Apple products typically make something better. The Mac, for example, made computing easier for the masses, just as iTunes and iPods changed how we consumed our favorite music. Years later, the Apple Watch provided personalized tools to help us get healthier.
It's been over a year since Apple News+ first launched. Since then, the digital magazine subscription service has steadily gained titles. Today there are over 300 magazines available to read for $9.99 per month for individuals and families alike. Unfortunately, the Apple News+ interface remains a scattered mess. Now comes word Cupertino is thinking about adding audio versions of written stories to the service to attract a broader audience. Rather than go down this bizarre path, Apple would be wiser to take a less-is-more approach and go back to the basics.
It's about the magazines, Apple
At its core, Apple News+ is a newsstand app where physical magazines are available in digital format. The rest of the presentation, such as magazine covers that move as you scroll and recommended articles from unfamiliar publications, is noise, at best. These obstacles take up most of the real estate on the front page of Apple News+. By doing so, it proves challenging to find the content you've probably come to enjoy in the first place - your favorite magazines!
Apple News+ grew out of Texture, which was once called NextIssue. Before being sold to Apple, Texture offered a bare-bones interface where you could go through the list of available magazines and select your favorites. As designed, Texture made it simple to find, not only your favorite magazines but also the current issues. That's not possible in Apple News+ because of its bloated interface.
Instead of suffocating the Apple News+ main page with cover stories, recommended issues, and other shiny content, Cupertino should change this page to show our favorite magazines. Period, and done.
With regards to adding audio to the Apple News+mix, the company has once again angered some magazine publishers who are trying desperately to stay in business and make a modest profit. Many publishers believe adding audio would further skew the picture of who gets compensated for content. Besides, there's already built-in audio accessibility on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS for those who need it. There is also countless voice audio content to be found in Apple's popular Podcasts app. And some magazine publishers also offer official podcasts.
What do you think Apple should do to improve Apple News+? Let us know your thoughts below.
