Apple Could Create Its Own TV Reality

The TV prototype in Apple's skunk works has many wondering if the tech giant will upend yet another major market.

Excitement over such a device increased when Walter Isaacson's recent biography quoted Apple's late Chief Executive Steve Jobs saying he wanted "to create an integrated television set" and that he had "finally cracked" the issue of simplifying the user interface. Apple hasn't spoken of such a device, and while it is known to exist, its precise form is a mystery. For curious investors, it is useful to study Apple's past forays into other new markets. It overcame doubts to remake music with the iPod, telephony with the iPhone and computing with the iPad. TV may prove trickier. Yet there are opportunities for Apple to innovate. Besides smart design, a defining feature of Apple's three blockbuster devices is simplicity. With a TV, Apple could streamline complicated on-screen menus and multiple remote-controls.