For those of you who haven't read up on the new Apple TV, it basically runs on iPhone/touch 4th gen/iPad hardware and software, A4 processor, 256MB RAM and iOS. It was revealed that there is, in fact, internal storage (8GB of flash). With these things in mind, the potential is there to run apps should Apple ever get a clue and decide to go that route. Recently the same folks who update the jailbreak softwares for iPhone tried their hand at jailbreaking the Apple TV. They succeeded. After doing that, they tried to install some iOS apps. After all, it runs iOS...or a somewhat modified version of it. The apps installed...but they don't run. There's no real way to launch the apps as the UI on Apple TV isn't like that of iPhone/touch (and iPad). There will likely be found some way around this, but for now... we wait. But the possibilities are there: http://www.pcworld.com/article/206721/apple_tv_jailbreak_imagine_the_possibilities.html Why is the jailbreak important? Well, in the early days of the iPhone, there was no App Store. There were no official apps. And it was the jailbreak community that tested the waters for Apple in a small way. Perhaps that's the thinking here. Let the jailbreak community test the waters, and see if there's any interest out there in running iOS apps on HDTVs. I'm pretty sure that if Apple sees the interest, they'll issue a software update that "unlocks" an App Store for Apple TV. But what about gaming? IGN recently looked at the potential for the device as Apple's entry into the home gaming biz through a side door of sorts: http://gear.ign.com/articles/112/1125677p1.html. There's also talk of running game console emulators on the device. What about control interface? There's some talk of using the Wiimote, or iPhone/touch/Pads, or any bluetooth controller as, apparently, Apple TV has built in bluetooth capabilities. What do you folks think? Is there potential there? I think so. BUT...IMHO, I'd still rather see a more powerful device. I'm pretty sure Apple could use Apple TV as a testing ground for future iPhone/touch internal hardware. We'll eventually see multicore processors (Cortex A9MP rather than the current A8 used in Apple's A4 processor) in the iPhone and/or iPad line...so why not start the ball rolling on Apple TV? That way there could be exclusive, made-for-Apple TV, HDTV home console worthy style games on the device alongside all it's other potential uses (productivity apps, creative apps, etc.). As for control...I still say relying on iPhone/touch for control is silly: the barrier of entry is too high for the mass market consumer (cost). No, I'd rather see a built in solution, namely a new Apple Remote using the same motion sensing tech found in the iPhone (accelerometer and gyroscope) alongside the multitouch surface tech found in Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad.
