There’s a new platform that is poised to change the game in video-on-demand service. Disney+ has its gears up to challenge streaming platform giants like Netflix and Apple TV+ in giving customers complete control over their TV experience.
The platform is not yet available around the globe, but is steadily expanding. In this article, we will review its best features and its benefits to help you decide whether to subscribe or not.
What is Disney+?
Disney+ (Disney Plus) is Walt Disney’s take on the growing demand for subscription-based television streaming. It began rolling out in November 2019 and seeks to dominate the rest of the world by the end of 2020.
With Disney having its own streaming platform, it will be much easier for everyone to access any content it produces, both from Walt Disney Studios and Walt Disney Television. Once you subscribe, you can enjoy shows from franchises like Marvel and Star Wars as well as Pixar and National Geographic. That aside, the platform is also expected to release exclusive content and original TV series.
How Much Is Disney Plus?
| Disney + Subscription Bundle | Monthly Fee |
|---|---|
| Disney Plus Solo | $6.99 |
| Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN+ bundle | $12.99 |
| Disney Plus, Ad-free Hulu, and ESPN+ bundle | $18.99 |
| Disney Plus bundle with Hulu + Live TV | $61.99 |
Disney Plus offers a range of flexible subscription bundles to its customers. It has different prices for each subscription plan and offers a fair discount if you want to commit for a year of streaming.
The base price of Disney Plus is worth $6.99. But if you choose the yearlong subscription, it will only amount to $69.99 or approximately $5.8 per month. A dollar discount is not bad. Accumulate that and you will save 2 months of subscription fee in a year.
Disney Plus also gives various options for upgrading your subscription plan. It has a bundled package with ad-supported Hulu and ESPN+ which costs $12.99 per month. You can also avail of the ad-free Hulu bundle for $18.99 per month. On the other hand, the Disney Plus bundle with Hulu and its live TV channels costs $61.99. It might sound a bit costly, but the 60+ channels and endless entertainment can speak of the price.
Availing of the bundle will add more shows and movies to your library, including Hulu’s originals like The Handmaid’s Tale, The Looming Tower, Shut Eye and more. It will also keep you updated on the latest actions in sports as it brings you ESPN+.
In comparison to other subscription-based streaming platforms, Disney+ comes cheaper. Its largest competitor, Netflix, starts with an $8.99 subscription per month which can go as high as $15.99 if you want higher-quality videos. However, Disney Plus seems to be conservative about the free trial version of the service. While most of its counterparts offer a 30-day free trial, the new streaming platform only gives its customers 7 days to see if the service is for them.
How Many Devices Can Stream Disney+?
The number of devices that can stream at the same time is a major deciding factor when choosing a video-on-demand service. As much as possible, what we want is something we could share with others. Thankfully, Disney+ plus is a family-friendly service. For a good amount, 4 devices can simultaneously stream using a single account. You can also create up to 7 profiles for each household member, then again only 4 of those can stream altogether.
What Devices Support Disney+?
Aside from the web, Disney+ comes with an app version to support streaming across different platforms. Here is the complete list of devices where you can stream Disney+.
- iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch)
- Android (phone, tablet, and Android TV)
- Chromecast (including devices with built-in Chromecast)
- Roku
- Apple TV
- Amazon Fire TV (including Fire Tablets)
- LG smart TVs
- Samsung smart TVs
- Xbox One
- PlayStation 4
The Disney Plus app comes in handy if you love to watch movies on your mobile devices such as phones and tablets. That’s why it is not a surprise that Disney Plus supports iOS and Android.
Streaming on Smart TVs, on the other hand, promotes quality time for families. Initially, Disney announced that its streaming app will support Roku, Apple TV, LG smart TVs, and Samsung smart TVs. Surprisingly, the company later included support for Amazon Fire TV and Tablets despite their scuffle over ad revenue.
