How To Find Free Movies In South Africa

The purpose of the article is to educate you on how to access moves in South Africa, paid, free, download and stream. But before that, I will do an extensive introduction on how we really got to the point of streaming and downloading movies online.

The Video Cassette Recorders/Players and Video Cassette Tapes

First, it was video cassette tapes/recorders, which plays the bulky videocassette that carries two rollers with long tape that rolls back and forth when played, reverse, forward. Very similar to the small radio cassette which we normally use in playing and recording audio music.

CDs (Compact Disc)/DVDs

Then we moved to video CDs then DVDs. With this technology, we could use the video CD players and DVD players to watch movies stored on CDs and DVDs.

This later extended to blue rays technology which is an advanced format of the DVDs. The blue-ray technology can store more information in a well-formatted way, giving viewers the option of access more info about the movies they are watching.

External Drives

The game-changer was when technology started permitting us to connect our external storage devices to our Television or DVD/VCD players.

With this technology, we could stream movies stored in our hard drives, USB drives and every other form of storage device we could connect to the computer or video player gadget.

It used to be somehow slow, but technology got better, and speed became a thing of the past. So we gradually started opting for the then sophisticated methods of watching movies.

Copying Movies on CDs and DVDs

In the beginning, we would copy movies or other programs from CDs and DVDs to our computer or external hard drive. Then we needed a special kind of CD player called a re-writable CD (RW CD) player. Finally, we often copy movies by asking a friend who has the movie we are keen to watch on CD.

Some of us would even go the extra mile of buying the VCD/DVD, copy it and return it. Of course, we would do this for multiple movies for the price of one.

The Internet Of Things

The internet got better and faster, cheaper and more accessible to the extent that people can now upload movies on the internet at a very low cost. That was when the online movie download kicked in.

This time we did not need to get those movies from DVD/VCD anymore. They are now accessible on the internet in different formats and codecs. They can even be compressed and converted to any codec that suits the user.

Back then, there were no movie streaming services like Netflix, Showmax, Hulu and many more with huge catalogues like we have today, but you could pay to some of the then-available services to watch some movies and music videos online. Some of those services include Yahoo Music, My space, American Online, MSN e.t.c.

The services mentioned above came before their time as the internet was not strong enough to stream these visual contents in real-time, the buffer was slow, and the video quality was bad.

Apart from the fact that one could upload movies to the internet from a physical CD in those days, the tech-savvy ones also hacked their ways into bypassing the tech giants offering videos online at the time and downloading those movies without paying.

P2P (peer-to-peer)

Then there was the emergence of P2P, a technology that lets two different computers located in different locations connect and share files. However, the technology still exists but did not last long for streaming and downloading movies because it hit the music industry so bad that it becomes illegal to use or offer services through that technology.

Torrent

Even though it was illegal, people still found ways to use P2P, but it became unpopular. Then another type of P2P emerged, known as torrent. The torrent technology uses a computer file that contains metadata about files and folders to be distributed, and usually also a list of the network. Using this type of technology, you need to torrent files and the torrent client. The torrent file contains all the information about what is needed to be downloaded. Once loaded by the client, it decodes all the information and begins the download. This is more efficient and serves more than just sharing media files.

People took advantage of this and started sharing files through this technology. Still, it didn’t take long before governments and entertainment industries started cracking down on Torrent, but the stronger they get with it, the smarter torrent users get.

Torrent, Illegal Downloads and Difficulties

There were times when people were served letters from legal practitioners claiming their client movies or any other content had been downloaded, and they requested the receivers to pay damages at a very high price. Unfortunately, these types of legal claims were not effective as the accusers need to prove that a specific person downloaded the movie before they can take it to court.

Internet service providers rotate IPs frequently, and most of the time, more than one person consumes content from the internet through a single IP. In addition, information about the computer used to download the supposed file is sent to the ISP (internet service provider). Still, it would violate individual privacy to invade their computer to verify the information transferred from a computer to ISP.

All these coupled together makes it difficult to charge someone who has illegally downloaded a movie to a court of law. This does not mean that you cannot be caught. If much time and investigation are put in place, an illegal download can be tracked efficiently. The investment needed to track a single illegal download is not worth it sometimes; that is why authorities often go after those doing illegal downloads on a huge scale.

The VPN

The VPN technology became very popular, and people can now hide their identity behind a secured VPN (a virtual private network) and do their movie downloads without being spied upon. This makes it even more difficult for legal enforcement agencies to crack down on illegal downloads.

The bottom line is, it is illegal to download movies if unauthorized. Of course, there are some movies released online for free download and streaming, but one needs to be sure he/she is consuming from the authorized source to be safe from engaging in illegal music download.

How To Download, Stream and Watch Movies Online In South Africa

Now that we have covered the basics of online movie download and its legalities, we will cover how to access and download movies in South Africa, both free and paid. This article aims not to support illegal movie downloads but rather to educate you on how to access movies in South Africa.

Streaming And Download Services Online

The movie is an important part of our lives as it educates and keeps us entertained while it serves as a source of income for many who create the movies. Today there are many legal move services to pick from at a very competitive price. However, this depends on many factors including location, internet access, viewer’s preferences, to name a few. Therefore, we will categorize these movie download platforms so that you can best choose which one suits you best.

