Stan is the slick and impressive streaming media service Australia
has been waiting for – though we do look forward to more content,
particularly in its movie library.
For
Great Interface
Fast HD streaming
Perfect price point
Big television show library
Growing film selection
Quality options
Against
No subtitle or language options
Needs more blockbuster and animated movies
Some bugs
No Xbox app
UPDATE: Information about Stan's closed captions functionality has been updated – details below!
Now that Australians have spent some time with Stan, it's
time to reflect on how well the final product has delivered in terms of
its primary goal – to give Aussies the streaming video-on-demand
experience that they've been clamouring for.
Since Stan's Australia Day launch,
Aussies (who haven't resorted to proxies and VPNs) have finally had a
Netflix-like taste of what instant streaming content is all about, but
is the content up to snuff? And how does Stan perform now that it's out
in the open and away from its preview phase?
Then comes the big question: does Stan have what it takes to keep Australians coming back for more now that Netflix is here?
Setting up Stan
Getting Stan up and running is a fairly straightforward
process, though you will require a few things in order to view the
service on your television at home.
At launch, a compatible iOS or Android smartphone or tablet was
needed in order to browse Stan's content library, in addition to an Apple TV or Chromecast media streaming device so that you could AirPlay or Cast the content over to your television.
Thankfully, a Stan app has made its way to the Apple TV, PS3 and PS4, allowing users to browse the streaming service's content library on their TV screens.
And, though Stan was previously absent from Xbox consoles, the app is now available on Xbox One
with platform-exclusive features, such as the ability to browse and
control the service with Kinect's voice recognition functionality. It
should be noted that while Stan is available on the Microsoft's current
console, the app is still unavailable for last generation's Xbox 360.
On top of the platforms listed above, Stan's list of supported
devices continues to grow, as it's now also available on a number of
2012-2015 model Samsung smart TVs and 2014-2015 model LG smart TVs.
Alternatively, you can use your PC or Mac to view Stan's content on most browsers and stream it to your Chromecast from there.
Stan is compatible with iPads running iOS7 and above from the second
generation onwards, as well as all iPad minis and iPhones from the
fourth generation onwards.
Most Android phones from 4.2 onwards are supported, including
recently added support for Sony's Xperia Z1, Z2, Z3 phones and tablets,
HTC One M7, M8, M9 and Desire and LG's G2, LG Optimus L7II smartphones.
In terms of tablets, most Android units running 4.2 and above will work, aside from the HP 8 G2.
Once you've selected something to watch, you can start playing it on
your phone or tablet, or tap the AirPlay/Cast icon to throw it to your
Apple TV or Chromecast, at which point you can put your smart device to
sleep.
It's fantastic to see that Stan has addressed initial criticisms of
its service by releasing app for the Apple TV platform and for
PlayStation consoles, and we imagine the service will eventually bring
out some more apps for smart TVs (like Android TV) and various other
media players.
But that's not all – Stan is now available to stream on the Roku 2-powered Telstra TV streaming box.
Get that interface up in yo' face
Anyone who's seen Netflix's interface should know what to expect with
Stan in terms of functionality. That said, Stan might just have the
visual edge.
Movie and TV show publicity art is all over Stan, and it looks
incredibly slick – its carousel in particular is clean and image-driven,
with over half of our iPad's screen displaying some of Stan's most
exciting content, like its exclusive shows Transparent and Mozart in the
Jungle as well as other premium dramas like Hannibal and Fargo.
Flicking up on the screen will show you a range of genres and
collections below, such as Comedy Classics, Best of Australia and World
Movies, with titles and poster art laid out horizontally for you to
swipe across and browse.
Tapping on a show will let you choose the season and episode you
want, while tapping on a movie will give you some information screen
where you can press play and jump straight in.
Options can be revealed on the left side of the screen by tapping the
icon in the upper left hand corner, allowing you to switch profiles,
browse TV and movie genres, kids content, your watch history or your
list of saved shows (just like on Netflix), and the upper right hand
contains a search bar and access to your profile (again, just like on
Netflix).
Stan's Apple TV app is slightly different to the tablet and
smartphone version, in that it lists its sections along the top of the
screen, with genres and content laid out in a style that's more
consistent with Apple TV's other apps.
That Stan sure has some nice features
Unlike its competitors, Stan gives you the option to choose the image
quality of your stream on smartphones and tablets via a cog icon at the
bottom of your player window.
On a tablet or smartphone, you can opt to use Stan's automatic
setting for an adaptive bit rate that's tailored to the quality of your
connection, or choose the SD or HD constant bit rate encode, depending
on whether or not you have bandwidth to spare.
When viewed on a television screen through one of Stan's Apple TV,
Fetch TV, console or smart TV apps, the service works just like Netflix
in that you are provided with an adaptive bit rate version only.
Though curiously missing at launch, Stan now offers closed captions
on a selection of its shows, meaning that hearing impaired people can
enjoy at least some of its content – we hope that Stan eventually
applies closed captions to its entire catalogue, just like Netflix has
been doing for years.
At present, Stan doesn't have the ability to recommend movies and
shows to you based on your movie habits, which is one of Netflix's best
features.
Hopefully, a 'recommended shows' feature is somewhere in Stan's future pipeline.
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