Source Says He Has Seen Apple’s New TV

Cult of Mac is reporting that they have a source who has seen a working prototype of Apple’s new HDTV. The source claims the new HDTV looks very similar to Apple’s current line up of LED displays, including a FaceTime camera. The camera, apparently, has face recognition, and can follow you around the room (creepy). The source also claims the new HDTV comes with Siri, the helpful assistant that is currently on the iPhone 4S.

Here is a mock up that Cult of Mac posted today:

There have been many rumours reporting on what Apple’s new TV might end up being. These features certainly have been mentioned before, along with AppleTV integration, and the possibility of Apple offering a subscription to current TV networks. This could definitely change the face of television as we know it, as the current network providers would become the “old model”. Some would argue that the current model is already out of date and that we are due for a change.

When Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007, they revolutionized the cell phone and smart phone market. For them to be getting in to the television market, we can assume that they plan to accomplish the same kind of revolution in the television market, as they did in the smart phone market.

Besides the features listed above, which are still just rumours, not much else is really known about the Apple television. TV analyst, Paul Gagnon says don’t expect anything too fancy about Apple’s new television:

Gagnon said he didn’t have any hard information, but expects Apple to introduce a line of TVs this year. He noted that Apple’s Chinese supplier, Foxconn, has invested $1.6 billion in Sharp’s TV unit, which can efficiently make large size panels up to 60-inches. Speculating, Gagnon Apple’s TVs will likely be pretty conventional in terms of hardware. They will not be anything exotic like OLED or 4K resolution. There will likely be two to four models ranging from 40-inches to 60-inches. They will be standard 1920 x 1080p resolution and cost between $1,000 to $2,000 or slightly higher. When might they ship? “Our best guess is 2013,” Gagnon said.

I don’t know about you, but I am just about ready to upgrade my television, and I would love to see what Apple has to offer. I’m still not sold on the idea of a “smart TV”, but I haven’t really used one. A television that has all my video streaming needs built in is appealing, as I’d be able to get rid of a few devices in my entertainment center. Also, the idea of being able to turf my current tv provider and just subscribe to the channels I want, would be terrific. We’ll just have to wait and see. After all, this is still just rumours.

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