Three big original series came with the new service: See, starring Jason Momoa in a dystopian epic where the world is blind; The Morning Show, starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carell as morning news anchors; and sci-fi series For All Mankind. None of these shows are bad by any stretch. However, none of them are good enough to justify Apple TV+ alongside other services like Netflix. Over the years, Apple has continued to invest significant cash into the streaming service. It appears Apple’s top brass don’t want Apple TV+ to share the same fate as Ping (Apple’s long-forgotten attempt at music social networking). Fortunately, it’s working out well. Apple TV+’s recent rise to success can be attributed to the incredible popularity of Ted Lasso, which garnered significant attention as a wholesome and heartfelt comedy series set in London about an American who’s come in to manage a fictional soccer team. Cut to Spring 2022—more than two years since Apple TV+’s “meh” launch—and the streaming service is now a must-have for many. The offerings are great, the future is bright, and value is great. Here are several reasons why Apple TV+ is now a must-have streaming service and why now is a great time to hop aboard if you haven’t already.
1. Apple TV+ Is Competitively Priced
In a climate where streaming services are constantly jacking up their prices (cough Netflix cough), Apple TV+ continues to be available for a price that no other service can match: $4.99 per month. Apple wants to offer unique content that you can’t watch anywhere else, and they want to draw you in with a price so low that you simply can’t say no. Between its low cost and high-quality original content, Apple TV+ is an incredible value that’ll barely ding your wallet.
2. Apple TV+ Has Content Variety
At first, the content variety offered by Apple was far from what anyone would describe as “expansive.” It seemed like Apple TV+ was leaning hard into hard-hitting drama series akin to what you’d find on HBO. However, Apple TV+ quickly changed tune and started buying up deals for a wider range of content. Enter their first real hit, Ted Lasso. Since then, Apple has been more willing to spend cash on different kinds of projects and creators, and as this variety came to fruition—from Foundation to Schmigadoon! to Servant to Mythic Quest—those shows have made a sizable impact on subscribership. The latest original series on Apple TV+ to make waves and really hit audiences has been the critically acclaimed drama, Pachinko. Now when you surf Apple TV+’s library, you’ll find an ever-growing selection of original content for whatever mood you’re in. It’s a solid milestone for Apple TV+ in its quest to become a mainstream service.
3. Apple TV+ Is Consistently High-Quality
Apple TV+ isn’t just trying to pump out tons of content across genres. They don’t want to end up being like Netflix. Rather, Apple clearly wants to challenge HBO in becoming the most renowned producer of high-quality TV programming for the modern age. And when you look at the sheer quality of every original Apple TV+ series, the streaming platform has achieved a success rate beyond expectations. The Tragedy of Macbeth by A24 Films was a huge win as far as Apple TV+’s growing participation in cinema. The aforementioned Pachinko is one of the best series of the past many years. Defending Jacob, The Morning Show, and Severance could easily pass as HBO shows. It’s not just about Apple’s willingness to throw money at creators in hopes of displacing HBO’s reign as king of high-quality TV programming. Apple has shown a willingness to allow creators freedom of production without major studio interference, and that’s a big draw for creative minds.
4. Apple TV+ Has Exciting Future Projects
The future is bright for Apple. Certainly much brighter than the future appears for established platforms like Netflix. Apple has spent an extraordinary sum of money to attract some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry, all for the sole purpose of building out a streaming library that can’t be ignored. On top of the continuing success of Ted Lasso and Pachinko, Apple has scored exclusive rights to Martin Scorsese’s next film, having handed over $200 million to the legendary filmmaker for production of his next project with Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro. Apple TV+ is only going to gain further traction in the years ahead, as it uses the financial might of its backing company to spend the money needed to bring in the best content and more subscribers.
5. Apple TV+ Is Easy and Simple
People don’t want to deal with a subscription process that’s time-consuming and overly complicated. In an ideal world, we’d click a single button and the subscription would go through without a hitch. Apple makes it incredibly easy to sign up, especially if you have an Apple device like an iPhone, iPad, or MacBook with an active Apple Store account. It’s also painless if you’re already using Apple Pay. Simply click, confirm, and you’re good to go. And unlike other streaming platforms, Apple TV+ doesn’t offer tiered plans. You don’t need to worry about whether your plan has ads, supports 4K streaming, has access to “premium” shows, or allows simultaneous viewing with multiple devices. Apple TV+ is one single plan. Don’t know if Apple TV+ is right for you? You can try it free with a 7-day trial. Or, if you purchase any new Apple device, you can redeem a 3-month free trial of Apple TV+. If you’re already subscribed to one of Apple’s other subscription services—such as iCloud+, Apple Music, Apple News+, Apple Arcade—then you can bundle them into one easy subscription via Apple One. This is a great option that you can even share with family members. Read next: Tips for saving money when subscribing to streaming services
