Apple TV has been updated with 4 new channels, including an update to the Flickr app. You can catch all the details right after the jump.
Apple TV now includes a new ABC News Channel, which has just rolled out to users of Apple’s little black box in the United States, whilst a number of other services, including AOL On and PBS Kids, are now also a part of the deal.
For cricket fans, there’s even more good news, with Apple TV having also today added Willow TV, a channel specifically introduced for those following the popular sport across the globe, and with a redesigned Flickr app to boot, this is a fairly substantial bundle.
Despite Tim Cook once famously labeling Apple TV as a “hobby” back when he was Apple’s COO, the Mac maker has shown the device a fair amount more respected over the past year or so, with the likes of the Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Google Chromecast having triggered something of a battle royale in the now-crowded streaming media game.
For a long time, the blogosphere was tracking Apple’s supposed “connected TV” effort, with many analysts suggesting that the company was working on such a device. But given Google’s notably cheaper option, the prospect of what would have been a very expensive alternative has looked less and less likely, and as such, beefing up the array of content while also dropping the price of Apple TV in several markets looks a much wiser move.
Although the big iOS 8 update pertains to the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, Apple TV also runs on a variant of iOS, and as such, will be in receipt of an update over the next couple of months.
Additionally, there has also been a mountain of speculation regarding some new, long-overdue hardware. Apple TV 4 has been rumored for some time, and with apparent gaming support arriving as a part of the MFi controller expansion, it has also been suggested that Apple TV may get its own App Store. Given that the second-gen model will, as recently confirmed, not be seeing any major software updates from here on in, it seems fairly reasonable that a new model of the fruit company’s set-top should arrive in the near future, and we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for any further information on the matter.
For now, though, the Cupertino company appears focused on adding as many services as it can to the existing set-up, and with ABC news bringing on-demand video, local content for certain areas and plenty of historical content from the ABC vault, it’s a great addition to the now-expansive roster.
ABC News is currently only available to those in the U.S., but should roll-out across several other markets over the next few weeks.
You can follow us on Twitter, add us to your circle on Google+ or like our Facebook page to keep yourself updated on all the latest from Microsoft, Google, Apple and the Web.