The Apple TV is a great place to watch content, whether it's your favorite movies, top TV shows, or a helpful YouTube channel. And while video content is still the focus of the Apple TV, there are other excellent apps on the platform, too, that help extend its usefulness beyond content, from getting the weather forecast to checking out nearby houses or apartments available for rent.
Apple TV app
Apple's TV is first on the list because it's built into your Apple TV experience, and it's become really good, particularly with the tvOS 12.3 update. The addition of channels, which allow you to subscribe to services without having to navigate between apps, as well as easier navigation have really taken the TV app experience to the next level.
The Up Next row holds most (looking at you, Netflix) of the shows and movies you've been watching, synced between your Apple TV, iPhone, and iPad, making it easy to pick up where you left off with something, no matter which device you're using. There are curated recommendations and quick access to your library of purchased movies and TV shows so you always have something to watch.
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Hulu
If you're going to subscribe to one video service for TV content, my suggestion would be Hulu. It has more new and library TV shows than most other services. If you're a cord cutter, you can use Hulu's live TV service right in the app if you want to become a subscriber. New content is added constant, at a similar rate to Netflix, so you'll never run out of things to watch on Hulu.
A Hulu subscription starts at $7.99 per month, while Hulu + Live TV starts at $39.99 per month. Both plans feature add-one to remove advertisements from library content.
Netflix
In the past few years, Netflix has established itself as a home for a selection of great original content. From original shows to movies and documentaries, Netflix is the home to some of the best streaming-native content there is. Netflix also continually expands its catalog of movies and TV shows from other sources, with new content added daily. If you share a Netflix account with others, you can easily access and switch between the profiles created for your account, which lets you prevent Netflix from mucking up recommendations.
You can sign up for Netflix starting at $8.99 for a non-HD streaming plan, while an HD plan is available for $10.99, and 4K streaming is yours for $15.99.
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon's Prime Video app rates a spot on the list, but because Amazon's video content library is actually on the Apple TV. Everything from catalog content to Amazon's original content lineup is available on your Apple TV, including 4K HDR content. The app itself could be better, but it's good to actually have Amazon's library on the Apple TV.
You can get a standalone subscription to Prime Video for $8.99 per month, while a full Prime subscription, with free two-day shipping, will run you $12.99 per month.
YouTube
YouTube, at this point, is fairly self-explanatory. You can find millions of videos about pretty much anything on YouTube, from vlogs to instructional videos to Rene Ritchie. With a completely new look compared to when it first launched on Apple TV, YouTube now feels more like a full-fledged app. It's now easier to find new content from your favorite channels, discover something new, and go back through your history.
Spectrum
The Spectrum apps pairs with the Apple TV's new Zero Sign-On capabilities. Using Zero Sign-On and the Spectrum app, your Apple TV can effectively act as your cable box, delivering all of the same live and on-demand content that you've come to expect from your Spectrum cable subscription without bringing additional hardware into your home.
Though this app is only for Spectrum subscribers, it's a great example of what Zero Sign-On allows.
Movies Anywhere
Movies Anywhere is one of those ideas that's just how things should have worked this entire time. All of the movies you buy, all in one place, no matter which platform you used to buy them. The Movies Anywhere service is free, and connects your iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, Microsoft, Amazon, Comcast Xfinity, and Fandango Now, pouring all of the movies you've purchased from those services into a single app, and syncing them to each other so they all appear on your accounts for each service, as well as in the Movies Anywhere app.
The app itself, while not serving as a storefront, allows you to quickly access and start playing your shared movies. The app supports 4K HDR/Dolby Vision for all applicable titles, including those from Disney. So if a title is offered in 4K HDR on one service but not on iTunes, you can still watch it in its full-resolution, wide-color glory in Movies Anywhere.
GrubHub
Pair movie night with takeout from your favorite place with GrubHub. Keep your phone in your pocket and place your order using GrubHub's Apple TV app, which lets you sign in to your account (make sure you have a credit card on file), browse through available restaurants, peruse their menus, and order.
