Great shows on your phone
Philo has joined the live TV streaming market with top cable channels and some big-name shows. It is an entertainment and lifestyle TV subscription service, similar to Hulu, that acts as an alternative to having cable.
Live and on-demand viewing
Philo gives you the power to make the most of your Android apps while you’re on the road. However, it suffers from a few drawbacks that set it below other competitors.
When you access the subscription service through this app, you’ll have over 50 channels to choose from. You won’t see sports or local channels, but you’ll find big names like AMC, A&E, Comedy Central, and MTV. These can be accessed as live channels, but there are also over 20,000 on-demand titles you can select for hours of watching.
This app provides subscribers with a free cloud DVR, so you can record as much as you want, then catch up later. A Caveat to this is that recordings do expire after 30 days. Also, the service isn’t limited to one user; you can create 10 different profiles, and 3 users can watch concurrently, making it a good subscription to share with your household.
Viewers won’t be able to take advantage of ChromeCast. Unlike other streaming services like Netflix, Philo does not have an autoplay feature, which means you have to go back to the menu to line up the next episode. The image quality on the app is generally good, but there can be some buffering issues, particularly when playing shows from the DVR.
Where can you run this program?
This app requires Android 5.0 and later.
Is there a better alternative?
Yes. Hulu offers better quality, more shows, and better features for its subscription price and app.
Our take
Philo is a viable alternative for those who know which channels they want and are looking to find them here. It could be smoother in terms of buffering and an autoplay function, but it does deliver good options.
Should you download it?
Yes. If you know that you want what Philo has to offer in terms of content, go ahead and download the app.
