Apple’s Sports App Is Too Fast!
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Last year, Apple debuted a new Sports app. It’s awesome for both the fanatical and casual sports fan. Apple Sports makes it easy to follow your favorite teams across various sports with live Game Cards that pop up as widgets on your Home Screen when one of your followed teams is playing. Apple Sports has even evolved to include play-by-play Live Activities within each Game Card on the iPhone and Apple Watch. There’s one problem, though…
Spoiler alert: The app’s live play-by-play information is updated 30 seconds to 1 minute faster than watching the game on streaming or cable!
Some quick research shows Apple Sports gets its information from official league data and partnerships with sports organizations. These relationships help ensure speed and accuracy. However, many people think this information comes too fast if you’re watching the game live.
The updates on your iPhone or Apple Watch happen so far in advance of live cable or streaming that it feels like you’re in Back to the Future. There have been several complaints about this apparent oversight by Apple and frustration that there hasn’t been a solution released, like a delay feature.
I had heard the rumors about the aggravation, but only recently experienced it firsthand. I was out watching the Red Sox with the live Game Card on my iPhone. The app was always at least two pitches ahead of the live game. So, I did what anyone would do and had a little fun with the fellas sitting next to me at the bar. First, I started casually predicting balls and strikes. After I dropped a, “here comes a shallow fly out to left,” they grew pretty skeptical. The act was over when I told them, “The next pitch will probably be an 89 mph sinker low for a ball.”
Fortunately, it’s easy to clear a live Game Card so you aren’t distracted. But it’s problematic if you’re only watching the game for a short period and want to stay in the loop without opening the app again. As users on Reddit and elsewhere lament, the fact that Apple hasn’t released either a permanent or temporary user-activated option to delay Live Activities so they sync up with watching live games is annoying. There’s an incongruence with simultaneously using the app and watching live sports that should be fixed.
Currently, Apple Sports lets you follow dozens of leagues, including but not limited to MLB, MLS, NBA, NCAA basketball, NHL, Bundesliga, LaLiga, Liga MX, Ligue 1, and Premier League. It will also cover the upcoming NFL season. I can confirm that Apple’s Sports app is far ahead of both the live television broadcasts for NBA and MLB games. My guess is that users’ patience will run out this NFL season if Apple hasn’t addressed the issue before the first kickoff.
