WHEN the internet-based successor to Freeview was first announced a year and a half ago it felt like a much-needed jump forward for the beloved telly.
Freely, as it’s called, does away with that pesky aerial – no need to worry about poor signal or positioning your TV near to a connection.
But then a huge catch followed.
It would only be available on newly released TVs hitting in the market built in, not as a box or Fire Stick-like device you can plug into your existing set.
The limiting move felt like a huge setback for a potentially game-changing British innovation.
Then news came this year that standalone boxes for Freely were to launch.
The first one came last week, Pleio – and it sold out on Amazon within hours.
It does much more than streaming TV and movies too.
The Sun’s Assistant Technology and Science Editor Jamie Harris has been testing the kit for the past week to see whether all the fuss is justified…
What’s in the box?
The Pleio puck itself is absolutely tiny and only weighs 40g (which Google informs me is about the weight of a standard AA battery).
It comes with a remote that includes the usual array of buttons, as well as shortcuts to Netflix, Freely, Pleio Gaming and Pleio Channels.
And finally, the biggest object in the pack is a fully fledged games controller, as this dinky device doesn’t only enable TV, it can be used to play cloud-based games too.
There’s also a power cable and a HDMI cable.
Setting up
Setting up Pleio is very easy – you just plug into the back of your TV and add your Wi-Fi.
Most channels require you to sign into their app for on-demand content and the restart feature, that’s because all the web streams on Freely are provided by each broadcaster.
Pleio Interface
The main screen puts live TV at the heart, with a navigation bar along the top, followed by a rail of what’s on now from Freely channels, followed by Freely apps, then recommendations further down.
It’s all pretty standard, with a tidy interface including a programme image.
The navigation along the top has several options: a search button, Home, Series, Movies, Sport, Kids, Gaming, Channels+ and Apps.
When you go on Series, Movies, Sport or Kids you get Freely content at the top.
As you scroll down, it’s mixed with suggested paid titles.
You can stream all the usual premium streaming apps on Pleio, like Netflix, Disney+ and even Now for Sky Sports, if you want to pay extra for those.
The device runs pretty smoothly consider how small the kit itself is – though it did take about 30 seconds to wake up one morning.
Occasionally the image tiles would take a little longer to load too but this may be due to my internet connection.
What can I watch?
Freely’s channel list is continuously growing.
You get most of the most popular free TV channels, such as those from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, 5 and UKTV.
Talking Pictures TV, a channel for those who love nostalgic shows from years ago, was recently added to the mix – a channel not currently available to watch on Sky’s premium rival to Freely, Sky Stream.
Netgem – which makes Pleio – has Channels+, a selection of over 150 extra channels to watch.
But you only get them free for three months, after that you’ll have to pay a £9.99 a month subscription, which also unlocks the 200 or so cloud video games too.
If you get Pleio from one of three broadband providers – brsk, Wightfibre, and Connect Fibre – Pleio is included in some bundles and without any subscription costs.
The extra channels on offer have plenty of distinctive names but little that is particularly new.
You have some budget movie channels, a load of classic kids TV like the Smurfs and animated Mr Bean, dedicated channels for hit shows such as Pointless and Homes Under The Hammer, as well as niche sports.
Many of these you can find for free elsewhere, such as through smart TV services by Samsung TV Plus or LG Channels.
So subscribing just for the extra channels doesn’t seem very worthwhile unless you want the games too, which I go into further down.
Features
You can pause live TV – though annoyingly there’s no dedicated button on the remote, you’ll have to press the main OK button and navigate to pause on screen.
It’s also possible to restart a programme, which will instantly open up the channel’s relevant app.
This also means the restart feature isn’t available on a small number of channels without their own app to support it, such as Talking Pictures TV.
Pleio is built on Android 14, so you can also download any apps you desire from the Google Play Store.
Pleio games
Cloud gaming means you no longer need a bulky console, instead they can essentially be streamed onto your TV as well.
Pleio says it has more than 250 games available.
Don’t expect big, newly released titles nor any huge franchises of the past.
But there are some well-known names in the mix that the kids will love, such as Garfield, Hot Wheels, Golazo and Smurfs.
Some of the other notable titles you may have heard of are the simulator games, such as Holiday Flight Simulator, and Overcooked.
I particularly enjoyed the GRIP: Combat Racing game and was surprised how smoothly it ran.
I also tried Lords Of The Fallen but wasn’t impressed with the frame rate, it felt a bit sluggish.
Verdict
Pleio’s entry into standalone Freely devices is a welcome breath of fresh air and puts great free telly front and centre.
The interface is easy to use and TV channels air without a hitch.
But I fear Netgem may have overloaded things with the gaming element.
It’s an interesting bonus that will attract some people, particularly families, and you’re not forced to subscribe.
Yet Pleio is only sold with a controller, making the price to buy outright £99. Had it not had a controller, would it have a cheaper price tag closer to the Fire Stick perhaps?
And the extra channels are not worth paying for alone.
If you’re a broadband customer of brsk, Wightfibre or Connect Fibre you can get it bundled in which is a more attractive proposition.
Rating: 3/5
All prices in this article were correct at the time of writing, but may have since changed.
Always do your own research before making any purchase.
