Today, as part of a new Windows 11 preview build for Windows Insiders, Microsoft has announced that previews of new Apple Music, Apple TV, and Apple Devices apps are available in the Microsoft Store for download.

But for Windows users with large local media libraries or who wanted to back up their iDevices or subscribe to Apple Music, iTunes has soldiered on, receiving minor maintenance-mode updates to maintain compatibility with Apple's devices and services. There are plenty of users who have both an Apple and a Windows device, so with this in mind, perhaps it's time at WWDC for the company to recognize this, and put iTunes to bed.Apple discontinued its iTunes music player for macOS in 2019 when it split the app's functionality between four apps in macOS Catalina. ITunes has had its day - it's a relic of an era where we used PCs and laptops to manage our music for our iPods, and for a time, apps for our iPhones. Perhaps this is where the Apple TV app, found on televisions, could come over to Windows 11 to alleviate this, while podcasts could be their own app for both Android and Windows devices.

Yet iTunes still offers podcasts and videos that can be bought within the app in Windows, which complicates things. Translating this to Windows would be a challenge, but as Apple Music is available on Android, there may be potential to make it available to Windows 11 users as an app as well, saving the company from having to support two music apps on two different platforms.Īs Android apps are available as a preview for users in the Microsoft Store, this could make sense for Apple and Apple Music users who don't have a Mac, especially as it's also arrived on Roku devices.

Updated itunes