Is Apple Phasing Out the iWork Brand?

[icwhatudidthere]

Just to be clear, you don't have to pay for anything to use Pages, Numbers & Keynote. You only have to pay if you want the advanced features they offer (mostly AI integration at this point). Anything 'normal'/'traditional' is still free to use.

For now. I'd bet any new feature will be locked behind the sub. If they ever figure out how to make Apple Intelligence actually useful, there could be features that are paywalled.

 

[Marty80]

The subscription model will be the downfall of many big tech companies, whilst piracy may come back in bigger way.

 

[Jackson Lawton]

What a long and strong trip. I started out on AppleWriter on a ][+ then AppleWorks on the + and later GS, then through the various transitions on a Mac. Never really use iWorks as I use office because for work reasons as all my clients use it and I need 100% document compatibility. I check docs in Office via vm to be sure on critical docs.

That said, iWork's is a great package for many users, especially for free, which I suspect Apple will keep doing.

They still need to bring back FileMaker light (aka Bento) to complete the package.

Bento just never seemed right to me… I mean what really was it, a more advanced contacts app, that’s what it felt like to me.

 

[Jackson Lawton]

According to Corey Doctrow in his book “En********ation” Jobs had it called iWork because they reverse engineered Microsoft Office file formatting so that content produced “Worked” with Office.

Interesting 🧐

 

[Jackson Lawton]

The name was always clunky. Never understood it. But the apps are good. Numbers and Pages have served me well. And Keynote from time to time for photo slide shows. Although Word 5.1 was great. Excel is generally better but more than I needed and started getting in its own way.

But the inclusion in Creator Studio is disconcerting. Where is that headed? Apple continues with Final Cut, but abandoned Aperture. What is the vision?

I never understood why they got ride of Aperture myself… Seems like they just couldn’t find anyone that understood photos editing enough to keep it going. If that’s the case, then why just not buy off some of Adobe’s guys from the Photoshop team?

 

[ikramerica]

This is a mistake. These apps do not belong in Creator Studio.

While creatives use spreadsheets and word processors, they aren’t really synonymous with a creative studio environment.

 

[Kottu]

Just to be clear, you don't have to pay for anything to use Pages, Numbers & Keynote. You only have to pay if you want the advanced features they offer (mostly AI integration at this point). Anything 'normal'/'traditional' is still free to use.

Since I’ve already installed those apps, I can continue using them. However, new users can’t download them from the App Store. I also won’t receive future updates, and Apple may eventually make them incompatible with the OS. If that happens, being able to re-download them from purchased apps or third-party sites wouldn’t really make a difference.

 

[nexusrule]

Ah yes… another rebrand, another “it’s not dead, it’s just evolving” moment from Apple. At this point installing a new Apple app feels less like downloading software and more like adopting a goldfish — enjoy it now, because there’s a solid chance it’ll get quietly flushed down the toilet while Craig Federighi smiles on stage telling us it’s the “best experience ever.”

Remember Aperture? Pour one out. That thing didn’t just get canceled — it got Thanos-snapped and replaced with Photos, which spent years trying to remember it was supposed to be a pro tool. iTunes got split into a family of apps like a messy tech divorce, iPhoto vanished, Dashboard went to the great widget farm upstate, and now iWork might be getting the slow fade into “Creator Studio.” Cool name, but also sounds like something designed by a branding committee locked in a room with too much cold brew.

The funniest part is Apple still builds insanely good hardware while their software strategy feels like musical chairs. One year it’s “pro workflows matter,” the next year it’s “here’s a template pack and AI remix button.” I half expect Pages to become “Apple Writing Experience+” with a monthly fee to unlock bold text.

Don’t get me wrong — Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are actually great apps. That’s what makes this cycle so weird. Apple creates something solid, ignores power users for a few years, slaps on a new subscription wrapper, and hopes nobody remembers the last five rebrands.

Anyway, I’m off to export my Keynote files into three backup formats just in case the next keynote announces Keynote is now called “SlideVerse.”

They change brands after 20 years and the app and their name is the same. Aperture was just discontinued and has eventually been replaced by Pixelamator, Photo has always been a separate app. It feels like you made too much ado about nothing honestly.

 

[businessnumbersmoneypeopl]

Apple has in reality neglected the iWork apps for a long time. Most people are either using Microsoft office, Google docs, or libre office, which are in reality superior products.

I think Apple will continue the stagnation and eventually discontinue them in the years to come. They don’t make any real money from them and clearly aren’t investing in development to challenge the others.

This neglect extends to Preview as well. It hasn’t seen any improvements in ages and the newest OS has brought with mysterious lagging as well. For many, it’s a really crucial program for work, even if perhaps not for the coders etc. at the Apple HQ.

 

[Colpeas]

Ah yes… another rebrand, another “it’s not dead, it’s just evolving” moment from Apple. At this point installing a new Apple app feels less like downloading software and more like adopting a goldfish — enjoy it now, because there’s a solid chance it’ll get quietly flushed down the toilet while Craig Federighi smiles on stage telling us it’s the “best experience ever.”

Remember Aperture? Pour one out. That thing didn’t just get canceled — it got Thanos-snapped and replaced with Photos, which spent years trying to remember it was supposed to be a pro tool. iTunes got split into a family of apps like a messy tech divorce, iPhoto vanished, Dashboard went to the great widget farm upstate, and now iWork might be getting the slow fade into “Creator Studio.” Cool name, but also sounds like something designed by a branding committee locked in a room with too much cold brew.

