20. Watching Movies and TV Shows on Your PC
In this chapter, you discover how to watch your favorite TV shows, movies, and other videos on your Windows PC.
Watching Streaming Video Services
Viewing and Sharing Videos on YouTube
Want to rewatch last night’s episode of The Voice? Or the entire season of NCIS? How about a classic episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show or Dragnet? Or maybe one of those prestige streaming series, such as The Mandalorian, Stranger Things, or Westworld? What about that latest “viral video” you’ve been hearing about?
You’re probably used to watching TV shows on your TV. Thanks to streaming video technology and the Internet, however, you can watch all your favorite programs and movies on your computer, via your web browser. Assuming you have a broadband Internet connection, you can find tens of thousands of free and paid videos to watch through dozens of different streaming video services, including Amazon Prime, Disney+, Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube.
Watching Streaming Video Services
Streaming video is video programming that’s transmitted either live or on-demand over the Internet. You can watch it on just about any type of device, from so-called smart TVs and streaming media players to smartphones, tablets, and your friendly neighborhood Windows 10 PC.
Some streaming video services are free, but most require a paid subscription (anywhere from $5 to $15 per month, depending on the service). Once you sign up, you can then watch all available videos from that service on any Internet-connected device—including your Windows 10 PC.
Watch Amazon Prime Video
You probably think of Amazon as a big online retailer, which it is. Amazon is also a big player in streaming video, with its Amazon Prime Video service.
Like other paid streaming video services, Amazon Prime Video offers a mix of original and existing programming, both TV series and movies. Amazon Prime Video costs $8.99 per month, or it’s free if you already have an Amazon Prime membership.
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime Video is both separate from and a part of Amazon Prime, the service that gives you free shipping on many Amazon orders. It’s separate in that you can subscribe separately, but if you have a full Amazon Prime membership ($12.99 per month or $119 per year), you not only get free shipping on your Amazon purchases, you also get Prime Video for free. Depending on how much shopping you do at Amazon, that might be the best deal.
Some of Amazon’s most popular original series include Bosch, The Boys, Fleabag, Good Omens, Hunters, The Man in the High Castle, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Transparent. In addition to its Prime Video offerings, Amazon also offers a variety of on-demand programming for sale or rental.
You watch Amazon Prime Video in your web browser on Amazon’s website.
Point your web browser to the Amazon website (www.amazon.com), sign into your account if necessary, and click the Category (three-line) button.
Click Prime Video and then click Prime Video again.
Scroll down to view suggested programming. Or…
Click Categories and then select what you want to watch: Coming Soon, Movies, TV Shows, Amazon Originals, and the like. Or…
Enter a query within the Search box to search for specific shows or movies.
Click to select the item you want to watch.
If you selected a TV show, click to select a season.
Click the Play icon for the episode you want to watch.
If you selected a movie, click Watch Now to watch now.
If you selected an on-demand item not included for free with Amazon Prime, click the Rent or Buy button. (You typically have 30 days to watch a rented item, and 48 hours to complete it after you’ve started.)
Free Trials
Most paid video streaming services offer some sort of free trial period. If you sign up for a free trial and don’t like the service, remember to cancel your subscription before you get hit with the first month’s billing.
Watch CBS All Access
CBS All Access offers both network and original streaming programming from the CBS library of programming. Subscriptions range from $5.99 per month (with commercials) to $9.99 per month (no commercials).
The original programming available on CBS All Access includes The Good Fight, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard, The Twilight Zone, and Why Women Kill. Current and vintage programming includes Blue Bloods, FBI, NCIS, Survivor, and Young Sheldon. You can also watch live programming from CBS, CBSN (news), and CBS Sports.
Point your web browser to www.cbs.com/all-access/ and sign up or log in.
Click the Live TV tab to view live programming from your local CBS station. Or…
Click the Shows tab to see all available shows.
Click the show you want to watch.