It is also quite news for gamers as the streaming platform also arrives on Xbox One and PS4 consoles. Unfortunately, the app does not include support for Nintendo Switch. Whether Disney + will come to Switch or not? We don’t really know. But in case it does will make sense. Lots of kids own Switch, and it will be an opportunity for Disney to reach a greater audience.
Video Quality On Disney+
Disney+ has a rich collection of 4K Ultra HD and HDR programming. Under 4K quality videos, the resolution is expected to bring more pixels to your TV. The more pixels there are, the more vivid and clear pictures would be on your screen. 4K UHD is four times as clear as HD videos. Ultra HD and HDR videos will intensify your viewing experience with more dynamic motion pictures.
Out of the 600+ initial movies, documentaries, and series from Disney Plus, almost a hundred are said to be HDR-ready. However, critics are claiming that not all titles in Disney+ with an HDR tag meet the expected quality of 4K content. A true HDR is at least 700 nits.
But in a test using a proprietary luminance heatmap system, Disney Plus’ presentation of Star Wars Trilogy barely exceeded 400 nits. As a result, the presentation of the trilogy is relatively flat and lacks the properties of HDR. Disney might have tweaked the theatrical grade of the movies to make it comfortable to watch in a household. But, to label them as HDR is misleading. On the other hand, newer titles like movies from Marvel Cinematic Universe have received proper HDR grading.
How To Subscribe To Disney Plus?
As of writing, Disney Plus is already available in six countries. It was initially launched in Canada, Netherlands, and the United States on November 12 and in Australia, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico a week after. Customers from these countries can now avail of the service upon signing up.
The easiest way to sign up to the service is through the web. Using the Disney Plus website, you can select what type of subscription you want. If you want Disney+ alone, select Start free trial. But if you want the bundle with Hulu and ESPN+, tap Buy Now. From here, the platform will ask for your email address, password, and lastly the payment information. Once signed up, you are automatically eligible for the 7-day free trial of the service.
If you think the service is not for you, you should cancel your subscription before the end of the trial period. If you lapse, Disney Plus will automatically charge you equivalent to a month of payment.
What Are The Benefits Of Disney Plus Membership?
Aside from the unlimited entertainment, subscribing to Disney Plus will have many more benefits. It gives you control over your streaming habit and allows you to enjoy content when you want and where you want. Here are some ways you can benefit from subscribing to the service.
Access To Unlimited Show
As we mentioned, Disney+ will bring straight to your devices hundreds of shows that Walt Disney has copyrights. That includes all the animated movies we all love from the yesteryears. For hopeless romantics, there will be a happy-ending as your favorite animated fairy tales like Aladdin, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Tangled arrive at the platform. Kids will also find heartwarming Pixar creations in a single place like Inside Out, Coco, Finding Nemo, and Toy Story.
Not only will the platform provide you with Walt Disney content, but it will also release shows from other franchises. In its debut, Disney Plus has included Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame on its initial release for the Marvel realm, alongside all Star Wars installment, from A New Hope down to The Last Jedi.
Disney+ also seeks to be educational with the inclusion of National Geographic shows on the platform. It included in its launching in November over 50 documentaries and series from the National Geographic including Meet the Chimps, Free Solo, and Before The Flood.
Exclusive Content
Having its own streaming platform means that Disney will be producing content you cannot catch in movie houses. Like competing platforms, Netflix and Apple TV+, Disney Plus also offers original series and shows exclusive to its subscribers. Its initial releases include Forky Asks a Question, The Imagineering Story, The Mandalorian, and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.
Throughout 2020, Disney is set to add more exclusive programming and series to the platform. The lineup includes WandaVision, The Falcon and Winter Soldier, as well as the remake of Lizzie McGuire and live-action of The Mighty Ducks.
The only thing Disney+ subscribers can wish for is that for it to release episodes of its original series all at once. Unlike Netflix series, it releases new episodes on a weekly basis.
Unlimited Download
Like most of the video-on-demand services, Disney Plus also has an offline playback. To do this, you need to have the Disney Plus app on your device. Once you have the app, you have to download Disney Plus movies and shows while connected to the internet. All downloaded content will then be available to watch offline as many times as you want.
