Although Apple didn’t discuss Apple TV hardware at yesterday’s event, the company may be taking steps to gradually phase out the older third-generation Apple TV. According to 9to5Mac, Apple has reportedly been pulling stock of the older Apple TV from its retail store shelves, with employees being told to ship them back to Apple. Links to purchase the device also appear to have been removed from the company’s online store, making last year’s new tvOS-powered fourth-generation Apple TV the only box in the lineup. Although the third-generation Apple TV has no expansion capabilities beyond the “channels” that Apple chooses to add on the back end, at $69 it does make for a useful entry-level device into the Apple TV ecosystem, as well as an inexpensive AirPlay video receiver or secondary Apple TV box that could be used in an alternate room in the house. At this point, the fourth-generation Apple TV still begins at the much costlier $149 price point.
