There’s a growing trend of people who are canceling cable TV and instead going with free over-the-air “antenna” TV. Maybe that’s why there is also a growing number of iOS apps that provide free full movies and TV shows in the App Store. Check out a list of some of the better ones below.
Crackle
Crackle is probably the premiere app when it comes to the quality of free movies and tv shows it provides. All movies and shows are free and uncut, although you do have to watch the occassional commercial. But hey, the content is free! The content changes every once in a while, but here’s a sample of what’s available right now:
- Talladega Nights.
- Panic Room.
- Starship Troopers.
- Resident Evil.
- Baby Boy.
- Deuce Bigalow: Eruopean Gigaloo.
- Seinfeld.
- And hundreds more.
Crackle is a universal app for iPhone and iPad.
Popcornflix
Popcornflix specializes in free movies. Hundreds of free movies, in fact. The service has some good gems in there, but there’s also some straight-to-DVD stuff. Here’s a sample of what’s available on the service right now:
- Descent
- Easy
- Biggie and Tupac
- Dead Tone
- Lymelife
- Battle in Seattle
- American Affair
- And hundreds more.
Popcornflix is a universal app for iPhone and iPad.
NBC
The NBC app offers full episodes of a limited number of shows. Besides full episodes, the app offers NBC’s schedule, games, and other stuff, but really, we only care about the free TV. Currently available content looks like this:
- America’s Got Talent
- Tonight Show with Jay Leno
- Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
- Days of Our Lives
- Love in the Wild
- Saving Hope
NBC is a universal app for iPhone and iPad.
The CW Network
The CW Network provides you free full-length episodes, and there’s a lot of content in the app. You get the 5 latest episodes of everyone primetime show on the CW. Way to go C dub. The app streams shows like the Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl, 90210, Hart of Dixie, America’s Next Top Model, and more.
PBS
The PBS app (iPhone, iPad) makes a lot of PBS’s best content available for streaming for free. The only problem I have with the app is it’s hard to find all the full-length content (you have to dig too deep into the app to find it). Here’s a sample of what’s currently available:
- Frontline
- NOVA
- Nature
- Antiques Roadshow
- PBS Newshour
- Zen (Masterpiece Theater)
- And more.
NBC Nightly News
NBC Nightly News offers full episodes of, what else, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams (and others). You can also watch individual news segments and skip what doesn’t interest you. I use this one a lot if I need to catch up on the news.
NBC Nightly News is a universal app for iPhone and iPad.
Bloomberg TV+ for iPad
Bloomberg TV+ is a rare app in that it lets you watch the live broadcast of Bloomberg TV, a financial news network like CNBC. You can also access Bloomberg shows on-demand, like:
- Bloomberg Rewind
- Risk Takers
- Bloomberg West
- and more.
Bloomberg TV+ is iPad only.
WATCH Disney Channel
WATCH Disney Channel is one of those apps that requires you to log in to your cable provider (Comcast) to get the full content, but the app does offer several free full episodes of some of your favorite Disney Channel shows without signing in. There’s enough free content to keep your kids quiet for a few hours anyways. The available content rotates, but currently available are:
- Jessie
- Austin & Ally
- Good Luck Charlie
- Phineas and Ferb
- Fish Hooks
- Shake It Up
WATCH Disney Channel is a universal app for iPhone and iPad. There are also similar apps for Disney’s other sister channels as well.
NFB Films for iPad
NFB Films for iPad features over 2,000(!) free films, shows, and shorts. The content is all Canadian films you’ve (might) never heard of, but still, look around, there are some good documentaries and cartoon shorts for kids.
- Cry of the Wild
- Sexy Inc. Our Children Under Influence
- Hitman Hart: Wrestling With Shadows
- William Shatner Sings O Canada
- and tons more.
ABC Family
The ABC Family app lets you watch recent full episodes of ABC Family originals. The app even saves your place when you stop watching a video so you can start where you left off. Content rotates, but currently available are episodes for:
- The Secret Life of the American Teenager
- Bunheads
- Jane By Design
- Pretty Little Liars
- Switched at Birth
- Baby Daddy
- and more.
ABC Family is a universal app for the iPhone and iPad.