Scroll down and select a season.
Click to view a specific episode.
Watch Disney+
Disney+ is the strongest competitor to industry-leading Netflix, with programming from all Disney-owned properties, including the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars franchises, as well as new and classic Disney and Pixar programming and movies and TV shows from the 20th Century Fox library.
Current and upcoming original programming available on Disney+ includes The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, Loki, The Mandalorian, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and WandaVision. A subscription to Disney+ costs $6.99 per month. Disney also bundles Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ (all owned by Disney) for $12.99 per month.
Point your web browser to www.disneyplus.com and sign up or log in.
Choose from the suggestions on the home page. Or…
Click Search to search for a specific program. Or…
Click to select the studio you want to watch: Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, or National Geographic.
Click the program or movie you want to watch.
If you selected a movie, click Play.
If you selected a TV series, scroll down and select a season and episode.
Watch HBO Max
HBO Max is a new streaming service set to launch in May 2020. (It was not available when this book was written.) It includes programming from properties owned by AT&T, including DC Comics, HBO, and Warner Media.
Exclusive HBO Max programming includes classic and original series such as The Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who, Friends, Game of Thrones, Green Lantern, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Sesame Street, Veep, Watchmen, and Westworld. Also included are movies such as the Lord of the Rings and Matrix trilogies, the Lego movies, and DC films such as Batman v Superman, Joker, and Wonder Woman. For classic film fans, the entire Turner Classic Movie (TCM) catalog is also part of the deal, including such films as Casablanca, Citizen Kane, and Singin’ in the Rain.
An HBO Max subscription runs $15 per month. Find out more at www.hbomax.com.
Watch Hulu
Hulu is a streaming service that offers a mix of movies, television shows, and original programming. It is particularly known for its selection of current episodes from the major TV networks; it’s a great place for catching up on any recent shows you’ve missed.
Original programming available on Hulu includes Four Weddings and a Funeral, Future Man, The Handmaid’s Tale, High Fidelity, Little Fires Everywhere, and Veronica Mars.
Hulu offers two basic subscription plans. The Basic plan runs $5.99 per month and lets you watch Hulu’s streaming library with commercial interruptions. The Premium plan runs $11.99 per month but removes the commercials.
Use your web browser to go to www.hulu.com and sign up or log in.
Choose from the suggestions on the home page. Or…
Click Search to search for a specific program. Or…
Click Browse to browse programming by type (Networks, TV Shows, Movies, Hulu Originals, etc.) and genre.
Click the tile for the movie or show you want to watch.
If you selected a television series, select a season and then click the episode you want to watch.
If you selected a movie, click Watch Movie.
Watch Netflix
When it comes to watching movies and TV shows online, the most popular streaming service today is Netflix (www.netflix.com). Netflix offers a broad variety of television shows, movies, and original programming—perhaps the biggest selection of any competing service.
Netflix offers three different subscription plans. The Basic plan costs $8.99 per month and offers only standard definition viewing on a single screen or device. The more popular Standard plan costs $12.99 per month and offers HD viewing on two simultaneous screens or devices. The Premium plan runs $15.99 per month and offers up to 4K definition on up to four screens or devices at the same time.
SD, HD, and 4K
The resolution of a TV picture measures how detailed the picture is. Older TV sets and computer monitors can only display standard resolution (SD). Newer TVs and computer screens can display high definition (HD). Some very new TV sets (but few if any computer screens) can display 4K resolution. If you’re watching Netflix on your computer, the Standard plan with HD resolution is all you need.
Netflix’s original programming includes Black Mirror, Cheer, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, The Crown, Fuller House, Grace and Frankie, Orange Is the New Black, Stranger Things, Tiger King, The Umbrella Academy, and The Witcher. The service also offers original movies, including Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman.
DVD Rental
Netflix also offers a separate DVD-by-mail rental service, which has a separate subscription fee. That’s not what I’m talking about here, however.
