Apple TV sneaks in the back-door

WHILE THE MUCH-HYPED Apple iPhone got all the attention at MacWorld Conference and Expo in San Francisco, Steve Jobs also showed off the new AppleTV.

Unlike the iPhone which has a release date of somewhere in the middle of the year, the iTV will hit the shops next month. It will provide music and high definition video in a small white box that connects directly to the telly.

It can sync with iTunes, just like an iPod, and store data on an internal hard drive. Probably most people will use it to stream audio and video directly from the internet or from computers in a local network.

One of the reasons that Apple might not be playing up the iTV is because it had already been announced, but according to the Sydney Morning Herald it might also be because Microsoft stole Apple's thunder a bit.

Microsoft had used the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas push its vision of home media servers of digital music and video, networked through the home, and high definition television delivered on-demand over the Internet. Next to that the iTV plan looks a bit understated, and Steve Jobs hates to appear understated.

Apple is also having to deal with competition from the likes of SlingBox and TiVo which offer similar products. µ