@MarkAnderson damn beat me to it:)

@MarkAnderson i was thinking the same thing, thats like calling it the espn, anywans on-topic, this isnt overly amazing(lack of 1080p and nothing too new)

@MarkAnderson

But then again it's not as if anyone is going to buy one here I suppose.

@MarkAnderson They probably took out 1080p and i so they can add it next year and get suckers to drop money for the next iTV.

They did this with video on the iphone 3G to get people to buy the 3Gs yet you can download an app that does video on the 3G.

@MarkAnderson that's kind of why they changed it.

The trade off of free apps for 1080 playback is quite lame. I mean, what gadget nut ONLY has a 720p TV these days? I'm pretty certain that anyone who knows their way around technology will opt for the 1080p version of anything.

And if that is because of the A4's shortcomings, why not put a different chip inside (or add something to the device) so that it can keep this functionality?

@MarkAnderson

Exactly what I was going to say. Next they'll want iPlayer too..

@MarkAnderson: I wonder if it'd be possible to stream the ITV Player through the iTV, because that wouldn't be confusing at all.

@MarkAnderson I was led to believe that the reason they didn't go with iTV in the beginning was because of iTV over here in the UK. Some iTV programmes get watched in the US, like that dinosaur programme, and that has iTV branding on it. Can't understand how Apple thinks it will get away with it. I am sure that iTV won't be very happy about this. But maybe Apple thinks it is big enough to win a lawsuit?

@MarkAnderson I thought exactly the same.

@a dumb cat
the difference between 1080p and 720p is one that even most tech savy Engadget readers would never even notice. It's like asking someone to look at two 4.3" photographs taken from a 5 megapixel camera and a 7 megapixel camera and asking them to tell you which one's from which camera.

@MarkAnderson

lol was just thinking that... will this new version of the product be available in the uk?

and what are the actual rules on this? since im pretty sure itv even uses:

iTV

for stuff

@MarkAnderson

And in the USA. Google EyeTV. A TV Tuning software/hardware product for the Mac. I could definitely see this being an issue.

@MarkAnderson My thoughts exactly. I guess nobody at Apple UK had the nuts to raise their hand at the marketing meeting.

In this day and age, the first thing anyone does is see if a .com exists. This would have been a bit of a giveaway.

@MarkAnderson
iPhone, iPad, iTV, none of these Apple had claim to first coincidentally enough

on another note, they should have called it iConsole or something, I can see this being a huge success for casual gamers just like the iPhone and iPod Touch

@Bobbo Really seriously no. If I can tell the difference on two 22" screens from 3-4m away, you'd definitely be able to on a 40" screen.

@MarkAnderson I just checked the governments website, and ITV uk owns the trademarks:
iTV
itv
ITv
iTv,
etc.

@MarkAnderson
1. It's just a rumour.
2. The UK is Apple's biggest market outside the US so I'm sure they'll sort something out. They basically have to.

@MarkAnderson and PCG

Apple has chosen other company's names before. iPhone, iOS, even Apple itself. It will be dealt with like it always is, with lots of money.

@Bobbo just not true.

@MarkAnderson Or they have already paid ITV shitloads of cash, and they have reached an agreement. I suspect that this is unlikely, however.

@MarkAnderson
If I wasn't watching the England match now I woulda beaten you to it!

@CDice Yes but iTV is a massive UK company. It owns the rights to shows such as X Factor, I'm a Celebrity and many other big (sometimes global) shows.
This is not Apple v a small company.

And Apple's 2nd biggest market is the UK so they need to get it right. It basically has to be sold in the UK.

@CDice Lol, yeah good luck with that one www.itv.com

@MarkAnderson Not neccesarily. They will just license the name iTV from them like they did with Cisco for iOS and iPhone monikers.

I dont think its such a big deal. Also another post comparing it to ESPN is stupid. ESPN is a big sports network. Not some no-name internet website or something.

I think I like the iTV moniker. Sounds really cool & applish. Very creative Apple. These guys are amazing.

@slickpaki
How will users differentiate?

@slickpaki Err no, ITV is a massive UK brand (airing since 1955!!!), cross associating it with an apple product would be one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard

@slickpaki Do you actually know what iTV is? Its a major TV network worth billions of £ in the UK.

@MarkAnderson
You'd think they'd go with iBox or iTele.... iTV is a crap name anyway... They don't call it iMP3 or iSlate.
Plus Trevor McDonald is going to use Job's head for the 10o'clock DONG if they go with iTV!

@slickpaki To further exacerbate the stupidity of your comment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITV

@fpad77
This is why Americans are lambasted so very often

@MarkAnderson

iTV? Um...they are going to have some serious copyright issues with that...

