EE TV and broadband deals
Dan Howdle
EE is mainly known for its mobile network and products, being one of the four mobile network providers in the UK. In 2012 EE took over the broadband services offered by Orange (remember them?) and in 2016 a merger with BT brought more broadband expertise to the table.
In 2014 EE launched EE TV with its own badged TV box, offering streaming services like Netflix, and freeview channels. Users could also record live programs back when streaming wasn’t such a big part of our lives. However in 2019 EE took note of rival services offering 4K content and decided to swap its YouView box to the Apple TV.
Who is EE?
EE is one of the four mobile network providers in the UK, the others being: 02, Vodafone and Three. All other providers piggyback on one of these networks to deliver their mobile calls, messages and data. EE was the first company to launch both 4G and 5G services in the UK and are recognised as having the fastest average mobile-data speeds by a fair margin.
This is what you'll get with an EE broadband and TV deal.
- Broadband – An EE broadband package plus its Smart Hub router. The speeds available will depend on where you live, you can check the speeds available in your area by entering your postcode above. EE broadband has packages with speeds from standard broadband at 17Mbps, right up to full fibre with a download speed of 900 Mbps.
- Apple TV 4K – The Apple TV 4K lets you watch streaming services like Netflix and Apple TV+, with the option to stream in 4K for shows with that option. You can also play music and games with iTunes and Apple Arcade. BT Sports and 3 months of the Apple TV+ streaming service are included when you get an EE TV and Broadband package.
- Benefits for existing EE Mobile customers – Broadband and TV deals are discounted for existing mobile customers, plus you get up to a 20GB extra mobile data boost for your EE phone (the size of the data boost is dependent on which broadband and TV service you choose, and starts at 5GB).
What does EE broadband and TV offer?
All EE TV and broadband packages last 24 months. The different packages are essentially a choice of different speeds, in a range from 17Mbps standard broadband to Fibre Max at an incredibly fast 900Mbps, with various choices in between. If you go to the EE website, you will be asked for your postcode. Once you have entered it, you will see the speeds which are available where you live. The fastest, fibre broadband speeds are by no means available everywhere.
Here are the packages which are potentially available.
- Fibre Max 900 & Apple TV – This top end package is only available in certain areas where the correct full fibre set-up exists. But if you can get it, you will get blisteringly fast 900Mps download speeds.The package of course includes an Apple TV 4K, plus free BT Sports, and a data boost if you have an EE mobile contract.
- Fibre Max 500 & Apple TV – Also only available in a few select parts of the UK, this package has an ultra-speedy 500Mbps download speed, an Apple TV 4K, Free BT Sports, and a data boost for EE mobile customers
- Fibre Max 300 & Apple TV – Only available in certain, mainly urban parts of the UK, this package has a very fast 300Mbps download speed, an Apple TV 4K, Free BT Sports, and a data boost for EE mobile customers
- Fibre Max 100 & Apple TV – Still a respectably fast connection speed. You will get downloads at 100Mbps from this widely available package. You will also get the Apple TV 4K plus, Free BT Sports, and a data boost if you are an existing EE mobile customer.
- Fibre & Apple TV – This package has download speeds of 36Mbps, and as such is really the entry level package for viewing 4K video. It also comes with the Apple TV 4K, Free BT Sports and a data boost for existing EE Mobile customers.
- Standard Broadband with Landline & Apple TV – This is the odd one of the bunch. You will get a download speed of 8-17Mbps, which is slow in this day and age, but fine for most things. However it is not really fast enough to stream 4K video, despite the inclusion of the Apple TV 4K box in the package.This option seems to exist for those who live in areas where 17Mbps is the fastest internet you can get.
What does Apple TV 4K offer?
As its name suggests, the Apple TV 4K streaming box is a device for watching streamed content on your TV in 4K resolution. That is, content delivered over your broadband connection, from services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and of course Apple TV+.
It is particularly nice to use if you are already invested in the Apple ecosystem, for example, it is very easy to set up the Apple TV 4K if you have an iPhone, which will automatically recognise the device and transfer your Apple ID and details over to the Apple TV 4K. You can also type in searches from your phone, or set the colour balance for the TV through a process of holding your phone in front of the screen. It also comes with the Siri remote, which allows you to use the device by speaking to the remote.
Apple TV 4K gives access to hundreds of video and audio streaming services, from big names like Prime Video, Netflix, Apple TV+, Disney+ and Spotify, to more specialised services like Crunchyroll. Games are available through Apple Arcade, which mostly fall into the “casual gamer” category. You will also find iTunes and numerous other apps from the app store. You can also watch live TV through various TV channel’s Apps, like BBC iPlayer and All 4.
Streaming 4K content
4K TV gives you a much crisper, more detailed image than HD TVs can manage. It all comes down to the resolution, or number of pixels shown on the screen. In the case of 720p HD the resolution is 1280 x 720 pixels, Full HD (1080p or 1080i) has a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. Both will give a decent quality picture on compatibleTVs, but 4K takes it up a notch, with a resolution of 3840x2160, or 4x the resolution of 1080p full HD. All in all you will really notice the difference in the picture quality and detail.
To take advantage of 4K, you will need a 4K TV, and in terms of the Apple TV 4K you will need to find content which is actually streamed in 4K, since bandwidth restrictions are still a bit of a problem, so not everything is available in 4K. You will also want a decently fast broadband connection. Another thing to consider is whether you spend most of your screen time watching streaming services like Netflix or Prime Video. If you do, then simply buying a 4K Smart TV might be your best bet, since the TV itself will have all the apps for watching those services.
One other consideration when streaming 4K content is your broadband’s download speed. You really want to be getting at least 24mbps to stream 4K from Netflix and other services. With plenty of areas in the UK still stuck at around 17Mbps it is well worth checking what your maximum speed is.
One final consideration is that some services require a premium membership to stream in 4K. Netflix being one example.Prime and Apple TV+ on the other hand don’t charge extra for included 4K streaming.
What are the alternatives?
There are quite a few other options out there for combinations of TV and broadband, many of which don’t yet offer 4K streaming through their devices. Since we are making a comparison with EE’s Apple TV 4K, it seems fair to look at other providers offering content in 4K and the ability to view it on their TV boxes. So here are EE’s 3 main competitors in this space.
- Sky TV and broadband – Sky offers a range of TV and broadband packages offering different broadband speeds and TV options. Sky offers the largest selection of channels, including very popular sports channels, but not everything is available in 4K. If you get a package with Sky Q included then you get 4K content included. There is a good range of sporting events, TV shows and movies available in 4K. You can also get a package which includes Sky Glass - a big shiny 4K smart TV with Sky TV built in.
- Virgin Media – Sky’s real competition is Virgin Media and BT. Virgin Media being its main competitor when it comes to TV. VIrgin Media also offers a very large range of channels. It has a good selection of Broadband and TV packages. Virgin Media’s fastest broadband package has a download speed of 1Gbps, which is the fastest widely available connection in the UK. This is by no means available everywhere though.
- BT TV and broadband – BT offers a good selection of broadband deals with TV included. Its packages come in various different speeds, with its fastest packages reaching download speeds of 500Mbps or even 900Mbps. However , like the other providers in this list, The fastest packages are not available everywhere. BT TV allows you to record live TV on up to 4 channels at once, and channels include all the freeview channels, All of Sky’s own channels and various pay per view offerings. There are also plenty of streaming apps and BT Sport. The BT TV box is capable of delivering 4K. But most of the content is in HD.
