Apple TV: 160GB Price Cut, 40GB Completely Cut

By Rene Ritchie
last updated

Speaking of Apple TV and the future, MacRumors reports that Apple's "hobby" lost its smaller SKU this morning as the 40GB Apple TV was cut from the Apple Store -- and Apple product lineup -- and the 160GB Apple TV was given a healthy price cut down from $329 to $229 [Apple Store link].

So our question becomes, is this a sign of Apple TV's slow slide to oblivion, or just a clearing of the deck before a long, long, long overdue update?

Storage aside, the Apple TV hardware has been unchanged since it was announced back in 2006 and then launched at Macworld 2007 alongside the introduction of the iPhone. The software received minor 1.x bumps before getting the <a href="https://www.imore.com/2008/01/15/apple-tv-2-rentals-hd-quality-free-software-upgrade-and-price-drop/>Take 2 treatment at Macworld 2008 as part of Apple's expansion into HD, TV, and Movie rentals, but since then has again been relegated to minor 2.x bumps -- mostly in keeping with iTunes and QuickTime updates.

Of course, with iTunes 9 and Snow Leopard's QuickTime X both being fairly significant updates this time around, no doubt another software bump is on its way... Could there finally be some new hardware coming with it?

We'll keep our hopes up, but we've learned to live with anticipointment...

Rene Ritchie
Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.