For every free service you use online, there seems to be a premium upgrade available. For the most part, the free version operates just fine and that special membership potential would, in actuality, be simply a money-suck. However, some of these upgraded services are worth the investment if you use them on a regular basis. Thus, here is a list of upgrades you should consider.
You can listen to Spotify on your computer and phone for free. On your computer, it operates like an iTunes with unlimited songs that plays commercial while you listen. On your phone, you can listen to those same playlists, but it operates more like Pandora where you cannot skip or control the exact song being played. However, with the upgrade to Spotify Premium (look out for the $4.99/month deal for students), you can listen to any song, commercial free, on either device. For a music lover, this is definitely worth the money.
If you like to keep up with TV on your computer, you know that hulu.com already lets you watch current seasons of TV shows from most networks. But, an upgrade to Hulu Plus allows you to have access to the most current episodes of these shows plus their past seasons. This service is $7.99/month.
Amazon Prime is actually free to those with an .edu email address, so while in college, just upgrade on amazon.com without a second thought. Once you’re out of school, this service is still worth considering if you’re an online shopper. You, first and foremost, get free two-day shipping. Sweet, right? Secondly, you get unlimited photo storage, deals on Prime products and exclusive access to music and movies.
Netflix doesn’t have a free version, so this is a full investment. Netflix offers a huge selection of movies and past seasons of most TV shows. While you can’t watch the current seasons of these TV shows like with Hulu Plus, Netflix has movies and no commercials at all. While I don’t think it’s worth having both accounts, it is definitely worth considering if you’re a TV junkie, especially given they are both $7.99/month.
The New York Times online will only let someone see a snippet of its articles without a subscription. So, if you need to keep up with the news for class or just because you like being well informed, this subscription is a great one. It is a more earth-friendly alternative to a paper copy and the range of articles is more expansive. Plus, there’s various student discounts between the online and delivery services offered.