We’ve known for a while that Apple TV is a mere “hobby” for the company, so maybe today’s store shuffling just emphasizes that ... or maybe Apple has something up its sleeve.

The Apple store today has apparently slimmed its Apple TV offerings in half, from the 40GB and 160GB models down to just the 160GB.

So the bad news, for now it seems, is that you can’t grab a cheaper entry model for your viewing and listening pleasures. The good news, though, is that the price of the old 40GB model is now the price of the 160GB version. That’s right—the 160GB has gone from $329 down to $229.

While Apple TV may not have become nearly as popular as Apple’s iPod or iPhone products, it does have its merits for renting and purchasing high-def and standard-def movies, streaming your iTunes collections and watching photo slideshows on the big screen. Plus a bunch of people use it as a big-screen interface for all of the streaming accessible from software provider boxee.

One thing Apple may be keeping in mind is that 40 gigs just isn’t enough for media storage, especially high-def movie storage, these days. So perhaps a terabyte or the like is waiting in the wings for our little Apple TV? Or maybe it’s going to be tied into some bigger-and-better media server? We’ll have to wait and see.

Via: Engadget

Arlen Schweiger - Editor of Electronic House Magazine

Arlen writes about home technology installations and product news and reviews for electronichouse.com and Electronic House magazine.