TV streaming services which are best for you Best TV streaming service 6 1. ODAlthough one of the main terrestrial broadcasters in the UK, Channel 4s on demand service continues to lag behind. However, unlike many of the terrestrial catch up TV providers, Channel 4s 4. OD service keeps its programmes available online seemingly forever, so you dont have to worry about that annoying seven day window. What is the opposite of comedy Tragedy, the imaginary Greek chorus might say its a specialist subject of theirs, but I think not. The two modes are highly. Od Peep Show Series 2' title='4Od Peep Show Series 2' />Its a growing service, too, with 1. But can a service that still doesnt feature on Skys on demand offering though it does feature on Virgin Media, You. View and Xbox 3. 60 and only launched as an app for Android devices in February 2. The latter, which complements an i. OS app, only allows streaming of content, with downloading not permitted. A similar app for Windows 8 has just been launched. A commercial outlook means Channel 4 is more interested in business models than experiments for its catch up service, and to that end its busy collecting audience data from its six million registered members. The endgame is demographically targeted adverts based on age, sex and geographical location, though the why register only mentions the benefits, such as favourites and reminders. Watch Williams Online Free 2016. In terms of usability, 4. OD is clear, simple and easy to use, but is blighted by an unacceptable amount of adverts before a programme starts, no less than six adverts are played and some include touch here for more information panels that open a related web page while the video content underneath pauses. On Windows 8, the video continues underneath. However, 4. OD goes beyond most catch up TV services by offering entire series in its archive for free all eight series of Peep Show, The Inbetweeners and, err, all 2. Come Dine With Me gulp are freely available. There is a curated Collections area, too, featuring grouping like Jimmy Carr Collection, Two World Wars Animal Kingdom, though most are vaguely titled and confusing Star Gazing is unfortunately about Z list celebs, not the night sky. There are also links on 4. ODs website to 4. Seven a seven day catch up hub to keep things simple, More. Music and Film. 4, the latter of which has a rental section powered by Film. Flex that allows downloads to a laptop for. Virgin Media. Up to 1. MB of fibre optic broadband is available to Virgin subscribers, but its what the cable operator has done for streaming and second screen TV that we love it most for. At the core of its streaming savvy service is Ti. Vo, the most advanced PVR around with three tuners, HD, 3. D and either a 5. GB or 1. TB hard disk, which now comes with a companion app for i. Phones and i. Pads called TV Anywhere. A similar suite of apps for Android is scheduled for 2. The catch up avenue gives you everything from the BBC, ITV, C4 and Demand 5 and puts it through your living room TV for free, so theres no rooting around trying to access different sites for different programmes. You can go backwards on the EPG, too, something that You. View has recently copied. The on demand side of things lets you watch TV, movies and music generally for free, with a small charge to rent anything not included as standard any time you like. Virgin Movies gets the latest films, which cost from. Its also got a dedicated channel number 1. You. Tube, which is here in the latest multi device friendly HTML5 flavour. However, the real innovation is TV Anywhere. Fire it up at home on a smartphone or tablet and the app instantly connects to Ti. Vo, identifies what youre currently watching, and gives you options to record it or set a series link, explore cast, crew, You. Tube search links, inspect upcoming scheduled episodes, or share on social media. Its Guide EPG and Browse by genre and curated collections that comprise links to entire series on BBC i. Player options makes it a cinch to set recordings either at home or remotely while on 3. G while My Shows gives full access to all of your recordings, sound recordings and cities links. Basically, the app replaces your remote control theres even a virtual remote and a watch now links on all content pages and quickly becomes the default way to organise and navigate the Ti. Vo box. Best of all, its possible to do a free text search of everything the Ti. Vo box knows about, including live and upcoming TV and within all on demand content and apps. However, where it makes the leap from an informational app to a proper streaming service is by offering TV several channels to stream live through TV Anywhere. Unfortunately, this is merely an emerging service since it only works over Wi. Fi and doesnt apply to all terrestrial channels only the Five suite of live channels are included from the big broadcasters, but its definitely the way forward. Verdict 45. 8. Dave. Once the home of repeats and more repeats, comedy channel Dave has spent the last few years commissioning fresh programmes, with the likes of Daves One Night Stand, Al Murrays Compete for Meat and the tenth series of Red Dwarf all in its recent past. Add to that US lawyer comedy Suits and youve got a package thats worth dipping into. Time for its own catch up app, which arrived in February 2. OS devices. Also available as a Vo. D service online and on BT Vision and Sky On Demand, Dave is the first UKTV channel to get the i. Phonei. Pad treatment, though were promised that similar apps will follow for the Yesterday and Really channels. Dave is likely to be the highlight of that lot, then, and in use its a great app. A slick design of black, white and red make it feel a bit like a comedy club, programmes are provided to stream only no downloads and theres not even any adverts before each play. Thats a relief, though programmes dont stay online forever, and you do have to give Dave your email, gender and date of birth to register. Perhaps ads will follow soon, but for now its impressively slick. Verdict 45. 9. Sky, Sky Go Now TVMurdochs empire knows no bounds, and nothing says this better than Sky TV the virtual monopoly thats stormed into the homes of millions of UK residents. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the Sky dish makes it easy to access a huge range of content. The second and more important factor is the range of programmes available to viewers, including a hefty selection of movie and sports channels. The companys main focus is its regular TV service, which is where it makes its money, but its still experimenting elsewhere. One of its most recent advances has been in 3. D TV, letting the three million Sky HD customers enjoy their favourite programmes with an extra dimension. All of this video on demand was threatening to make pricey subscription TV like Sky rather pointless, so what did the satellite broadcaster do It started its own Now TV app to take Sky Movies to the masses, then bought up smart TV movie streaming app Acetrax. Its also bolstered its Sky Go app for its own subscribers, extending it to allow downloads. This so called Sky Go Extra service costs at extra. Still, the chance to travel by train or plane and watch movies offline is true Nirvana if youve got a tablet or over sized smartphone. Now TV is an interesting one. Aimed at streaming no downloads Sky content primarily its line up of Hollywood movies to tablets, smartphones, smart TVs, You. View boxes and the Xbox 3. Now TV is available free for the first 3. Sky charging. It then increases to. Add live Sky Sports promised in Spring 2. As if to round up Skys bolstered offering of on demand content, dont forget either its catch up TV heavy SkyHD box nor Sky Player on Xbox 3. TV, and on demand content including Sky Sports, though its more of a multiroomsecond home add on for existing Sky subscribers than a catch up offering to the world.