Apple, the company that simplified computers, smartphones and tablets, is now looking to build a simplified TV remote according to a new patent discovered by Apple Insider. The patent, which is titled “Apparatus and Method to Facilitate Universal Remote Control,” describes a touchscreen-based controller that would eliminate the clutter found on today’s universal remotes. According to the application, Apple is looking  to use fewer buttons for a simplified experience. “The controls ...

During the company’s earnings call on Tuesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that Apple TV is “doing extremely well.” The Cupertino-based company sold a record 1.4 million units in the December quarter, though Cook says the product is still just a hobby. “We still classify this as a hobby, but we continue to add things to it,” he said. “I couldn’t live without it. We think it’s a fantastic product and we continue to pull strings and see where we can take it....

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published documentation on 22 recently granted patents for Apple on Tuesday. The patents, as reported by Patently Apple, cover items including clothing technology that could be built into future running shoes, the advanced multitouch trackpads found in Macbooks, and the technology found in Apple TV. The most intriguing patent relates to Apple’s Nike + iPod product. This patent outlines a system for monitoring and controlling user exercises with a sensor inside the ...

Apple will further extend its lead in the technology sector this year as it launches a number of new products that will leave its competition scrambling, a new report suggested on Tuesday. Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White made Apple his top pick in 2011 and the stock was his top performer, having grown 26% during his coverage. In 2012, Apple remains White’s top stock pick as a trio of new products is set to extend Apple’s lead in the new year. Read on for more. (more…)

Apple’s much rumored Siri-powered HDTV may offer a feature many TV viewers have been wanting for quite some time: customized channel lineups. According to Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu, Apple has its heart set on offering its customers customized programming. That means, for example, a user might be able to choose to pay for the ESPN and Comedy Central, but omit MTV and CNN. However, that may make licensing a lot messier. “This is obviously much more complicated from a licensing standpoint,” ...

Apple has reportedly met with top media executives to discuss the company’s vision of the television market’s future, suggesting that the company is moving full steam ahead on its rumored Siri-powered HDTV. The television is expected to include similar technology to the company’s current Apple TV set top box, which allows users to stream content such as movies, music and photos over a wireless network. Apple senior vice president Eddy Cue has reportedly been in the aforementioned meetings a...

Apple may launch an iMac with integrated “TV capability” before it launches its own full-blown HDTV, Wedge Partners analyst Brian Blair said Wednesday. Blair said Apple’s new iMacs, which could launch during the first half of 2012, will integrate several features that are currently found in the Apple TV set top box and create a “slimmer all-in-one PC with TV capabilities.” Blair doesn’t make any mention of the Siri voice engine, which Apple is expected to use in its HDTV to...

Apple’s latest developer build of iOS might not include the intriguing Siri enhancements that had been rumored earlier this month, but it does include references to several unannounced Apple devices. Some digging through the iOS 5.1 code has revealed three new device code names, giving developers new keywords to hunt down on their constant quest for information on upcoming Apple devices. The first, “iPad2,4,” could refer to a new version of the iPad 2 set to hit Sprint’s network, thoug...

Amazon and Best Buy are both offering the Apple TV for $89.99, $10 lower than Apple’s standard retail price, which suggests that the Cupertino-based company could be brewing up a refresh for the popular home entertainment box. In addition, Amazon has added a “2010″ label next to the gadget, indicating that a 2011 model is on the way (or that it is simply distinguishing it from the earlier version). In May, a rumor surfaced that suggested Apple was building a new Apple TV that will support f...

Apple has been planning to redesign the television since 2007 and when it finally launches the new set, it will replace the age-old remote control with Siri voice commands, The New York Times reported on Thursday. A recent quote from Steve Jobs’s biography — “I finally cracked it” —  began circulating recently and, for many, it seemed to solidify rumors that Apple was going to enter the television market. The New York Times believes that quote was actually in reference to Jobs’s r...

Reports have suggested for more than a year that Apple is working on a smart TV product, and those reports were firmed up last week when an excerpt from Steve Jobs’s biography revealed that the Apple co-Founder was indeed working on an Apple television. ”I’d like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use,” Jobs said according to biographer Walter Isaacson. “It would be seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud. It will have the simplest u...

Steve Jobs’s biography, written by Walter Isaacson and due on store shelves on Monday, has a passage that suggests Apple has a TV up its sleeves. The Washington Post published a small excerpt on Friday that reveals a conversation Jobs had with Isaacson in which he says he has already created a product that could change the television industry much like the iPhone changed the mobile landscape and the iPod re-sculpted the music industry. “He very much wanted to do for television sets what he had don...

Apple is reportedly close to inking deals with major movie studios that would allow the Cupertino-based company to stream movies to its iOS devices and PCs via iCloud. Los Angeles Times on Wednesday reported that Apple has been meeting with movie studios and is currently closing licensing deals that will allow its customers to purchase movies through iTunes and then stream them from iCloud to mobile devices like the iPhone and iPad, or even to Mac computers or Apple TV. The service would be similar to Hollyw...

Enjoying a quiet Saturday? Well, Apple has just released iOS 5 beta 5 for developers. While the update continues the tradition of bringing OTA updates to iOS devices, beta 5 will require your device to be erased before being able to update — a little frustrating, though it’s obviously not meant for the general public. Apple also released an updated iTunes 10.5 beta 5 and Apple TV beta 4.I have noticed the ability to send a photo from the camera roll directly to the Messages app for iMessage or MMS, ad...