Apple’s Music and TV apps for Windows have made an appearance, with preview versions of the apps being spotted on the Microsoft Store by The Verifier (via MacRumors). LAst October, Microsoft announced they were coming to the platform, letting users finally ditch the old iTunes app and Apple TV web player for native software that is closer to the experience embedded in macOS.
There’s also a third preview of an app called Apple Devices, which is meant to let you manage and sync things like iPods and iPads — functionality that’s currently handled by iTunes on Windows and Finder on the Mac. It also, apparently, contains some references to Reality OS and xrOS, two codenames that have reportedly been associated with Apple’s virtual reality headset.
The TV app is similar to the version on macOS, though you access different sections via a list to the side rather than tabs on the top. Using it, I was able to watch Apple TV Plus shows, as well as movies I’d purchased on iTunes; it even had a miniplayer mode. The Music app is a similar to the macOS version, though the iTunes store is ever so slightly harder to access.
Two Verge staffers running Windows 11 were able to install and run the apps using The Verifier’s links. You can download them yourself here: Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple Devices.
When you open the apps for the first time, they warn that iTunes will stop working if you use them and that you’ll have to uninstall the previews to bring it back. It does seem like the Music app brought over my music and settings from iTunes, but if you absolutely have to sync an iPod, it may be worth holding off on trying these apps out until the Apple Devices app is out of preview. MacRumors also points out that you may want to hold off if you use iTunes for Windows to manage or listen to podcasts and audiobooks.
So far, the previews seem to be mostly stable with a lot of the basic functionality I’d expect, though the apps do say that “not all features may work as expected.”
