Apple extends free Apple TV + 3 more months (and now...

Apple has extended Apple TV + for three more months at no charge for customers who bought an Apple product and got their first year free. The good thing is: Now there is actually content worth seeing in the service.

“We’re giving you extra time to discover the latest Apple Originals and catch up on shows that are returning for a second season,” said my email from Apple. “You don’t have to do anything – just keep looking for free until February 2021.”

I saw almost nothing on Apple TV for the first few months of the free service.

And scoffers might argue that the three months off came because no one is ready to actually pay for the service, but that is becoming less and less true.

The Apple exclusive See Starting Jason Momoa was actually interesting, but the streaming service had so little value initially that I suggested Apple shut it down in January. However, I only recently enjoyed it Long way upwith Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman driving Harley Davidson electric motorcycles from the southern tip of South America to Los Angeles.

(What an excuse, by the way. You should have gone to the upper part of Alaska.)

That was interesting, and Apple carefully added McGregor’s and Boorman’s previous mega-trips Long drive around and Long way down along with the new expedition that will be released episode by episode. So in the last few weeks I actually had reason to visit the formerly lonely Apple TV + app.

Oh: and Tom Hanks’ Greyhound was just excellent.

Even so, there is still a lack of content on Apple TV +. It’s hard to find something to see every night.

There are also UI challenges. I have to do a full review of Apple TV + one day, but in short, it doesn’t seem to recognize when you’re watching a series right now. So for each of them Long way around / down / up Series I had to manually find the next episode every time.

Maybe not shocking, this gets old after a while.

Additionally, Apple TV + is presented along with additional content for purchase and several other streaming media services that I honestly found confusing at times. But more on that in another post.

For now, I’ll have Apple TV + free for another quarter, and so will you if you’ve bought an Apple device in the last 12 months.

Here is Apple’s email explaining the gift:

“We’re extending your free Apple TV + year through February.

We’re giving you extra time to discover the latest Apple Originals and catch up on shows returning for a second season. You don’t have to do anything – just keep watching for free until February 2021.

It was an incredible debut year. Audiences love Emmy Award-winning The Morning Show, WWII blockbuster thriller Greyhound, heartwarming comedy Ted Lasso, and more. Be on the lookout for new premieres, box office hits like On the Rocks, the eye-opening documentaries Tiny World and Servant Season 2, For All Mankind and Peabody winner Dickinson.

Your new renewal date will soon be displayed under “Manage Subscriptions”. ”