The number one reason people use streaming services over cable is because it costs less. Well, that used to be the case. Now, however, when streaming services are a dime a dozen, and studios are investing more and more of their money into making things available only on their services, it can get to be quite a pricey monthly outlay. Worry not, in this series of articles, we’ll be looking at how you can get the most bang for your buck with just a handful of services and one trusty bit of kit, the StreamLocator Hub, for around or under $50/month.
This is the most important thing you’ll need because, even with this, you’re able to access all of your local free streaming services. For me, those are: All4, BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, etc. On top of that, you’ll also be able to access any of the free streaming services available around the globe, such as The CW, Peacock, Crackle and more! The StreamLocator Hub is perfect for connecting all your devices, and you can even connect smart TVs to it. Unlike a VPN, the StreamLocator Hub connects directly to your main router meaning you won’t experience the loss of speed that sometimes plagues other devices.
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HBO Max is one of the biggest and best services out there. It’s got Warner Bros.’ incredible catalogue of movies and series, stellar new originals, and a wealth of other acquired shows that it distributes as exclusives. You’ll find next-day airings of HBO shows such as Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Emmy-nominated originals such as The Flight Attendant, and tantalising international programming like White House Farm and The Head. Given that it’s only available in a smattering of countries outside the US, with notable exceptions being the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and Canada, you’ll definitely be able to use your StreamLocator to unlock an entirely new service.
Netflix is by and large the biggest streaming service. With over 290M users, there’s a very good chance you already have it. However, unless you have a StreamLocator, there’s also a very good chance that you’re not getting the most out of your subscription. If you ever got envious when you see Netflix tweet about an old series or movie coming soon to their service, only to realise they mean in the US, you’ll love StreamLocator. At present, the service allows you to relocate your Netflix subscription to 8 countries, with more being added all the time, so using Netflix with your StreamLocator can really help you unlock a much, much wider world of streaming.
If you live in the US, you might not be aware that Disney+ is substantially better in almost every other region. This is because the service has an entirely new section called “Star”, Disney’s brand that sits alongside Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar and the rest. Within this brand, Disney+ has content that goes above and beyond the TV-14 rating in the US, with the “Star” regions getting content ranging from 0 - 18+. This means, as well as Disney+ Originals like The Mandalorian and WandaVision, regions outside the US and Latin America have access to Star Originals, such as Only Murders in the Building and Marvel’s Hit Monkey. As well as that, mature content from Disney will sit in the appropriate brand, for example, Deadpool and Deadpool 2 both reside in the “Marvel” brand. If you use Disney+ and your StreamLocator, you’re able to find some real quality shows and films that aren’t stymied by the limitations of a kid-focused service.
On the flip side, Hulu is sort of the “adult” version of Disney+ within the US. I’m not going to complicate things by talking about the Live TV option here, but focusing on the streaming catalogue, Hulu houses all of Disney’s more mature content as well as some next-day airings of some series. As a service, it’s pretty great. It’s the reason I got a StreamLocator in the first place. I like watching things as soon as they come out because I’m impatient, so Hulu was the perfect option for me as the quality of series and movies on there was largely unmatched by any other service. If you’re outside the US, you’ll definitely want to get a Hulu membership and see just how deep down into old seasons of I Love Lucy you can go.
Many people don’t even consider Amazon Prime Video as a streamer, they see it more as an add-on to their expedited shipping, but what you’ll find on the service is a wide catalogue of shows and movies as library titles and also a strong selection of originals/exclusives, such as Invincible and Upload.
Though initially was a bit of a wash, Apple has shown over the last year their commitment to defining series and movies. The good thing? It’s completely “originals” meaning every single country has the exact same content. What this means is that you can catch a flight and watch the latest episode of Ted Lasso, land, get to your hotel, and pick up right where you left off.
If you want the most bang for your buck and you’ve got a lot of family members, the best way forward is to go with this: StreamLocator Hub, HBO Max, Netflix, and Disney+. That amounts to $46.80/month, but let’s round it up to $47/month. With that, you get all of StreamLocator’s rerouting for Netflix, effectively octupling the amount of content you can watch on it. If you’re based in the US, you’ll also get the benefits of Hulu without having to pay for an extra subscription, that is to say: a whole lot of shows on Hulu are available on Disney+ outside of the US, meaning you can take advantage of StreamLocator’s relocation service to get the “Star” brand. This, in my view, is the perfect subscription plan for families with kids of all of ages, including those who outgrew the parental controls on Disney+ US.
When you hear about “quality” television, most people think of HBO, which is why this package includes HBO Max and AppleTV+. These two services are sort of one and the same in terms of their focus on quality originals. High budget, heavy-themes, such as HBO Max’s Raised by Wolves and Apple’s Servant, or more low-key comedies such as HBO’s Search Party or Apple’s Ted Lasso. If you’re looking for movies, HBO Max has plenty of them, as well as a stellar library of acquired content too.
This package, of course, includes the StreamLocator Hub, Netflix, HBO Max and Hulu (no-ads). With this, you’re able to stream Stranger Things, Gossip Girl and Marvel’s Hit Monkey, meaning you’re a few clicks away from the latest and most talked about series and films at the time.
So… what are you waiting for?!
You can watch all of that free content using StreamLocator!
