At the Apple event, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs announced iTunes 10 with Ping, unveiled new iPod Touch and showed off "one more hobby" today during the special event in San Francisco but there was no mention of Verizon iPhone or white iPhone 4.
Jobs' new hobby is newly redesigned Apple TV that costs $99, less than half of the price of its predecessor. The new Apple TV, which is one-fourth in size to its predecessor, has a built-in power supply, HDMI, optical audio, Ethernet, and Wi-Fi. "It's a fourth the size. You can hold it in the palm of your hand," Jobs said.
Outlining the features of the new product, Jobs added that the new Apple TV does away with concerns of storage, as it will work on a rental model and not on purchasing. Apple TV Users can rent first-run HDTV movies for $4.99. The single episodes of TV shows in HD from Fox and ABC will be available for 99 cents. "We think the rest of the studios will see the light and get on board pretty fast," Jobs said.
Jobs added that the Apple TV will also allow the users to stream content from an iOS device running version 4.2 or later. The Apple head demonstrated streaming the movie "Up," instantly from an iPad over Wi-Fi. The new product also offers access to Netflix streaming, YouTube videos, and photos from Flickr. Users can also stream content from a Mac or PC, and from a MobileMe account. Jobs added that the new Apple TV will be available for sale later this month.
According to Apple, the new Apple TV is quiet, energy efficient. It will play audio and video though a single HDMI connection and the TV will be controlled by the sleek, aluminum Apple Remote. The new Apple iTunes 10 with Ping announcement has been received very well. The Apple iTunes update was any way expected at the event.
But nothing came of the rumors of iPhone on Verizon or white iPhone 4 this time though.
