Tubi is an ad-supported free subscription service that many are curious about, especially after Fox acquired Tubi for $440 million.

Tubi offers free access to over 20,000 old TV shows and movies. The company's library includes content from studios such as Paramount, MGM, and Lionsgate, as well as networks such as A&E, Lifetime, and Starz. According to the company, there are 25 million monthly active viewers and more than 160 million monthly hours of content viewed on Tubi.

Tubi is one of several free streaming services and the market is growing; ViacomCBS acquired Pluto TV last year and Comcast acquired Xumo in February 2020.

Tubi is a video streaming service not unlike Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and others, offering free streaming of a vast library of TV shows and movies from cell phones, smart TVs, and streaming devices. The only catch is that you have to watch some ads while streaming content.

Yes, Tubi is actually free. No lie. In a world ruled by the fear of piracy, it may be hard to understand that streaming video services are free and legal, but yes, Tubi is legal.

The hidden flavor of Tubi's business model is advertising. The company tries to use the lure of "free" to draw more people to its services. It then charges advertisers to connect with those customers.

These ads run before and during movies and TV shows, so you will no doubt see them frequently; they are only 15 to 30 seconds long, so they are not difficult to miss. However, they cannot be skipped, so if you try to run through them, you will not see them.

Tubi's library of over 20,000 movies and TV shows is surprisingly large for a service that has yet to reach the mainstream like Netflix or Hulu.

Tubi was able to assemble so much content by partnering with over 250 providers, including Hollywood heavyweights Paramount, Lionsgate, and MGM. You can also find programming from A&E, Complex Networks, and others.

As for the actual shows and movies, they are cobbled together. Some shows are popular, such as Hell's Kitchen and Duck Dynasty. But in terms of movies, one cannot find the latest and greatest hits.

Tubi has a handy "Most Popular" section that lets you know the most famous movies on offer. At the time of this writing, the 2011 Johnny Depp film "Rango" tops the list, followed by "Pride and Glory": the documentaries "Little Women: Atlanta," "Lionheart," "Rock Dog" and "Congo" also rank high.

Also ranked high were the documentaries Little Women: Atlanta, Lionheart, Rock Dog and Congo.

There are also a number of categories to make it easier to find the content of your choice. For example, there are "Classics" for TV dramas, cartoons, and old favorites, and "Preschool" for children's programming.

Undoubtedly, Tubi's most interesting category is "Not on Netflix," a collection of movies and TV shows that are not available on Netflix for some reason. However, this category, like the others on Netflix, is mostly has-beans (such as Rob Schneider's "The Animal" and "Bulletproof Monk," starring Chow Yun Fat and Seann William Scott), with a few rare hits (such as the 2010 "True Grit ), as well as remakes (e.g., the 2010 remake of "True Grit").

Tubi has received positive reviews on CordCutting, giving high marks for its interface and clever categories. The site notes that Tubi's library is limited compared to giants like Netflix, but that should be understood since it is free and ancillary. Lifewire also recommends the service, noting its short advertising time.

Tubi offers a number of options for getting the service onto your TV, including apps for Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and Chromecast. Links to these app stores are listed below; Tubi is also available for PS4 and Xbox One. Comcast Xfinity and Tivo users will also find the Tubi app on those platforms.

Samsung and Sony smart TVs and Blu-ray players also work with Tubi.

Tubi can also be watched from a web browser at tubitv.com. If you want to watch from a laptop or Chromebook, head over there and you will find all the content you want.

On the mobile end, Tubi is available on both Apple's App Store and Google Play's Marketplace.

Sorry, if you're looking for live channels, you're out of luck; Tubi only offers content that has already aired or premiered on the silver screen (or home theater).

The service also has no live sports events. However, when searching for sports programming, one can find several options, including "Driving Sports" and "Sports Adventure."

Those interested in Tubi may be wondering what they won't get from this service. For one thing, Tubi offers little new or original content; while Tubi's library is extensive, it does not have many new shows or movies. Also, because there is no live TV, Tubi does not come with a cloud DVR. However, there is a queue that can be saved for easy access later.

If you are looking to watch old movies and TV shows, Tubi may be a great place to start. It's free, has lots of shows and movies for people interested in all genres, and has a nice interface.

If you just enjoy content and don't have a particular show or movie you want to watch, you can find and enjoy shows on Tubi. However, if you like the latest movies and blockbusters or want to check out very popular movies and TV series, Tubi may not be for you.