The world`s second tallest man, a Taylor Swift kiss and Cristiano Ronaldo`s tears - the best sports photos of 2024, in the words of the photographers who took them. Read...

The 76-year-old appeared on the front of magazines including Sports Illustrated and Vogue Paris. Read...

It’s fashionable these days to complain about the state of streaming, and for understandable reasons. Over the past year, many streaming services have raised prices or introduced commercials, and some are trying to stop folks from sharing passwords, even among close family members. Streaming devices have stagnated as well, with device makers focusing less on innovative ideas and more on finding new spots for advertising. But it’s tradition around here to find things to celebrate each year, and we can still make it work in 2024. Here are the best streaming devices, most useful streaming services, and otherwise notable happenings that made the past year in cord-cutting memorable: Best new streaming device: Walmart Onn Google TV 4K Pro Walmart keeps putting out surprisingly great streaming boxes under its Onn brand, and the Onn Google TV 4K Pro is its best one yet. For $50, you get a speedy streaming box with Dolby Vision HDR, Dolby Atmos audio, and a generous 32GB of storage. The remote control shines as well, with backlit keys, a remote-finder function, and loads of useful shortcuts. No other streaming player offers this much for this little. Read our full Walmart Onn Google TV 4K Pro review Best streaming device overall: Apple TV 4K (3rd-generation, model A2737) Best Prices Today: Retailer Price $123.49 View Deal $124.50 View Deal $129 View Deal $139.49 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $123.49 at Best Buy$124.50 at Adorama$129 at Apple$139.49 at Amazon Apple didn’t release a new streaming device this year—or last year, for that matter—but the late 2022 Apple TV 4K is still the best example of what a high-end streaming box should be. While other platforms keep sticking obnoxious banner ads in more places, Apple’s tvOS interface remains refreshingly clean and useful (especially if you follow my setup advice), and it’s still the most responsive streaming box around. Apple also introduced some thoughtful updates this year, including machine learning-powered dialogue enhancement and a separate home screen row for shows you’ve bookmarked for later. If cost isn’t an issue, this $129 box is still the one to get. Read our full Apple TV 4K (3rd-generation, 2022) (64GB, model A2737) review Best streaming service that didn`t raise prices in 2024: Netflix For all the talk of streaming TV price hikes, Netflix’s Standard tier has held at $15.49 per month for nearly three years now, with the last hike dating back to January 2022. Of course, the company found other ways to boost revenue since then, including an ad-supported tier ($6.99 per month), stricter rules around password sharing, and the elimination of its single-stream Basic tier. But none of those moves detract from the value of a regular Netflix plan, whose steady price deserves credit in an increasingly expensive world. Best free streaming service: Philo Lots of streaming services offer free, ad-supported content now, but Philo is the rare one that actually lets you skip the ads. Philo’s free tier, which landed earlier this year, includes a 30-day DVR that can record an unlimited number of shows, and once you’ve made a recording, you can fast-forward through the commercial breaks. (Philo’s paid version, which includes a bundle of sports-free cable channels, costs $28 per month.) The only other free streaming service with DVR is Sling TV’s Freestream, but it has a much stricter 10-hour recording limit. Read our full Philo review Best new use of streaming: The Olympics on Peacock Best Prices Today: Retailer Price Peacock $7.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $7.99 at Peacock Peacock’s coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics was the perfect example of what streaming can do. Instead of offering the bare minimum, Peacock turned the games into an interactive affair, with multiview feeds that let you zoom into individual matches or highlight them to hear the corresponding audio. Combine that with whip-around “Gold Zone” coverage, a slew of alternate live feeds, and a vast replay library, and the whole affair felt like a choose-your-own Olympics adventure, one that every sports streamer ought to replicate. Unholiest streaming alliance: Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery To fund their forays into streaming, TV programmers blew up the cable bundle model, forcing ever-higher prices for increasingly hollowed-out channels and driving valuable customers away in the process. Unfortunately for them, the streaming subscribers they traded for are more fickle, and have learned to cancel services they no longer need. All of which helps explain the unlikely alliance that emerged this year between Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery. The two companies are now offering all of their streaming services—Disney+, Hulu, and Max—in one big bundle starting at $17 per month, in hopes that customers will be less likely to drop any one of them individually. Bundles like this won’t be worthwhile for everyone, but they’re an easy way to save money if you were subscribing to everything already. Unexpected slayer of bloated bundles: DirecTV Standing up to Disney isn’t easy given that ESPN carries some of the most sought-after sports on television, but that’s what DirecTV did when it was time to negotiate a new carriage agreement this year. The satellite provider refused to accept another bloated channel lineup at higher prices, and