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Streaming is the future. It’s also the present, and it’s not going away anytime soon. With so many excellent streaming services and devices, here are some tips to help you pick the best must-haves.
There are plenty of inexpensive laptops and other devices that can handle streaming just as well as their more expensive counterparts. Here are some of our top picks:
Quality Inexpensive Laptop
The first step to streaming is to decide on what you want to stream. You can stream movies, TV shows, sports, or music. Once you’ve decided what you want to stream, it’s time to get the right equipment.
You need a laptop that can handle streaming. If your laptop is too old or too slow, it won’t be able to play content without skipping or stuttering, which ruins the viewing experience.
Also Read This: 10 Mistakes with Buying Laptops and How to Avoid Them
Good Laptop to Buy for Streaming
Has Good RAM and Powerful Processor
The best laptops for streaming are the ones that offer a decent amount of RAM. The RAM is important because it will keep your laptop from slowing down if you’re running more than one program at a time. For example, if you’re streaming Netflix and playing Fortnite on your laptop, having 8GB of RAM would be better than 4GB.
If you want to save money on your streaming device, consider buying an inexpensive laptop with an i5 or i7 processor. These computers can run just about anything you throw at them with ease.
Battery life: If you plan on using this as your primary computer, then it’s important that it has long battery life so it doesn’t die before you finish bingeing your favorite show.
Storage space: You’ll need at least 128GB of storage space for storing all those movies and TV shows but 256GB is even better.
Touchscreen: Touchscreens allow for easier navigation and make using your laptop feel more like using an iPad or Android tablet instead of an actual computer.
You Need a Good Internet Connection
Streaming is so popular these days that it’s hard to imagine life without it. But there are some things you need to know about streaming before you dive in.
You may have heard of the term “buffering” when it comes to streaming. Buffering happens when your internet connection isn’t fast enough to keep up with what you’re trying to watch. If this happens on a regular basis, then you may need a faster connection or one that can handle more bandwidth.
If you want to stream movies and TV shows, then you should have a minimum speed of 15 megabits per second (Mbps).
Use an Ethernet Connection
Streaming over Wi-Fi can be problematic at times because of interference from other devices in the area (or even other people using the same router).
If possible, plug directly into your modem with an Ethernet cable so that there’s no interference between your computer and the Internet source itself.
Streaming Devices
Streaming devices are the cornerstone of any streaming home theater setup. They’re specialized pieces of hardware that connect directly to your TV or computer monitor and allow you to stream content over Wi-Fi or Ethernet.
Also Read This: Before You Start Streaming You’ll Need This Equipment
Amazon Fire Stick
The Amazon Fire Stick is a small device that plugs into your computer’s HDMI port; it’s about the size of a flash drive. Once you’ve got it plugged in, you can watch all kinds of content from Amazon Video, Netflix, Hulu, and more.
There are also thousands of other apps available for download, including games and music apps like Pandora and Spotify.
Roku Streaming Stick+
Another option for adding streaming capabilities to your TV is the Roku Streaming Stick+. This device looks similar to the Amazon Fire Stick since it has an HDMI cable built-in so you don’t need to worry about buying extra cables or adapters.
The Roku Streaming Stick+ also includes a remote control so users don’t have to get up from their couch every time they want to change something on their screen like volume or channel selection.
VPN Service
Some streaming services, like Netflix, use geoblocking technology to block users from accessing content from other countries.
If you want to watch all of the latest releases at the same time as everyone else, then you’ll need a VPN service so that your IP address appears as if it’s coming from another country.
Also Read This: What should be the core features of a good streaming laptop?
High-Quality Earphones or Headsets
If you’re planning on watching TV in bed or in another room with others, it’s important to have a pair of high-quality earphones or headsets for listening. Earbuds that come with smartphones often aren’t good enough for watching movies and TV shows, which can cause audio distortion when there’s too much bass.
It’s also important to get earbuds that fit comfortably and stay put throughout an entire episode; no one wants their headphones falling off during an intense fight scene.
