Apple TV, reviewed

Apple TV is the streaming service with the smallest library and the least filler. It does prestige drama, a few comedies people quote at you, and, as of 2026, all of Major League Soccer. It’s also the one that shares a name with a box and an app, so the first job on this page is to say which one we mean. This is the subscription.

What you get

Apple’s own productions rather than a back catalogue: there’s no decades-old sitcom archive here, just the originals. What there is, is generally good, which is a low bar the other streamers have stopped clearing. See films and series for the current picks.

The sport is the surprise. From the 2026 season every MLS match is included in the subscription, with no separate MLS Season Pass needed. Apple’s own support page says that can vary by country and region, so don’t cancel anything else on the strength of it yet check Apple’s MLS page (official source, opens in a new tab).

It comes with a 7-day free trial, or three months free with a new Apple device, and you can share it with up to five family members. Apple One bundles it with Apple’s other services for a single monthly fee with a one-month trial. The Apple TV app is on Fire TV, Google TV, Samsung and LG, the consoles and the web, so you don’t need an Apple box; any of these will do.

What it costs

Prices checked 2026-11-10 on the service's Irish pricing page.

Apple’s Irish page quotes the monthly price only, so that’s the one we use. Apple One starts at €19.95 a month on the same page and goes up with the bundle.

The catch

The library. It’s small enough that a fast watcher runs out in a month, which is either a catch or a feature depending on how you use it. The name confusion is real: you’ll be asked “do you have Apple TV?” and the correct answer is “which one?”. And the MLS thing needs confirming for Ireland before it counts.

The small print

When to have it, when to cancel

• New iPhone or iPad: claim the three months free, then decide.
• One show: subscribe the month the last episode lands, watch the lot, cancel. It rolls monthly and Apple doesn’t mind.
• MLS season, if confirmed for Ireland: keep it running through the summer and it’s the cheapest way to a whole football league in this country after LOITV.
• Apple household: run the Apple One sum. If you already pay for iCloud storage and Music, the bundle may be the cheaper way to carry this.

Verdict

Apple pays us nothing. It’s the streaming service we’d least mind being stuck with for a month and the one we’d least expect to keep for a year. Take the trial, binge, leave, come back. If the MLS inclusion is confirmed for Ireland, the finder will start putting it in the sports column too.