Analyst: Apple ripe for HDTV and 'Genius Squad'
Could Apple be at work on a TV set? That's a theory Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has been trumpeting for years now. Joining him is UBS Investment Research analyst Maynard Um with a report today about how the gadget maker could expand its market cap by delving into new services in the coming years, notably the TV set business and an expanded version of its tech support offerings. Um suggests that Apple's in a good position to boost its market cap by anywhere from $50 billion to $100 billion by getting into the business of making and selling connected TV sets. The group cites growth in both the flat-panel TV market, as well as Internet-connected set-top boxes. Whatever Apple would be creating would be a mix of those two that heavily leverages the company's existing media services, the report suggests."Our view is that Apple is unlikely to enter the television set market without a core level of differentiation. We believe that differentiation will be its iTunes ecosystem and, in particular, its content," the report says. Um goes on to argue that Apple's big cash balance can make it more competitive when it comes to getting content for that ecosystem. That strategy could eventually give it an edge over existing players like Netflix with a bigger library and a delivery method that makes use of its growing data center capacity. But what about selling such a device? Would customers just buy a big flat screen TV at an Apple store, take it home and plug it in? That's what they can do now with the Apple TV, Apple's $99 set-top box, along with its computers and mobile devices. Um suggests that Apple could expand its Genius Bar support services with a paid element (not to be confused with AppleCare, or ProCare--Apple's existing paid support options), to help the customer get it set up back at his or her home. "What we envision of Genius Bar is similar to the Geek Squad, which is fairly well known in the U.S. as Best Buy's service department to facilitate technology adoption," the report says. "In many respects, Apple already offers a number of these services in-store. However, in our view, one primary difference between a Geek and a Genius is that a Geek has a car. If Apple ultimately enters the television set market, we believe it may have to offer some type of installation service (wall mounting, delivery, etc.)."Um suggests that the same install from this "Genius Squad" visit could be used to help set up and install other Apple products like the company's wireless networking devices. That same service could also end up laying the groundwork for what Um suggests as another business Apple could deliver later on down the line, which would be home automation technologies:The market for home automation today is fragmented and a number of standards would have to come together for this to likely become more feasible. However, we can envision a home where the television set or tablet, becomes the central console to control the home (lights, security cameras/alarms, audio, video, home theater, HVAC/climate control, door locks, appliances, et al) and that can be accessible from outside the home via a web browser or iPhone application (facilitated through a service from its data center). This, in our opinion, would drive further halo effects or bundled sales of Apple's products, particularly if the company transfers its ease of use to these systems.A report by Dailytech last month cited an anonymous former executive at Apple suggesting that the company was hard at work on a TV set. That set is said to embed the existing Apple TV set-top box technologies alongside a modified version of iTunes. The report also suggested that such a device would actually be made by another manufacturer, and not Apple.Apple rival/frenemy Google entered the TV space late last year with combination of set-top boxes and TV sets that include its Google TV software. Unlike Apple's Apple TV offering, which is primarily focused on delivering rented and purchased content from iTunes, Google's strategy is to blend in with TV content you watch through your cable operator and let users do Web searches while watching programming. Google has also approached game developers, urging them to design TV-friendly entertainment with compatible Web technologies.Um notes that if Apple is indeed working on a TV set, it's not coming this year. In the meantime, he suggests that the company will be beefing up its content offerings and working on a more feature-filled version of its Apple TV set-top box.Apple's last major release of the Apple TV was last September, with the company introducing a shrunken-down box that ditched the local storage and component plugs from the back of the unit. The newer version instead leverages the company's AirPlay technology to stream media from other networked devices.
