HBO Max specs
Library: 10,000 hours of shows and movies
Price: $14.99 per month
Devices: Android, Apple TV, iOS, iPadOS, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Chromecast, Fire TV, Roku
Simultaneous streams: Up to 3 at once
Streaming quality: HD (select films to offer 4K, HDR)
Parental controls: Yes
User profiles: up to 5
HBO Max is finally here, but it arrived with a bit of confusion. This HBO Max review looks to clear things up that question, but also clear up any confusion as to how it differs from HBO Go, and what happened to HBO Now. And most importantly: should you subscribe if you don’t already have an account?
At first glance, HBO Max appears to have enough content to steal eyes away from the likes of Netflix and Disney Plus and become one of the best streaming services. But right now, its early hiccups prevent us from lavishing much praise, as contract negotiations have prevented the service from actually landing on two of the most important streaming platforms.
As this HBO Max review first explained, the service had a rough go of it at first, but its availability issues are sorted as HBO Max is now on Roku, and Fire TV too. That being said, the new HBO Max apps are finally fixing their platform bugginess, which is very good news.
HBO Max pricing and availability
HBO Max costs $14.99 per month, with a 7-day free trial to test it out. Many (if not all) existing HBO Now and HBO Go subscribers also get HBO Max. Further, HBO Now, has been sunset across devices, as its app turned into HBO Max.
To access the service, download the HBO Max app and sign in with your existing login credentials (be they from HBO or TV provider).
One HBO Max subscription allows for up to three simultaneous streams, which is one fewer than Disney Plus (4 streams at once). Netflix offers different amounts of simultaneous streams, based on which package you subscribe (1 at $9, 2 at $14 and 4 at $18).
HBO Max is U.S. only, with planned international expansion, while Netflix and Disney Plus are available internationally.
HBO Max supported devices
Originally, this was our biggest with HBO Max, and thankfully it was fixed. HBO Max launched on an incomplete list of devices, with apps on Android, Apple TV, iOS, iPadOS, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, as well as Chromecast support. That left out the biggest platform in streaming media: Roku (as well as Fire TV).
Unfortunately, right now the latest HBO Max app bug has hit iPhones and iPads, so maybe stick to your bigger screens and Androids.
Fortunately, that skirmish ended in December 2020, in time for the release of Wonder Woman 1984, which will hit the streaming service the same day as U.S. theaters. HBO Max is now available on a wide enough array of devices for us to silence our complpaints.
HBO Max movies
Arguably the biggest piece of news surrounding HBO Max is how it’s getting major blockbuster movies during 2021 (which began with Wonder Woman 1984 at the end of 2020). The likes of Matrix 4, Dune, Godzilla vs Kong and many more will be arriving on HBO Max, in 4K HDR to boot.
This is a huge gain for the service, as it’s now possibly going to make a name for itself as the place for big movies. Netflix has its own original films, but they don’t always seem as big or newsworthy.
These big HBO Max movies won’t be there forever. They each have a 30-day window when they’ll be available to stream, before disappearing.
HBO Max content library
No streaming library impresses me as much as HBO Max’s — but it also confuses me like none other. It starts with the already inimitable lineup of HBO original programming, and then you throw in the Warner Bros. Studios film archive (many of which were in HBO already, such as the Harry Potter movies). On top of that, you’ve got selections from the DCEU movies, and big batches of films from Turner Classic Movies and the Criterion Collection.
In raw numbers, the HBO Max library includes more than 10,000 hours of content (according to HBO). Netflix doesn’t promote a similar number for its library, but it’s believed to be around 36,000 hours — a number that’s likely constantly shifting with each month’s new and removed content. Disney Plus was reported to be around 4,000 hours of content at launch, last November, before additional originals arrived in the following months.
Frustratingly, though, it doesn’t have all of the DC movies — and it’s missing some of the best. A big hole in the library is the absence of the Christopher Reeve Superman movies. But it does have some critical darlings, such as the Harley Quinn animated series.
HBO Max also got major theatrical releases on the same day as U.S. theaters. These included Wonder Woman 1984, Dune and In The Heights in 2021. The move was seen as a win for consumers, though quite controversial with directors and actors.
What matters more to me, though, are the classic Japanese animation films from Studio Ghibli. Never before available on a U.S. streaming service, films such as My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away are must-watch pieces of cinematic gold that are ultimately rewatchable. But even the Ghibli collection is missing a selection: 1988’s Grave of the Fireflies by Isao Takahata is not there, currently streaming at Hulu.
As for the HBO Max Originals, while I liked the Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo, our Love Life review shows that Anna Kendrick’s HBO Max series isn’t a hit yet. Until an HBO Max Original can get the kind of praise and chatter that Disney Plus got from The Mandalorian or Netflix gains from The Witcher, the service may not seem like a must for many.