The funniest part is Apple still builds insanely good hardware while their software strategy feels like musical chairs. One year it’s “pro workflows matter,” the next year it’s “here’s a template pack and AI remix button.” I half expect Pages to become “Apple Writing Experience+” with a monthly fee to unlock bold text.

Don’t get me wrong — Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are actually great apps. That’s what makes this cycle so weird. Apple creates something solid, ignores power users for a few years, slaps on a new subscription wrapper, and hopes nobody remembers the last five rebrands.

Anyway, I’m off to export my Keynote files into three backup formats just in case the next keynote announces Keynote is now called “SlideVerse.”

#1 comment. Amen to that.

 

[Jonnod III]

I never understood why they got ride of Aperture myself… Seems like they just couldn’t find anyone that understood photos editing enough to keep it going. If that’s the case, then why just not buy off some of Adobe’s guys from the Photoshop team?

Yes, getting rid of Aperture was odd. I use Capture One now and it took ages to learn a new workflow. They put Magic Mask into FCP, so they can develop ‘Pro’ apps…

 

[gps]

They are slowly pushing us toward Windows... again... what a mistake...

 

[Sputman99]

The last set of icons were the goat

 

[Beepster]

Good riddance and good riddance to Apple, I’m getting rid of. Since i recently discovered they were running analytics on Pages and Numbers in app specific settings,despite them being turned off elsewhere, they can go f@#k themselves. No more US spyware for me, I’m rolling self-hosted from now on.

 

[mk313]

Since I’ve already installed those apps, I can continue using them. However, new users can’t download them from the App Store. I also won’t receive future updates, and Apple may eventually make them incompatible with the OS. If that happens, being able to re-download them from purchased apps or third-party sites wouldn’t really make a difference.

That's a misunderstanding. There is still free version of all three apps to use today. You can download it yourself & new users can also download it. And it's still free to use. The old apps (the only difference seems to be the icons for non-subscribers) but as of today, they still work & are still being updated & are still free.

It's possible that will change in the future, but as of now the 'new' apps are still free to use.

 

[n4uaj]

And, how sad the world has turned out. I have to work with clients using Canva for all kinds of great (not) mockups, random whatevers and all kinds of stuff just willy nilly sent to me now, that I then have to decipher and try to work with. It's a step in the complete wrong direction for SO many things. Designers (which is not me) are there for a reason. Sure, AI is neat and can do certain things. But we aren't in a place where things like Powerpoint/Keynote and Pages/Word aren't needed anymore. Not yet.

And Google Docs? To me, that is almost worse than a bad web app that has the features of TextEdit. That's not a real word processor, or even close. The same with Google Sheets. On and on it goes.

GenZ is a nightmare. The world has changed, and they definitely have not made many improvements.

I know, I'll get tons of flack for this.
But it's the honest truth. The age of the devs at Apple these days is basically some Millennials, and then all of the dreaded GenZ, making tons of improvements across the board like Liquid Glass. Great job kids!

My 13 year old granddaughter has been on the GoogleDocs train since her school system uses Chromebooks. She will use the Google suite on her personal MacBookAir totally ignoring "iWork" altogether.

 

[TheGenerous]

deleted

 

[Telemakhos]

That's a misunderstanding. There is still free version of all three apps to sue today. You can download it yourself & new users can also download it. And it's still free to use. The old apps (the only difference seems to be the icons for non-subscribers) but as of today, they still work & are still being updated & are still free.

It's possible that will change in the future, but as of now the 'new' apps are still free to use.

The free version also nags you once a day to upgrade to the new version. I have no intent to upgrade.

 

[mk313]

The free version also nags you once a day to upgrade to the new version. I have no intent to upgrade.

Fair enough. And a logical conclusion on your part. But that is not the same thing as saying that new customers don't have access to the free version any longer, which is what the initial poster stated.

 

[Andreas from Zurich]

...might be to help offset the rising costs of RAM/NAND that would otherwise impact price points across the hardware line.

Yeah, totally unavoidable, because with an annual net income of $117B Apple barely manages to keep above water.

 

[tonywalker23]

Early 20s…
12" PowerBook G4…
Brenthaven case…
Blue Aqua wallpaper
Mac OS 10.2 Jaguar
The Clock.app that was translucent on the desktop
Printed promotional user materials and user guides
Driving back to CompUSA to get an AirPort Extreme card for the PowerBook
Saving files as a PDF for the first time
iLife
iWork

"Those were the best days of life"

 

[code-m]

I work is nice and all, but nothing beats Office.

Tried many times switching, bit missing features and sometimes file compatibility makes it impossible in the office.

iWork does (and always did) sound a little... cheesy.

Not sure why Apple is unable to combine the iWork suit of apps into one app and include notes in there too. Having separate apps may seem like it’s saving space and options but let’s get real, if you are working on anything you will need more than one of these type of apps, so why not just roll it all into one app.

 

[Luis Ortega]

Does that mean that pages, numbers and keynote will no longer be included as part of osx?

 

[knappeduivel]

When I moved from Windows to Apple, I chose to cut ties with Microsoft Office completely. For my needs, Pages and Numbers are perfectly aligned. Plus, they don't feel overly saturated with features and choices not relevant to me.

Agree, I don't get the anti-iWork sentiment. Both programs (Pages, Numers) deliver on what I expect are free and easy to use. This may change with the new direction that Apple has chosen.

 

[pratikindia]

Funny. I always thought the Mac equivalent to Microsoft Office was.. uh.. Microsoft Office.

Funny thing is there is no more Microsoft Office.