Ask your parents or grandparents and they’ll tell you about the days when we had three TV channels, and the only movies were the ones in your local cinema. Today we can pick and choose from a huge menu of on-demand content. Apps and services give you access to the very best TV, films, podcasts and other content, all served up to your phone or tablet. So in a world of near-infinite choice, how do you get the greatest content and the most enjoyable playback experience? Follow our entertainment apps guide.
At your service
The first point to make about entertainment apps is that, unlike most other apps, you’re really choosing between services. The Netflix app might have its strengths and weaknesses, for example, but what really matters is the quality and variety of the TV, films, music or podcasts it can serve up. Content is king, and if the library is rubbish, a great app isn’t any help.
Fortunately, all the leading services tend to have usable apps, even if some are better than others. The key is choosing the service or services that most closely match your needs. If you’ve got kids, for example, Disney+ is something of a no-brainer. If you want the best quality free content, the BBC iPlayer is a must.
In truth, there’s almost no such thing as a free lunch when it comes to entertainment. You need a TV licence to use iPlayer, while other free services typically have a small library or interrupt your viewing with ads – often both. So, what are the best choices? Here’s our guide.
iPlayer
Mozillion rating
Why install? Access the best of the BBC
Why avoid it?Requires a TV licence
You surely don’t need us to tell you about the iPlayer app. Launched back in 2007, the BBC’s video-on-demand player connects viewers not only to recent broadcast TV, but to an extensive back catalogue of content that includes many classics. The platform’s strengths include its widespread availability, with the app appearing in multiple consoles, smart TVs and the like. It also works in any modern internet browser.
Open up iPlayer and you’re presented with the usual selection of popular and trending content, along with recommendations and links to any programs you’ve been watching. Dive into the menu to navigate by BBC channel, or by categories such as films, comedy or food. There are also quick links to CBeebies and CBBC content for kids, but you may prefer your kids to use the children’s version of iPlayer, also free on the App Store or Play.
iPlayer’s simple playback controls include forward and back skipping, but only in 10-second jumps. While the quirky volume control literally ‘goes up to 11’, there’s also a choice of audio description and subtitling where available. On mobile devices you can download selected content, saving your data allowance if you’re planning to binge-watch on a long journey.
While the app is decent, iPlayer’s real strength lies in the sheer amount of quality programming available. You won’t find the BBC’s full archive, but you’ll get another chance to watch almost everything recently shown on Beeb channels. So-called box-setting often gives keen watchers access to a whole series ahead of its actual broadcast. And if you’re lucky, you’ll find classic programmes such as Fawlty Towers, The Office, or the newest 13 seasons of Doctor Who
iPlayer content is free to view and free of adverts to licence fee payers in the UK. In other regions, the content is ad-supported. Unless you don’t have a licence, or you’re not at all interested in UK TV, iPlayer is a must-install.
Disney+
Mozillion rating
Why install?Brilliant for kids, lots of strong content
Why avoid it?No free plan
As one of the newest major services, Disney+ was undoubtedly helped by the timing of its launch: November 2019, just a few months before the world went into lockdown and needed all the entertainment it could get. But its ongoing success is far more down to the depth and quality of its programming.
If you’ve got young kids, Disney+ is a no-brainer, simply because of the number of top quality children’s films available. From Disney and Pixar classics like The Lion King or Toy Story, right up to Encanto, Luca or Frozen, this is the cheapest way to enjoy loads of must-see family films. You could say the same for older children, given that Disney+ hosts all the Star Wars and Marvel movies, and every Simpsons series at no extra cost.
Disney+ isn’t quite as unmissable for adults. There are some great comedy box sets, including recent classics like Modern Family, and plenty of Oscar-winning films like Black Swan and The Grand Budapest Hotel. It doesn’t compare so well on documentaries and drama series, though.
The Disney+ app is straightforward enough, allowing you to set up multiple users on an account, and download content for offline viewing. It also supports social watching, with GroupWatch synchronising playback for up to six people – great if you want to enjoy a movie together without actually meeting up. While there’s no free plan, the blockbuster films alone make this a good value service – you’d spend much more buying them on disc, or from other streaming platforms.