demanded that Disney accommodate more smaller, more flexible packages. And it worked. After a two-week blackout, DirecTV and Disney emerged with a new agreement that will split the latter’s channels into three packages around sports, entertainment, and family programming. Those options are not yet available, and it’s unclear exactly what they’ll look like, but they could forever transform the pay TV bundle as we know it. In memoriam: Google Chromecast Chromecast helped usher in the streaming age in 2013, offering a cheap way to play videos on your TV using a phone as the remote. But 11 years later, Google has retired the Chromecast brand and discontinued the last of its Chromecast dongles. Casting still lives on as a standard feature of Google TV devices, but it goes by “Google Cast” now, and Google has pulled out of the cheap streaming dongle business in favor of the pricier Google TV Streamer box. Even if little has changed on a practical level, it still feels like the end of an era. Cord-cutting MVP: The U.S. government No, seriously. Every year we cap off these awards by honoring an entity that’s helped make cord-cutting easier or better. In 2024, it’s hard to think of better recipients than the current FCC and FTC. The FCC’s Broadband Facts mandate, for instance, requires internet providers to prominently disclose their regular, non-promotional rates along with expected speeds, data caps, and equipment fees. The FCC also approved “all-in” price disclosure rules for cable and satellite TV providers, effectively killing the “broadcast TV” fee that cable providers love to omit from their advertised prices. Both rules will help cord cutters comparison shop for internet and TV service. Meanwhile, the FTC has approved “click-to-cancel” rules, which say that if you sign up for a subscription online, you should be able to cancel it online just as easily. That means no more drawn-out customer-service calls from your cable company, full of upsells for unrelated services. A Republican-led FCC and FTC could always unwind these rules, which both commissions’ Republican members opposed. But for now, let’s just enjoy this little moment, in which cable companies have been forced, kicking and screaming, into doing the right thing. Sign up for Jared’s Cord Cutter Weekly newsletter for more streaming TV insights. Read...

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Live TV streaming services are a natural starting point when you’re cutting the cord. These services offer many of the same channels you had with cable or satellite TV, but deliver them over the internet to your smart TV or streaming device. They include cloud-based DVRs so you can record your favorite shows—and skip through the commercials—in many cases, they’re the only way to watch specific pay TV channels. Still, the cost of live TV streaming services can get quite high, and in some ways they won’t be exactly like what you had with cable. Our top picks will help you avoid overpaying and get the TV features you most care about. Why you should trust us As TechHive’s resident cord-cutting expert, I’ve been reviewing live TV streaming services ever since the launch of Sling TV back in 2015, and I’ve been a cord-cutter myself since 2008. Beyond just product reviews, I write a weekly column about streaming and over-the-air TV for TechHive, and my Cord Cutter Weekly newsletter has more than 30,000 readers. Updated December 20, 2024: We’ve updated this story with the most recent price changes (or should we say price increases) and performed a general refresh of this story. The TV streaming services we recommend YouTube TV — Best TV streaming service overall Pros Simple interface makes live TV easy to navigate Unlimited DVR allows for a huge on-demand library (with skippable ads) Broad selection of local, news, sports, and entertainment channels Cons Can’t delete recordings or mark them as watched on TV devices One-off recordings only work for live sporting events Menu doesn’t clearly separate DVR and on-demand video (with unskippable ads) Best Prices Today: Retailer Price YouTube TV $82.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $82.99 at YouTube TV Why we like YouTube TV YouTube TV is the best drop-in replacement for cable or satellite TV. It’s not exactly cheap at $83 per month, but it offers a broad mix of the local stations, live news, national sports, and entertainment channels you’d get with a typical pay TV package, almost certainly at a lower price. Its interface is easy to comprehend, its cloud DVR lets you record an unlimited number of programs for up to nine months, and you even can bundle NFL Sunday Ticket at a discount. Who should get YouTube TV If you want to cut the cable cord without overthinking it, this is the easiest starting point to recommend. Still, other services may offer a better value—either by bundling other services or omitting popular channels—or by delivering more regional sports coverage. Read our full YouTube TV review Hulu + Live TV — Best TV streaming service, runner-up Pros Excellent value for Disney bundle subscribers Expansive on-demand catalog Recommendations and staff picks make the app fun to explore Cons Live TV can be inefficient to navigate Hard to figure out which programs allow ad skipping Can’t watch on TV devices while traveling Best Prices Today: Retailer Price Hulu.com $82.