And my iPod third-gen can play 720p and 1080p with barely a a lag...I call bullshit on Apple's claim that A4 can't handle HD...The gpu on A4 alone can decode it...

Probably a feature left for the "next gen" one, and Apple will do 1080p better than anyone else on the next "iTV"...

16GB of storage? They better have proper streaming from local network and Internet with that low amount of memory.

@MarkAnderson Oh Hey TOPOLSKY... I guess the Boss only comes out for Apple news... yes... I noticed

@Bobbo that's crazy, man. The difference between 720p and 1080p is huge. You are thinking about this the wrong way. While it may be difficult to distinguish the two when viewing a photo or video, the difference is obvious when viewing content you would normally view on a computer screen. For one thing, you can obviously fit way more windows on 1080p res. This is not even taking into consideration the fact that the 720p iTV will be scaling down the native resolution of a 1080p display, which is really the worst part of all--this leads to poor-looking, muddy images. I kind of doubt this whole 720p thing is true. Pretty horrible if so.

@GeorgeRobo

Um, yeah, I'm pretty sure Cisco and Apple are bigger companies than ITV.

And to whoever linked to the ITV website, um, what was the point of that? I watch a lot of Brit tv, so um, thanks.

@ComboBreaker
I'd never noticed that trend, gonna keep an eye out for that.

@CDice Yeah buut I bet if you went out onto the street and asked people what Cisco was, they wouldn't know.
Go out to a British street and ask what iTV is and everyone will know.
Its going to be much harder to get iTV to give up its whole brand for the sake of one product.

@CDice

It doesn't matter if Apple has more value for stocks or something silly like that...ITV has been around for nearly SIXTY YEARS...and they are partially government owned...

Apple WILL have a problem...

@GeorgeRobo

Stolen off Wiki and note that the pound is usually worth about twice as much as the dollar-

ITV-

Revenue £1,879 million (2009)[2]
Operating income £196 million (2009)[2]
Net income £94 million (2009)[2]
Employees 5,597 (2008)

Cisco-

Revenue $36.117 billion (2009)[2]
Operating income $7.322 billion (2009)[2]
Net income $6.134 billion (2009)[2]
Total assets $68.128 billion (2009)[2]
Total equity $38.647 billion (2009)[2]
Employees 63,756 (October 2009)[3]

Apple-

Revenue $42.91 billion (2009)[4]
Operating income $11.74 billion (2009)[5]
Profit $8.24 billion (2009)[5]
Total assets $47.50 billion (2009)[4]
Total equity $31.64 billion (2009)[4]
Employees 34,300 (2009)[6]

So, um, yeah.

@CDice It's not just about how 'big' they are, it's about the market presence. Ask 1000 people in the US if they recognise the words 'Cisco' and 'ESPN'

Cisco are probably worth more and have a bigger command in their sector, but ESPN are a household name.

ITV here are a household name, and if you ask people if they know 'Cisco' or 'ITV', there will only be one winner.

@a dumb cat That's the point, perhaps it isn't aimed at gadget nuts. What Apple product is, hasn't stopped them selling a lot of iPad and iPhones. It still surprises me that after all this time, people like you don't get Apple. They are about making technology accessible to the non gadget nut.

@a dumb cat

Gadget nuts are not how companies make their money. For $99, a lot of people that don't know anything about their TV will get one. Examplez: iPod shuffle, Wii, etc.

@CDice You are so stupid it's insulting.......

@GeorgeRobo

Hmm, I'm pretty sure people in America, normal folks here and there, have heard of Cisco. They're not up there with Microsoft or Apple in the public consciousness, sure, but they're not unknown either.

And yes, I already know that people in the UK recognize the name ITV along with BBC, just like we in the US recognize ABC, NBC, CBS.

But you seem to be under the mistaken impression that 1, Apple didn't at the least google the name ITV, and 2, that money doesn't speak louder than words, history, ideas, etc.

Apple will use the name and they will pay for it, so stop freaking out.

@CDice there are 5 terrestrial (analogue) channels in the UK - we haven't fully switched to digital yet - and ITV is the third oldest. It has registered trademarks on all different versions of its name and airs some of the top shows here, including half of the world cup and today's england match. As SarnGate said, ITV is an easily recognisable household name. In fact, anyone who has lived here for more than three years and owned a TV for at least 1 year, will know who ITV is.

@fpad77

And you're so naive, it's almost cute.

@MarkAnderson
Right again!

@CDice
You are as daft as you are stubborn.

@CDice Good lord! Seriously? Pot. Kettle. Black.
America should be ashamed of you.