Rumors that Apple would release a smart TV have resurfaced

One of the most notable Apple rumors of the past fifteen years has been resurrected. Write for BloombergMark Gurman says Apple is currently evaluating the “idea of ​​making an Apple-branded TV set.” While I would normally scoff at these types of reports, Gurman has an excellent track record on Apple rumors, so it’s definitely worth mentioning.

And who can really be surprised? We now live in a world where everything, no matter how bizarre, is seemingly possible. After all, a 58-year-old Mike Tyson recently stepped into the ring with social media influencer and aspiring boxer Jake Paul.

Getting back on track, Gurman doesn’t go into detail about Apple’s plans, but notes that Apple’s theoretical foray into the smart TV space could involve a more concerted effort to roll out integrated home products to take. Recall that a few days ago news broke that Apple is planning to release a wall-mounted smart-home device sometime in March 2025.

An old rumor is new again

Every few years the blogosphere becomes enamored with reports of Apple releasing a fantastic new product. The most recent example involved Apple designing and releasing its own electric car, an initiative that in my opinion was always too ambitious to be practical. As we now know, Apple spent a lot of R&D resources on its EV project, only to formally cancel it in 2024.

But before the Apple Car, there was the Apple brand TV. Rumors swirled for years about Apple’s plans to release its own smart TV, with some of these rumors dating back more than 15 years. And if you listened to analysts at the time, an Apple Smart TV was almost certain. The only question, they claimed, was a matter of whennot as. Of course, Apple also abandoned its Smart TV initiative in 2015, after nearly a decade of exploratory and development work.

An Apple HDTV now makes less sense than ever

An Apple HDTV with integrated Apple TV functionality might have been intriguing many years ago. After all, smart TVs weren’t common yet, and there were rumors that Apple could deliver a best-in-class user experience in terms of picture quality and overall user experience.

Fast forward to 2024, and smart TVs have been commoditized. Long gone are the days when you had to spend over $1,000 for a solid smart TV. Nowadays you can buy a pretty impressive Samsung for a few hundred dollars. And if you want to be more frugal, you can easily buy a more budget-friendly 55-inch TV from a company like TCL. And for people who are not TV lovers, they may not even notice a big difference in picture quality. Plug that puppy into a Roku or Apple TV and you’ve got an instant impressive setup.

Simply put: what is the appeal of an Apple smart TV for consumers?

Plus, the smart TV world is notorious for razor-thin margins, something Apple has historically shied away from. And if Apple doesn’t want to compete on price, it’s hard to imagine Apple coming to market with a premium HDTV that could give users a huge improvement in picture quality or user experience.

It’s important to remember that Apple’s iPhone, and the iPod before it, were successful because those products entered markets that were devoid of innovation and quality. However, the smart TV market certainly has no shortage of cutting-edge players who are continually releasing better products year after year. Simply put, there isn’t much room for Apple to make a huge dent in the TV market by offering a meaningfully better experience. You would do well to take this rumor with a grain of salt.