Em Casalena Last updated: The Best TV for Russian Learners via 5 Handy Android Apps
One way you can improve your Russian linguistic skills is by watching Russian movies, news and television shows through handy (and mostly free) Android apps for your smartphone.
To save you the hassle of downloading and testing them out yourself, I put together a list of the five ultimate Russian television apps available in the Google Play store.
Contents
- How Can Russian TV Apps Help Me Improve My Russian Language Skills?
- The 5 Best, Most Immersive Russian TV Apps for Android
- And One More Thing...
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
How Can Russian TV Apps Help Me Improve My Russian Language Skills?
- Watching Russian television via an app in your spare time can help you improve your listening skills. We’re constantly absorbing information about language when we watch television shows. By watching Russian television, you can definitely improve your ability to listen to and comprehend the Russian language. Plus, television apps make it easy to fit that listening practice in when you’re on the go.
- Some of these apps feature either Russian, Romanized or English subtitles to help you improve your reading skills. It’s not all about listening skills when it comes to watching Russian television shows to improve your linguistic abilities.
Subtitles, be they in English or Russian, are great for either practicing your Cyrillic reading or associating spoken Russian with its English translation. Not all of the apps we’re covering feature subtitles, but a few do!
If you’re looking for an app that specializes in providing captions, FluentU’s program has short, subtitled Russian-language clips.
- Watching a mix of scripted and unscripted Russian television (a drama series vs. a news channel for example) can help you get a grasp on different Russian accents and speaking speeds. Learning a language is definitely not just about studying grammar and memorizing vocabulary words.
Every language has its own group of dialects, accents, slang words and other unique nuances. By watching Russian entertainment, you can get a feel for these nuances and improve your overall fluency.
The 5 Best, Most Immersive Russian TV Apps for Android
Russian TV Live and FM Radio Stations
This free little app contains live Russian-language television channels and FM radio stations. Every aspect of the app’s navigation is in English, making it ideal for beginner learners who are still getting used to the Russian alphabet. The subtitle situation is hit or miss depending on the channel you watch, so all levels of learners can definitely work on their listening and comprehension skills with this app.
Russian TV Live includes:
- 24-hour streaming of different Russian channels.
- Dozens of Russian-language radio stations from countries like Estonia, Latvia, Armenia, etc.
- A “favorites” option to keep your favorite channels and stations in one space.
- Exclusive Russian sports and news channel broadcasts.
This app is also noticeably fast and well-coded, so you can expect a very user-friendly experience. They claim that their videos are high definition, and while a lot of their content isn’t “true” HD, the quality is much better than other live-streaming applications. You won’t have to deal with unwatchably grainy and pixelated television with this app.
We suggest checking out:
- Bridge TV — A fantastic channel that specializes in Russian music videos and various television shows.
- РЕН ТВ — One of the biggest private federal television channels in Russia, specializing in news broadcasts and television series.
Kartina TV
Another great app in the Google Play store is the Kartina TV app. This app is essentially the Android-optimized version of the popular Russian television super channel. The navigation contains a mix of Russian and English, so we’d suggest intermediate and advanced learners try this app out. Like with Russian TV Live, the subtitles aren’t set in stone for every channel you watch.
Kartina includes:
- Over 150 different Russian-language channels.
- Hundreds of on-demand films, some of which are free to watch.
- Program archiving so you can watch what you want when you want.
The only real drawback to this app is the resolution. Much of the content available is mid-to-low resolution, which can be a dealbreaker for some, but works just as well if your main intention is to learn Russian. While this app is free to download, Kartina TV requires a paid membership to unlock all of its content. However, pricing is fairly reasonable and you can try a month-to-month plan to see if you like the content available.
We suggest checking out:
- MTV — Yes, Kartina TV features a Russian version of MTV. Sometimes watching something you’re already familiar with in a new language can help make comprehension a bit easier!
Лайм HD TV (Lime HD TV)
Лайм HD TV is a free Russian-language television streaming app that’s actually high definition. No empty promises, no fuzzy videos that are one giant pixel. You really do get great quality Russian footage with this app.
Лайм HD TV includes:
- 140 free television channels, from news to sports to variety shows.
- Quick startup and a user-friendly interface.
- A “favorites” function.
- Voice search.
- Excellent audio and video quality.
One important thing to consider about Лайм HD TV is that while there’s a ton of great free content available, many of the channels (especially channels that play modern movies) cost a fee to view. Still, there’s a ton of great high-quality content to check out with this app. Just be aware that the entire app is in Cyrillic, so intermediate and advanced learners will probably get the most out of it.
We suggest checking out:
- OTP — A Russian public television channel with content similar to PBS.
- CTC Media — A Russian independent broadcasting company popular for its hilarious sitcoms and children’s shows.
Комедии (Comedy)
Do you love comedy? Do you want to know what Russian people consider funny? Then Комедии is the television app for you!
Комедии includes:
- Dozens of Russian and Soviet comedy series.
- Historical comedies that are both educational and endearing.
- Unusual and rare films.
Since this app’s navigation is entirely in Russian, beginners may struggle to find what they want to watch. Also, be aware that almost all of the content available in the app is sourced from YouTube and it may take you directly to YouTube to view the content. Still, this app is a great directory for finding royalty-free Russian television and films online.
We suggest checking out:
- “Особенности национальной охоты” (Peculiarities of the National Hunt) — A Finnish expat in Russia is whisked away on misadventures with the locals.
- “День выборов” (Election Day) — A group of successful Russian radio hosts, a fake priest and a theater director must help promote a political candidate in an unfamiliar part of Russia.
As you can see, there are a few stellar Russian TV apps out there for Android devices.
It’s safe to say that you’ll definitely find at least one of the apps on our list useful for brushing up on your Russian listening and reading skills!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
If you love learning Russian and want to immerse yourself with authentic materials from Russia, then I should also tell you more about FluentU.
FluentU naturally and gradually eases you into learning the Russian language and culture. You'll learn real Russian as it's spoken by real Russian people!
FluentU has a very broad range of contemporary videos. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of Russian-language content available on FluentU:
FluentU makes these native Russian videos approachable through interactive transcripts. Tap on any word to look it up instantly.
Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab. Easily review words and phrases with audio under Vocab.
All definitions have multiple examples, and they're written for Russian learners like you. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.
And FluentU has a learn mode which turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples.
The best part? FluentU keeps track of your vocabulary, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You'll have a 100% personalized experience.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
