Sky's biggest free TV rival is still great – but there's a hidden catch you need to be aware of first

When I reviewed the UK's first Freely box, I was rightfully impressed by its ease-of-use and capabilities. Netgem even enhanced its value shortly before Christmas, extending the free subscription period of its additional services to a year.

That made the Netgem Pleio box even more desirable – one of the best streaming devices, in fact – especially as the core TV streaming services are free anyway. So much so, in fact, that stock continued to sell out on Amazon.

However, as we head into 2026 (and as Cordbusters has also pointed out) the business model behind Pleio has changed significantly and not necessarily for the better.

For starters, the price has gone up by almost £20. That's because you are no longer buying the box itself – you are now paying for a year of a Pleio Extra subscription for the additional streaming channels and cloud gaming access. The box, remote and game controller than it comes with are now provided for free.

That initially sounds great, but as well as the price now being £119.98 (£9.99 per month over 12 months, basically), you don't actually own the puck, controller or remote until the first year is up.

That's unlikely to concern many – after all, it's how several rivals operate in both the TV and mobile phone markets. It does make the "free" rival to Sky and Virgin Media seem less free, though.

Netgem Pleio: is the first Freely box still worth it?

Of course, you will keep the hardware after the initial 12 months and the Pleio Extra subscription is then optional. And without it, you can still access all the streamed content Freely has to offer, as well access the Android TV features and complete array of streaming apps.

The box is still easy to recommend, therefore. Bar the price hike, it offers great value for anyone wanting to add the UK's biggest TV channels and catch-up services to a set without the need for an aerial, satellite or cable TV service.

And as an Android TV box, it is as good as any other streaming device in that category, I feel.

It's just a strange move by Netgem that takes some of the shine off one of 2025's runaway tech hits.