Apple Television Set Not Expected Until 2015 or Later, But A7 Apple TV Could Come in 2014

Confirming earlier reports suggesting the long-rumored Apple television set is taking a backseat to other Apple projects, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today told investors that he does not expect Apple to produce a television set until 2015 or 2016.

appletv.png
Kuo does believe, however, that Apple may launch a new version of the existing Apple TV set top box with the same A7 processor found in the iPhone 5s and Apple's newest iPads in 2014.

We expect Apple to launch a new version of the Apple TV with an A7 processor in 2014, and we forecast 2014 shipments to total 8.2mn units. Shipment growth will be limited unless Apple is able to integrate more TV content, services and its App Store, in our view.

According to Kuo, the cost of launching a supply chain for television set production is a major obstacle for Apple's television set plans, as is the company's continued struggle with procuring additional content deals. Kuo believes that integrating TV content, an App Store, and other services are key to skyrocketing the Apple TV and a subsequent television set from a hobby to a viable product.

We believe the slowdown in Apple TV shipments suggests Apple faces challenges in integrating TV content and services. If Apple wants to launch iTV, the challenges of integrating content and service are more difficult considering the different TV content ecosystems (e.g. cable operators) in various countries. Moreover, establishing an iTV supply chain is very costly. Thus we believe iTV launch will be delayed to end-2015 or early 2016 at the earliest.

There was some speculation that Apple could release an updated Apple TV product during the company's recent iPad event, but according to TechCrunch's MG Siegler, Apple is not yet ready to debut its revamped hardware, which could include upgrades like Siri integration or motion control, so a 2014 timeline makes sense.

Apple has also thus far been unable to secure the deals with content providers and cable companies that are necessary for it to revolutionize the television experience, but it remains in ongoing negotiations with multiple companies including Time Warner.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

ryuok Avatar
145 months ago
just forget about it
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
derbladerunner Avatar
145 months ago
Wouldn't the A7 be a bit overkill for the AppleTV box? If Apple wants more performance out of it, just go to the dual core A5 since the iPad 2 is still in production.
Not if they finally add an SDK (e.g. for games, would work great with Bluetooth controllers, the foundations are there in iOS7).

I still don't the get need for a TV set from Apple, however. All the logic is in the little box and services in the cloud from Apple or third parties, just update the current Apple TV box.

What would be unique about an Apple TV screen compared to other brands? No need for that.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
peglegjack Avatar
145 months ago
All they need to do is make the Apple TV to where you can play iOS games with a controller and they'd basically slaughter the competition.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
osx11 Avatar
145 months ago
An A7 to do what?

App Store?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hamkor04 Avatar
145 months ago
An A7 to do what?

App Store?

New generation "price Tag"
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jacquesass Avatar
145 months ago
The next ATV should have an A7. Combine that with HDMI 2.0 and 802.11ac - and you could drive 4k content. Apple would leapfrog the streaming video competition, which would ensure that it sold even if they did nothing else.

Of course, a big jump in processing power would likely come with a new interface, an app-store, and some version of a game controller...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)