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Summary
Last year, I boarded the Google One train when my sister’s 15GB storage tanked. Initially, I opted for the 100GB “Basic” plan, confident that it would provide me with ample benefits. But that didn’t last long, and I realized that for a service called “GoogleOne” it’s sorely lacking in its inclusiveness.
Why Google One Doesn’t Feel Like “One”
TheGoogle Onewebsite boasts, “Google One bundles cloud storage and helpful features across Google—all in oneshareable plan.” Hold on a second, Google, because that statement isn’t entirely true.
Having grown weary of those annoying ads on YouTube, I assumed thatYouTube Premium would be an obvious benefitwith Google One. Nope! This popular service is missing in action across all the Google One plans. Google claims they’re adding more features, but a heavyweight perk like YouTube Premium should’ve been there from the start to make the deal way sweeter.
Next, some features, like theGoogle VPNfor example, are currently available in a meager 22 countries, not including my home turf of India. The same goes for the 10% cashback on Google Store purchases—India gets left out again. There are sprinkles of Play Store credits and random service discounts and trials, but their frequency and value remain a mystery. There were evenwhispersof free Google Nest Minis for anyone who upgraded to the 2TB plan back in 2020, but guess what? India missed out on that party, too.
See where I’m going with this? The “one” in Google One makes it sound like one big umbrella sheltering all the features under its different plans. But instead, it feels more like a guessing game—will this feature be included or not?
Here’s the kicker: I have to pay extra for YouTube Premium on top of Google One, juggling two separate subscriptions. It just makes sense to bundle YouTube Premium as a perk in Google One, you know? Think of Google One as a box of cookies; each cookie is a service like Google VPN or dark web monitoring. YouTube Premium is another cookie, but instead of being included in the box, I have to pay extra for it, even though it feels like it should’ve been there all along.
How Apple One Raises the Bar on Subscription Services
Now, let’s shift gears and talk aboutApple One. In the US, they offer three flavors: “Individual” (which includes Music, TV+, Arcade, and 50GB of storage), “Family” (same as Individual with 200GB of storage and family sharing), and “Premier” (which throws in News+ and Fitness+ with 2TB of storage, but again, limited regions).
The best part? Apple One bundles several of its popular services into one neat monthly payment. This makes it way more cost-effective, especially if you’re already using (or curious about) multiple Apple services. Additionally, switching to Apple One automatically cancels any existing subscriptions, such as Apple Music. That’s what I call a seamless transition.
Apple One truly embodies the “one” concept, acting as a unified subscription umbrella, unlike Google One’s fragmented approach.
Making a Better Google One Plan
Here’s the thing, Google. It’s time to take some notes from Apple. Here’s how Google One can revamp its subscription plans and become a true competitor:
There you have it, folks! Now, Google, this is how you create a subscription service that users will love—all underoneglorious roof.
