Google TV, which just last week was rumored to be arriving in mid-October, now is set to land Sept. 29 in the form of Logitech's Revue STB. The ticket? It's carrying a MSRP of $299, says Engadget, which has a better-than-most track record in predicting events of this sort. The blog, citing anonymous sources, also says Dish subscribers can get one of the units for $179. The news shouldn't be much of a surprise, after all, Intel CEO Paul Otelini--whose company makes chips for both devices--let it slip in the Wall Street Journal last week, saying GTV devices "should start shipping this month." If Google TV does hit the street the 29th, it should have company... Steve Jobs on Sept. 2 said the newly revamped Apple TV would start shipping in "about four weeks." The meeting will set up a veritable "Clash of the Titans," which will become even more interesting when the long-awaited Boxee Box joins the fray as well. That release is set for November, with pre-release orders already being accepted on Amazon.com.
Last week, "those in the know" published a purported Best Buy document that indicated an Oct. 17 launch for Google TV. Officially, Google still is projecting an October launch for Google TV.
Ah, the universe moves in strange ways.
While the two often are mentioned in the same breath, they're really very different beasts... for the moment.
Google TV, a hardware and software combo could best be described as an OTT delivery system that should play well with others, specifically, it's likely to make viewing content a richer experience by allowing users to bring the Internet to the living room. Users will be able to search for content, chat with friends via social networks, and, eventually, even potentially use Google's voice actions to control their TVs. Google has, so far, shown only minimal interest in getting too deeply involved in the content wars. In many ways, it's seen as being pay-TV service provider friendly.
Apple TV, on the other hand, is a little scarier to operators, broadcasters, heck, even content owners. That's because Apple TV's current iteration is really designed to serve as a conduit to iTunes, and all the content Apple can gather, package, sell and take a piece of. At $99 it's one of the most affordable devices available that can, along with its Netflix app, bring tons of premium content across the Internet to the living room. For pay-TV operators, that's a problem.
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