Point your web browser to www.netflix.com and either sign up or log in. If you’re previously created different users on your account, select your user.
Choose from the suggestions on the home page. Or…
Select TV Shows to view only television programs. Or…
Select Movies to view only movies. Or…
Select Latest to view the newest programming on the service. Or…
Click Search to search for a specific item.
Click to select the item you want to watch.
If you selected a television series, click Episodes to select a season and specific episode.
If you selected a movie, click Play to begin watching.
Watch Peacock
Peacock is a new streaming service from NBCUniversal that is set to launch in summer 2020. Programming will include next-day access to current NBC programs, movies from Universal, and other content. Series include Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Monk, The Office, Parks and Recreation, Saturday Night Live, and a new reboot of Saved by the Bell.
Peacock’s basic service is ad-supported and free but offers only limited programming. The more fully featured Premium services runs $4.99 per month with ads or $9.99 per month without ads.
Watch Other Paid Streaming Video Services
There are a number of more targeted paid streaming video services you can watch on your Windows 10 computer. All of these services offer monthly or yearly subscriptions and are viewable from any web browser. These services include:
Acorn TV (www.acorn.tv, $5.99 per month), offering a variety of television programming from Britain, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand
Apple TV+ (www.apple.com/apple-tv-plus/, $4.99 per month), with a handful of high-profile original series, including Amazing Stories, The Morning Show, and See
BritBox (www.britbox.com, $6.99 per month), home to British TV programs from BBC and ITV
BroadwayHD (www.broadwayhd.com, $8.99 per month), with a variety of Broadway plays and musicals
The Criterion Channel (www.criterionchannel.com, $10.99 per month), the perfect service for movie buffs, with classic and foreign films from the Criterion Collection
ESPN+ (plus.espn.com, $4.99 per month), with thousands of live sporting events from the various ESPN channels
Watching Free Streaming Video Services
Although the most popular streaming services tend to be subscription-based, there are also several free streaming video services you can watch on your Windows 10 computer. These services offer a variety of (typically older) movies and TV shows, complete with commercials.
The most popular free streaming video services today include
Crackle (www.crackle.com)
IMDb TV (www.imdb.com)
Pluto TV (www.pluto.tv)
Popcornflix (www.popcornflix.com)
Tubi (www.tubitv.com)
Xumo (www.xumo.tv)
Watching Live TV on Your PC
There’s a ton of great programming available via the major streaming video services, but there’s still a lot of good stuff on good ol’ broadcast television, too. Is there a way to watch your local channels, broadcast networks, and cable channels on your computer? Yes, there is—by subscribing to a live TV streaming service.
These services, such as Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV, and YouTube TV, offer a selection of live programming from a variety of sources that you can watch over the Internet in your computer’s web browser. Most offer live streaming of a wide variety of cable programming; many also offer live streaming of your local TV channels.
Navigating these live TV streaming services is a lot like using a cable or satellite channel guide. You typically see a list of channels down the left side of the guide and upcoming times (in half-hour increments) along the top. You scroll down the guide to select a channel and scroll right to see what’s coming up in the near future.
These live TV streaming services aren’t free—although they cost a lot less than a typical cable and satellite plan. Prices typically run around $50 per month, although you can customize your plans to some degree to view more or fewer channels.
In addition, most of these live TV streaming services offer cloud DVR functionality. That is, you can record your favorite shows just as you would with a cable or satellite box, and the shows are stored on the service’s cloud servers somewhere in the Internet. You can watch your recorded programs with the click of a button; many of these services also offer on-demand program for your viewing pleasure.
Watch fuboTV
FuboTV’s original focus was streaming live worldwide sporting events, and it’s still one of the best plans for sports fans with more sports channels than its competitors. It offers more than just sports, however, with the typical assortment of cable channels and local channels in most areas.
