With a video library in your pocket, you'll never be bored again.
There are plenty of ways to hire movies and TV shows online, but Quickflix Watchnow and BBC iPlayer are a little different. Rather than individually paying for everything you watch, you can watch as much as you like for a flat monthly fee.
Both are available for Apple and Android smartphones and tablets, although Android fans will be frustrated to find that Quickflix Watchnow is restricted to Samsung's latest wundergadgets.
As the name suggests, BBC iPlayer offers the best of British TV (but not movies) and should appeal to ABC watchers. You'll find hundreds of BBC shows, old and new, but you can't watch episodes that haven't screened in Australia yet.
Meanwhile, Quickflix Watchnow focuses more on movies, but you can't watch new releases. Of the 400 movies and 20 TV series available, about 90 per cent are more than 10 years old.
The strength of Quickflix Watchnow is that you can also watch video in a web browser on your computer, plus it's built into a growing range of televisions, Blu-ray players and games consoles.
You can register up to five devices to the one account and watch titles on three devices at the same time. You can also bundle Quickflix Watchnow with a DVD/Blu-ray rental service, with discs mailed out with a prepaid return envelope.
BBC iPlayer is restricted to mobile gadgets, but it's worth noting that both it and Quickflix Watchnow are compatible with AirPlay on Apple gadgets. This lets you send the video to an Apple TV device, then sit back to watch it on your television.
The verdict
You're more likely to find something worth watching on BBC iPlayer, but the fact Quickflix Watchnow works with more devices could win over some viewers.
BBC iPlayer
$9.49 a month (or $69.99 a year)
iPhone, iPad, Anroid
bbcaustralia.com
Quickflix Watchnow
from $14.99 a month
iPhone, iPad, Android
quickflix.com.au
