- In this report
- Overview
- Which Net-capable gear?
- Which brand?
- Which movie services?
- Guide to online streaming services
TV meets Web
Stream online movies and more to your big screen, easily and cheaply
This article appeared in 
It's finally possible to get online content on your TV without using a computer or buying yet another black box designed solely for that purpose. A growing number of Internet-capable TVs and Blu-ray players allow you to stream video from the Web to your big screen via a broadband connection.
Our Ratings in this issue include more than 20 TVs, starting around $1,000, and four Blu-ray players, $150 and up, that can stream online movies. (Another dozen or so TVs can stream other types of content.) Look for many more TVs and players to add Internet capability this year, including lower-priced units. It's expected that some Blu-ray manufacturers may offer it on all of their models.
Other devices offer streaming capability as well—and you might have one in the kids' playroom. Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 stream video, as does the TiVo HD DVR. More on those later.
A TV or Blu-ray player won't provide a full Internet browser that can go anywhere on the Web. But it will allow you to stream movies and TV programs from Netflix, Vudu, and other services; videos from YouTube; news, sports, and more from Yahoo; digital photos stored on Picasa and Flickr; and music from Internet radio stations such as Pandora and Slacker. Some of that content is free. Movies and TV episodes are pay-per-view or, with Netflix, included with a subscription.
Our first tests of the major hardware brands and online services showed that streaming video is ready for prime time. We found it easy to set up and access online content on TVs and Blu-ray players. The picture quality was decent if not quite up to the claimed resolution.
The combination of satisfying quality, access to more titles than your TV provider offers on demand, and convenience that beats renting movie discs makes Internet connectivity a boon for movie lovers. TV fans, too, gain immediate access to many programs, although usually a step or even a season behind the live broadcasts. That might allow you to reduce your paid TV service, or even drop it, particularly if you can get free off-air HD broadcasts, via antenna.
Here's what you need to decide in order to enjoy streaming content on your TV:
