic words, let alone with relatively complex titles ('Siri, find me Californication' 'Did you mean...'), but for some people I'm sure it'll be great. The idea of Apple releasing a standalone TV doesn't quite scratch the itch for me. TV sets in general is a market where the consumer demands low, low pricing with relatively few exceptions (B&O springs to mind), so they'd be entering a knife fight of pricing. I'm sure Apple could come in with a beautiful TV, all shine and minimalism and oozing quality, and I'm sure they'd sell some, but it's probably not the best value proposition. |