Rumor: Apple to Release 'iBox'?


Apple may be releasing a device known as the 'iBox', according to a rumor report published at MacOSX.com. The iBox is said to be a combo TV tuner/program recorder/hard drive/Airport networkable device running a G3 CPU with iTunes and iPhoto compatibility. The G3 was a 500MHz unit originally, but is now running a 900MHz G3 in more recent demonstration units. RAM is 128MB (built-in) and the iBox is said to sport a 120GB hard drive. It also has FireWire 400, USB 2.0, 10/100 Ethernet, AirPort Extreme, BlueTooth, RCA I/O and S-Video.

The iBox reportedly runs an application called iBox Remote, which can schedule recording times like a VCR. It also allows remote access so users can program the iBox from work or elsewhere.

The article also says that the iBox has a SuperDrive built in, as well as a version of iDVD for program editing. Additional features reportedly include iTunes, which any Mac or PC networked with the iBox can access.

The price for all this magic? $395-$595, depending on storage configuration.

The story is reportedly from a member of an Apple testing program, although MacOSX.com have not established his/her bona fides.

Analysis: In a word? Skeptical. It's like a Mac user's dream wish-list. We'll happily eat our words if proven wrong, but it sounds fishy. And, if it were going to be produced, we'd have expected a leak to Taiwan's Digitimes by now. Unless a South Korean manufacturer is producing it, Digitimes usually turns up things like the 20" iMac (reported as a 19", but still).

On the positive side, industry reports suggest the home DVD recorder market is set to explode in 2004, with inexpensive models hitting the shelves in volume. That could be a market Apple is hoping to anticipate and make a killing out of.