iPad and Kindle Fire- The top 5 technical annoyances
iPad and Kindle Fire: The top 5 technical annoyances
Users of the iPad and the Kindle Fire share some of the same technical issues but also face their own unique challenges, according to a study out yesterday from FixYa.Analyzing the array of problems seen by site users who own one of the two popular tablets, FixYa boiled the list down to the top five major glitches.Looking at Apple's iPad, Wi-Fi connection issues came in first, cited by 35 percent of FixYa site users included in the study.iPad 2 owners have bumped into trouble connecting or staying connected to Wi-Fi networks. The site noted that this problem often affects users with a Wi-Fi-only tablet or those with a 3G tablet close to their monthly data allotment. Turning Wi-Fi on and off, renewing your device's DHCP lease, or resetting the entire Wi-Fi network usually does the trick.Next on the list was LED display issues, while screen issues in general took the fifth spot. Specifically, FixYa reported a problem with backlight bleeding in which iPad users noted patches of light around the edges of the screen. Though tricky to resolve since it's a hardware issue, the problem can sometimes be lessened by just tweaking the brightness of the display.FixYa seemed confused about the third most prominent issue, pointing to microphone problems in its chart but citing the iPad not being recognized by the computer in the actual report. Assuming the site is referring to USB issues in general, it offered a few suggestions if iTunes isn't detecting your iPad.Make sure you're running the latest version of iTunes. Try unplugging and then reconnecting the USB cable between your computer and your iPad. And finally, plug your iPad directly into a USB port on your computer rather than going through a USB hub.FixYaTurning its focus to Amazon's Kindle Fire, FixYa reported the one-click shopping experience as the top issue, cited by 30 percent of the users. The ability to buy an item without having to enter a password has opened the door to accidental purchases and unauthorized purchases by children. It could present even bigger problems should the tablet be lost or stolen.FixYa didn't have much advice other than to set up a Wi-Fi password at home so your children can't go on a spending spree buying items from Amazon.Related storiesHow to fix 95 percent of iOS app crashesMake a Kindle Fire safe for kidsAmazon Kindle Fire owners reporting Wi-Fi bugCNET review: Apple iPad 2CNET review: Amazon Kindle FireLike the iPad, the Kindle Fire can have trouble with Wi-Fi connections.In this case, FixYa recommended upgrading to the latest 6.1 or 6.2 version of the Fire software. Resetting your router or setting up a static IP address for your tablet were also suggested."Product call centers are the closest thing to consumer hell, making the web the new owner's manual," FixYa CEO Yaniv Bensadon said in a statement. "We see this first hand and have experienced an explosion in consumer issues with tablets, mainly the variety of devices running Android software. Despite Apple's god-like status with consumers, it is no stranger to consumer issues, as noted in [the] report."
Users of the iPad and the Kindle Fire share some of the same technical issues but also face their own unique challenges, according to a study out yesterday from FixYa.Analyzing the array of problems seen by site users who own one of the two popular tablets, FixYa boiled the list down to the top five major glitches.Looking at Apple's iPad, Wi-Fi connection issues came in first, cited by 35 percent of FixYa site users included in the study.iPad 2 owners have bumped into trouble connecting or staying connected to Wi-Fi networks. The site noted that this problem often affects users with a Wi-Fi-only tablet or those with a 3G tablet close to their monthly data allotment. Turning Wi-Fi on and off, renewing your device's DHCP lease, or resetting the entire Wi-Fi network usually does the trick.Next on the list was LED display issues, while screen issues in general took the fifth spot. Specifically, FixYa reported a problem with backlight bleeding in which iPad users noted patches of light around the edges of the screen. Though tricky to resolve since it's a hardware issue, the problem can sometimes be lessened by just tweaking the brightness of the display.FixYa seemed confused about the third most prominent issue, pointing to microphone problems in its chart but citing the iPad not being recognized by the computer in the actual report. Assuming the site is referring to USB issues in general, it offered a few suggestions if iTunes isn't detecting your iPad.Make sure you're running the latest version of iTunes. Try unplugging and then reconnecting the USB cable between your computer and your iPad. And finally, plug your iPad directly into a USB port on your computer rather than going through a USB hub.FixYaTurning its focus to Amazon's Kindle Fire, FixYa reported the one-click shopping experience as the top issue, cited by 30 percent of the users. The ability to buy an item without having to enter a password has opened the door to accidental purchases and unauthorized purchases by children. It could present even bigger problems should the tablet be lost or stolen.FixYa didn't have much advice other than to set up a Wi-Fi password at home so your children can't go on a spending spree buying items from Amazon.Related storiesHow to fix 95 percent of iOS app crashesMake a Kindle Fire safe for kidsAmazon Kindle Fire owners reporting Wi-Fi bugCNET review: Apple iPad 2CNET review: Amazon Kindle FireLike the iPad, the Kindle Fire can have trouble with Wi-Fi connections.In this case, FixYa recommended upgrading to the latest 6.1 or 6.2 version of the Fire software. Resetting your router or setting up a static IP address for your tablet were also suggested."Product call centers are the closest thing to consumer hell, making the web the new owner's manual," FixYa CEO Yaniv Bensadon said in a statement. "We see this first hand and have experienced an explosion in consumer issues with tablets, mainly the variety of devices running Android software. Despite Apple's god-like status with consumers, it is no stranger to consumer issues, as noted in [the] report."
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