Prime Video Review
Prime Video is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 10,000+ movies, TV shows, and Prime Originals like “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “Jack Ryan,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Boys,” and more. Subscribers can also add third-party services like Max, Showtime, STARZ, and dozens more with Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.
Prime Video is included with Amazon Prime for $14.99 per month ($139 per year), or can be purchased on its own for $8.99 per month. A standalone, ad-supported version costs $8.99 per month, while the upgraded Prime Video Ultra tier, costing an extra $4.99 per month or $45.99 per year, adds Dolby Atmos support, ups video quality to 4K UHD, removes ads, and allows for 100 downloads and 5 simultaneous streams. Prime Video offers a 30-day free trial.
Prime Video currently offers over 25,000 movies and TV episodes, many of which are original productions. Live sports coverage includes NFL Thursday Night Football as well as select NBA, WNBA, and NWSL events.
Review
We tested Prime Video and other subscription streaming services for more than 100 hours. Prime Video is compatible with Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV 4K, Google Chromecast, Roku, Android TV, iPhone/iPad, Android Phone/Tablet, Mac, Windows, PlayStation, Xbox, LG Smart TV, Samsung Smart TV, Sony Smart TV, and VIZIO Smart TV.
Content
Originals
Prime Video has had significant critical success with its original series, including “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” and “Fleabag”. They’ve also have popular originals like “Jack Ryan,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” and “The Boys.”
TV Shows
Prime Video offers a grab-bag of older TV shows that may change over time. Some titles include “Will & Grace,” “Mr. Robot,” “NewsRadio,” “Key and Peele,” “Dexter,” “I Dream of Jeannie,” “Community,” “Mad About You,” and “The Jeffersons.”
Prime Video also tends to offer a single season of a show like “Survivor” or “Vikings” or “Scrubs.” That teaser season may prompt you to buy additional seasons.
Movies
Prime Video has the largest movie library with over 10,000 titles. This is almost three times the number of films on Netflix. You’ll see blockbuster movies alongside independent films and zero-budget B-movies. There’s always something to watch, though you often have to dig harder to find the gems among the clutter.
Their selection of films changes monthly, featuring some newer releases from indie film company A24. Prime Video even has original films that first appeared in theaters, like “Manchester by the Sea”, “The Big Sick”, and “Cold War”.
If you’d like to bolster your subscription, Prime Video offers dozens of premium channels you can add and access within the Prime Video interface. See the full list.
Kids
Prime Video is the home for PBS Kids series like “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” and “Arthur.” You’ll also find “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Pete the Cat,” and “Clifford the Big Red Dog.” Like the adult content sections, you may have to do some digging to find the best content - curation is not Prime Video’s strong suit, and your kids may latch onto a thumbnail of a show with no redeeming value.
Features
Single Profile Only
As of now, Prime Video doesn’t have profiles for different members of your family. However, you can have different accounts for up to 5 family members.
As an Amazon Prime member you can create a Family Library with one additional adult and four children. While each user can have their own log-in, you will have to log out to access a different account.
Parental Controls
Once you set a PIN on your account, you can set viewing restrictions based on the a show or movie’s rating. To override the rating, you can enter your PIN to unlock the restrictions.
Apple TV, Disney+, HBO Max, Hulu, Netflix, Paramount Plus, Peacock, Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, and STARZ also have parental control features.
Up to 3 Devices
Amazon Prime Video allows you to stream up to three different titles at the same time using the same Amazon account, but the same title can only be streamed by two devices simultaneously.
Offline Downloads
Prime Video, which was among the earliest to offer downloadable access to shows, limits you to downloading 15-25 titles across all devices on your Prime Video account. There isn’t a limit to the number of devices, so long as they are tied to a Prime Video Account.
At this point, their Prime Video Originals catalog is available for download, as are many titles in their library of movies and shows. Just like the others, you generally have 30 days to watch, with 48 hours after you first start streaming a show.
If you share your account with other members of your household, only the primary account can download content.
International Access
Depending on where you travel to, Amazon Prime Video will behave differently. If you go to country that has Amazon Prime Video, you will see the content catalog in that country. If you go to a country that doesn’t have Amazon Prime Video, you will only be able to access shows and movies you’ve already downloaded offline.
Compatible Devices
Prime Video is compatible with these devices:
Tech Specs
1080p HD
(Up to 4K UHD)
Most content on Prime Video is in 1080p HD, but some Prime Originals and films are available in 4K. They support HDR, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision depending on the 4K content.
Keep in mind that to stream in 4K, you need a connection of at least 25 Mbps.
Some Surround
Stereo/Surround Sound
Prime Video supports 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound on most of its original programming and films, but not on all library content. On a very small selection of content, they offer Dolby Atmos support.