James R | On 04, Aug 2014

YouTube is now available on the NOW Box.

The device, by Sky, is effectively a branded Roku box, which plugs into your telly and turns it into a smart TV. While the price (£9.99) is attractive, the streaming media device’s biggest weakness (see our review) is its limited range of apps: it gives you access to NOW, which includes all of Sky’s movies and TV channels, but does not include rival services Netflix and Amazon Prime Instant Video.

Sky, though, have been stepping up their content, recently adding 4oD and ITV Player to the existing line-up of BBC iPlayer and Demand 5, which means that viewers now have access to all terrestrial catch-up services. While Spotify is a useful app for listening to tracks, and the app catalogue also includes Facebook, TED Talks and Flickr, the one big media service sorely missing was YouTube.

Now, YouTube has been added, letting NOW Box users enjoy everything from the latest music playlists to the most popular originally-created videos online. You can also sign in and access videos from your subscribed channels.

Customers have also recently seen a refreshed homepage screen arrive on their NOW Boxes, with a new tile-based look and feel, making it easier to navigate the apps on the device.

Gidon Katz, Director of NOW, comments: “The NOW Box offers a huge range of entertainment options to be enjoyed on your own big screen. The addition of YouTube means there’s even more to discover and experience. With the flexibility to dip in and out of great movies, entertainment or sport with the relevant pass from NOW, catch-up TV and now videos from your favourite YouTube channels, it’ll be hard to find an excuse to leave the sofa.”

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