An investigation within Android Market stats has suggested that Google TV adoption may be so low as to be under one million users. The TV and Movies app, a core part of the OS, is listed as having between 500,000 to one million installed users, GigaOM found. More than half of them are Logitech Revue owners, while the rest are Sony's combined Internet TV and Internet Blu-ray player owners.
Logitech detailed some of the fuller extent of its Google TV fallout with its fall results early Thursday. The company's profit dropped by $10 million from year-to-year to $55 million, and its revenue from $754 million to $715 million, based primarily on poor results in the Americas as well as a poor exchange rate against the Euro. An eight-point drop in Americas sales was blamed heavily in a statement (PDF) on the final sales of the Google TV-based Revue, which brought down sales to $15 million after the steep price cuts triggered by a lack of sales.
Consumers who bought or received the Logitech Revue for the holidays may have to RMA or return the device to where they bought it. The company acknowledges that a "small number" of the Android-based devices were shipped with what the company claims to be corrupted firmware. In a message on the forums, Senior Product Manager Peter McColgan advised customers that there was "nothing that you can do to fix this" and that the only choice was to get a full replacement.
Sling Media has finally released a web app that allows Logitech Revue Google TV users to access its Slingbox service. We sampled the feature nearly one year ago at CES, and a beta showed up late in May that allowed users to watch Slingbox content in other rooms via streaming. Users can access the SlingPlayer app from Google Spotlight and use it to change channels, browse the program guide, and watch or schedule recordings on a connected DVR.
About six weeks after first previewed, the Google TV 2.0 update for the Logitech Revue has started reaching users. Those on the official forums mention getting the interface revamp over-the-air starting at least late Monday and were expected to get it in force late Tuesday. Although some adopters were skeptical, calls to Logitech confirmed that they had been given the all-clear to send the Android 3.1-based update to Revues.
Logitech's acting CEO Guerrino De Luca shook up the TV field at an investor day late Thursday by revealing that the company was effectively quitting Google TV. The price-cut Revue media hub was now selling through remaining stock in the fall and wouldn't have a sequel. The company was bringing "closure to the Logitech Revue saga," he said.
Google on Friday posted its long-in-waiting Google TV update. First shown back in May, the update runs on Android 3.1 and adds support for downloadable apps for the first time. While it already had built-in apps before, it now has access to new video apps, games, and other titles optimized for the TV in Android Market.
Logitech late Thursday quickly stepped in to quell speculation over its Android 3.1 notices on Revue boxes. The Google TV hardware was "prematurely updated" in expecting the new interface, a spokeswoman said. She declined to say when the update would come but promised that the current hardware was getting a "free and automatic update" that would be pushed out later.
An unnamed electronics store has obtained updated Logitech Revue boxes hinting that the Google TV revamp is underway. The sighting by someone visiting an electronics retailer showed Engadget a new box touting Google TV, but "now with Android 3.1 and Android Market." None of the boxes have been opened yet to see if it has the new Google TV interface already installed or if it will need to get a post-sale update.
Turner has confirmed that it has Google TV apps for TBS and TNT in development but which will be limited. Following premature appearances on Android Market, a representative told GigaOM that both apps will require that viewers sign in with an account linked to traditional TV service to watch video. Authentication has been common on mobile apps but hasn't shown up on TV through the lack of third-party apps.
Google during the call for its buyout of Motorola hinted that it was confident about its ability to defend Android against patent complaints. The company declined to talk about its exact strategy but said it was now in a "very good position" to protect the entire ecosystem. The $12.5 billion deal gives it access to 17,000 existing and 7,500 in-progress patents, giving it more clout than if it had bought the collective Novell and Nortel patents.
The recently leaked Google TV Android 3.1 revamp has had its first trial runs through video (below) and reports from those on GTVHacker willing to experiment. A run-through from Channel Android on a Logitech Revue has shown more of the interface than what was seen at Google I/O in May and shows that virtually none of the original interface is left over, and much of it is now devoted to apps and widgets. Android Market is the most relevant as it's now known to have a "featured for TV" section much like that for tablets as well as a clearly TV-native interface.
In spite of rapidly growing problems, Logitech Revue owners got a treat with a leaked copy of the Android 3.1-based upgrade for Google TV. Hacking the install requires just a USB drive and a special reboot and should bring the completely remade interface, including support for third-party apps when they appear. Those in the GTV Hacker forums note that there's no root required to force the upgrade like on some Android phones and tablets.
Logitech as promised has dropped the Revue's price down to $99. Shopping at the company store or elsewhere now shows the price Logitech had mentioned just on Thursday. The lowered cost is permanent and a third of what the Google TV box cost when new.
Concord Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed that Apple wasn't likely to update the Apple TV this year. New checks in Taiwan showed little signs of a new model coming in the summer, he told AppleInsider. Instead, Apple would rely on the software updates linked to iOS 5, such as for iPad 2 display mirroring, to sell it.
Logitech hoped to move its current-generation Google TV hardware Friday by dropping the price of the Revue to $199 at Amazon. The $100 price drop is likely to help clear a path for future hardware based on Android 3.1 but also makes it the least expensive Google TV hardware to date. It may also be an admission of much lower than expected sales an an attempt to pump sales for the next several weeks.
Logitech was herald of wider problems with Google TV on Thursday after its winter fiscal results (PDF) revealed very low numbers. The peripheral maker made just $5 million in sales from the Revue and all its accessories. At $300 per device, the figure would have seen it ship fewer than 16,700 of the Android-based media hubs.
