You may not know it, but Apple recently revamped their most popular hobby. The Apple TV, long described as an experiment and proving ground for new additions to the iOS ecosystem, received an internal overhaul. Included in that overhaul is a unique SoC, which, according to AnandTech, is a single-core Apple A5 chip.

The term “single-core” is rarely used in today’s market, with quad-core processors being the norm of high-end devices. However, in a settop box, a single-core processor does offer at least one major advantage: lower power consumption. The processor continues to use Samsung’s 32 nanometer fabrication process. As for potential performance issues, fear not: (more…)

Yesterday, when news broke of an updated, slightly smaller version of the Apple TV making its way through the FCC’s certification process, speculation ran wild that Apple was intending to update the settop box in order to compete with other products. Many hoped that the Apple TV would, at long last, be able to download and install apps – after all, the current generation has hardware specifications that are roughly equivalent to that of the iPad mini.

There will be no such luck, sadly. In comments made to The Next Web by an Apple spokesperson, the Cupertino confirmed that the update would simply include the A5x, as well as other component changes. No mentions of a software update were made:

(more…)

Here’s a rather interesting piece of news: it seems as if Apple is on the verge of releasing a new model of the Apple TV. An updated version today hit the FCC – the American governmental body charged with certifying electronics for use in the United States – and included a slightly smaller design. The difference is tiny: 93.78 square millimeters, as compared to the 98 square millimeters of the second- and third-generation models. (more…)