Prototype Apple interactive TV box appears on Ebay

If you're in the market for an Apple prototype but don't have $5,000 to spend, consider Ebay. This week an Apple Interactive Television Box (AITB) showed up, and quickly sold for less than fifty bucks.

Built between 1994 and 1995, the AiTB was meant to act as a sort of liaison between the consumer and an interactive television service. In practice, the user would select what s/he wanted to see with a remote. The AITB would then pass those choices on to a central server which provided the content. We assume Apple had a subscription model planned. You can view the manual here (PDF).

Units exist in various states of completion, from non-functioning units with an ill-fitting case to near production models with FCC stickers. Even these won't boot, however, and the remote controls are especially difficult to find.

The unit that recently sold on Ebay looks fairly complete. This is a nice piece that any collector would like to have. And you needn't visit a German bar to get it.

[via AppleInsider]
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