Apple 'Stalling' in Replenishing Reseller Stocks of Apple TV as Shortages Hit Apple Retail

While shortages of the Apple TV at numerous high-profile resellers have been documented for weeks and part numbers indicating an update alongside the iPad 3 next week have been revealed, AppleInsider now notes that Apple has specifically been stalling in delivering promised shipments of the device to resellers.

For three consecutive weeks, the Cupertino-based company has failed to make good on its promissory to restock indirect channel partners with fresh inventory of the existing $99 Apple TV product, say people familiar with matter.

Instead, partners and channel members have seen Apple push back deliveries each consecutive week by one additional week -- a practice that almost always foreshadows a formal discontinuation of a product ahead of new models.

Even Apple's own stores are beginning to see shortages of the device as Apple draws down supplies ahead of the refresh. While the company's online store is still reflecting an "in stock" status, those customers opting for the in-store pickup option will find that many Apple retail stores are currently out of stock.

apple tv bay area march 8
For those locations currently out of stock of the Apple TV, the company can still ship orders to the stores for pickup, but even those shipments are starting to see extended timeframes. While U.S. stores east of the Mississippi could generally have an Apple TV ordered today available for pickup by March 3, delays increase moving farther west across the country. Stores in the middle of the country are showing availability on March 6, while those in the Southwest and Southern California are citing March 7 availability and those in the Pacific Northwest down to the Bay Area can't promise availability until March 8.

Apple's iPad 3 media event is scheduled for next Wednesday, March 7, and it appears that the updated Apple TV set-top box will be making an appearance at that time.

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, and Safari. More features and changes will follow in future versions,...
iPhone 17 vs Air and Pros Feature

New iPhones See 'Stronger Than Expected' Demand With One Exception

Thursday October 2, 2025 7:26 am PDT by
Nearly two weeks after the iPhone 17 series launched, analysts at investment banking firm Morgan Stanley said demand for the devices has been "modestly stronger than we originally expected," based on a combination of extended shipping estimates on Apple's online store and information it gathered from Apple's supply chain. There has been strong early demand for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro,...
macbook air prime day 2025

M5 MacBook Air: Release Date, Features, and Performance Predictions

Friday October 3, 2025 3:39 am PDT by
The MacBook Air is Apple's most popular laptop – a thin, fanless machine that wields quiet power thanks to the efficiency of Apple silicon. While the M4 model isn't exactly old, attention is already turning to its successor. Apple doesn't telegraph new product launches ahead of time, but we can draw a surprisingly clear picture of what to expect by looking at Apple's silicon roadmap,...
iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26 Adds These 200 New Features and Changes to Your iPhone

Saturday October 4, 2025 8:19 am PDT by
Apple's website offers a list of nearly 200 new features and changes (PDF file) included in the software update, released last month. Apple also shared equivalent lists for iPadOS 26 and macOS Tahoe. iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 and newer. To install the update, open the Settings app on your iPhone, tap on General, and tap on Software Update. Below, we have highlighted eight ...
john ternus on stage

Gurman: Major Apple Leadership Shakeup Impending With John Ternus as Next CEO

Monday October 6, 2025 6:21 am PDT by
Apple is entering its most significant leadership transition in more than a decade as multiple senior executives prepare to depart and CEO Tim Cook begins to shape the company's next generation of leaders, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that Jeff Williams, who was viewed as Cook's potential successor for several...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Event in October? Here's What to Expect

Monday September 29, 2025 9:31 am PDT by
Apple's annual iPhone event is in the rearview mirror, but rumors suggest the company plans to release a handful of additional products before the year ends. Will there be another Apple event this October? We discuss the possibility below. Apple in October Apple's most recent October events were in 2021 and 2023. In 2022 and 2024, Apple did not host an October event. Instead, it...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: Leaks Reveal What Apple Products Are Coming Next

Friday October 3, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
On this episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss the latest leaks about the next-generation iPad Pro, MacBook Pro, Studio Display, and Vision Pro. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Earlier this week, an apparent unboxing video of an updated iPad Pro with the M5 chip was shared online. The same YouTube account leaked the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M4 chip...
space black mbp

Here's Every New Apple Product That Leaked Yesterday

Wednesday October 1, 2025 8:27 am PDT by
A handful of upcoming Apple products leaked yesterday, through a combination of YouTube videos out of Russia and U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) documents that were released, despite Apple's confidentiality requests. The leaked products include an iPad Pro with an M5 chip, as well as updated MacBook Pro and Apple Vision Pro models. All of these devices had already been rumored...

Top Rated Comments

MonkeySee.... Avatar
178 months ago
Xvid/Divx support, app support for Plex, and THEN I would buy one to get rid of my HTPC

You're dreaming! :D

I'd like some more apps. Maybe BBC iPlayer etc.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
johngordon Avatar
178 months ago
I know this is lame, but it'd be nice to buy either a white or black one. But I'll probably buy a black one since all of my tv/entertainment section is all black. I wouldn't mind an even smaller Apple TV 3

No - it needs to be the same size, so that I can replace it without my wife noticing!

----------

Will AirPlay Mirroring in Mountain Lion allow for any type of video playback on the Apple TV? For example, if I play an .avi on my Mac would I be able to view it on my TV?

As far as I know - this is what makes it such A Great Thing.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
borgqueenx Avatar
178 months ago
thats proof enough to me.
Just make it have 1080p and i will have one.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
loveapple89776 Avatar
178 months ago
Movies - iTunes in the Cloud

Surely Apple needs to expand their iTunes in the Cloud functionality to include the re-download of movies.

Once this is added, being able to stream purchased movies on the appleTV from your account, got to be the logical step to take.
No need to have a computer running, or hard-drive spaced filled with movies.

Obviously though, this is entirely down to licensing issues.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nielsenius Avatar
178 months ago
Looks like new Apple TVs are on the way! Woohoo!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HobeSoundDarryl Avatar
178 months ago
Apple will definately NOT include a USB port to stream movies without a separate computer.

Apple definitely did include a hard drive in the first generation for local storage. And a jailbreak solution with that generation made it possible to turn the USB port linked to a much bigger hard drive into a large, local repository of iTunes media. For many, they could turn those computers off because all the video they had could be stored there.

And by the way, the second generation has a USB port too (but it is not unlocked for that local storage use).

The Apple TV is a device to display what is on your iPad, iPhone, computer or in the cloud (i.e. netflix, etc.). I want to have my 3 Apple TVs in the house behave the same, and I can't do that with different external hard drives plugged into it. If that is what you want, then the Apple TV isn't for you.

Good for you and using the streaming from central storage hooked to a computer makes great sense for you. Not everyone is you though. Some have 1 :apple:TV hooked to 1 television. They would like the OPTION of storing their media on it so that they can enjoy that media when the computer is turned off and/or when the computer is away from the home. Giving them that option makes the device more appealing to more people so that Apple can sell more.

You don't want that option? Don't use it. But it's not wrong for others to want that option even though you don't. In my own situation, I'd love that flexibility and take great advantage of it. I still have generation 1 somewhat because the local storage is useful to me.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)