Both, which is why the search results feel contradictory. Player apps across every store use plus and pro suffixes to mark a paid unlock, and those unlocks typically cover interface features such as multiple playlists, recordings or a nicer program guide. None of that affects the picture, because the app is not the source of the video. Subscriptions use the same words to mark an upgrade, and there the words can mean something real. Before comparing two offers, work out which layer each one describes. An app upgrade and a service upgrade solve different problems, and paying for the first will not fix a complaint that belongs to the second.

1. 1App tiers change the interface
2. 2Service tiers change what is delivered
3. 3The two are priced and sold separately

Three things, and they are all countable. Simultaneous connections set how many screens can watch at once, which is the difference between one viewer and a household of four; ours run from 1 to 5 depending on the plan. Catalog scope sets what is reachable at all, and ours covers 54,000+ live channels and 219,577+ VOD titles across 190+ countries. Maximum resolution sets the ceiling on the encode, and 4K at 15-25 Mbps is a different product from 1080p at 5-8 Mbps. If a tier upgrade does not move at least one of those three numbers, ask what exactly is being sold. A tier that only adds adjectives is not a tier.

1. 1Connections: 1 to 5 at once
2. 2Catalog: 54,000+ channels, 219,577+ titles, 190+ countries
3. 3Resolution ceiling: 4K at 15-25 Mbps versus 1080p at 5-8 Mbps

They answer different questions and people confuse them constantly. Installs describe how many devices can hold the app and your details; connections describe how many can play at the same moment. Ours allow unlimited installs, so the living room box, two tablets, a laptop and a phone can all be set up permanently, while the plan decides how many of them can stream simultaneously. In practice a household of four rarely needs five at once, but it does want the app already sitting on every device rather than being reconfigured each time. Work out your realistic peak, usually a weekday evening, and pick connections against that rather than against device count.

1. 1Installs: unlimited across devices
2. 2Connections: how many can play at the same time
3. 3Size connections against your peak evening, not your device count

Because tier ladders in this market mostly exist to make the entry price look small, and we would rather publish one number. The 12-month plan is $10 a month, $120 in total, and a 24-hour trial is $5. Typical US cable or satellite lands between $70 and $130 a month, and that comparison is the only one worth drawing, since it compares against a category rather than against a named rival. Nothing auto-renews, no card is stored, and plans carry a 7-day money-back window with the trial excluded. A single published price is also easier to hold us to than a ladder that changes shape every quarter.

1. 1$10 a month on 12 months, $120 in total
2. 2$5 for a 24-hour trial
3. 3Typical US cable or satellite: $70-130 a month

Ask what the upgrade changes in numbers, then verify one of them yourself. If it claims more connections, start streams on two devices at once and watch the second one connect. If it claims a bigger catalog, check whether the extra groups actually load rather than appearing as empty categories. If it claims 4K, look at the bitrate the player reports and expect 15-25 Mbps, not a badge in the channel name. Three signals should stop you before any of that: crypto-only payment, refunds offered as gift cards instead of to your original method, and a refusal to provide any trial at all.

1. 1Verify one claimed number yourself
2. 2A 4K badge is not the same as 15-25 Mbps
3. 3Walk away from crypto-only payment or gift-card refunds