Apple TV+ vs. Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus: price comparison
If you looked Flea bag clean at the 2019 Emmys, you’ve probably seen a bunch of ads for Apple’s new streaming service, called AppleTV+.
It’s hard to say exactly how Apple TV+ will fit into the increasingly crowded world streaming universe. At $4.99 per month (or free for one year with the purchase of a new Apple device), Apple’s streaming service is easily cheaper than Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and the upcoming launch of Disney Plus. But there are still plenty of questions potential streaming customers have about Apple TV+. Here’s everything we know about it:
What is Apple TV+?
First of all, we must specify that AppleTV+ is not the same as AppleTV, which you connect to your TV so you can stream all the old-school services like Netflix. Apple TV+ is the computer titan’s answer to those old-school streaming services, and the company has spent $6 billion to involve some of Hollywood’s biggest names, including productions from Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and JJ Abrams.
What is the start date of Apple TV+
Apple TV+ will launch on November 1. By the way, it’s 11 days before Disney is launching its own streaming service, Disney+. The world of streaming is getting very crowded.
How much will Apple’s streaming service cost?
Apple TV+ will cost $5 per month, after a seven-day free trial. But if you buy a new apple product like an iPhone or Mac, you get Apple’s streaming service free for one year.
As you can see below, the starting prices of other streaming services are more expensive than those of Apple TV+, although these competitors also generally offer much more robust selections of shows and movies:
• Hulufrom $5.99 per month
• Disney+from $6.99 per month
• netflixfrom $8.99 per month
• Amazon Premierfull subscription for $12.99 per month
Note that if you are a new subscriber, you can try any of these services for free for 30 days.
Do I need to buy an Apple TV to use the new streaming service?
While Apple may sometimes own its services (there’s still no Spotify app for the Apple TV, for example), Apple TV+ is expected to be can be streamed on competing devices like Roku, Amazon Fire TV or the smart TV of your choice. You can also look at tv.apple.com. But if you’re the type who likes to watch TV on your phone, know that Apple TV+ will only be available on Apple mobile devices.
What shows and movies will be on Apple TV+?
So far, it doesn’t look like Apple TV+ will offer catalog titles, so you’ll still have to look to Netflix for your Friends to fix. The plan is for most Apple-exclusive shows to start with three episodes and then launch one more episode per week. Here’s what’s on the original folder.
• The morning showwhich tells the story of a morning newscast dealing with a #MeToo scandal, featuring Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carell.
• Dickinsonan offbeat comedy with Hailee Steinfeld as poet Emily Dickinson and Wiz Khalifa as the personification of death.
• To seea post-apocalyptic thriller starring Jason Momoa and his muscles.
• Aidsa Sesame Street spin-off.
• snoopy in spacean animated series.
• ghost writera children’s show.
• The Queen of Elephantsa nature documentary.
• For all mankinda science fiction drama about the space race starring Joel Kinnaman and co-created by Ronald D. Moore.
• Something called “AppleTV+ and Oprah”, which will likely involve Oprah Winfrey.
That’s great. What else?
Well, if eight shows and a documentary aren’t enough for you, there’s also content on the way from Spielberg and Abrams mentioned above. Also, don’t miss shows from M. Night Shyamalan, Rob McElhenney and Charlie Day (creators of Philadelphia is always sunny), Bob’s Burgers creator Loren Bouchard, and Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon.
As for the movies, Apple has a partnership with arthouse studio A24, which will include the movie On the rocksstarring Bill Murray and Rashida Jones and directed by Sofia Coppola.
So basically Apple wants to be HBO?
Sort of. The IT giant understands the importance of owning both your content and the device through which people get their content. That said, Apple has dropped a project that Dr. Dre was developing because there was too much “violence, sex and drug use”. So don’t look for Apple’s answer to The Sopranos soon.