High End: Now that everyone seems pretty certain that Apple is going to make a TV, commentators are beginning to wonder what that TV will look like, and how Apple will try to change the television industry the way they changed the music industry. Nick Bilton of the New York Times says that Siri will be integral:
It’s the stuff of science fiction. You sit on your couch and rather than fumble with several remotes or use hand gestures, you simply talk: “Put on the last episode of Gossip Girl.” “Play the local news headlines.” “Play some Coldplay music videos.” Siri does the rest.
And Gruber says that channels will be the new apps:
Imagine watching a baseball game on a TV where ESPN is a smart app, not a dumb channel. When you’re watching a game, you could tell the TV to show you the career statistics for the current batter. You could ask the HBO app which other movies this actress has been in. Point is: it’d be better for both viewers and the networks1 if a TV “channel” were an interactive app rather than a mere single stream of video.
If Apple is going to do this, they're going to have to hit the biggest home run in the history of the company, which is really saying something. It's going to have to be so simple, we won't believe we ever used those dumb old stone-age TVs we're using today.
Low End: VentureBeat has a look at India's new $60 tablet. It's intended for educational purposes, and it doesn't look half bad!
Some kid who uses this thing will wind up changing the world one day.
