VAW: Apple TV: An Insanely Great Television Web Browser?

The recent press on the Apple TV has been very positive. It will probably be a good seller for Apple, but there are many Mac users who just don't need one. Many of us have TiVos or cable boxes that get us all the streaming content we need. If Apple really wants the Apple TV to take off, they should bundle it with a Safari-compatible browser, offer a remote keyboard, and let users surf the Internet while they watch TV.

Shortly after I graduated college, I had no money and wanted access to this new thing everyone was talking about, the Internet. I couldn't afford a computer in those days and didn't really know anything about Apple. A side note, when I heard about the iMac introduction on NBC Nightly News in 1998, my first reaction was, "Apple? Are they still in business?" Microsoft was king of the world at that time.

My office had just bought new 500 MHz Gateway computers. They came with Windows 95. We were impressed with them because we were primarily ignorant of any alternative. I do remember it being very hard to use and not very intuitive. The company where I worked at the time was networked but only the managers had access to the Internet.

Back in those days, computers irritated me and I didn't even know how to do simple things with Windows like create a shortcut (alias in Mac OS) or copy and paste a file. Windows had to be learned because its interface was terrible. During this time, I kept seeing infomercials on cable TV talking about how WebTV could get you on the World Wide Web and it would only cost $199 plus $21.95 a month for a subscription.

Finally, one weekend curiously got the best of me, so I went down to Montgomery Wards (now out of business) and picked up a Phillips WebTV Plus. This was the first WebTV box with a built-in 56K modem. The cheaper, older model re-branded as the WebTV Classic had a 33K modem and sold for $99. I can remember the salesman at Wards talking me into buying the Plus for $100 more than the Classic because "The Plus is lightning fast. You don't want the Classic, its modem is too slow."

Phillips Magnavox WebTV Keyboard

I used the WebTV until early 2000 when I traded it in for a new iMac and for a little while, I really missed it. The WebTV was not insanely great like the iMac, but it had its own charm. Mine actually broke down and I had to get it replaced under warranty. During my WebTV days, I would get home from work, turn on the TV, and log on to the web for some serious chatting while I watched Seinfeld (or whatever 90s program was playing at the time). I always knew when I had an email waiting for me when the little red email light was on. The WebTV could be set to check for email automatically and alert you with a red light on the front of the box. The WebTV had a really nice remote keyboard. I would place it on a pillow on my lap and type away in chat rooms while watching TV in a little onscreen TV box.

Microsoft still offers a WebTV, now called MSN TV. Surfing the web on WebTV was great but there were several drawbacks. You couldn't load software to add functionality to the browser and had to wait for Microsoft to issue software updates. Basically, Microsoft only gave you access to Microsoft technologies like Windows Media files. QuickTime, Real Media, and Java Applets did not work. Resolution increasingly became an issue. Websites wider than 800 x 600 did not display very well. I have not had the chance to look at MSN TV, but I suspect that it probably does a decent job on today's higher resolution flat screen televisions.

Which brings me to the point of this article. Apple could easily provide WebTV functionality with the Apple TV. Currently, you can't surf the Internet on Apple TV. Apple TV is a content delivery device. It is more of a TiVo than a WebTV. Apple could sell a wireless keyboard with a solid-state scrolling trackpad for precise cursor control like those on the MacBooks. There might be some compromises with the Safari browser, but today's high definition televisions are up the task of rendering web pages far better than my old 27-inch CRT television back in the late 1990s. Apple TV works with widescreen, enhanced-definition or high-definition TVs capable of 1080i, 720p, 576p, or 480p resolutions, including popular models from Sony, HP, Mitsubishi Electric, Sharp, Toshiba, JVC, Samsung, NEC, Panasonic, LG, Philips, Levia, Westinghouse, Polaroid, and Vizio.

Right now I am sitting on the fence. I really don't need an Apple TV because I get all the content I want from my cable box, which has On Demand. However, I would definitely consider buying an Apple TV if Apple were to allow me to browse the Internet using an Apple TV version of Safari. With a little box to watch TV while I surfed just like on the WebTV Plus, I could relax on the couch, check my eBay bids and watch TV at the same time. It would be perfect for those times when I wanted to chat online, but just couldn't drag myself away from the newest Battlestar Galactica episode. Sure, I could stream the episode later, but what if I wanted to do both at the same time?

Apple might be hesitant to offer this capability because it negates the need to go to your Mac to surf the Internet, but the Apple TV requires a Mac (or Windows PC) with a broadband connection in order to operate. I don't think it would cannibalize the use of the Mac at all, but it would definitely give me a reason to add it to my digital lifestyle.

Comments:

Yet another blatant rip off. Does Apple have not creative resources to develop their own innovative products. Why do they have to rip off Tivo? This is no different than the time Apple stole Microsoft´s mp3 player "Zune", repackaged it and called it iPod. I imagine Apple TV will be just another second rate offering from Apple.

-Larry Rowe (no relation to the author of this Apple propaganda.)

Larry Rowe on Wednesday, May 16, 2007 at 23:47

Web browsing on HD with AppleTV would make it ALMOST a must have. If they could add an Apple Remote Desktop client so I can peek at my real computer as well there´d be one sitting under my TV right now...

As is, I can wait...

ian

ian Stephenson on Thursday, July 05, 2007 at 15:34

Larry, the ipod came before the zune!

joey on Tuesday, August 14, 2007 at 12:37

I think your comments are very valid and I´d love to see this capability on the apple tv. I´m looking at a internet browser for my laptop that would properly render in full screen on my HDTV at home to allow me to browse the net from my computer on my screen but alas there exists no software. it be nice to have a browser like the one in the Wii or PS3

alim on Monday, December 03, 2007 at 14:58

Great summation of the major ommission of Apple TV. The browser and keyboard would solidify Apple´s position and growth in yet another market. If they really don´t want to offer this becasue we wouldn´t browse on our macs, they are missing the boat. Letting fear dictate your business strategy truly flies in the face of apple culture. I would prefer to think this is a a matter of devloping a polished product before launching to the public.

Darin on Friday, April 18, 2008 at 18:52

man you are so wrong apple did not rip off micro lost
micro lost wait and wait and oh apple is making a new media player well we will wait and see what they have......to late and plaease don´t ever put zune in the picture they should have called it doom.

respond to
Larry Rowe

tbone on Monday, June 30, 2008 at 14:51

Good God. I never thought I would see the day when Microsoft fanboys became so ignorant that they actually think the Zune came before the iPod. Dude. Seriously. Larry, you need to get your head out of your Windows95 400 ghz machine case and come back to planet Earth, 2008.

PS. Tivo is essentially a DVR. AppleTV is a hub for media delivered from your computer or the iTunes store. BIG DIFFERENCE.

Jesse on Tuesday, September 02, 2008 at 21:08