Apple has recently introduced a new application called Apple Gather, designed to assist users in creating, sharing, and managing event invitations. With Apple Gather, users can swiftly produce digital invites, enabling recipients to easily access all event details, respond (RSVP), and add the event to their personal calendars. It is worth noting that this feature is also available for Android users who can access the invites via the web version of the app on iCloud.

Apple Gather features an intuitive interface and straightforward operation, offering a more convenient alternative to embedding event information into text messages or relying on Facebook event pages to ensure all participants view it. Users can create events by tapping the plus button at the top of the app, inputting event name, time, date, and location. Additionally, the app provides background templates designed by Apple, allowing users to select photos from their gallery as backgrounds or generate AI backgrounds using Image Creator if their device supports Apple Intelligence.

When inviting guests, users can choose from their contact list, manually enter phone numbers or email addresses, or copy the event link to send outside the app. The app also enables users to set whether invitees can invite others and send notes to attendees after the event is created.

Event information is displayed through widgets, including daily weather forecasts and clickable Apple Maps routes. Users can create photo albums for viewing with Apple Music or add music playlists. While these functions generally work seamlessly on iPhones, some users have experienced issues such as invitation cards not loading and photo albums not correctly displaying images after selecting them.

For users not fully integrated into the Apple ecosystem, there may be certain obstacles. For instance, iPhone users can directly access invitation cards via links (assuming they are logged into iCloud), whereas Android users need to enter an email address and receive a verification code to gain access. If the event includes photo albums, Android users must register an Apple account to view them. Furthermore, regardless of being Android users or not, invitees wishing to listen to music in the playlist must subscribe to Apple Music (otherwise, they can only preview).

Despite these issues potentially limiting the full experience for Android users, they can still view key event information and respond. Event invitation app Partiful offers a similar experience while maintaining platform neutrality, stated Partiful's co-founder and CEO Shreya Murthy in an email.

Although facing plagiarism allegations and minor glitches, Apple Gather remains a promising start, particularly for Apple ecosystem users seeking alternatives to Facebook event pages, third-party apps, texts, or emails to inform friends about events. However, Apple's claim in its announcement that the app serves a social purpose - "to celebrate special moments in life together" - may lose its appeal after experiencing the mediocre performance of the Android version.