Samsung says an Apple television won't beat them in picture quality
"We've not seen what they've done but what we can say is they don't have 10,000 people in R&D in the vision category," AV production manager Chris Moseley told Pocket-Lint. "They don't have the best scaling engine in the world and they don't have world renowned picture quality that has been awarded more than anyone else."
As a major part of Apple's supply chain for devices ranging from the iPhone to the iPad to Macs, Samsung has provided LCDs for years for Apple's electronics. While Samsung develops its own displays, Apple instead buys its screens from a number of providers, including LG and Sharp.
Samsung's comments come as Apple is rumored to be working on its own full-fledged television set. While Samsung officials may be focused on picture quality, late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs seemed more focused on interacting with the device when he told biographer Walter Isaacson that he felt he had "cracked" the secret to a simple and elegant television set.
"It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine," he said. "I finally cracked it."
But Moseley at Samsung said he believes that television sets are "ultimately about picture quality." He said additional features, like "how smart they are" can be "great," but they're also a "secondary consideration."
"The ultimate is about picture quality and there is no way that anyone, new or old, can come along this year or next and beat us on picture quality," he said. "So, from that perspective, it's not a great concern, but it remains to be seen what they're going to come out with, if anything."
Last month at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nev., Samsung showed off its own voice controls for its latest television sets that will hit the market this year. In addition, Samsung's "smart" TVs will also be controllable through motion and will feature face recognition. The Korean electronics maker also introduced a "Smart Evolution" concept that will allow certain TV sets to be upgradeable, rather than requiring customers to buy an entirely new model.
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I am very happy with my current 65" HDTV and hopefully will be for many years to come. But I can say that picture quality was my #1 consideration when shopping. Next was the size of the screen and then price. Apple might have a great GUI for a TV, but considering they will probably price it at a premium, they better offer a damn good picture and sizes larger than 50".
With my PS3 with Netflix, DirecTV DVR , and an application called Playback that streams all the content from my Mac Pro to my TV, I don't really feel like Apple could offer me anything close to the content I already have now. Nor do I feel the current set-up is particularly cumbersome or difficult to navigate or use. But I will wait and see what Apple comes out with before I pass final judgement. Regardless of how spectacular it may be, one thing is for sure most people won't replace a perfectly working set for an Apple branded one just because it is made by Apple. But then again recently made TV's don't tend to last that long compared to the old CRT sets that seemed to last forever.
But Moseley at Samsung said he believes that television sets are "ultimately about picture quality." He said additional features, like "how smart they are" can be "great," but they're also a "secondary consideration."
just like tablets will ultimately be about flash playback and phones will need the ability to run windows
APPLE IS DOOMED!
No, not doomed, but I don't see them becoming the #1 TV manufacturer either.
Looks like the list is going to be expanded.
http://gizmodo.com/5416781/top-5-ass...quotes-in-2007
That said, my 42" TV is about 5 years old. If they make a nice 55" that isn't break-the-bank expensive, I'll be in line with my wallet ready.