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $82.99 at Hulu.com Why we like Hulu + Live TV The main thing that distinguishes Hulu + Live TV from YouTube TV is its inclusion of the full Disney bundle, so you get Hulu’s on-demand catalog, Disney+ (with ads, unless you were grandfathered in), and ESPN+ in the $83-per-month base package. Hulu’s cloud DVR service lets you save an unlimited number of shows for up to nine months, and while the interface can be busy, it ties everything together in a way that encourages discovery. Who should get Hulu + Live TV Hulu’s live TV package makes a lot of sense if you’re paying for any of Disney’s other streaming services. Disney+ and Hulu each cost $10 per month on their own (or $11 per month together), while ESPN+ is even pricier at $12 per month (also available with Disney+ and Hulu for $17 per month). With Hulu + Live TV, you get all those services at no extra cost. Read our full Hulu + Live TV review DirecTV Stream — Best TV streaming service for sports fans Pros Excellent grid guide with useful sorting options More sports (at least in its $100-per-month tier) than other streaming services DVR is easy to navigate and has its own dedicated menu section Cons No visual preview when fast forwarding on Fire TV and Android TV Sluggish performance on some lower-end streaming devices Some national sports channels are pushed out to more-expensive packages Best Prices Today: Retailer Price DirecTV Stream $101.98 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $101.98 at DirecTV Stream Why we like DirecTV Stream DirecTV Stream’s starting price is $101.98 per month, but the main attraction is its $115-per-month “Choice” package, which includes more sports coverage than other live TV streaming services. In some markets, it’s the only way to stream certain regional sports channels that remain tied to pay TV bundles. The cloud DVR and grid guide are highlights as well, with an interface that will make cable or satellite converts feel at home. Who should get DirecTV Stream YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV only offer patchy regional sports coverage, and standalone streaming options are still limited. Sports fans who can’t stream their local baseball, basketball, or hockey teams any other way would be wise to consider DirecTV Stream despite its steep price. Read our full DirecTV Stream review Sling TV — Best budget-priced TV streaming service Pros Lower entry price than any other streaming bundle Simple menu system with easy access to favorites DVR supports ad-skipping, partial recordings, and time-shifting Cons Price can quickly escalate to get certain channels Most channels top out at 30 frames per second Only supports one user profile Best Prices Today: Retailer Price Sling TV $40 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket $40 at Sling TV Why we like Sling TV Sling TV’s starting price of $40 per month is a lot lower than most other bundles, which it accomplishes by splitting its channels into two base packages and omitting local broadcasts in many markets. The DVR feels a bit stingy—you get 50 recording hours, or 200 hours for an extra $5 per month—but it’s still the cheapest way to access certain cable channels without a big cable bundle. Who should get Sling TV Sling TV is an invaluable option for those who can skate by without a full range of local channels. It pairs especially well with an over-the-air antenna for local channels, and you can even use an AirTV device to feed those channels into Sling’s app. Read our full Sling TV review Philo — Best budget-priced TV streaming service, runner-up Pros DVR has helpful ad-skipping features Easy to find your favorites and recently-watched shows Integrates well with Fire TV, Google TV, and Apple TV devices Cons No sports, major cable news, or local broadcast channels Channel guide layout is disorienting No surround sound or adjustable streaming quality Why we like Philo For $28 per month, Philo offers lots of entertainment channels in an easy-to-navigate interface, and its cloud DVR even marks up commercial breaks to help you skip through them. Equally notable, however, is what’s missing: Philo doesn’t include any local channels, sports channels, or major cable news networks, which is a big part of why it’s much cheaper than other live TV streaming services. Who should get Philo Cord-cutters who favor reality shows, documentaries, and other forms of comfort food TV will find plenty to watch on Philo. Cheaper standalone services such as Max or Netflix might scratch a similar itch at lower prices, but they don’t have the same live TV and DVR features. Read our full Philo review How we test live TV streaming services Beyond just watching a lot of TV, we evaluate each service’s channel lineup to point out any important omissions, while also comparing basic features such as simulataneous streams and out-of-home viewing restrictions. We scrutinize each service’s DVR capabilities, including the ease with which you can access recordings, manage your storage, and skip through commercials. To evaluate video quality, we look for features such as 60-frames-per-second video support across a broad range of channels. We also examine every corner of each service’s interface, comparing features such as the grid guide, on-demand menu, and home screen. Our in-depth reviews include plenty of screenshots, so you can see for yourself what each service looks like. Other notable live TV streaming services we’ve reviewed Fubo prides itself on live sports and is only rivaled by DirecTV Stream on regional sports, but its lack of Warner-owned channels (including postseason sports staples TNT and TBS) leaves some serious gaps in its coverage. It costs $80 per month, including regional sports fees. Philo offers a terrific live TV streaming service for just $28 per month if you’re not interested in watching live sports. Frndly TV is the cheapest live TV streaming service by far, starting at $7 per month, with a channel lineup that leans heavily