Logitech's Ashish Arora, VP and general manager of the big L's Digital Home Group, this afternoon addressed the rumors that Google had asked for Google TV devices to not be shipped while they work on an software update to address a number of feature deficiencies. Says Arora:
Those familiar with our product know that we don’t need to modify the Logitech Revue box to deliver software enhancements. Each of our customers will receive periodic over-the-air updates whenever Google and Logitech release changes to the Google TV platform. Logitech Revue boxes purchased at launch in October, as a holiday gift in December or to follow basketball in the spring, will all be the same and will all benefit from the same software updates.Logitech and Google continue to have a collaborative, effective working relationship as we listen to consumer feedback and work together on enhancements to the Google TV platform. We at Logitech are enthusiastic about Google TV and our role in bringing this new platform to U.S. consumers.
All true. The Revue set-top box is updated just like any other Android device. (In fact, the update looks exactly like any other Android device.) But we couldn't help but notice that there's really nothing in there (or the two other paragraphs we didn't quote) that addresses whether Google asked (or told) Logitech to not ship Revues while the software situation's sorted out. We agree that to do so might be a tad over the top. While the entire Google TV experience still has a lot of room to grow (read into that what you will), there's still plenty of functionality that can be had out of the box.
So the question remains: Did Google pressure Logitech and others to halt shipping in favor of an update? Possible. And the Revue currently is out of stock. We're not sure how long it's been unavailable. Could be that it's simply sold out, could be otherwise.
Arora closes with "After a brief holiday break, Logitech’s Revue team will be heading to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in early January, where we look forward to demonstrating how Google TV is transforming the TV-watching experience." We'll be there, too, and we'll see if there's anything new going on. [Logitech]
