I Need a Spreadsheet Just to Watch TV
Remember when watching a movie was easy? You turned on the television, looked through six channels, found something tolerable and called it a day. Without a remote.
Now I have become a Streaming Services Manager.
Last week I wanted to watch a movie. Not cure cancer. Not file my taxes. Not renew my passport. Just watch a movie. Better yet, a TV series with many seasons.
First I refer to my list of which services we subscribe to.
- Netflix — $23
- Paramount+ — $9.99
- Max — $12.99
- BritBox — about $7.50 a month if I divide the annual fee by twelve.
- Apple TV+ — currently free until August.
- Peacock — free for two years thanks to Xfinity.
- Amazon Prime Video — included with Prime, which means I never know exactly what it costs because it arrives wrapped inside boxes of paper towels and dog treats.
That's $53 worth of entertainment. We rarely go to movies at the theater, so I don't feel too bad about this $$$.
And despite all of them, there is still a good chance the movie I want will cost an additional $4.99 to rent. (Sorry, I’m much too cheap to rent a movie … but my Kidults sometimes ask if they can)
Tubi
- Free with ads
- Movies, TV shows, old classics, British mysteries, and surprisingly good hidden gems
Pluto TV
- Free with ads
- Live TV channels plus on-demand movies and shows
- Feels a bit like old-school cable TV
The Roku Channel
- Free with ads
- Movies, TV series, news, and some original programming
- You do not need a Roku device
Kanopy
- Free with many library cards
- No ads!
- Great for award-winning films, documentaries, classics, and foreign films
Hoopla
- Free with many library cards
- No ads!
- Movies, TV, audiobooks, ebooks, and magazines
Plex
- Free with ads
- Movies, TV shows, and live channels
- Also useful for organizing your own media
Crackle
- Free with ads
- Older movies and TV shows
- Smaller library, but occasionally has fun finds
(Max says there are over 200 streaming sites!)
Instead, I find myself conducting a nationwide search. Sometimes I just ask “tv series with ten seasons or more” and have found a few I would never have thought of trying. I know I am just showing my age … but wasn’t technology supposed to HELP us?
The truly ridiculous part is that I am retired. I have time. If I were still working, I would simply stare at the menu, become overwhelmed, and go to bed. (Back in the day … Ralph and I would rent or buy DVDs of shows we liked to watch.)
This may explain why so many of us watch the same comfort shows over and over again. The choice isn't the problem. The problem is there are approximately 47 billion choices.
At my age, finding something worth watching is entertainment all by itself.
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