Pleio Freely Box Drops Price Again As Competition Grows

The Netgem Pleio – the first ever standalone Freely box – has dropped in price yet again, and this time it’s back to where it all started.

For a limited time, the Pleio is available for £99, matching its original November launch price after a chaotic few months of stock shortages, price increases, and, now apparently, aggressive discounting in light of serious competition.

Just two days ago, Manhattan’s rival Aero Freely box sold out at Currys within 24 hours of its £69.99 launch, demonstrating that viewers are eager for affordable Freely streaming options.

Now Netgem has responded with a Valentine’s Day promotion that undercuts their own pricing from just a week ago by £10.89 – bringing the Pleio back to its original launch price point.

Whether this is a romantic gesture or a tactical response to the Aero’s launch, the result is the same: the Pleio is more affordable than it’s been in months. So, is it time to snag one?

What Is The Pleio?

The Netgem Pleio is the first device that brought Freely streaming to any existing TV without requiring you to buy a whole new telly.

Freely – Everyone TV’s streaming platform, designed to eventually replace traditional Freeview and Freesat, delivers live TV channels through your broadband instead of an aerial. 

You get BBC, ITV, Channel 4, 5, and around 60 other channels, plus the ability to scroll backwards through the TV guide to access catch-up content directly from the EPG.

The Pleio is a tiny streaming puck – seriously tiny, at just 64mm across – that plugs into any TV with an HDMI port and streams everything through your internet connection.

On top of Freely, the Pleio runs Android TV 14 with access to the Google Play Store, giving you Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Sky’s NOW, and hundreds of other apps alongside your live TV channels (though the system is locked down to prevent sideloading unsupported apps).

You also get 250+ cloud games with a wireless gamepad included, plus 150+ extra FAST channels as part of the subscription bundle.

When I reviewed the Pleio in November, I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. It’s a capable device that genuinely solves problems – particularly for anyone with terrible aerial reception – but it has some rough edges.

The interface can be confusing with three separate search functions that don’t talk to each other, and ITV, Channel 4, and 5 stream at 25fps rather than 50fps, causing some judder during fast motion (but that’s a Freely-wide problem).

For households battling dodgy Freeview signals, or anyone adding Freely to a second room without aerial access, those compromises are often worth making. The device works well for what it does, even if it’s not quite as polished as you’d hope.

The Pleio’s Pricing Rollercoaster

The past few months have been remarkably turbulent for the young Pleio.

The Pleio launched in November 2025 at £99 with a 3-month trial of gaming and extra channels. Demand was immediate and overwhelming – the device sold out on Amazon within hours and remained difficult to find throughout December.

By early December, Netgem extended the included trial from 3 months to 12 months, significantly improving the value proposition without changing the price.

Then in January, Netgem updated the terms so that you don’t actually own the device for the first year – it remains their property until those 12 months are complete.

Just as buyers were processing that unusual ownership structure, the price jumped to £119.88 – a 21% increase barely two months after launch. 

Then late January brought competition: Manhattan announced the Aero at £69.99. Within days, the Pleio dropped to £109.89.

When the Aero went on sale this week and sold out overnight, the Pleio has now dropped again to £99.

That’s four different price points in just three months – £99 at launch, £119.88 in January, £109.89 last week, and now back to £99 for Valentine’s Day.

The Valentine’s Day Angle

Netgem is framing this as a romantic promotion, highlighting “Romantic Favourites” channels like Great! Romance and Rakuten TV Romance, specialised movie and series rows, and cloud games “designed for two-player fun” like Overcooked! 2 and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

Whether couples are actually clamouring for streaming boxes as Valentine’s gifts is debatable, but the framing provides a narrative beyond “we’re cutting prices because Manhattan entered the arena.”

What’s less clear is exactly how limited this “limited time” offer actually is. Valentine’s Day itself is next week, but the promotion doesn’t specify an end date. 

Given the Pleio’s pricing history, there’s no guarantee this £99 price point will stick around. It could disappear in a few days, or it could become the new normal.

Pleio vs Aero: The £30 Question

At £99, the Pleio is still £30 more expensive than the Aero – but that gap has narrowed considerably from the £50 difference just days ago.

The question for buyers is whether those extra features justify the price premium.

What you get with the Pleio that the Aero doesn’t offer:

The bundled wireless gamepad and 12 months of cloud gaming access to 250+ games. For households with kids or anyone who enjoys casual gaming, that’s genuine value.

The games stream instantly without downloads, and titles like Overcooked! 2 work well for local multiplayer.

Android TV 14 with Google Play Store access means broader app compatibility. Sky’s NOW, Discovery+/TNT Sports, Apple TV+, Paramount+ – they all work on the Pleio.

The Aero’s TiVo OS platform is missing these services (though some are available as Prime Video Channels).

What the Aero offers that the Pleio doesn’t:

The Aero includes Ethernet connectivity alongside WiFi – the Pleio is WiFi-only, which matters if you have a weak WiFi signal where your TV sits.

What you’re giving up with the Pleio:

You’re paying for gaming hardware whether you want it or not. If you have zero interest in cloud gaming and just want Freely channels with some streaming apps, that gamepad is dead weight you’ve funded.

The Pleio also has that unusual ownership structure where the device remains Netgem’s property for the first 12 months. After that year it becomes yours, but you can’t sell or gift it during that initial period.

The apps situation:

I should note – I haven’t been able to properly review the Aero yet, so I can’t make definitive performance comparisons.

But based on specs and what we know about TiVo OS versus Android TV, the Pleio offers wider app compatibility. For most viewers using mainstream services – BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video – both devices cover the essentials.

The differences matter most if you’re heavily invested in specific services like NOW or Discovery+/TNT Sports that aren’t currently available on TiVo OS.

Is £99 Worth It?

That depends entirely on what you actually want from a Freely box – and, for now, whether you can actually find an alternative in stock.

If you’re interested in cloud gaming and value having access to the widest possible app selection through Google Play, £99 for a year of gaming plus the hardware isn’t unreasonable.

You’re essentially getting the device bundled with a subscription (or the other way around) that would cost £9.99 monthly if purchased separately. After that free year, Freely continues working forever, whether you subscribe or not.

But if price is your main concern and you mainly just want Freely channels plus a few major streaming apps, the Aero at £69.99 remains the more affordable option – assuming you can actually find one in stock.

The Pleio is available now on Amazon, with stock currently showing for immediate delivery. That availability matters if you need a Freely box soon and can’t wait potentially weeks for Aero restocks.

And to make things even more complicated, a Freely / Freeview recording hybrid box from Humax – the Aura EZ – is coming very soon, but will cost a whopping £249.

What is clear is that the standalone Freely box market has heated up considerably.

Two devices selling out within 24 hours of launching suggests significant demand from viewers ready to transition away from Freeview’s aerials – and competitive pricing pressure that’s working in buyers’ favour.

• Get Pleio on Amazon

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