Kitchen Stories
Kitchen Stories is especially great if you've got your Apple TV hooked up to a television in your kitchen. The app has hundreds of videos covering different recipes, from main courses to desserts. Each video is a miniature how-to with clear instructions and everything shown in wonderful, high-definition video with a mellow, jazzy soundtrack to put you at ease. Whether you use Kitchen Stories to help your own cooking or just to unwind, it's a great app to have on your Apple TV.
Daily Burn
If you've ever tried to use a video-based home workout app on your iPhone or iPad, you'll know the experience is less than ideal. Daily Burn puts all of your workouts on your Apple TV, letting you follow along on the biggest screen in your home. Daily Burn has courses for beginners, as well as more experienced users.
You'll need a subscription to use Daily Burn, which starts at $14.95 per month.
Amazon
Amazon Prime Video is already on this list, but the company also makes a shopping experience available on the Apple TV as well. You can browse Amazon's massive store and make purchases right on your TV. You can also sign in to get the more personalized version of Amazon you're probably familiar with. On a products page, you can purchase it, add it to one of your lists, or use the 'Push to phone' function to produce a QR code that you can scan with your iPhone's camera to view the product on your phone.
CARROT Weather
You know what I used to use my TV for regularly? Getting the weather. That changed with the advent of smartphones, but now that devices like the Apple TV exist, getting the weather is a much better experience on the TV than it used to be. Enter CARROT Weather, one of the best weather apps for iPhone and iPad, now available on Apple TV. Complete with the trademark CARROT sense of humor, CARROT weather for Apple TV can show you short-term, hourly, and daily forecasts for your area so you're prepared well in advance.
Note that CARROT Weather for Apple TV is a separate app from CARROT Weather on iPhone and iPad, so it will be a separate purchase for you if you already have the mobile version.
Bonus! Cord cutter extras
I've been asked what the best apps are for cord cutters on Apple TV. There are dozens of subscription-based networks, plus many networks that let you access content without paying anyone a dime. These are my favorites.
Network stations that offer content without a cable provider
Most networks that offer content without cable have limited episodes available. But, as long as you're not trying to binge-watch a show's entire series, you can squeeze some fun out of them without needing a subscription or cable provider.
Subscription-based networks
There are also a handful of great channels that unlock dozens (even hundreds) of movies and TV shows for a nominal monthly fee. Sure, if you're not careful, you'll end up paying as much for à la carte channels as you would for a full cable subscription, but at least you get more of what you want when you want it.
Apple TV Channels
Since tvOS 12.3, Apple has offered standalone channels for cord cutters who want to take an à la carte approach to their subscriptions. You subscribe to channels directly through Apple's own TV app, which is also where channel content plays, rather than through a service's own standalone app. This puts all of your subscribed content in one place, and because of this, you won't even need the service's app to be installed to watch its content.
Here are the channels that are currently available in the TV app.
- HBO
- Showtime
- Cinemax
- Starz
- CBS All Access
- Epix
- Smithsonian Channel Plus
- PBS Living
- Acorn TV
- Sundance Now
- Lifetime Movie Club
- Urban Movie Channel
- Tastemade
- CuriosityStream
- MTV Hits
- Comedy Central Now
- Shudder
- History Channel Vault
- Mubi
- Arrow Video Channel
Your favorites?
There are a lot more apps and channels available on Apple TV. Which are your favorites and why do you love them?
Updated January 2019: Updated for latest Apple TV content.
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Google is known for constantly bringing new apps to life. Some of them are just useful tools that are aimed at making your digital life easier. Others are more artsy and creative.
This time Google has released a rather specific batch of new apps. They are experimental and their main focus is on curing your digital addiction.
In case you decide to test all of the Google experimental apps yourself after reading about them, make sure to use one of these free tools that reduce digital eye strain. All the extra time spent staring at the glaring screen won’t do any good for your eyes or for your sleep.
