Search results for

All search results
Best daily deals

Affiliate links on Android Authority may earn us a commission. Learn more.

January 30, 2023

šŸ¤£ Good day, and welcome back to the Daily Authority. I trust that youā€™ve had a great weekend! Weā€™ve been revisiting episodes of Seinfeld on Netflix, which is probably the worst use case for HDR the world has ever seen. Thankfully, the remaster hasnā€™t affected the comedy.

Is ad-supported streaming worth the cash save?

netflix ads plan
Netflix

Speaking of streaming services, my colleague Andrew Grush spent his weekend investigating whether ad-supported tiers are worth it. So, are they?

Struggling streaming services turn to ad-ons

  • Recent years havenā€™t been too kind to streaming services like Netflix.
  • The streaming giant saw massive gains during the pandemic, but slowing growth in 2022.
  • This has led it and several contemporaries to explore cheaper, and often free ad-supported streaming (FAST) tiers.
  • But the FAST game isnā€™t simply won by lowering prices and serving ads to users.
  • Unlike traditional TV, streaming services tend to roll the same ads repeatedly, and most are irrelevant.
  • ā€œRegardless of what I seemed to watch, most ads were either trying to sell me medicines for issues I donā€™t have or trying to get me to sign up for a dating app.ā€
  • Ad-targeting is either really bad or non-existent at present.
  • Andrew also found that ads served on these services were disruptive and inconsistent.
  • Often these services push ads at inopportune moments.
  • Using HBO Max as an example, some shows donā€™t have ads at all. Game of Thrones and Silicon Valley are two examples.
  • On the same service, Harry Potter and the Sorcererā€™s Stone was laced with nine ads.
  • ā€œNo matter what streaming service I used, ads tended to be random in placement and run time.ā€

Read the fine print

  • Beyond the ad-serving issues, these tiers also have limitations compared to fully premium offerings.
  • Netflixā€™s Basic plan is limited to 720p resolution, while some services, like Pluto TV, can struggle with aggressive compression.
  • Downloading content is also severely limited.
  • ā€œThe lack of offline downloads was one of the things that got me to resubscribe to the more expensive HBO Max plan.ā€
  • Finally, thereā€™s the question of library availability.
  • Depending on the service you subscribe to, youā€™ll only have a sampling plate of shows and movies available to view.
  • ā€œThis situation mostly applies to Peacockā€™s free plan (which is more of a sampler than a functional service) or Netflix Basic with Ads.ā€
  • ā€œAs far as I can tell, Disney Plus, Paramount Plus, and HBO Max had their full catalogs available to all subscribers.ā€

Should you go ad-supported in 2023?

  • Going ad-supported is a great way to save a little cash, but it depends on how much you rely on streaming content for entertainment.
  • ā€œIn my case, Iā€™m paying for a few ad-free subscriptions like Peacock, Netflix, and HBO Max. The first because I watch it the most, Netflix because of the missing content, and HBO Max because I tend to download it a lot for watching on the go.ā€
  • Ultimately, thereā€™s no one-size-fits-all solution, so give a tier a try before fully committing to the premium tier.
  • For FAST options, weā€™d suggest Freevee, Tubi, and PlutoTV to support a larger streaming habit.
  • For ad-supported services, HBO Max, Hulu, and Disney Plus have the best options at the moment.

šŸ“±Ā Hereā€™s what itā€™s like using the Nothing Phone 1 in the United States: Itā€™s not as bad as youā€™d think (Android Authority).

āœļøĀ Amazon Kindle Scribe review: We take Amazonā€™s new e-reader with note-taking features for a spin (Android Authority).

šŸ˜€Ā AI pearly whites, incoming: Forget more megapixels, your next phoneā€™s camera could offer whiter teeth (Android Authority).

šŸ‘€Ā Thereā€™s nothing like Jeff Goldblum breaking the fourth wall for you: The best use for AI eye contact tech is making movie stars look straight at the camera (The Verge).

Monday meme

We donā€™t have any particular theme for this weekā€™s Monday meme. Instead, enjoy this picture of a raccoon riding a hog. Itā€™s been a long month. You deserve it.

Have a great week,

Andy Walker, Editor.

Previous Newsletter
Daily Authority: āœØ New tablets from Google and OnePlus
The Daily Authority
Pixel Tablet shot from Pixel 7 launch
Next Newsletter
Daily Authority: šŸ”‹ Is Facebook killing phone batteries?
The Daily Authority
Facebook app on phone 2