Apple appears to be winding down support for its Clips app. The company has removed Clips from the App Store and confirmed it will no longer provide any updates. According to a support page on its website, as of October 10th, the app is no longer available for new users to download. However, existing users can continue to use the app on current or earlier versions of iOS and iPadOS. Those users can also re-download the app from their Apple account if necessary.
Without future updates, the app will likely become more difficult to use over time. Because of this, Apple is encouraging users to download their Clips videos, with or without added effects, to their photo library. This will allow them to watch and edit the videos using other applications.
Clips was launched in 2017 and was seen as Apple’s answer to platforms like Snapchat and Instagram Stories. While it was not a social network itself, it allowed users to stitch together photos and videos with filters, emojis, and music. Early reviews described its video editing capabilities as simple to a fault. It was suggested that the app served to showcase Apple’s hardware and software while offering an alternative to the popular social ecosystems of the time.
Reports indicate that while Apple did add new features to Clips after its launch, updates in recent years have been limited to only bug fixes. The news of its discontinuation was met with little surprise from Apple fans online, with many saying they had only tried the app years ago or had never heard of it at all. Furthermore, an app like Clips, which is built around real footage shot by real people, may now feel outdated when compared to new generative AI video tools like OpenAI’s Sora, which recently achieved one million downloads.