Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has some new predictions about the highly rumored Apple television product, which could revolutionize the TV content industry as we know it.
Munster laid out the company’s product and software plans for the following year in a recent report, which indicates that Apple will debut its branded television sets in November 2013. In terms of specifics, Munster predicts that two versions of the Apple television — a 47-inch set and a 55-inch model — that should cost $1,500 to $2,000. Those sizes are larger than the 32-inch and 37-inch Apple TV set rumors mentioned last year.
One thing to note about Munster’s Apple Television predictions is that they are seasonal — sort of like holidays. This is actually his third prediction. The first came in 2009, when Munster claimed Apple would launch a television in 2011. However, he later went back on that information and pushed the launch to 2012. And now, Munster says we have to wait another year.
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Munster’s predictions also aren’t consistent with others we’ve heard in the past several months. The most noticeable difference is that Apple had decided against producing its own television set in favor of an advanced streaming media set-top box that would work in conjunction with cable and satellite TV service providers. This was done because Apple was having problems partnering with TV providers. And more recently, Jefferies & Co. analyst James Kisner said that an Apple Television launch was “imminent.”
The television prediction was far from the only thing Munster predicted in his recent report. The analyst also outlined the full product launch schedule for the company. Apple kicks off 2013 in March with a new retina display-ready iPad mini, letting developers submit apps for the company’s $99 Apple TV set-top box, and the launch of Apple’s Internet radio service. Over the summer Apple will show off iOS 7 , a new version of OS X, and retina display Macbook Airs. September will see Apple announce an iPhone 5S and radically upgraded iPad mini.
Via BusinessInsider; iTV concept art by Guilherme Schasiepen
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