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Watching TV Shows is best done on, well, TV’s, but there are always those occasions where you find yourself urging to watch something while you’re on a long train journey, sitting at an airport waiting lounge, or lying in bed. Luckily, there are numerous solutions for you to be able to catch up on your favorite TV shows while you’re out an about, and it’s right in your pocket. Not including the native Xbox Video app, below are some of the third-party official Windows Phone apps of the popular TV networks that dominate the small screen.
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Watch ABC
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The Watch ABC app lets you watch full episodes of Modern Family, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy and much more live right on your Windows Phone. The app is US only, and requires you to sign in with a participating TV provider account. Once that’s done you can watch live TV so long as you’re in Chicago, Fresno, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham or San Francisco. If you’re not in those regions you can still watch full episodes after they’ve aired on TV.
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Watch ABC is also a Universal App meaning you can download it from the Windows Store too.
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Watch TNT
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Recently released by the Turner Broadcasting System, Watch TNT features full episodes of Falling Skies, The Last Ship, Bones and more. As the app description states, with Watch TNT, you:
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“Get complete access to television’s biggest dramas on your Windows device. Check out episode guides, watch clips and behind-the-scenes videos, set schedule reminders and, most importantly, watch on-demand episodes”.
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Also a Universal App, Watch TNT allows you to start watching a TV show on your Windows Phone, and pick up right where you left off on a Windows devices. The app is designed following Microsoft’s Modern UI guidelines so it takes advantage of features like Symantec Zoom, Snap views (on Windows 8), and Live Tiles, so it’s not just some iOS port; its native, designed from the ground up for Windows.
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Watch TBS
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Released alongside Watch TNT by the Turner Broadcasting System is Watch TBS. This comedy-centric network features Conan, American Dad, Cougar Town and The Big Bang Theory. The app is practically identical to its TNT sibling, so it features all of the aforementioned goodies.
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FOX Now
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What would television entertainment be without FOX? They host some of TV’s greatest such as Family Guy, The Simpsons, The Following, American Idol and Hell’s Kitchen to name a few fraction. And the official FOX Now app for Windows Phone gives you access to all of those shows plus more. Although, the app doesn’t stream shows live, so you’ll only get access to latest episodes a day after they air on TV, so you’ll want to tread carefully on social networks for spoilers if you rely on the app for some of these shows, especially The Following.
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Comedy Central
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South Park, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Colbert Report and more, only on Comedy Central. So you’ll want their official – and Universal – app for Windows Phone. The aforementioned TV shows don’t even require you to be signed in with a TV provider, how great is that?! Although you still need to be in the US to watch full episodes.
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USA Now
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Similar to FOX Now, USA Now provides access to TV shows the day after they air on TV, but they also offer some of the older episodes of a TV show too. Released by NBCUniversal, the app hosts shows such as Suits, Covert Affairs and Sirens. USA Now doesn’t require you to have a TV subscription to access some full episodes and the app also provides program schedules that you can use to stay up-to-date on what airs when.
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A&E
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With the official A&E app, shows such as Duck Dynasty, Bates Motel and The First 48 are available right at your fingertips. The app only requires a TV provider subscription if you watch to stream live TV, but if your happy to wait a day before episodes are available then you don’t need one. The A&E app also lets you create customized watchlists, and gives you access to exclusive clips and deleted scenes.
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MTV Shows
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All of Catfish, Geordie Shore, Awkward and Teen Wolf among many others are available through the official MTV Shows app for Windows Phone. Full episodes are only available once signed in with a TV provider. Otherwise, there is still much to watch without one, including original series, behind-the-scenes footage and other exclusive content.
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Netflix
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Netflix has been on a role with its original TV shows. Orange is the New Black and House of Cards ring a bell? This internet streaming provider has also worked on rejuvenating older shows such as Arrested Development (season 4) and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (season 6). Aside from the host of other TV shows and movies, Netflix is working on some exciting new content that you won’t want to miss out on such as DreamWorks Dragons, Marvel’s Daredevil, Puss in Boots and a lot more.
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Hulu Plus
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Last but not least, Hulu Plus is a notable mention that aggregates TV shows from several TV networks and providers in a single place once subscribed ($7.99/month). Like Netflix, they do offer some original content and exclusives which you may also enjoy. You can watch content over Wi-Fi, 3G, or 4G networks. Hulu Plus is a native Windows Phone 8 app, so it takes advantage of Live Tiles and resuming videos, although it is not a Universal App.
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Provided you live in the US and are subscribed to a TV provider, you should have no problems accessing some of the greatest shows on television to keep you entertained right on your Windows Phone. Of course there are still notable names missing here such as HBO and AMC for Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead respectively, but the support so far is great. The 10 apps listed above should be more than enough to keep you occupied in the situations where you are forced to watch TV shows on your phone.
\n\nFurther reading: Microsoft, TV Shows, Windows Phone
