CARIFLIX vs Essential Sci
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CARIFLIX
Stream live and on-demand television programming, including original content. This service offers an internet-delivered alternative to traditional cable and satellite TV, accessible on any device with a broadband connection.
- Live TV streaming
- On-demand content
- Original productions
- Multi-device access
- Internet-delivered alternative
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Cariflix delivers television programming via streaming and originally produced content available Live and on-demand. Cariflix is the first true Internet-delivered alternative to traditional cable and satellite TV in Curacao. Cariflix is available anywhere and on any device with a stable broadband Internet connection. Premium subscription: Monthly subscription gives you unlimited streaming of Shows, TV programs, Carifilix Original Shows, Special events and News. For our Subscriber Agreement and other policies please visit: https://cariflix.com/terms
Essential Sci
Stream a vast library of science fiction movies and TV shows for free. Subscribe monthly to enjoy an ad-free viewing experience and access premium content.
- Hundreds of hours of sci-fi content
- Free streaming
- Monthly ad-free subscription
- Watch on Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, iPod
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The Essential Sci-Fi Channel contains hundreds of hours of your favorite science fiction movies and television shows available to watch for free. Sign up for a monthly subscription to watch without ads! Terms of Use: http://macmillanweb.com/html/terms.asp
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Essential Sci at free with in-app purchases against CARIFLIX's subscription. Essential Sci also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.2). CARIFLIX's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (400 vs 33). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. CARIFLIX sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Essential Sci sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Essential Sci holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CARIFLIX has 400 ratings behind it against 33, so its average is the more settled of the two.
CARIFLIX ships an update every 2 months, Essential Sci every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CARIFLIX | Essential Sci |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (400 ratings) | 4.5 (33 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 23.1% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 400 — better | 33 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 6 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 113 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Streann Media | MacMillan Interactive Communications, LLC |
Customer experience
CARIFLIX
Essential Sci
Bugs and requests
CARIFLIX
Reported bugs
17 issues- Cannot display content try again later
- Video is repeating all the time
- Charged but not in service
- Cannot unsubscribe
- Hasn't worked in a while
Show 12 moreShow fewer
- Works sometimes and sometimes not
- Continuously unlinks my 1 TV
- Content not available for your region
- Bugged app
- Will not let you login via facebook
- Login error. Please try again
- Profile section disappeared
- Cannot watch my informashon
- Renew subscription automatically on I-tune but when click to watch ⚠️ message click here to subscribe
- Content is restricted in my country
- Kada bia ta bisami tin newer version pero ora bai App Store te mesun kos
- Tarda hopi pa start
Requested features
2 requests- Apple TV app availability
- Apple TV option
Essential Sci
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
CARIFLIX
- Basic Package$3.991 Month
- Cariflix Premium Package$9.991 Month
- Yearly Premium Package$99.991 Year
- Seven Days Premium Pass$6.99
- Cariflix PPV$19.99
- PPV Event$19.99
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Final Night Tumba PPV$29.99
- Special Event$39.99
- PPV Event Concert$42.99
- Tumba Pay Per View Package$84.99
- PPV Tumba Event$84.99
Essential Sci
- Essential Sci-Fi Subscription$5.991 Month
- Essential Sci-Fi Yearly Sub$69.991 Year
