Apple - That's what I said!

Rumors are flying about a new Apple device. Some say the new product will be a mysterious device known as the brick. Some suggest it will be a new rev of Apple TV. And, while I don't necessarily buy that a webcast will happen on Tuesday, as is rumored on a number of sites, I do love to see popular blogs like GigaOm echoing my sentiments regarding the next rev of Apple TV.

Alistair Croll's article on GigaOm is great. He is dead-on with his list of features. The TiVo functionality is a must-have if the device is to be massively successful (although Jobs' biases may never allow this feature to come to pass). I also love Alistair's addition of video conferencing. I was begging for this feature when the Apple TV and the Mac mini first came out; however, since then, I have stopped thinking of conferencing as a potential feature for Apple TV. But, Alistair is right. The time is now.

While it has not yet gone completely mainstream, consumer video conferencing technology is quite good these days. And, using it is a new experience all together. It fills a different void than a phone call. You don't feel as though you are talking to your loved ones; you feel as though you are in their home, sitting with them and chatting. It is a terrific cure for homesickness or missing someone who has been away for some time. It really is amazing, and it's quite good for the soul to see your loved one's faces live over video.

If Apple added video conferencing to Apple TV and brought back an external iSight, enabling people to video conference over their big screen TVs, they would change the world. This stuff would go mainstream within a year. Not only would those who are tech savvy buy this product for their home, they would also buy it and hook it up for their parents. Apple would have a blockbuster, recession-proof product on their hands.

Apple, again, build this product! (I'll even relax on the blu-ray.) Apple TV + TiVo + iChat + a new external iSight. (Given what Apple can do with a tiny form-factor limited camera these days, imagine what they could do with a new external camera without those limits!)