Intel on Thursday bought Silicon Hive in a sign of its deeper push into mobile. The former Philips company is best known for making chipsets for media processing in smartphones, media hubs and other small technology. Company chief Atul Sinha made it clear his company would be folded in to help improve the media performance of Atom system-on-a-chip processors.
Logitech Digital Home Group VP Ashish Arora gave clues at OTTCon on Tuesday that the promised Android Market for Google TV was coming soon. He vowed that it would not only come this year but that it should be available in the "very short term." The executive added that apps from the Market wouldn't be isolated widget apps and could link its own content to TV.
Logitech today denied any involvement from Google in an alleged halt on Revue production. A carefully worded remark from the company claimed that it had "not been asked by Google" to stop making the Google TV box until February to accommodate a firmware update. As the Android-based OS can get its updates over-the-air, new features wouldn't need to wait for a change in manufacturing to flash them with new code, it said.
Logitech has suddenly frozen shipments of its Revue box for over a month while waiting for a major Google TV revamp, insiders said Friday. It reportedly ordered its contractor Gigabyte to stop production from sometime in December through January either while Google fixes the software or else puts out a whole new revision. Production would resume when Honeycomb ships for Android tablets in February or March, Digitimes said, although the two aren't directly linked.
Logitech is reportedly preparing to launch an update to the Revue software, which brings notable improvements to the Netflix utility. As detailed in several screenshots posted on AndroidCentral, the update UI appears to provide a full set of menu options for searching, browsing by genre, or viewing new arrivals.
Logitech sent notice today that it has sent out a firmware update over the air to address slowdowns with the Revue. The Google TV box should now avoid at least some of the juddering in the interface and keep up with the performance of the rival Sony hardware. No early adoptees have discovered other additional features.
Logitech has brought its Google TV remote control app to the Android Market, letting smartphone owners with the OS control their Logitech Revue. The touchscreen controllers offer a trackpad and keyboard, along with virtual buttons for adjusting volume and changing channels. Setup is said to be very simple if both the Android device and Revue use the same Wi-Fi network.
First impressions of the Logitech Revue with Google TV were posted courtesy of NewTeeVee. As the author says, the device will not give users access to over-the-air TV broadcasts, nor will it allow streaming Hulu access. On the positive side, the hardware was found impressive, with a full-size wireless keyboard that is light and has an integrated touchpad. It has a built-in, rechargeable battery that is said to last as long as one year on a single charge.
Logitech today confirmed launch details for the first Google TV device, the Revue. It will focus on the Android-based platform's hybrid TV/web searching and TV apps but should have strong support for Logitech's ecosystem. It can act as a Harmony gateway, including with new iOS and Android apps, but also supports the same Unifying receiver technology as its mice and keyboards, giving it support for existing peripherals as well as the pre-supplied keyboard and optional diNovo mini-based Mini Controller.
Logitech tonight sent an invite to the media for an October 6 event to launch its Google TV box, the Revue. The New York City event is being hosted by Logitech's Executive VP of Products Junien Labrousse and should include a "line of products" for Google TV. What would launch beyond the Revue itself wasn't said, but Android and iOS apps and a keyboard should be part of the plans.
Logitech has reportedly begun shipping its Revue set-top boxes to retailers such as Best Buy. Total shipments are expected to surpass 500,000 units by the end of the year, industry sources affiliate with component makers have told DigiTimes.
Dish Network is lining up a plan to subsidize the Logitech Revue Google TV box for a launch later this month as a leaked presentation has likely given away the plans. The Revue is now expected to launch on September 29 for a full price of $299, but any existing Dish satellite TV customer would get it for $179 plus a $4 DVR fee. Engadget's shots also confirm a recently spied media-oriented keyboard and the interface for loading third-party Google TV apps.
Intel chief Paul Otellini in an interview today [sub. required] confirmed that the first Google TV devices should start shipping in September. He didn't say whether the Logitech Revue or Sony's Bravia TVs, though Logitech has been the furthest in development. There are "many, many" other companies supporting the platform, the executive added.
Samsung admitted at a forum today that the company was considering developing Google TV hardware. TV group leader Yoon Boo Keun told the media Samsung was "reviewing" the prospect of using the Android-based shell but was anxious about support in South Korea. Media producers would have to get behind Google's platform in Samsung's home country for it to make sense, Keun told Bloomberg and others in attendance.
Logitech has recently started up an unusual set of video teasers (below) for its Google TV box, the Revue. The promo spots portray the TV as a "lonely" personified set but have it appear out of nowhere, scaring teenage girls and otherwise creating chaos. The ads don't provide more details but do promise the Revue will launch in the fall.
LG is considering developing sets using Google TV but is afraid of being cut out of the software equation, the company's Home Entertainment chief Simon Kang said in an interview [reg. required]. He acknowledged that the Android platform could make for "strong interest" but that it wasn't certain as the software could up overriding any of LG's own efforts. The Korean company has prided itself on its custom Netcast software, which among other things brings 720p Skype video chats.
Logitech today removed some of the questions surrounding its Google TV box by posting an official Revue product page. While the company didn't have more details, it explained the name choice as an attempt to reflect the multi-purpose nature of the Android-powered add-on. Since the set-top can do everything a Harmony remote and Squeezebox can, it ought to reflect a multi-act performance like a revue, the gear maker said.
