At long last, the Apple TV app is finally available to Android users
At long last, the Apple TV app is finally available to Android users
Five years after Apple TV+ launched, Android devotees can now download the Apple TV app on their devices and smart TVs.
Android users, your time is finally here. For the first time, one of the most critically acclaimed and award-winning streaming services will finally be available on Android devices and smart TVs and connected TVs using the Android OS. Five years after launching, Apple TV+ will finally be available to download from Google Play on Android mobile devices — including phones, tablets, and foldables. In addition to the company’s flagship streamer, the Apple TV app is also home to the MLS Season Pass service, meaning that Android users will now be able to stream every MLS game without any blackout restrictions.
Key Details:
- The Apple TV app is now available on Android devices and smart TVs.
- Android users can sign up for Apple TV+ and MLS Season Pass directly in the app.
- The app comes with nearly all of the features found in the iOS version, but was built specifically for Android.
On Wednesday, the tech company made its Apple TV app available via Google Play around the world. While the app features nearly all of the functionality that is found on other platforms, it was built from the ground up. The Android app uses Google’s programming language to create a unique end-to-end experience to create a familiar and intuitive interface. While an Apple TV app already existed for Google TVs, this is the first time that there will be one for Android TVs since Apple TV+ launched on Nov. 1, 2019.
Making the process even easier for Android users, they will be able to not only create an Apple account in the app, but they will also be able to subscribe to Apple TV+ and MLS Season Pass using their Google Play account on Android mobile and Google TV devices. Additionally, Google TV users are now also able to use Google Play to subscribe; in the past, they would need to sign up online or through the app on another device to stream via Apple TV.
Fortunately for these cord-cutters who are now able to download the app for the first time, Apple TV+ offers a seven-day free trial to test out the service and see if it is something they want to subscribe to. Apple TV+ runs $10 per month for its ad-free subscription; currently, the streamer does not have an ad-supported option. MLS Season Pass is available for $13 monthly for Apple TV+ subscribers and $15 monthly without the corresponding subscription. There will be no difference in pricing depending on the device customers use to sign up.
The Android version of Apple TV maintains the vast majority of the app’s key features, including Continue Watching, which allows users to pick up where they left off across all of their devices, and Watchlis, which helps keep track of every show and movie you want to watch in the future. The app is available to users on devices using the Android 10 operating system or newer.
However, there are certain features that are not yet available for Android users. Subscribers are not able to access their Apple Music accounts via the app at this time, nor are they able to cast from their device to their smart TV. While this feature is readily available on iOS devices, it is not included at launch, although Apple does hope to include it in the relatively near future.
Related: Top 5 Apple TV+ shows Android users should watch first
The Android launch comes just 10 days before the start of the 30th season of MLS soccer, and the third to be completely available via MLS Season Pass. The first-of-its-kind platform provides access to every single MLS match on one dedicated platform. Domestic soccer fans never need to worry about blackouts as every game is available via the streamer around the world. MLS Season Pass also features a wide array of exclusive content, in-depth coverage, and analysis. The new season of MLS action kicks off on Saturday, Feb. 22.
But that’s not the only exclusive sports action available via the Apple TV app. For the fourth season, Apple TV+ will be the home of a weekly, exclusive MLB doubleheader every Friday Night.
Of course, the pride of Apple TV+ is its award-winning original films and series, with the likes of “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” “Slow Horses,” “The Morning Show,” “Shrinking,” “Hijack,” and more on the TV side, not to mention “CODA,” the first-ever streaming film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, as well as “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Wolfs,” “The Instigators,” “The Family Plan,” and more, the streamer has wracked up 538 award wins and 2,553 nominations.
Apple TV
Apple TV (formerly known as Apple TV+) is a subscription video streaming service for $14.99 per month, offering a growing slate of original series, films, documentaries, and specials. Unlike other platforms that combine licensed titles with originals, Apple TV is built entirely around exclusive programming, making it the home of critically acclaimed hits such as “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” “The Morning Show,” and “Silo.” Its lineup continues to expand with award-winning dramas, comedies, family-friendly shows, and blockbuster original films like “CODA,” which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.