A world away from the pricey Sky Glass, this much more affordable TV comes with free on-demand streaming
A streaming service that rivals Sky and Virgin Media, is proving to be a hit with UK viewers. Freely lets users stream live and on-demand TV, and, as its name aptly suggests, it’s free to use.
New data shows the UK streamers are picking the service, as it hit a huge 1 million weekly users in December last year. As channels BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, which are available on Freely, had increased views.
Jonathan Thompson, CEO, Everyone TV, said: “Surpassing one million weekly users is an exciting milestone for Freely, signalling that there is audience demand for a simple way to stream live British TV and discover great on-demand shows – all in one place.”
He continued: “Freely was the largest growing TV platform in 2025, showing the power of the UK’s public service broadcasters working together to make brilliant British TV easy to discover and stream.”
Freely TVs offer viewers a more affordable way to upgrade their gogglebox set. All consumers need is a stable internet connection, a Freely TV, and a TV licence – a much cheaper alternative than the high-end Sky Glass TV.
Argos Freely TV deal
For a much cheaper Sky alternative, Argos is selling this 24-inch Bush Smart TV for less than £100.
Instead of being app- or box-based, Freely is available on a host of TVs from brands Hisense and Bush, with compatible sets. One Freely integrated TV on our list is the Bush Smart HD Ready.
At less than £100, it’s a much more affordable price for a set of streams on demand. While it has a budget price, it still has quality features. Including HDR10 for a brighter and a vivid display, which will help viewers get sharper detail.
With a high number of reviews on Argos, most giving full five stars for value for money, users say the Bush TV is of good quality. One person said: “Great little TV for the price and very easy to set up and use”, while another Argos shopper highlighted its useful for ‘BBC and ITV, however not for Apple TV’.
They said: “This TV is great to get channels like BBC and ITV if you don’t have an aerial, Freely works really well, picture quality is good, especially for the price, as is the sound. Also has the main Apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney, please the main UK Apps like iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4 and Channel 5, but be warned, it does not have an App Store.
“While it doesn’t list Apple TV as an App, it doesn’t say there is no App Store and there is a limited number of Apps, it is somewhat misleading.” For another option, shoppers can move from Argos to Amazon, a step up in budget is the 40-inch Hisense from Amazon, for £159.
With direct lit LED’s this offers slightly better picture quality, and often a better HDR performance, because the LEDs are directly behind the screen. However, because of this, the models are often not as thin.
