All about torrent streaming and how to get started today
A lot of internet users find it hard to understand why anyone would ever look for ways to stream torrents when there are numbers of streaming sites built for the sole reason of streaming video content.
Many of these streaming sites will give you instant access to great content like TV shows, movies and every other good content you can think of. But why opt for torrent streaming when you get all those streaming goodies from different streaming subscription services? If you are wondering, this is the article to read.
We’ll explain why you should get started with torrent streaming in a bit. This is what we will be showing you in this guide:
- Torrenting 101 – the basics
- Streaming and why it’s important
- What is torrent streaming
- Requirements for streaming
- Torrent streaming – 5 ways to get started
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Now, back to why internet users opt for torrent streaming, leaving out streaming subscription services. Well, look at it this way: putting aside the legality of using torrents sites to watch your favorite TV shows, would you rather watch a movie once and have no further access to it or watch a movie and have lifetime access to it?
The latter is the major reason people prefer to stream using torrent files.
You get to keep the files even after streaming videos and when you look at how much bandwidth is used in both scenarios, they are the same.
Torrenting 101 – the basics
This section covers the basics of torrenting and the technology behind it. Feel free to skip this part if you already have an idea.
For a beginner, torrenting is not the most illegal crime on the internet like you most likely have read somewhere. Basically, it is peer-to-peer technology that allows users to share files and content in general from several computers.
The conventional way of downloading is by clicking on the download button in your browser, and the files get onto your computer like magic. With torrenting, it is totally different; rather than downloading a single file from a server, a torrent breaks down the file into what is called packets.
These packets come from a server, referred to as seeder, but are also from a shared network of machines that are downloading the exact files you are downloading.
Otherwise known as peers or leechers in the torrenting lingua, these group have different parts of the files to be downloaded, hence the torrent file you use in downloading keeps tabs of who has which packets and this torrent file helps to change where your packets are coming from when necessary.
Streaming and why it’s important
Video on Demand is currently the most popular use of the video streaming technology. You can host video files on any server and they will become available to anyone who has a computer connected to the internet.
Media streaming allows for multiple users to access streaming technology over the internet. It allows you to watch video streams of live games like tennis and football. Depending on the provider of the stream, you can choose to toggle between two streams of live action. Some users can even watch video streams of news and other current events live.
In short, there are many uses for video streaming. Internet users can also stream content straight from their room, depending on the kind of video streaming software used.
What is torrent streaming?
After understanding the basics of torrenting and media streaming, it’s time to know what streaming is all about and why you would possibly consider it.
There’s nothing much to talk about here. If you already understand the concept of video streaming, the technology is no different when streaming with torrents.
Just like with conventional streaming sites, you get immediate access to your content as soon as you give the permissions to start streaming your torrent files. So, you get to start streaming your media files before even completing your downloads.
When torrent is streamed, the downloads are forced to sequentially occur from the front to the back of the file. When enough of the files are downloaded, streaming of the media begins.
Requirements for streaming
There are certain things that need to be in place before you can start streaming. Without any of these components, it is impossible to stream media from a torrent file:
- a torrent website
- a torrent file
- a streaming platform
Torrents streaming – 5 ways to get started
Let’s explore the five best ways you can get started with torrent streaming today.
#1 Use torrent clients for streaming
One of your best options when it comes to streaming torrents is using a torrent client. Major BitTorrent client software like uTorrent, Vuze and Tixati will help you do the job of downloading your torrent files flawlessly.
While these client software are very powerful and reliable to download, not all of them gives you the ability to stream videos.
uTorrent being the most popular client software allows its premium users to stream torrent media files by using its browser functionality. You can get started by visiting their steaming website.
After installing the uTorrent web app, you can tart streaming and downloading in three easy steps:
- Search for a torrent file using the search bar
- Download or use a link to start streaming
- Stream your media files while they download
You have two options to import your torrent file as shown below:
- Click a magnet link from the web
- Open a downloaded torrent file from your computer
When the browser identifies and loads the torrent file from the link or your computer, it starts playing as shown in the image.
While playing, you can download the files at the same time.
#2 Streaming using Torch
Torch browser is not really a popular website, but it is among the best when it comes to streaming torrent files with a browser. The Chrome-looking browser comes with more features than Chrome.
Some of the cool features are media players, a game accelerator, torrent downloads and torrents streaming.
The torrent streaming feature allows you to play videos while downloading. To stream using the Torch browser, after loading your torrent file in the browser, you’ll want to:
- Load the torrent file
- Wait for the file to show a folder on the video to be streamed
- Right click and click play
#3 Install Rox Player
Rox player looks like every other minimalistic media player, but it I actually very sophisticated. If you will like to seam right from a media player, then Rox player will be your best bet. You have three option to associate your torrent with Rox, they are:
- Open torrent from a file
- Open torrent from a URL
- Open torrent from a magnetic link
Once you import the torrent file from any of the three options, your torrent file starts streaming after loading.
#4 Stream torrents directly from Pirate Bay
Pirate bay is one of the most popular torrent sites. For some reasons, it has been tough for authorities to take his site down. Pirate bay allows you to steam videos from their website. You might need to install their recommended streaming software for this.
We think this is a feature other torrent websites can emulate as it I great for user experience.
To get started with streaming from pirate bay, search for the torrent file you want to download from the search bar or browse through the torrent files. Once you select the torrent file, search for where it says “play/stream videos” and you will be redirected to the pirate bay media player.
Note that the media player changes, and therefore you may be required to install another on your machine.
#5 Make use of Popcorn Time
Popcorn Time is one of the few streaming platform that allows its users to stream videos with an inbuilt VPN. We can’t stress enough how important VPNs are when torrenting. It’s very important to keep your anonymity when accessing and downloading your torrent files. Popcorn Time knows the important of a VPN, and that is why they have prepared an inbuilt VPN.
To get started with torrent streaming using Popcorn Time, visit their website and download the official Popcorn Time software. After download and installation, start streaming by dragging the torrent file into the Popcorn Time software.
We hope this guide will help you get stated with torrent streaming.
Pick one or two methods and see which one works best for you. Some of these methods can be outdated in few years to come, because with torrenting, a lot of resources and services can be taken down anytime especially when it is operating an illegal torrenting service.
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