While you’re here check out how to watch Euphoria season 2 episode 4 online.
HBO Max design and interface
The 10,000 hours of film and TV history contained within HBO Max can be hard to sort through due to the service’s not-so-helpful set of menus and screens. Its home screen presents a carousel of 7 promoted shows and movies. Below the Continue Watching and My List sections (which Disney Plus didn’t have working properly at launch), you get more general promoted content, with rows for movies and shows and Max Originals. After that, you’ll see a row for Harry Potter and a row for the “editor’s picks” of HBO shows.
Then, 9 hub buttons give you an inkling of how big HBO Max gets. From here, you can jump to HBO, DC, Cartoon Network, Sesame Workshop, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies, Crunchyroll (anime), Studio Ghibli and Looney Tunes. Notably absent from this list is the Criterion Collection, which already has a subscription service (Criterion Channel) that it might not want to cannibalize by letting HBO Max highlight its vault.
Further rows include highlight buddy comedies, family-friendly movies and shows and mysteries. There’s even a row called The Continued Fight for Civil Rights, which is urgently necessary in this present moment when the Black Lives Matter cause needs all the support it can get. There’s, a row for LGBTQ+ programming, followed by rows for musicals, fantasy, true crime and blockbusters.
A menu from the left side of the screen breaks things out by genre and has categories for Series, Movies and Originals, as well as Just Added, Last Chance and Coming Soon.
Right now, what HBO Max really needs is better editorial guidance. A row for the best movies on HBO Max, that pulls in titles from all of its channels, is so obvious that I’m surprised it’s not there already.
HBO Max’s TV shows (including Friends, Rick and Morty, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Doctor Who and more) also lack curation. HBO Max’s home screen highlights that Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is one of its shows, but doesn’t give you lists of episodes grouped around categories, so watching from episode 1 is the only real option. If you could get guides to the best celebrity cameos on Friends, for example, or have all the episodes about Will’s relationships on Fresh Prince, these vaults would feel a lot less intimidating.
I’ve only found one such helpfully curated list, under the Comedy section, where you can see every Rick and Morty episode that is a spoof of a movie. Likewise, director Akira Kurosawa’s work is highlighted with a row in the Drama movies section, but these cool lists of picks shouldn’t be hidden under category pages when they could be promoted on the home page.
HBO Max performance and 4K streaming
Annoyingly, HBO Max launched without 4K streaming. Nor is HDR available at this time. These features are in development, according to AT&T’s Tony Goncalves. The omission of 4K and HDR at launch makes it feel like the service was rushed out before it was fully baked.
Starting on Dec. 25, 2020, with Wonder Woman 1984 (and other big movies), HBO Max will stream in 4K HDR.
It’s similar to Disney Plus’ aspect ratio problem with The Simpsons, but much worse, as it affects far more than 1 show. Disney Plus, by comparison, launched with 4K HDR on day 1. Netflix has 4K HDR, but it’s only for those with Premium subscriptions, which cost $1 more than HBO Max, at $15.99.
HBO Max parental controls
HBO Max allows for 5 user profiles, which are classified as either Adult or Kid. Kid accounts give parents the control to limit content a child can watch by the MPAA rating (G to NC-17) and those for TV (TV-Y to TV-MA).
This is a good idea, but there’s a glaring flaw in the system. Only the child accounts can be locked by a 4-digit PIN number. If a child can boot up HBO Max anywhere around the house, they can log into parent accounts, which have no regulations or content rating restrictions, without a password.
While I’m no parent,t the existence of a child account means that parent accounts need the option to be locked behind passwords. I can see the assumption that HBO can’t stop kids from opening the apps — some duty must be reserved for parents — but parents can’t be aware of what their kids are doing during every second of the day.
Disney Plus has no parental controls, while the Netflix parental controls allow you to lock parent accounts.
HBO Max verdict
As this HBO Max review explains, there’s nary an aspect of HBO Max that feels finished. Its library is good, but you can drive a Batmobile through its holes in the DC movies category.
That being said, HBO Max is still a welcome upgrade for existing HBO subscribers, who just got a lot of extra movies and TV shows without signing up for anything new (provided they know that). While Netflix gets viral hits like Tiger King and Hulu stacks up interesting new series such as Normal People and High Fidelity, HBO Max might be enough to convince folks like me to keep their HBO subscription, thanks to prestigious brands such as Studio Ghibli and the Criterion Collection.
We’ve just upgraded HBO Max’s score because it’s continued to add some of the best new shows, as HBO’s core competency keeps it strong with each passing month. We hope to see the library patch these holes in the future.
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