‘Keep It Simple Stupid!’ Apple’s iTunes 12.4 Update Goes Back to the Basics

Apple’s overall goal with its products and software is to make things simple by keeping them minimal. Take your iPhone, for example. It’s intuitive, has minimal buttons, and is both sleek and appealing. The company aims to bring this simplicity into everything they do…which is why they’re going back to basics with the latest iTunes update.

In addition to their Watch OS and iOS updates released earlier this week, Apple decided that iTunes needed a refresh too. Apple actually backtracked a bit and decided to bring back the left menu in an attempt to make navigation easier for users. With the new sidebar, Apple hopes that it will make building playlists and switching between content much easier than before.

Here’s what’s new: the Media Picker, which now replaces the confusing media buttons on the left side. Upon selecting your media option, users will see subsections listed underneath the ‘Library’ header that appears below. This can be customized to the user’s liking. Apple also added Back and Forward buttons next to the Media Picker for quicker navigation, too.

Thus far, the update has received mixed reviews. Some bloggers are saying that Apple made the design more intuitive, while others believe they have only complicated the interface. Jacob Kastrenakes of The Verge even went so far as to suggest bringing back the iTunes layout from 10 years ago. Plus, there’s an obvious absence of a dedicated Apple Music section.

No word as of yet if the update has addressed the glaring problem of music being deleted from a user’s library without their input. Apple acknowledged the file-deleting bug last week, and promised an update this week to remedy the issue.

Mac users can download the new iTunes by visiting the Mac App Store, while Windows users can use the Apple Software Update tool to upgrade.

What do you like most about the iTunes update? Let us know in the comments.