Cable TV is officially dying. With the advent of streaming apps, you can carry everywhere in your pocket, and cable TV has become a thing of the past. Even the so-called idiot boxes now come with pre-installed streaming apps just to keep up with the game. It’s common knowledge that TV shows and movies have now taken over the leisure time of baby boomers, millennials, and what-have-you. With that being said, the biggest issue faced by binge-lovers is which streaming app is worth their time and money. With the sheer number of streaming apps available on online app stores, it can be quite confusing to decide on just one. Each of them hasits own content, features, and benefits, making it tiring and time-consuming to weigh them against each other.
However, fret not. Here’s a list of the most loved streaming apps to help you figure out which streaming app to invest your lazy binge days in –
- Netflix
No list of streaming apps is complete without Netflix. Since expanding its business in 2010 to include streaming media, this app has only risen in popularity. With over 148 million paid subscriptions worldwide and its own extremely popular original movies and series, Netflix is going nowhere but up. It constantly updates its library, making it’s content wide and diverse. From Peppa Pig to Bojack Horseman, beautiful nature documentaries to bone-chilling true-crime thrillers, Netflix has it all, even many of your favourite regional movies. It’s the perfect fit for any mood.
Using Netflix in India is a bit heavy on the pocket as compared to its competitors, giving it a slight disadvantage. Plans usually range from 499/- to 799/- a month, but the company recently announced its mobile-only plan for just 199/- a month, unbelievably cheap for the content it offers. Netflix allows the app to be used on six different devices as well, so if you want to switch from your smartphone to your laptop or TV, you won’t face any issue.
- Amazon Prime Video
Prime Video, the brainchild of Amazon Inc., has been taking the world by storm ever since its launch in 2006, with a whopping 96.5 million viewers worldwide. Not only does it give you access to top-notch TV shows and movies, but it also lets you add specific channels to your account, like HBO and STARZ. This streaming app too has its own original content, from movies and TV shows to comedy specials. Sporting more regional TV shows and movies than Netflix (its main competitor), Prime Video caters to a wide variety of tastes when it comes to regional content as well.
Prime Video comes at a cheaper rate than its top competitor, charging 129/- per month or 999/- a year for the Prime membership, and has no limit on the number of devices you can have on your account, making it a tad more attractive to users.
- Hotstar
Launched as a subsidiary of Star India in 2015, Hotstar caters to your guilty pleasures with popular Bollywood TV shows and movies, fixes you up with your favourite cricket matches, and even lets you keep up with the news. It has no shortage of Hollywood content as well (despite being known for its regional library), providing access to content from popular channels like HBO and Disney. In early 2019, it launched an original content brand named Hotstar Specials, which is nothing short of riveting.
The most attractive feature of Hotstar is that it allows you access to a large portion of its content for free, with premium members having to pay 299/- per month or 999/- a year for no restrictions on viewing. However, it supports only a single screen and doesn’t permit simultaneous viewing.
- Voot
Despite being available only in India, Voot is not a streaming app meant to be underestimated. With a user base that is 80 million strong, Voot – with its endless regional content and access to channels like Colors TV and Nickelodeon – is quite a mighty candidate on this list. Voot is sure to hold whatever regional content your heart desires to binge on any day, as well as a decent amount of content in English. This rising star of an app also creates its own original content, growing more and more popular every day.
For the content that it provides, one would be surprised to find that Voot is completely free of cost! All you have to do is register, which is quite quick and convenient and makes Voot a favourite of lovers of regional content.
- ZEE5
Launched as recently as 2018 under Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, this brand new app has already amassed a viewership of over 76.4 million people worldwide. This streaming platform offers content in 12 languages for viewers of all ages, ranging from movies for children to documentaries and well-known plays. The content boasted by ZEE5 is extensive, with over 100,000 hours of TV shows in a wide variety of languages, and a rich collection of web-series. Fans of Zee TV content are bound to love this app.
ZEE5 offers subscriptions to its members in a variety of packs as well, allowing users to pay only for the content of the languages they prefer. Its subscription rates are quite impressive, with plans ranging from 99/- to 198/- a month, 599/- for six months, and from 499/- to 999/- a year.
Despite a large number of streaming platforms available online today and the hesitancy faced by most to finally commit to one, it is indisputable that most platforms offer a wide range of content, making it possible for diverse needs to be met. Most streaming apps offer free trials so you can find your perfect fit, letting you be comfortable before you commit, and so happy binging!
