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Apple iTube: Apple Is Working On HDTV Sets, Calacanis Claims

Jason Calacanis, previously the co-founder of Weblogs Inc, GM of Netscape and current CEO of Mahalo, claims to have direct sources at Apple, who are telling him that Apple has been, and currently is working on gorgeous HDTV sets.

Nate Lanxon, who writes for Cnet.co.uk, got a chance to sit down with Calacanis for a few hours yesterday. The Mahalo CEO confirmed to Lanxon that Apple is indeed planning on entering the television market. “Love him or hate him, the bloke’s got contacts, and he confirmed to me that he knew first-hand that Apple was working on a networked television,” Lanxon explains. “These LCD HDTVs will be fully networked, with the ability to stream all your iTunes content from your Mac or PC. In fact, Calacanis told me they’ll function like a standard TV with an Apple TV box, only without the need for the box,” he continues.

The video above is simply a 3D rendering of what the Apple TV might look like.
Only this one has Firefox built in, not Safari interestingly enough.

A Digital Flat Panel LED TV would be a more than plausible venture that would undoubtedly stay in line with a new mysterious “product transition,” that Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer had recently mentioned. And it would also quiet down Greenpeace. Building the Apple TV into a standalone TV set could give consumers an unparalleled device.

MacBlogz has previously explained that the transition to digital television is an extremely crucial opportunity for Apple to exploit and enter the television market. President and CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, David Rehr, has described the digital transition as “the most significant advancement of television technology since color TV was introduced.” What better an opportunity for Apple to penetrate what is already an enormous market bursting at the seams with people in need of a Digital TV upgrade. Apple is already due for a Cinema Display refresh, and we’ve taken the liberty of outlining what we’d like to see. Recent rumors point to a MacWorld 2009 introduction for the new Displays. So don’t be surprised if Cupertino is cooking up an HDTV set right under our noses.