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Apple TV price cut to $69, £59 or AU$109

Today Apple announced it would slash the price of the venerable Apple TV box, along with exclusive access to the HBO Now streaming service.

David Katzmaier Editorial Director -- Personal Tech
David reviews TVs and leads the Personal Tech team at CNET, covering mobile, software, computing, streaming and home entertainment. We provide helpful, expert reviews, advice and videos on what gadget or service to buy and how to get the most out of it.
Expertise A 20-year CNET veteran, David has been reviewing TVs since the days of CRT, rear-projection and plasma. Prior to CNET he worked at Sound & Vision magazine and eTown.com. He is known to two people on Twitter as the Cormac McCarthy of consumer electronics. Credentials
  • Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
David Katzmaier
2 min read

Watch this: Apple TV gets price cut to $69

At the Apple Watch event today Tim Cook announced a price cut on the Apple TV box, bringing it down to $69 in the US and £59 in the UK. In Australia it stays the same at AU$109, due to a downturn in the Australian dollar.

Since its debut in March 2012 the streaming box has sold for $99 in the US.

Although a price cut on old hardware often presages a new device, Apple has not announced an updated Apple TV yet. The reason for the delay in improving the box is rumored to be tied to Apple's ongoing negotiations with TV content providers on a new streaming service, perhaps similar to Sling TV .

Sarah Tew/CNET

However, Apple did announce the arrival of the HBO Now streaming service, coming exclusively to US Apple devices this April for $15 per month, just in time for the "="" premiere"="" shortcode="link" asset-type="article" uuid="a91de279-92a4-47b2-b209-822bd51a3153" slug="game-of-thrones-returns-12-april-in-the-us-uk-the-day-after" link-text="" section="news" title="'Game of Thrones' returns 12 April in the US, UK the day after" edition="us" data-key="link_bulk_key"> .

It will appear as an app on Apple TV separate from the existing HBO Go app, which unlike HBO Now, does require a subscription to a cable TV service.

Apple Watch event: The latest from San Francisco (pictures)

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The Apple TV is our second-favorite streaming box after the Roku 3 , despite its advanced age. It doesn't offer the same breadth of content as Roku, however, and cheaper devices like the Roku Stick, Amazon Fire TV Stick and Google Chromecast are proving to be popular alternatives.

The price cut and exclusive deals like HBO Now could give the ancient Apple TV a new lease on life, while Apple works out that streaming service, but I still think the Roku 3 is a better buy -- it's down to $77 as of yesterday. At some point Apple will have to debut new hardware if it wants to keep up with the competition in the living room.

I know what I'd love to see in the new box -- 4K streaming, a camera with motion capture, a universal remote -- but until we see something new, a price cut alone isn't going to cut it.

Read all of CNET's coverage of the Apple Watch event here.