The All-New Apple TV Facing Possible Delays

Earlier this month, we brought you a host of new product announcements from Apple, including news that Apple would be releasing a highly-updated version of their Apple TV. Unlike the new iPods which went on sale shortly after the news event, the Apple TV was slated for pre-order status and Apple claimed it would ship later in September.

Well, it appears that either Apple has a production issue with the new device, or the Apple TV is attracting a whole lot more pre-orders than were expected. Flash-forward to today, and a quick perusal of the Apple Store reveals that the updated Apple TV will now ship in 2-3 weeks, easily pushing things into Mid-October.

Lending credence to a potential ship date snafu, Apple Insider is reporting that some pre-order customers who specified rush shipping, are now starting to receive an email from Apple claiming that these rush shipping charges will be refunded due to a ‘possible delay.’

“Our records indicate that when you placed your order you paid for upgraded shipping,” Apple wrote in the emails. “Due to a delay, we may have not been able to meet our delivery commitment.” The email goes on to say that Apple has “processed a refund for the shipping charge on your order. Please contact your card-issuing bank for information on when the credit will be posted to your account.”

Curiouser and curiouser. While Apple has insisted that their new streaming media device would ship in September, and even the company’s online store is reporting a status of “Ships: September” for pre-orders, it’s simply not clear at this time if first Apple TV shipments will be pushed back into mid-October.

It will be interesting to see if Apple ends up citing a hiccup in production or whether crushing demand for the new device is to blame. Either way, we’ll be bringing you all of the latest news from Apple and from around the web as it breaks.