????幾個月前,，《史蒂夫·喬布斯傳》（Steve Jobs）的作者沃爾特·艾薩克森曾承認，盡管他巨細無遺地展現(xiàn)了對喬布斯的一生,，但卻有意省略了即將面世的蘋果電視機的相關細節(jié),。喬布斯寄望蘋果的團隊帶領公司走向未來，但在3月8日于舊金山芳草地藝術中心召開的大會上,，蘋果團隊同樣有意對蘋果電視機細節(jié)避而不談,。蘋果只是發(fā)布了一款新的蘋果電視機,，它和之前的版本一樣令人失望，只不過多了高清視頻功能,。

????蘋果電視是一款安放在客廳的機頂盒,，它能播放存儲在iTunes上的電影及電視節(jié)目。起初,，一些人對其歡呼雀躍，因為他們覺得蘋果終于開始支持1080p——目前最高清的格式（之前的版本僅支持720p視頻播放）,。不過,，這點改動實際微不足道，出自庫比蒂諾的黑匣子這次不過勉強跟上了競爭對手的步伐,。Roku,、Vudu等一大票設備早就已經開始支持1080p了。當然,，蘋果電視機還支持蘋果自家的iCloud服務,，iTunes用戶想必能樂在其中,，不過這個功能可謂眾望所歸,，以至于權威專家都懶得提前預測它,。

????蘋果原本可以干得漂亮得多,。坊間關于蘋果電視機的謠言一直甚囂其上，對其做出了許多大膽的預測,。首當其沖的當屬蘋果電視將集成Siri——iPhone 4S的智能私人助理,，以及更出色的遙控器，甚至還有傳聞稱蘋果電視機會內置調頻收音機,。雖然蘋果有負眾望，但錯不在蘋果,，因為大部分期望的功能根本無法實現(xiàn),。而且要是增加更多功能，這款小盒子可能會不堪重負,，特別是考慮到其99美元的超低價格,。

????但蘋果本原本可以做的一件事是創(chuàng)建蘋果電視應用程序商店,，將平臺開放給外部開發(fā)者,。然而,，蘋果從一開始就回避了這個契機,，而是轉而為用戶精心挑選了Netflix和YouTube等少量的應用程序,。誠然,，目前在這個領域獲得成功的廠商可謂寥寥無幾,。谷歌（Google）電視采用開放平臺的模式,，但剛一上路就宣告失敗,。軟件漏洞百出、硬件性能不足,、界面凌亂不堪、用戶輸入設備讓人摸不著頭腦,，這款Android電視迅速從“必需品”降格至“可有可無”。整整一年里,，谷歌不停宣布對谷歌電視進行改進,，而在消費電子展上，諸多廠商也紛紛拋出依托于Android的智能電視機,，Android平臺這才得以繼續(xù)存活,。蘋果在這一年里本應該埋頭苦干,，開發(fā)出新的軟件產品,。

????雖然蘋果似乎完全忽視了蘋果電視應用程序,，但情況可能并非如此,。從iPad發(fā)布會上,，蘋果發(fā)布了新的蘋果電視用戶界面來看，蘋果電視機仍將大有可為,。選項菜單消失不見了,，取而代之的是iOS風格的方形圖標。當然,，目前如果想創(chuàng)建自己的圖標（或頻道）,，仍然必須成為蘋果的認可合作伙伴。更加開放,、多樣的電視應用程序商店暫時還不會出現(xiàn)，一切都要等到蘋果完成了伊薩克森所謂的“更重大的電視創(chuàng)新”,。

????在此期間,，蘋果不得不向獨立開發(fā)者封鎖平臺（除非開發(fā)者愿意通過Airplay從iOS設備推送應用程序）、壓抑創(chuàng)新,，接受在“客廳爭奪戰(zhàn)”中再次敗北,。這就意味著，《憤怒的小鳥》（Angry Birds）暫時不會出現(xiàn)在電視熒屏上了,，雖然小鳥們在Roku上活蹦亂跳,；Facebook也不能登陸高清電視了，除非觀眾轉投微軟（Microsoft）Xbox Live服務,。至少到目前為止，新款蘋果電視機和其前任一樣,，難以在市場上有所作為,。

????譯者：項航

????A few days ago, Steve Jobs biographer Walter Isaacson admitted that he purposefully omitted details about Apple's forthcoming television from his exhaustive account of the visionary's life. Yesterday at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the team Jobs tasked with carrying Apple into the future also left those details out. Instead, the company announced a new Apple TV that's every bit as disappointing as previous versions — only now in crackling high-definition.

????Initially, some rejoiced at the fact that Apple's (AAPL) living room appliance, as well as the iTunes movie and television store it connects to, are finally embracing 1080p, the highest high-definition standard out there. (Previous iterations were only capable of displaying the inferior 720p.) In reality however, the update only brings Cupertino's little black box up to speed with competing devices. The standard has long been offered by the likes of Roku, Vudu and a dozen other devices. iTunes users will certainly benefit from the set-top box's integration with Apple's iCloud services, but this was a feature so expected that pundits barely bothered to predict it ahead of time.

????What could have been is much more interesting. Apple rumor mongers frothed over anticipated upgrades of a more radical flavor. Top on the list was integration with Siri, the iPhone 4S' intelligent personal assistant, a better remote control, even an FM radio tuner. None of those came to be. Yet Apple can hardly be blamed for falling short of expectations, many of which are impossible to meet. And, to create a more robust device would surely have bloated the box, not to mention the $99 price.

????One thing Apple should have done is open the platform widely to outside developers by creating an Apple TV App Store. This is an opportunity that Apple has shunned from the start, making a select few apps like Netflix (NFLX) or Youtube (GOOG) available. True, few have had success with this tact. Google TV embraced the idea but failed with its first pass. Scatterbrained development, underpowered boxes, non-uniform interfaces, and confusing input devices quickly turned the Android-powered peripherals from must-haves to half-offs. And it has taken a year, public announcements of renewed dedication by Google, and a CES lineup jammed full of smart TVs for the platform to stay afloat. That could have been a year in which Apple was busy building a new category of software.

????While it may seem like Cupertino is ignoring Apple TV apps entirely, don't bet on it. The new Apple TV user interface demonstrated at the iPad announcement hints at a better future. Gone are the menu columns in favor of a tiled interface evocative of iOS handheld devices. Of course, to get a square (or channel) of your own, you still have to be an Apple-approved partner — for now. A more open, flourishing TV App Store isn't like to become a reality until the company's bigger television initiative Isaacson hinted at come to fruition.

????In the interim, Apple has decided to keep the platform closed to independent developers too (unless they want to stream their Apps via Airplay from an iOS device), stifling innovation and underwhelming the living room yet again. That means no Angry Birds on your big screen, even though Roku lets them fly, or Facebook on your HDTV, unless you're using Microsoft's (MSFT) Xbox Live. For now, the new Apple TV, like its ancestors, is closed for business.