What sets Disney+ from its competitors is that it has no limit on the number of titles you can download. It all depends on how much the storage on your device can take. None of its competitors comes close to this. When you download movies from Amazon Prime Video, for instance, you are limited to 25 titles and that’s across all devices connected to a single account. Similarly, there is also a 100 title limit when you download movies from Netflix.
It is important to know, however, that you have to connect to the internet once every 30 days to keep your downloads on your device. They will be automatically deleted if you fail to do so.
Cost-saving
Say you ditch your current video streaming subscription for Disney Plus, chance is you’ll save a good amount of your money. Most of the existing platforms cost higher than Disney’s streaming service. Take Netflix as an example. Its basic subscription plan costs 2 bucks higher than of Disney Plus. However, it does not support simultaneous streaming. It will require you an HD or Family subscription to do that, which costs even higher. But when you are using Disney Plus, there’s no need to pay an extra just to share an account on multiple devices.
Given that it is just starting to roll out, its pricing is just right. There are not yet that many titles to watch at least when compared to its competitors. But as the platform spans out globally and adds more content, the subscription fee is most likely to spike up as well. We don’t know when it will be raising its price but for now, we think Disney Plus is a good investment.
How To Cancel Disney+?
It might be a rare occasion, but if you feel you don’t like Disney+ and you think it isn’t for you, you can cancel your subscription at any time. The platform provides you with a straightforward way to do that ー the easiest way is through a web browser.
From the homepage, go to your Profile>Account Option>Billing Details then click Cancel subscription. It will then take you to a page where it will tell you the number of remaining days you can access the service. The cancellation will take effect at the end of your current billing period. Once you click Complete Cancellation you’ll arrive on a page where you have to select the reason for cancellation. Click Submit to proceed.
You’ll receive an email confirming the cancellation of your account. In case you change your mind, you can reactivate it even after the cancellation took effect. All you have to do is to sign in with your old account and re-enter your billing details.
How to Use Disney+ For Free?
If you are a Verizon customer, you are about to get lucky as the telecom company offers free Disney Plus access to some of its clients. Last December, the company announced that it will give a year of free Disney Plus access to its customers who have unlimited plans or 5G Home internet. Non-Verizon users have until June 1, 2020 to avail of the promo. For Verizon customers who already subscribed before the offer, their existing subscription will be paused and will commence after the Verizon promo expires.
Aside from the Verizon Promo and the 7-day free trial, there’s no other legal way that we know of to get Disney Plus for free.
Disney+ Launch Date
As we mentioned, the new streaming platform of Disney is available in just six countries. But this year, it is set to dominate the rest of Europe. On March 24, the platform will finally be active in Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Before the month ends, it will also enter the Asian market for the first time as it launches in India.
Other target countries this year include Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Dominican Republic, and Colombia. By the end of 2020, Disney+ is expected to operate in more than 24 countries. You can sign up for the Disney Plus preview to get the latest updates about when the platform will arrive at your location.
Use VPNs To Watch Disney Plus Movies
If you are not sure when Disney’s streaming service will arrive in your country and you are eager to try it, you can set up a VPN on your computer to use the platform. VPNs can unblock the service abroad by hiding your IP address using servers from countries where Disney Plus is available. However, not all VPN clients are guaranteed to work. We recommend using NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and CyberGhost.
Use the VPN client you chose to connect to a US server or any server from a country where Disney Plus is active. Once connected, head to Disney Plus website, sign up, and start enjoying your favorite movies and series.
Take Away
Disney moving to the video-on-demand service is something we’ve all been waiting for. Watching movies and other content is no longer limited to big screens, that’s why it is just right for Disney to follow the steps of Netflix, Apple TV+, and Amazon Prime Video and other streaming platforms. It might take time for Disney+ to catch up to its competitors, but what it has achieved in the last few months is no less than a baby step. In no time, it might already be at the forefront of the game.
