Apple TV+ has launched in South Africa, with local users now able to sign up for the streaming service.
The service is priced at R84.99 per month locally, but users who buy a new iPad, iPhone, Apple TV, or Apple Mac will receive 1 year of Apple TV+ for free.
The launch of Apple TV+ in South Africa is part of an international rollout to 100 countries – and international pricing is set at $4.99 per month.
As an iPhone 11 Pro owner, I downloaded the Apple TV+ app on my phone and signed up.
This is what it is like.
Sign up
When signing up for Apple TV+, the login page stated that my device was entitled to 12 months of free usage.
After this, the service will cost R84.99 per month.
TV series
Apple TV+ gives users access to a range of series, which they can watch online (stream) or download to their device for viewing later.
At launch, the shows featured on the app’s home screen were:
- The Morning Show
- See
- Dickinson
- For All Mankind
- The Elephant Queen (Documentary)
- Helpsters
- Ghost Writer
- Snoopy in Space
Reports have confirmed that Apple’s initial original content lineup will consist of 15 shows, far fewer than competitor Netflix.
Add-on channel
At the time of writing, users could also add the Smithsonian Channel to their Apple TV+ subscription and watch its showns in the app.
Users can test the channel for 7 days for free, after which it is priced at R39.99 per month.
The channel features content such as Air Warriors, Seriously Amazing Objects, and The Obama Years.
Movies
Users are also able to buy or rent movies on Apple TV+.
As shown below, Toy Story 4 – for example – can be purchased for R169, or rented for R44.99.
Other movies featured in the app included:
- Pets 2
- MIB International
- Avengers Endgame
- John Wick 3
- X-Men Dark Phoenix
- Aladdin
- Driven
- Stuber
Certain movies, such as Hitman Agent 47, were only available for purchase. This move was available for R99.99.
Older movies are also cheaper to rent than the latest movies. For example: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was R34.99 to rent.
Smooth app
Testing the Apple TV+ service saw us use the iPhone app, running on an iPhone 11 Pro with iOS 13.1.3.
The app was easy to use, with all shows and movies displayed as large tiles which can be flicked through to browse what is available.
Apple has split the app into three main sections: Watch Now, Library, and Search.
This allows users to find the latest titles, watch their downloaded content, and search for specific content respectively.
Apple has said that Apple TV+ will be available on the following devices:
- iPhone
- iPad
- Apple TV
- Mac
- Streaming sticks and boxes
- Via AirPlay
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