Tech Blue

After a shaky start to the iPhone earlier this summer, the news surrounding Apple has shifted to its upcoming television plans. First up is the Apple TV set-top box, a 99 device that is scheduled to come out before the end of September. It will serve as a replacement to the older Apple TV which was released more than three years ago and allowed viewers to access iTunes media on their television. One of the complaints with the original was that it didn’t support Netflixa complaint which will be remedied in the new model.What else does the new product include? Built-in Wi-Fi on one hand, and 0.99 rentals of ABC and Fox television shows for when you miss that important episode. Movies will now be rental-only as well, and will be priced more cheaply accordingly. (more…)

And now, a classic lesson on why we don’t spread rumors.”Facebook is building a phone” has been a popular soundbite in the last couple of days, ever since TechCrunch published a story to that effect. However, if there’s any truth to that statement, it’s very watered-down. Facebook has denied that they are looking into creating their own hardware, and say that they’re instead working on integration into existing systems. CNET doesn’t seem to want to let the story die, so they probably know something we don’t, but don’t expect to see a Facebook phone anytime soonthe company’s infamous for indefinitely postponing the projects they do announce. If things change in the near future, though, we’ll gladly eat our hats on this one.