into classic TV reruns. It probably won’t fulfil many cord cutters’ needs on its own, but may be worth considering as a supplement to other services. Frequently asked questions about streaming live TV 1. How are live TV streaming services different from services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video? On-demand video services such as Netflix (also known as SVOD (streaming video on demand) or direct-to-consumer services) offer original programming you can’t find on cable, along with catalogs of movies and shows licensed from Hollywood studios. Some of these streamers are dabbling in live sports—most notably, Max’s B/R Sports add-on offers every event that airs on its cable channels—but for the most part this coverage is different from what’s on cable. By comparison, live TV services carry the exact same channels you’d find in a cable or satellite package, including major networks such as ABC and CBS, news channels such MSNBC and Fox News, and sports channels such as ESPN. They have similar grid-style channels guides and DVR features as well. 2. How do I watch live TV streaming services? Each of these services offer their own apps, which you can install on your smart TV, streaming device, smartphone, or tablet. You can subscribe to these services through their own websites, or in some cases directly through the app. 3. What about DVR? All live TV streaming services include some form of cloud DVR, allowing you to record live programming and skip through the commercials. The recordings are stored online, rather than on a box in your home, so you can access them from any of your devices—even while traveling. 4. Can I watch live TV streaming services while traveling? Yes, though some services have restrictions on what you can watch and how you can watch it. This article has more details. 5. Are there equipment or activation fees? No, live TV streaming services do not charge activation fees, and you can log in to watch on as many devices as you want at no extra charge. You may hit a limit on how many devices can be actively streaming at the same time—usually it’s two or three, depending on the service—and some services allow you to pay for more simultaneous streams if you need them. Read...

Having a good gaming PC is only half the battle–you also need a screen that makes the action visible. Many people find it difficult to decide on the right dimensions. Gaming monitors are now available in such huge sizes that you might think that bigger is always better. However, other factors are just as important and large monitors can have disadvantages. We take a closer look at what is important when choosing a size and how you can find the right monitor for your purposes. Further reading: 2025 will be the best year to buy a monitor, ever. Here’s why Consider the available space When buying a monitor, you should of course also consider how much space you have available. A huge monitor doesn’t look good on a relatively small desk and you should always leave enough space for a keyboard, mouse, and speakers. You should also make sure there’s enough space between you and the monitor. A depth of around 60 centimeters should be sufficient. For which genre? You should consider what types of games you’re going to play on this monitor, as it plays a significant role in how large the display surface should be. If you’re into cinematic, story-driven games that showcase characters with all their facets and emotions, then it would simply be inappropriate to display the action on a tiny monitor. It destroys the immersion. It’s also not a bad idea to use models with as few edges as possible, preferably with a slight curvature. This draws them more into the action. 27- to 32-inch monitors are recommended in this case, preferably in ultra-wide format. our favorite gaming monitor under $200 Dell G2724D Read our review Best Prices Today: $149.99 at Dell Home | $194 at Amazon | $299.99 at Dell For shooters, especially multiplayer titles, the motto “bigger is better” applies. This is because the changed dimensions also give you a larger field of view. A lot can happen at the sides of the screen, so an ultra-wide format is more suitable here. The situation is completely different for e-sports titles, especially with games like Starcraft or MOBAs. You’ll often see monitors that are almost square in shape or boast a 4:3 format. These screens aren’t very large, either. A 24-inch monitor is sufficient here. Pay attention to resolution and refresh rate In addition to the target size, the resolution also plays an important role. For maximum detail and sharpness, you should opt for 4K resolution. However, as already mentioned, UHD and WQHD monitors are also suitable for many games. The refresh rate is important as well. If your monitor can only handle 60Hz, but you need fast reactions, then a larger screen won’t help. For shooters and demanding games, 144Hz is a must. Really only for gaming? You should also consider if you’re going to use the monitor for other tasks like streaming, watching movies, or web browsing. Even if you use the screen more often for work, you may still want to go a little bigger, especially when multitasking with several windows. However, it may also be a good idea to use a second screen. Conclusion When it comes to monitors, there’s no one size fits all. However, the most affordable ones fall in the 27-inch range. A larger model with a higher resolution can make a noticeable difference, but so can upgrading to an expensive CPU or GPU. Further reading: The best gaming monitors we’ve tested Read...

BBC Sport takes you behind the scenes with Keely Hodgkinson on the day of Sports Personality of the Year 2024. Read...