01-16-2008, 02:40 PM
Jem,
Therein lies the problem. I doubt the niche you described is the target market in the long run. It makes for a good starting point but it is definitely too small. What Steve wants is the living room, much in the same way that he wanted everyone's belt for the ipod. That's why the AppleTV no longer requires a connection to your Mac for a very important part of its functionality, this being movie rentals.
The beauty of the ipod was its solid design features and its ability to be useful without a connection to a computer. The IPod was designed for the masses and, as we all know, it reach them. The former version of the AppleTV wasn't designed for the masses. It was a hobbyist gadget.
Now, with the new features and the advent of the movie rentals, Apple is changing the target market of the AppleTV from the hobbyist to the average consumer and his/her living room. Unlike the iPod, the AppleTV is just barely useful to the average consumer in its existing form. Movie rentals are a start but it isn't enough to justify the cost. Neither are the other features listed by Kramerica. Nifty for the hobbyist but not Joe or Jane consumer.
Robert
Therein lies the problem. I doubt the niche you described is the target market in the long run. It makes for a good starting point but it is definitely too small. What Steve wants is the living room, much in the same way that he wanted everyone's belt for the ipod. That's why the AppleTV no longer requires a connection to your Mac for a very important part of its functionality, this being movie rentals.
The beauty of the ipod was its solid design features and its ability to be useful without a connection to a computer. The IPod was designed for the masses and, as we all know, it reach them. The former version of the AppleTV wasn't designed for the masses. It was a hobbyist gadget.
Now, with the new features and the advent of the movie rentals, Apple is changing the target market of the AppleTV from the hobbyist to the average consumer and his/her living room. Unlike the iPod, the AppleTV is just barely useful to the average consumer in its existing form. Movie rentals are a start but it isn't enough to justify the cost. Neither are the other features listed by Kramerica. Nifty for the hobbyist but not Joe or Jane consumer.
Robert