I have a stream!

TECHLIFE ROUNDS UP THE BEST MEDIA STREAMING DEVICES IN AUSTRALIA TO SEE WHICH ONE GETS THE CLOSEST TO DELIVERING AN ALL-INCLUSIVE LIVING-ROOM UTOPIA.

SUBSCRIPTION VIDEO ON demand has become big business in Australia. The launch of Netflix in 2015 drove a major increase in internet bandwidth consumption across the nation and played an influential role in the accelerated uptake of 4K TVs locally. While the first round of media players jumped on the initial opportunity, most of these are now becoming obsolete as they don’t output at 4K and most 4K smart TVs will have at least a couple of streaming services available directly on the screen.

So what is the point of a media streaming box? Well, most TV manufacturers do deals to decide which streaming and catch-up apps will be baked directly into the screen’s OS. This annoying powerplay means no TV has every service and opens a space in the market for a single hub that gives you access to all of the local streaming and catch-up services in the one easy to access place.

Sadly, the media streaming box market is plagued by similar conflicting desires, so whether you choose to be bound to Telstra’s broadband internet services by going with the Telstra TV 2 or you decide to get behind Foxtel’s Netflix-less media player, there’s no one cure-all streaming device. That said, one of the devices here will appeal to your particular home entertainment circumstance and give you access to all the streaming and catch-up services you desire. Since most 4K media streaming boxes are under $200, it’s also not a huge investment for those watching a lot of TV over the web.