As to pricing, the fubo Standard plan offers 100 channels and a 30-hour cloud DVR for $54.99 per month. If you want more recording time, go with the Family package at $59.99 per month to get 500 hours of cloud DVR recording. For more channels (and the extra hours of recording), the Ultra plan offers 171 channels at $79.99 per month.
Learn more at www.fubo.tv.
Watch Hulu + Live TV
Hulu with Live TV is an extension of the traditional Hulu streaming service. This service offers more than 65 cable and local channels and 50 hours of cloud DVR storage. Pricing starts at $54.99 per month.
Learn more at www.hulu.com/live-tv.
Watch Philo
Philo differs from the other live TV streaming services in that it doesn’t offer any local channels. You get 59 cable channels and unlimited cloud DVR storage (for 30 days), but you only pay $20 per month. That’s considerably lower than competing services, which makes it an attractive service to pick up any channels you don’t get otherwise.
Learn more at www.philo.com.
Watch Sling TV
Sling TV is the granddaddy of live TV streaming services. The company sells two plans: Sling Orange has 32 channels and costs $30 per month, whereas Sling Blue has 47 channels and costs $45 per month. Both plans come with 10 hours of cloud DVR storage. The company also offers combo deals and a variety of extra channel add-ons.
Unlike other live TV streaming services, you can’t watch Sling TV in your browser. Instead you have to download and install the Sling TV app from the Microsoft Store. The app is free and easy to use. Learn more at www.sling.com.
Watch YouTube TV
YouTube TV (not to be confused with the traditional YouTube video-sharing service, discussed later in this chapter) is fast becoming the live TV streaming service of choice. It offers a wide variety of programming (70+ channels) and cloud DVR recording with unlimited storage. YouTube TV also offers the most number of local channels in the most locations.
You pay $49.99 per month for a subscription that includes just about everything, although you can pay more to add some premium channels. Learn more at tv.youtube.com.
Viewing and Sharing Videos on YouTube
There’s another place to watch videos online, and it’s a big one. YouTube, unlike the streaming video services just discussed, doesn’t specialize in commercial TV shows and movies. Instead, YouTube is a video-sharing community; users can upload their own videos and watch videos uploaded by other members.
YouTube is where you find all those homemade videos of cute cats and laughing babies that everybody’s watching, as well as tons of “how-to” videos, video blogs, videogame tutorials, and more. And when you find a video you like, you can share it with your friends and family—which is what helps a video go “viral.”
View a Video
You access YouTube from any web browser. Unlike many of the streaming video services we’ve discussed, you use YouTube for free—no subscription necessary.
Movies on YouTube
In addition to its user-uploaded videos, YouTube offers a variety of commercial movies. Some movies are free; others can be rented on a 48-hour pass for as low as $1.99.
From within your web browser, go to the YouTube site at www.youtube.com. Browse through the suggested videos. Or…
To search for a particular video, enter what you’re looking for into the Search box and then press Enter or click the Search (magnifying glass) button.
Click the video you want to watch.
The video begins playing automatically when the video page displays.
Click the Pause button to pause playback; click the button again to resume playback.
Click the Fullscreen button to view the video on your entire computer screen.
Click the thumbs-up button to “like” the video, or the thumbs-down button to “dislike” it.
Upload Your Own Video
If you take movies with your camcorder or smartphone, you can transfer those movies to your computer and then upload them to YouTube. This is a great way to share your home videos with friends and family online. (You have to be signed into YouTube before you start uploading, of course.)
Uploading from a Smartphone
If you shoot video with your smartphone or tablet, you can probably upload to YouTube directly from your device or the YouTube mobile app. Check your device or app to see what options are available.
Click the Upload button at the top of any YouTube page and select Upload Video.
Click Select File to display the Open dialog box.
Navigate to and select the video file you want to upload.
Click the Open button.
As the video is uploaded, YouTube displays the video information page. Follow the onscreen instructions to enter information about the video, including title and description.