Free Movies Streaming And Download Platforms

Internet Archives

With about 5,773,838 video content, this platform is the google of media content; it fetches content that is already in the public domain from the web, they could be in the form of video or any other media format, the platform stores them in an easy to access manner for users. There is limited content on this platform as it is free, and it does not have access to a large video content database. It only provides whatever it can find that is already in the public domain for easy access. you can stream unlimited movies on this platform without paying a dime

YouTube

The Giant of video streaming is very popular for music videos and other viral content. Still, very few use it for movies as it has limited movie content, but that does not mean it does not have enough to pick from. It recently launched its premium version, where they offer exclusive content, and this includes movies. The premium part of the platform serves the purpose of Netflix and Spotify combined but does not have enough move catalogue as Movies dedicated platforms like Netflix and Hulu. You do not have access to the premium content on this platform unless you are a premium member, which comes at a price.

Retrovision

Often updated with old movies, it is worth a mention due to its huge offerings. You can stream unlimited movies on this platform without paying a dime.

Pluto TV

This platform is a spectacular TV that boasts over 80 channels from where you have the option of movie download. The categories of content available include sports, tech, news and movies. You may need to use a VPN service to access some part of this platform as they are restricted to specific locations, especially the USA.

Crackle

This is a very friendly platform owned by SONY. The platform has a huge catalogue of movies and other content that can be accessed online, but unfortunately, it is restricted to the USA; you might need a VPN to access this website.

Movies Found Online

With movies found online, you can gain access to some of the newest and best movies online. It is frequently updated with new movies and has a wide range of movies. We can not verify the legality of the movies provided on this website.

Popcornflix

Popcornflix provides high-quality HD movies, and it is regularly updated. The platform has a very friendly user interface and can be accessed from anywhere in the world without the use of a VPN, but it is however advised to use on

Vimeo

Very similar to Youtube, you can access a huge amount of free movies on this platform.

Paid Movies Streaming And Download Platforms

Netflix

This is the giant of online movie streaming, and the platform had recently launched in South Africa. Netflix has a huge catalogue of movies, but it is a paid service which means you need to sign up for a monthly subscription to access unlimited movies. The advantage of this platform is that they are beginning to add South African original movies and series to their platform at a very high speed.

Showmax

Showmax is an online subscription-based video-on-demand service introduced to South Africans on 19 August 2015. Showmax is using a localization approach to take on created video-on-demand competitors with a concentration on local content. Like Netflix, you need to have a monthly subscription to access movies on this platform. If you are looking to enjoy local movies, then this is the right stop for you.

Hulu

With Hulu, you can access international movies at a very affordable price. Still, the issue you might have here is that it is restricted to a few countries as they do not operate worldwide. You might need a friend or family member abroad to get you an account and pay to use this platform. They will not accept the payment method that does not have an address from their country of service. You can also subscribe with a gift card, but you still need to use A USA IP to stream or download the movies.

Using The Traditional, Cable, Satelite And Online TV Channels

DStv

DStv is a cable network that houses hundreds of television channels. Because it is dedicated to television channels, users cannot watch movies on demand, and you would have to wait for your favourite shows to come on at a specific time to be able to watch them. DStv does not only serve movie content. The network has a wide range of programs ranging from music, reality TVs, sports, news and many more. It would help if you had a subscription to be able to enjoy content from this platform. The only way you can enjoy downloaded movies on this platform is to save them on your decoder so that you can watch them later.

The image below represents some online and TV platforms where you can access movies and information but with limited access to movies as these movies may be streamed in episodes weekly, and they mostly come with advertisements.

Downloading and Streaming Movies With Torrents.

This is usually mostly illegal, but some legal content could also be found using torrents. You would have to do a little research to find out if what you are downloading through torrent platforms are legit or not. Listed below are some platforms where you can access free movies download, but as mentioned before, you will be doing so at your own risk.

ISP often block some of these torrent download websites. Still, internet providers face several practical problems as torrent websites often have their IP addresses hidden behind CDN. Additionally, knowledgeable internet users can avoid most blocks applied by ISPs using VPN services.

The most common torrent platforms used in South Africa have been listed below:

The Pirate Bay

RARBG

Zooqle

YTS.AG

Torrentz2

1337X

TorrentProject

EZTV.AG

LimeTorrents

TorrentDownloads

TorrentDay

Nyaa.si

KATCR.CO

Most time, you have to download the videos on your computer or external hard drive first and then stream later. The same method also applies to mobile phone users.

Using Torrent Without Downloading The Movie

Some torrent client offers the option of watching movies or streaming music without actually downloading them to your computer. This means that you don’t need to worry about computer storage space if you use this option. Still, sometimes it comes at a price, which means you have to pay some amount, which could be a one-time payment or a monthly subscription to use this option.

To use this option, you have to get the torrent file link from a torrent search website and paste it on the torrent client downloader you are using. You will be able to stream movies without downloading them to your computer; Utorrent, for example, offers this option.

For Android Users:

Here you can access the streaming without download on android phones, totally free of charge without paying a dime. Download and install these apps from the app store:

• TorrSE
• Amnis

The TorrSE can search for sites faster and more easily from individual torrent search sites. Using this app, after searching for the movie, copy the torrent link and head to your Amnis App, paste the link and wait for the buffer to complete.

This way, you can stream the movie directly without completely downloading it to your mobile device.