Spotify
Mozillion rating
Why install?A huge music library, family subscription is good value
Why avoid it?Iffy user experience, low artist income
Again, you probably don’t need us to tell you about Spotify. As one of the world’s biggest streaming audio platforms, it’s had its share of coverage, both positive and negative.
To start with the positive, Spotify gives you access to an absolutely vast catalogue of music and, more recently, podcasts. Like other music streaming services, it’s child’s play to find the latest releases, but if you’re into something niche, or trying to track down a forgotten classic, the chances are it’s on there too. Basic Spotify accounts are free, although their various limitations mean you’ll soon find yourself wanting to upgrade. Premium accounts start at a pricey £10 per month, but the £17 family account allows for up to six users.
You can install Spotify on a variety of devices, or run playback directly from a browser. It’s compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, too, allowing you to use voice control to play songs while travelling.
The app itself is a mixed bag. While you can build up a library of liked songs, albums or artists, it’s often hidden behind Spotify’s own recommendations. You may also find some of the defaults – like auto-playing more music when your own choice has finished – annoying.
The Spotify platform has come in for criticism, particularly around the tiny fraction of your subscription that actually goes to artists. More recently, Spotify has also come under scrutiny for the content of Joe Rogan’s podcast, to which it has an exclusive licence. This, along with an app that could be easier to use, is a turn off. That said, it’s hard to beat Spotify for the sheer range of available music.
Netflix
Mozillion rating
Why install?A good range of content, particularly documentaries and series
Why avoid it?The Basic plan is too limited
It’ll come as no surprise to see Netflix on this list. With more than 200 million subscribers, it’s the world’s biggest streaming video service – and for good reason. Back in 2007, its video on demand service was revolutionary, disrupting the decades-old video rental industry almost overnight. Today, Netflix is home to one of the biggest content catalogues on the internet, featuring original film and TV, alongside films from Columbia, TriStar and other major studios.
Like many streaming services, Netflix lets you set up multiple users, restricting what children can see and protecting adult accounts with PINs. With the £6 Basic account you can watch what you want, as much as you want, on a single screen at a time, but not in high definition. While that’s fine for cheaper phones that don’t support HD content, you’ll need the £10 Standard subscription to make the most of a high-end phone with an HD or better display. And if you’re also watching on a 4k (ultra high definition) TV, you’ll want the £13 Premium plan.
Netflix offers a huge library of content, but its quality tends to be a bit more variable than on Disney+. Netflix’s own ‘originals’ are usually strong, with series like The Crown and documentaries including Making a Murderer providing watercooler moments – back when people used to work in an office. There’s plenty of great series and films for kids, too, but scroll down far enough in any category and you’ll usually discover weaker content.
Despite these criticisms, Netflix offers content for everyone, accessed through a decent player available for a huge range of operating systems and smart devices. Once you sign up, it’s hard to consider life without it.
YouTube
Mozillion rating
Why install?More free videos than you could ever possibly watch
Why avoid it?Lots of awful content, adverts, and not a great app
If ever there was a qualified recommendation, this is it. YouTube’s mobile app is annoying to use, frequently nags you to upgrade to Premium, and usually makes you wait for adverts before – and even during – the content you’re viewing. That said, it’s the gateway to an absolutely vast catalogue of published, historic and user-generated video. That alone probably makes this the best free entertainment app there is.
YouTube’s users collectively watch about a billion hours of video each day, and upload about 500 hours of new content every minute. Much of it is poor quality or personal, but there’s more than a lifetime’s worth of brilliant entertainment, sport, news, music and other content. And in the vanishingly unlikely case that you can’t find something you want to watch, you can use the app to help you upload your own videos, or even your own live broadcasts.
While YouTube’s free service is peppered with adverts, a £12/month Premium account will get rid of them, and give you ad-free access to YouTube Music Premium. Even then, finding the content you want is still more of a challenge than with other paid services – there’s simply so much of it, with such variable quality.
If you’re already over YouTube, you might get a kick from alternatives such as Twitch, which specialises in live gaming and Esports broadcasting. Alternatively, Vimeo focuses more on highly creative content with higher production quality, while DailyMotion is similar but a little more relaxed.