New Rumor Claims Apple’s 5th Generation Apple TV to Be Released Early 2016

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A recent and, rather questionable, rumor out of the far East claims that Apple’s 5th generation TV is currently undergoing its trial phase of production this month, and that the unit will go into mass production in early 2016; a move that seems quite far fetched, at best, considering that Cupertino’s latest and greatest TV device began gracing living rooms around the globe just weeks ago.

The sketchy report comes to us courtesy of DigiTimes, who recently spoke with notoriously unreliable sources in the Taiwanese supply chain. While DigiTimes is known for occasionally providing accurate information relating to Apple’s future product plans — more often then not, it is the source of “far off” rumors, generally in respect to the timing of Apple’s product launch times.

iDrop_5thGenAppleTVRmour_01Among other things, the report claims that Apple’s “next-generation” TV will feature a new, upgraded CPU, boasting a so called “heat dissipation solution” to keep the unit cool during extended use. As if the rumor weren’t a head scratcher as it stands, the report alleges that the updated CPU will ”add new functions to help the Apple TV no longer serve only as a set-top box,” whatever that entails. The report also claims that the production of the unit will be handled entirely by Quanta Computer as opposed to Foxconn.

Honestly, though, a new Apple TV unit it extremely unlikely to see the light of day so soon — especially considering that the company’s recent release of the 4th generation unit in late October. Also, though Apple tends to stick with an annual product release cycle for its hardware devices, the company’s TV set-top box has, historically speaking, been subject to more infrequent refreshes; the 3rd generation TV, for instance, was introduced back in 2012.

DigiTimes’ report suggested that the “5th generation” TV will feature new capabilities, altogether, and not just minor hardware enhancements as was the case with its predecessor.

It’s important to note, however, that in January 2013 — just a few months into the 3rd generation Apple TV’s product cycle — the company released a “rev-A” version of the same device, which was different from the original, 2012 model, though only in the respect that it featured just a few upgraded internal components. So it could possibly be that Apple has simply elected to pursue a similar course of action for the latest TV as well.

Up Next: Amazon Employee Accidentally Reveals New Apple TV App

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]

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