4 streaming service features that already feel outdated in 2026

Published Jul 19, 2026, 12:45 PM EDT After graduating from Marist University with a degree in communications and journalism, Dan Girolamo has over 10 years of experience writing about entertainment and sports. Dan's work can be seen in various publications, including Digital Trends, SportsCasting, and Tom's Guide. Throughout his career, Dan has interviewed several high-profile filmmakers and creatives, including Brendan Fraser, Jamie Lee Curtis, Caitriona Balfe, Frank Grillo, Miranda Cosgrove, Jai Courtney, Chris Columbus and James Cameron. Dan joins How-To Geek as a Senior Editor. When he's not writing about entertainment, Dan is either watching a movie or praying for the New York Knicks to win a championship. Streaming hasn't officially replaced cable or satellite TV, but it's come pretty close. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 83% of U.S. adults watch streaming services. I'm certainly someone who uses streaming, but I have noticed that some of the medium's capabilities feel antiquated. Here are the four streaming features that feel outdated in 2026. Purchasing streaming services without a bundle Don't miss your chance to save money Unfortunately, streaming service prices are only going up. Over the past few years, nearly every major streaming service has increased prices, including Netflix, which raised the monthly cost for subscribers earlier this year. Streaming originally emerged as the cheaper alternative to cable. If you have to buy multiple streaming services to watch your favorite shows and movies, then your bill might rival a monthly cable subscription. Let's say you love HBO's Game of Thrones universe, Disney+'s Marvel TV shows, and Hulu's movies. That means you need HBO Max, Disney+, and Hulu. The cheapest tiers are: $10.99/month for HBO Max, $11.99/month for Disney+, and $11.99/month for Hulu. Add those up, and you have a monthly streaming bill of roughly $35. Instead of purchasing each service separately, buy those three services as a bundle. The Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max bundles cost $19.99/month with ads and $32.99/month without ads. You're saving money with a bundle—why wouldn't you sign up for one? Other popular bundles include the Disney bundle (Disney+/Hulu/ESPN Networks), the Apple One bundle, and the Netflix and HBO Max bundle through Verizon. Subscription with ads Yes, $8/month Simultaneous streams Two or four A few commercials make a difference to your monthly bill Credit: Lucas Gouveia/How-To Geek Like it once was, streaming was both the cheaper alternative to cable and the easiest way to watch TV without ads. Netflix used to be my go-to streaming service without commercials. Now, Netflix's ad-free tiers are $19.99/month and $26.99/month, respectively. As someone who pays for multiple streaming services and cable TV, paying extra money for ad-free tiers isn't worth it for me anymore. As previously stated, I have cable, so I'm fine with commercials. With cable, I can either watch the commercials or switch to a new channel. Because I have cable, I have no problem watching ads on streaming. First, streaming ads tend to be shorter than commercials on cable TV. Second, I like the built-in breaks that the ads present on streaming. Instead of pausing a show, I wait for the 90 seconds of ads to begin, and then I get up to stretch, go to the bathroom, or grab something to drink. More importantly, buying a streamer's ad tier is usually cheaper than the ad-free one. The Netflix ad tier is $8.99/month, a much more reasonable price than $20+. Another streamer I utilize is Paramount+, which costs $8.99/month for the ad tier. If you want ad-free, then it's $13.99/month. You might think that's only a few bucks, but if you're paying it every month, it adds up. I'll take the savings instead.​​​​​​​ Binge-releasing seasons Embrace the weekly or hybrid release Credit: Jasper Savage/Prime I understand that I'm going to be in the minority when it comes to the binge release versus weekly rollout debate. It's an unpopular opinion, but I'm firmly in the camp that all shows should follow weekly releases. Have I binged shows over the course of one day or a weekend? Of course. Who hasn't? That being said, I want my shows to last over the course of several weeks or months. I want a show that I can anticipate every week. If I binge it all in one weekend, I feel like the two guys searching for answers at the end of The Truman Show, asking, "What else is on?" Look at The Pitt, arguably one of the most popular shows on streaming. The Pitt aired one episode per week on Thursday nights for 15 consecutive weeks. It builds momentum over the course of a season and remains relevant in pop culture for roughly four months. The conversation doesn't end after one week like many binge releases do. Credit: HBO Max If I have to compromise, I'll take the hybrid model for a release schedule. The show I found that implements this technique the best is Reacher, Prime Video's action show starring Alan Ritchson. For season 3, Reacher released three episodes on its premiere date, followed by weekly installments the rest of the way. You get the binge at the beginning and then weekly episodes afterward. Using streamer recommendations instead of curating a watchlist Trust yourself, not the algorithm Credit: Dan Girolamo/How-To Geek/Letterboxd Believe it or not, I have nothing against the algorithm. If you have no idea what you want to watch on Netflix or Prime Video, it's totally fine to trust the algorithm to serve you content that might pique your interest. I do think relying on a streamer's algorithm is a habit that you should break. A lot of the time, the algorithm is steering you toward new movies and shows, not necessarily the ones that fit your tastes. There are several recommended tools that you should use to find more movies and shows. For movies, you can't go wrong with Letterboxd. On Letterboxd, I'm constantly ranking movies, reading reviews, and adding titles to my watchlist so I know what to stream for later. For TV, JustWatch is excellent for discovering a streamer's new programming, and TasteDive is ideal for comparisons. On TasteDive, I can search for Inception, one of Christopher Nolan's best movies, and get a list of similar movies to watch, including The Silence of the Lambs and The Dark Knight. What should I stream next? Now that you know about streaming's features, it's time to find some movies and TV shows to watch. If you like horror, watch Obsession, one of the most-talked-about movies of 2026, on Peacock. Plus, check out some of the new shows on streaming, including Lucky on Apple TV and The Hawk on Netflix. Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus $30 $50 Save $20 The Fire TV Stick 4K Plus has Wi-Fi 6 capabilities and Alexa+, so you can easily find your new favorite show.