Apple TV

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Netflix’s user profile feature now rolling out to Apple TV

Cody Lee ∙ Updated August 4, 2016

In April of this year, Netflix announced that it would be introducing some new family-oriented features to its video streaming service over the next several months. Among those mentioned was a new $12 family plan, and a new user profile option for multiple accounts.

Netflix hasn't launched the $12 plan yet, which allows families to stream different shows on up to 4 different devices (instead of 2). But it has started beta testing the personalized profile feature with a number of its users. And tonight, it starting rolling out to Apple TV...

Apple seeds Apple TV 5.4 beta 3 to developers

Cody Lee ∙ July 29, 2013

Alongside iOS 7 beta 4, Apple has seeded beta 3 of Apple TV 5.4 software to developers this morning. The update isn't nearly as expansive as its iOS device counterpart, but it does bring about a number of improvements and bug fixes.

Interestingly enough, the new beta also appears to allow users running iOS 7 to setup their Apple TV with their iPhone or iPad after a full restore or resetting all settings (iPhone 4 and iPad 2 not supported). Release notes after the fold...

Apple TV vs. Roku vs. Chromecast content options

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 28, 2017

On Wednesday this week, Google unveiled a handful of new products. There's the second generation Nexus 7 tablet, Android 4.3, and the Chromecast TV dongle. The latter has proved rather popular, selling out in most online stores within the first 72 hours.

The accessory is very similar to the Apple TV, or the Roku box, as it lets you stream Internet content to your television. That content varies, however, depending on which product you go with. So we thought this breakdown of their differences was worth a look...

Apple’s plans for TV growing less ambitious with Time Warner deal

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

As we’ve heard a few times over the past month, Apple and Time Warner Cable appear to be very close to inking a deal that would bring a TWC app to the Apple TV’s Home screen. It would mark the first time that the set-top box would be capable of streaming live TV.

Initial details regarding the service have been scarce, but a new report this morning helps add a bit of color. Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg warns users not to get too excited, as the TWC app will save them little more than a click of the remote...

NYT spells out Apple’s living room strategy

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 18, 2013

Apple's plans for the living room have rested largely on the Apple TV the company's leadership continues to call "a hobby project." While there's been talk that the tech giant could unveil its own television set, rumors of revamping the television experience have been greeted with industry concern and fruitless negotiations.

However, now comes word Apple wants to be friends with Time Warner, Disney and other content producers - and along the way improve some of the worst aspects of current television viewing.

One result of the partnerships is an upcoming Time Warner Cable Apple TV app that would turn Apple's $99 set-top box into a channel guide for live and on-demand programming much superior to the clunky software now offered by the distributor...

Alien Blue for iPad 2.2 brings Reddit to the Apple TV

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2018

Reddit, for those who aren't familiar with the social news and entertainment site, is an interesting place. You can find almost anything there—GIFs, photos, videos, you name it. In fact, most of the viral stuff you see online probably started here.

There are many apps available for browsing the site on your iPhone or iPad, but what about the Apple TV? Don't you wish sometimes that you could watch that funny video or GIF on the big screen? Well, now you can with Alien Blue for iPad 2.2...

Over 50% of all streaming set-top boxes sold are Apple TVs

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 15, 2018

According to the latest Frost & Sullivan Consumer Video Devices Market report, the Apple TV currently accounts for more than half of all streaming set-top boxes sold worldwide. That makes it the leader in the space by a long shot, with Roku coming in second at 26%.

The market research outlet posted the report this morning, which details a number of data points including market drivers, restraints to growth, product and pricing trends, and competitive landscape. And Apple's $99 hockey puck-shaped device came out on top...

Apple allegedly proposing ad skipping for upcoming TV service

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

It appears that Apple's long-rumored TV service is alive, and slowly but surely moving forward. According to a new report, Apple has spent the last year seeking rights from cable companies and TV networks for a new Internet television service.

The offering is said to allow users to watch live and on-demand television programming over an Apple-branded set-top box or TV set, and, as claimed by people with knowledge of the project, it could feature the ability to skip TV commercials...

Target giving away gift cards on iPhone, iPad, iPod and Apple TV purchases

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

The United States retailing corporation Target is advertising a promotion where they're giving away free Target Gift Cards for every qualifying purchase of iPhone, iPod touch, iPad or Apple TV device from Apple. Free gift cards range in denominations from $10 to $50 and are good against purchases at the retailer, including iTunes Gift cards which Target has been offering for some time now.

And if you're planning on getting an iPhone 5 from Target, the retailer just sweetened the deal by throwing in a $25 coupon and reducing the entry-level 16GB model down to $149.99 with a qualifying two-year plan...

Is Apple’s magic wand ‘the simplest interface’ for iTV that Steve Jobs envisioned?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

As Tim Cook & Co. continue “pulling the string” on the TV space, readers with a keen interest in Apple's many patent applications are aware of a 2009 filing involving a wand remote of sorts that may include a motion detection component meant for the television interface.

Last June, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) granted that patent. And just last month, another major wand-related patent surfaced in USPTO's database that could be the magic required to make the TV experience “just work.”

It outlines a remote control containing fingerprint sensors, theoretically enabling identity and trust in order to authenticate viewers securely and deliver personalized content. It's especially noteworthy in the context of the rumored fingerprint scanning thought to be the killer feature of the upcoming iPhone 5S...

Bloomberg: Time Warner Cable channels coming to Apple TV ‘in a few months’

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Hot on the heels of releasing the Apple TV 5.3 software which enabled access to Disney's WatchESPN and HBO Go through the $99 set-top box, Bloomberg now reports that the iPhone maker is on the cusp of announcing a major agreement with Time Warner Cable.

The gist of the story: the deal would give subscribers of the cable television service access to channels via the Apple TV. HBO, of course, is owned by Time Warner, under the operating subsidiary Home Box Office Inc.

But it gets even better: Apple is apparently hiring away Hulu executive Pete Distad to help Eddy Cue, Apple's SVP of Internet Software and Services, in negotiations with media and cable companies. An agreement will be reportedly announced "in a few months". Tuesday news doesn't get any bigger than this...

Foxconn chief talks diversification amid lack of Apple product launches

Ed Sutherland ∙ June 26, 2013

There is a ripple effect underway in the smartphone industry. As consumers shift from high-priced smartphones to basic lower-cost alternatives, companies such as Apple look to produce lower-priced handsets. The latest in line are manufacturers, such as Foxconn, which for years has tied its profit wagon to Apple's success. Now comes word Foxconn's parent company seeks to diversify into e-commerce and perhaps licensing its vast library of patents...