Rumours and reports regarding that most secretive of tech firms are almost as common as cat-based GIFs on the internet, but when they emanate from a source as reliable as Ming-Chi Kuo, there's no need to take them with a grain of salt.
The noted KGI Securities analyst has a track record second to none when it comes to rightly predicting Apple's next move and according to his latest research note (first published by 9to5Mac) an Apple television is still in development and is at least two years away from going into production. Instead, the company will release an updated version of the media streaming box that currently bears the Apple TV name.
"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."
He continued, "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."
When it does launch, the set is expected to boast a choice of 45in, 55in, and 65in ultra-high definition display and offer improved multimedia content navigation. It will also certainly not be called the iTV as ITV is a globally registered trademark of the British-based independent television channel of the same name. - AFPRelaxnews
