Rakuten also allows us sign up for Starzplay independently and have the original series of this platform (which is also among the Amazon channels) and that would have a price of 4.99 euros per month with a seven-day free trial that has no permanence. We can cancel before the end of this period so that they do not charge us for the first month if we do not want to hire it.
Where to watch and devices
There are all kinds of options and possibilities for watching Rakuten TV and it is available in most devices that we use in our day to day: Smart TVs, PC and Mac computers, tablets and smartphones, consoles or through the Chromecast.
In televisions we can use Rakuten TV on Samsung, LG, Philips, Hisense, Panasonic, Sony or Vestel operating systems. Also, on devices or televisions that use Android TV as the operating system to function. It is also compatible with Chromecast whether you cast the content from the iOS and Android applications or install it directly on the latest Google TV models.
Rakuten TV also has applications for iOS and Android whether you want to use tablets or use smartphones. You can use it on Android with Android 5.0 or higher operating system. Or on iOS whenever you have iOS 9 or higher. It is compatible with iPhone 5S or higher, with iPad Air or higher, with iPad Mini 2 and higher. That is, any Apple device after September 2013.
In addition, we can also use it on consoles such as PS4 and PS4 or on Xbox One. And it is compatible, of course, through PC and Mac computers as long as we have a browser that allows it: it is advisable to use Chrome, Firefox or Microsoft Edge in the most recent versions of each of them. In the case of Windows 10, you can watch movies with Chrome, Firefox and Edge, but we can only browse and not see content if we have the Opera browser installed.
Free content
There is a series of free content that we can see at no cost without even having to register. You do not have to pay or have the trial period but we can automatically access the movies and series at no cost, without registering and from rakuten.tv or any of its applications. The only downside? Have advertisements. We can see the content as in other platforms such as Pluto TV in which there are movies and series on demand without having to do anything else.
When it comes to watching free content we will see a series of sections as a selection of films, Rakuten Stories, family films, horror films, romance films, Spanish cinema, science fiction films, Rakuten viki, documentaries, Planeta Junior TV, Children’s TV … That is, not only can we watch movies but there is also exclusive content from the platform or cartoon series.
Rakuten TV channels
Rakuten Channels are a new platform feature that allows us to watch free content without registering or paying. Similar to the above but we will not see the content on demand but we will be able to see what they broadcast at that time just like on DTT. As they explain from the platform itself, “they have a large selection of the best films, series and news, music and entertainment, sports and children’s spaces and linear television programs on lifestyles. You can enjoy them for free thanks to advertising partners carefully selected ”Of course, at the moment we can only see them on Smart TV, although they will soon reach other platforms, websites and applications.
There are around of 100 channels of different categories such as music, sports, entertainment and much more. So far, we can only use it on Samsung TV plus, on Vestel (MB 230, 180, 181) from 2022 to 2019 or on Samsung TVs and LG TVs of the years 2020 and 2019. Soon they will reach other applications for Android, iOS, PC, Mac or the different compatible consoles.
Content
The content is of all kinds: cartoons and children’s movies pFor the smallest, collections, popular. The most comfortable way to organize what we want to see is to search through the different collections that Rakuten TV offers us. For example, we will see that there are collections of films from DC, of villains and antiheroes, of Fast & Furious or collections that allow us to see all the filmography of an author or all the movies of a saga like James Bond. We can also go to “movies” and see all genres in a carousel format as it happens on Netflix and any other similar platform. Here we can see lists of the best comedies, the best horror movies, the best documentaries, etc.
We can see a family section that is also divided by sections or collections. For example, a Dreamworks collection where we will find some of the best movies of recent years such as Trolls, How to Train Your Dragon or The Boss Baby as well as classics like Shrek or Spirit. In the family section we can also see Disney and Pixar adventures such as the popular Frozen II, Coco or classics like Toy Story that we can see by paying a subscription or by renting the movie to watch it in the next 48 hours, as we will explain in the next few paragraphs.
Rakuten TV is a platform designed for movie lovers since it does not have series unless we bet on paying extra for the Starzplay package. It does have series of children’s cartoons, animation for the little ones like Zig & Shark, for example, or the adventures of Shaun the Sheep. But it is not an option if you are looking for adult series because they are very rare.
Although we will find some specials among the original and free programs such ass “Hello!”. In addition, Rakuten has Viki, which is a collection of series but we will only find Korean dramas.
Buy or rent
Not only can we pay a subscription and access Rakuten but we also have the option to rent or buy and it is one of the most interesting features of this platform when the movie we want is not available on any channel or any current streaming service. We can find them through the search engine or simply from the cinema catalog itself. And we choose if we want to rent or buy. We can buy or rent it from the website and view it from any other device as long as we log into our Rakuten account.
The rent allows us have the movie for 48 hours and normally we can choose between several quality options: SD, HD and UHD as long as the movie is in that quality available. When you have paid for it, it will appear in your video library for the next two days and you can stream it as many times as you want during this time.
In the case of buying it, the same will happen we can choose various quality options and it will always be available unlimitedly and not just for 48 hours.