Streaming Services in 2020: Comparison
Cable is slowly dying and cordcutters around the world rejoice. Especially with this current situation (you know — a global pandemic) more and more people are spending more and more time on streaming services.
In this article, we’ll overview and analyze the five main streaming services, diving deep in detail regarding their pros and cons. For the sake of comparison, we’ll pretend all there services are the same price. This is for two reasons; one, each service costs a different amount of money in different countries, so it’s impossible to accurately put a pricing label that is appropriate for every individual reader reading this; and two, honestly, the pricing between services is never drastically different anyway.
Let’s begin.
Pros:
- Amazing original content. Nexflix is consistently producing and distributing series and films that are often (not always) objectively good and worth your time. They also focus on different genres and vibes to fit every customer’s desires and preferences.
- Large selection. Netflix holds a very wide library of television and films and nine times out of ten you’ll be able to find something fitting to you.
- Good interface. Netflix has by far the most user-friendly and aesthetic interface.
Cons:
- Most non-original titles are trash. Netflix releases quality material for a very short period of time before taking it off their site. The majority of titles that are permanently in Netflix’ library are of very low quality.
Pros:
- BEST overall content. Without a doubt, HBO produces and releases the best series and films compared to any other streaming service. A very large amount of the content available on HBO GO is worth your time.
- Quick releases. Most blockbusters and Hollywood releases are probably going to hit HBO before anything else.
- Good interface. HBO GO is friendly and easy to navigate.
Cons:
- Small selection of content. While HBO does hold features and series of high-quality, they are not too many in number.
- Films leave the platform quickly. Granted, this is HBO’s business model, but the chances of a big studio release staying on HBO for more than a couple of months are very slim.
- Lags in streaming. If your internet connection is not too strong, lags are going to happen. And it’s going to annoy you.
Pros:
- Many good features are permanently there. If you’re looking for a quality film between 1980 and 2010, chances are best you find it on Amazon Prime. And the feature will stay there, so you can come back to it.
- Pretty good library. In general, Amazon holds quite a few features and series worth your time.
- Prime benefits. In the price for Amazon Prime, you’ll also have Prime delivery, Prime music, etc. Quite a few benefits for a low cost.
Cons:
- AWFUL interface. Amazon is difficult to navigate, so much so you get annoyed and leave.
Pros:
- Good selection of entertaining films. For anything non-drama, or family friendly, Disney Plus has (or will, in a couple of months) the best selection.
- Friendly interface. Simple, easy to use, looks aesthetic.
- Pretty good original content. Of course, this depends on your preference, but if you’re into Star Wars or Marvel (as most of us are), Disney Plus has some amazing upcoming releases.
Cons:
- Small library. VERY small library, in fact, probably the smallest of the bunch.
- Very limited content. Disney Plus’ demographic is kids, teens, and families, so all relatively dramatic or gritty content will never stream there.
Pros:
- Great interface. Friendly, stylish, aesthetic.
- More obscure content. In general, Hulu has a little bit of everything — SNL, older series, new shows, comedy, gritty features, etc. It’s full of different genres and styles and you’ll probably find something on Hulu worth your time.
Cons:
- Too much obscure content. While Hulu does supply a little bit of everything, chances are you won’t need Hulu because most shows won’t be released exclusively there. It’s often a dumping ground for projects that aren’t exclusive to any other streaming service.
- Will lag. Similarly to HBO, Hulu often lags and the streaming quality is bad.
- Commercials. Granted, this comes only with the cheaper Hulu option, but unless you want to pay more, commercials are there and it is annoying.
So, which streaming services do we recommend?
Depends on your needs, to be honest. For a cinephile who likes classics and exclusively ‘good content’? Amazon and HBO. For a regular consumer? Netflix and Hulu. For a family? Netflix and Disney Plus.
We currently use Netflix, Amazon Prime, and HBO. Most often, we’ll stream on Netflix and Amazon, but HBO has some weekly releases that keep us interested. When the Marvel shows start rolling out, we’ll probably have to bite the bullet and get Disney Plus, too.
But again, it’s very personal. As you can see, every streaming service has its pros and cons, so hopefully you can use this guide to make the best decision for yourselves.
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An interesting analysis piece here.
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— Pouty Boy