Video on demand and by subscription

VOD is a service of broadcasting videos via television, Internet or smartphone. On TVs, you buy your program “à la carte”(as and when you like) without the need to subscribe. The VOD services offered by operators and television channels give access to large catalogs of recent movies that you can rent or buy, from 2 to 15 €. You then watch the live video on the Internet (streaming), once or for a given period (typically 24 hours) for rent, as many times as you want after purchase. VOD is losing ground against new SVOD services.

The SVOD (video on demand with subscription) works on a subscription fee, from 5 to 15 €, depending on the services. Once paid, you can watch what you want when you want. The best known of these services is Netflix, which offers a large catalog of films, but also documentaries and series. Netflix has also developed a wide range of original productions that continues to grow. You'll also find OCS at Orange, which broadcasts Game Of Thrones and WestWorld. Amazon Prime Video's offer is also gaining ground in France and is available free of charge for Premium subscribers. The little new Company FilmStruck offers a catalog of cult and essential films to see and review the masterpieces of the 7th art that are part of our general culture.

Movies, series and documentaries without constraints and at the best quality

In addition to the benefit of watching what you want at any time, video-on-demand services, Netflix in the lead, offer more and more content in 4K UHD, while television channels are still lagging behind. This way, you'll be able to enjoy your new ultra-high definition TV, such as the Thomson 65UC6406. However, you should make sure that the internet speed you have at home is sufficient. To watch a video in Full HD, you need a downlink rate (Internet to the TV) of 5 Mbps. For the Ultra HD 4K, the recommendation is 25 Mb / s. Don’t worry about these esoteric figures, just perform a very simple test on a computer connected to the Internet by your home network.

Go to the nPerf website (www.nperf.com), run the test and see the result which will tell you how much internet speed you have.

Videogames, Youtube and apps

Beyond the movies and series, an Android-powered TV allows much more. Already, you can see millions of videos on Youtube, again in 4K Ultra HD, if your internet connection at home allows it. And Youtube are not just frivolous videos but there are also more and more TV shows, documentaries and even series. Thus, ARTE Series offers on Youtube original and creative series or Cash Investigation has its Youtube channel which allows to see or review its TV programs.

Android also gives you access to the Play Store which allows you to download thousands of apps and games that have been optimized to run on the TV's big screen. For games, the TV is certainly not a game console last generation but there are titles for the whole family, some of which are very ambitious like Leo's Fortune or Badland. To play, the best is to get an Android TV compatible controller to connect to the TV set. The applications are not left behind, for example with Culturebox, to see concerts and shows, or with RedBull TV,  to stay speechless while watching the practice of extreme sports.

Tip for driving your Android TV

You lost again your TV remote control or the level of your remote control batteries is already too low? Do not panic, Thomson's new C65 series can be also powered by your voice (via an optional remote control) or by your smartphone thanks to the Thomson app for iOS and Android.

The top 10 SVOD programs not to be missed this year

• La casa del papel series (Netflix): the robbery of the century revisited
• The Crown Series (Netflix): The changing world through the reign of Elizabeth 2
• Lost in Space series (Netflix): the survival of the settlers on a hostile planet, in a very distant future
• Game of Thrones (OCS) Series: a fantastic medieval fable of our modern world
• Westworld Series (OCS): an amusement park endowed with reason!
• The man in the high castle series: What if the Americans had lost the war?
• The Grand Tour series: Top Gear's accomplices are back!
• The Tick Series (Premium Video): the superhero by the absurd.