Morph
Our Verdict: a top pick if you’re looking to really cure your smartphone addiction.
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First up is a productivity app called Morph. Definitely worth a try if you have issues getting distracted with social media and entertainment apps at work.
Morph is a Google experimental app that will transform your home screen depending on what you’re supposed to be doing at a certain time of the day. You can set different home screens for different time periods. Once the clock hits that hour, you won’t be able to access any apps except the ones that you chose to keep.
You can set up multiple versions of your home screen with different sets of apps. Choose carefully though, as during that set time period you won’t be getting notifications from any of the apps that you didn’t select.
One more pretty cool perk that Morph comes with is connecting to your location. For example, you can set a GPS location for your working out mode and it will automatically turn it on once you get to the gym.
Post Box
Our Verdict: the one with the most potential.
Even when you decide to not touch your phone for the next couple of hours, you can be easily tempted by a notification sound. They’re very distracting and play a major part in aiding your digital addiction.
With Post Box, you can turn off instant notifications and set it up to be delivered in batches. You can choose up to four different time slots a day, and your notifications will be delivered all at once.
One downside is that at the moment you can’t customise the notification delivery times and have to stick with the four options available on the app.
Post Box can be a good way to keep up with your social life in a more organized manner. If that sounds like something you struggle with, you might also want to try one of the free calendar apps for Android.
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Unlock Clock
Our Verdict: your perfect “slap on the wrist”.
Unlock Clock is essentially a live wallpaper that shows you how many times you’ve unlocked your smartphone during the day. After you install it, set it as your wallpaper. Then on your home screen you’ll see a giant number that will remind you just how much you rely on your smartphone for…pretty much everything.
The giant number on your screen can serve as a wake-up call for anyone who is not aware of how much time they spent staring at their phone’s screen. The number resets each day. You can set a goal to minimize your smartphone use and then see how many days it takes you to reach it.
Use Unlock Clock as a social experiment with friends on a night out. See how many times each of you unlock their gadgets and maybe even turn it into a competition. Let the “loser” pick up the tab in the end of the night. That should teach them!
We Flip
Our Verdict: a fun little game to play with friends.
It’s a proven scientific fact that if you want to start training, it works better if you bring a buddy to the gym to train with you (or you can use one of the free fitness apps for motivation). So why not make your friends go through a digital detox with you as well? We Flip will help you make it more fun and maybe even turn it into a competition.
The way the Google experimental app works is, in a group of people you pair your phones together. When you “flip the switch” a new session starts. Then if/when someone unlocks their phone, the session ends and gives you the stats on how you did as a group.
You can raise the stakes by turning it into a bet – whoever causes the session to end has to buy the next round. Or lose their phone privileges for the night (a hardcore option for the daredevils among us).
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Desert Island
Our Verdict: recommended for fans of the team-building game of the same name.
Do you know what’s most important to you? While that question is difficult to answer in the perspective of life, it shouldn’t be that hard to choose a handful of apps that you can’t go through the day without.
In Desert Island, you can select the tools inside your smartphone that are absolutely necessary (like messages, Gmail, camera, etc) while the rest of them will disappear for the next 24 hours. See how long you can stick to the limits you set yourself. Will this turn into a real challenge for you or just be an ordinary day?
Paper Phone
Our Verdict: the strangest wellbeing app yet.
In an attempt to answer the question of how to fight your digital addiction, Google created probably the weirdest wellbeing mobile app yet. Paper Phone suggests you ditch your smartphone altogether for a day. But not quite.
You can pick options and tools that you’ll need throughout the day – like calendar, maps, or contacts – and then print out what’s going to be your physical paper phone for the day. It comes with instructions on how to fold it and even a credit card slot inside.
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Try one of these apps if you feel like your life now revolves around your smartphone. And if you think you’re too deep into the Google ecosystem, a radical way to fight your digital addiction would be deleting your Google account data and all of the apps with the exception of those you use professionally.