Apple offers ‘sneak peek’ at iTV media router

During today’s Showtime event in San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs offered an unexpected “sneak peek” at the company’s media router, tentatively titled iTV. The device, which is slightly larger than a Mac mini computer dimensionally, is planned for release in the first quarter of 2007 at a price of $299, and enables any iTunes 7-equipped Mac or PC to spool media content to a current-generation television set. iTV includes component video, HDMI, optical audio and RCA-style stereo audio ports, plus an Ethernet port, 802.11 wireless connectivity, and a power cable; the power supply is inside the unit. Videos, music, photos, podcasts, and movie trailers from Apple can all be performed on your home TV/AV system with the unit, which connects either directly to your TV or a set top box. Additional details to come.