This week, Federico and John each pick two apps you may or may not have heard of or considered using and explain why you should give them a try.
On AppStories+, we extend our picks with several more apps we’ve been testing recently. Learn more at appstories.plus.
App Debuts Bleep I recently came across this app, which aims to be an “all-in-one capture board” that supports links, quick notes, and inspirational quotes. Bleep offers a Freesort feature, which lets you arrange cards however you want, as well as Rooms, which are basically folders. I dig the visuals, and I think more apps should...
My Video Production Apps Today, I thought I’d share the apps I use for video production. Most readers probably don’t have a YouTube channel, but many of these apps are also handy for making videos to share with friends and family, school projects, or work presentations. Final Cut Pro for Mac and iPad I’ve found that my editing needs...
Interesting Links Brett Terpstra has a new script that lets you automatically sync Readwise highlights to a DEVONthink database on macOS. (Link) Gemini’s Deep Research feature, which came out before the namesake ChatGPT mode and can provide you with short essays about any topic found on the web, is now also available in the Gemini app...
Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:
Niléane is developing an obsession with remotes, but she swears she’s finally got The One, Chris has found a box that lets him store anything, and another color-based challenge leads to controversy (who saw that coming???).
This week, I take listeners back to the animal kingdom, before Federico and I share a couple of TV recommendations. Plus, I show off a recent dream device acquisition.
Sigmund and Devon highlight this weekend’s debut of Apple Original film The Gorge starring Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy, discuss Sigmund’s experience of working with Vision Pro on a real TV set, and share their thoughts on the Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show headlined by Kendrick Lamar.
.](https://cdn.macstories.net/cleanshot-2025-02-14-at-06-16-37-2x-1739531959150.png)
Source: FlatpanelsHD.
Update: A spokesperson for Netflix has told The Verge that the integration with the Apple TV app’s Watchlist and Continue Watching features was a mistake and is being reversed. Perhaps the reaction to the change will cause Netflix to reconsider its refusal to participate in the TV app, but I wouldn’t hold your breath waiting for that to happen.
FlatpanelsHD has discovered that Netflix, long a holdout that was unavailable in Apple’s TV app, is beginning to prompt users to add the service to the TV app:
Today, FlatpanelsHD received a prompt on Apple TV 4K to integrate Netflix into the Apple TV app, as shown at the bottom. After accepting, Netflix content appeared in the Continue Watching queue and Watchlist within the Apple TV app, as seen below.
FlatpanelsHD says the feature is currently limited to Netflix Originals programming and users who are also U.S. account holders.
I’ve looked for this myself and haven’t seen it yet, but it may just be that the rollout is happening gradually. As of publication, I haven’t seen an update to the Netflix app (though the update may be a server-side change) and as 9to5Mac points out, Apple’s list of apps that support Watchlist hasn’t been updated in almost one year. So, it’s possible that after more people have the new feature, we’ll see an official announcement from Apple and/or Netflix.
This is great news, although my enthusiasm is tempered by the reported limitations. I hope the feature extends beyond Netflix Originals and to other countries. Still, for a lot of people I’m sure the only service they use that isn’t in the TV app is Netflix, so any integration after all these years is better than none. I know I’ll be checking my Apple TV throughout the day to try this myself.
Next Wednesday, Apple is holding a launch event for what Tim Cook described on X as ‘the newest member of the family.’ The cryptic post is accompanied by a short video of a shimmery Apple logo framed by a circle with a rainbow border.
Quoting Cook’s post on X, Mark Gurman of Bloomberg says the event will feature an updated iPhone SE.
Yesterday, it was reported that Apple had resumed advertising on X (formerly Twitter). The company ceased advertising on the site without comment in November 2023, but earlier this week, ads for a Safari privacy feature and the Apple TV+ show Severance began appearing on X. Apple has not commented on why the change was made.
Apple’s relationship with X has been rocky since Elon Musk took over in October 2022. That fall, it was reported that Apple significantly decreased its advertising on the social media platform. That was seemingly corroborated by Musk himself, who said in November 2022 that Apple had ended most of its advertising and threatened to remove X from the App Store. Musk and Tim Cook then met at Apple Park, and they seemingly resolved the rift for about a year.
In the following months, reports surfaced indicating an increase in hate speech on X. In what may be Apple’s only public statement about its advertising relationship with the social media company, Tim Cook told CBS News in September 2023 that Apple was constantly assessing its advertising on X. Then in November, after Musk endorsed an antisemitic post on X, Apple stopped advertising on the platform, though it never explained why.
Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was considering resuming its advertising on X. It has now done so, joining many other major brands.
Apple hasn’t explained the reason for the change, which comes hard on the heels of a report of significant increases in hate speech on X during Musk’s tenure. This has led to speculation that the move is an attempt to appease Musk, who has assumed an unprecedented and unelected position of power in the Trump administration. Whatever the reason, though, it’s not a good look for Apple.
Apple has released its TV app on the Google Play Store for Android users. In a press release, Apple stated:
Available around the world, the Apple TV app for Android was built from the ground up to deliver Android users a familiar and intuitive interface. Android users can subscribe to Apple TV+ and MLS Season Pass using their Google Play account on Android mobile and Google TV devices. Apple TV+ also offers a seven-day free trial.
With Major League Soccer beginning on February 22nd and Friday Night Baseball just around the corner, it makes a lot of sense for Apple to expand the TV app’s availability. Android users will have all the same options Apple’s users do including subscribing to Apple TV+, which comes with a seven-day free trial, and MLS Season Pass.
As for the design, the Android version of the TV app looks as expected. It’s an Android-ified version of the iOS and iPadOS version of TV, with a similar layout and functionality controlled with standared Android UI elements.
The TV app can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store.
For more examples of the TV app on Android, here are shots of it running on Federico’s Lenovo Legion Y700 (2024), which we recently covered on NPC: Next Portable Console:
Federico
