Thinking about a netflix account.

I used to have an account and there wasnt any wait for obscure titles. I am thinking about starting it back up since there are only chain stores around here to rent from and they have about 1% of the movies that I would want to check out.

It is also great if you want to rent a TV series. If you go somewhere like blockbuster and check out one disc at a time at 4 or 5 bucks a pop it can get a bit spendy to watch an entire season of a show(especially HBO, which like to spread their shows out over 5 or 6 discs and ONE episode on the final disc).

I've been a member since 2000, and haven't regretted a single day. The only caveat to that is they do sometimes run low on minor new releases, so expect up to a several week wait time occasionally if you don't have a film hitting their returns on Monday morning release week. Older films randomly enter that stage, so the turnaround is usually much quicker. Counter to that though is a huge selection of titles to where my queue has rarely dropped below triple digits even after close to 10 years of abuse, and I quit video stores completely.

There may also be a lag time in shipping based on where you live (I'm in Detroit with a return center in Lansing, so it's a 1-2 day turnaround for me). They've addressed that with the instant viewing feature that while it's currently relegated to a limited, older selection of films and TV shows, is free (with at least a 3 film rental agreement) and works on any windows computer, a Tivo HD, or an XBOX 360 (with a XBOX Gold Membership).

I just became a new customer three weeks ago and have loved every moment of it. The Instant Watch is worth the price alone.

"Save" means the film is not currently available on DVD (or, at least, Netflix doesn't carry it).

Don't think. Do it. This stage in the game, no serious film fan should be without a subscription.

Two things.

1) What Mattioli said about "SAVED" DVDs and BDs. It means they do NOT have them, not they have them but they are rented out. Those will show up as short/long wait depending on how many people are in front of you. If you are only interested in a bunch that are coming up as "saved," then it isn't worth it for you.

However,

2) I LOVE Netflix, and I can't imagine any film fan not finding a huge selection and saving a ton money by using it. Contrary to what Death Surge said, you only need the 1 DVD unlimited plan (or higher) to get unlimited instant view. Also, you can watch on your PS3 or Wii with a one-time purchase of Play-On. I beta tested Play-On, and then purchased it when it was released. I know a lot of people on CHUD use it as well (it also lets you watch Youtube, Hulu, and some various other things like ESPN clips, and things from other networks as well as letting you watch movies, look at pictures, and play videos that are on your computer like a media server).

I've rated somewhere between 1000 and 2000 movies on Netflix, and my queue is still 500 strong, so I can't imagine you won't find lots of interesting things to watch.

I love Netflix, but the only thing I'll add is that if you're looking for really obscure stuff, you might try GreenCine instead.

I signed up for only 2 out at a time and I get the instant watch as well. Just Do It.

We use Watch It Now so regularly, we often forget about the discs in the mail. They seem like quaint little anachronisms at this point; we only get 1 disc a month. Plus, Watch It Now features entire runs of shows networks are looking to pimp for a limited time (We're in the throes of Lost now).

I'd recommend starting with three to start, and then moving up to five. I've gone from three to five to the eight at a time plan, back down to three because of an upcoming move/budget cuts, and I think that five is the most solid plan across the board. Especially if you're going to use it to watch TV series on DVD, which is what I use it for a lot.

There are few things in this world that are appropriate impulse decisions.

Netflix is right up there at the top. Three at a time and a laptop are about all you need to have a successful relationship with them.

If a wireless keyboard/mouse combo and a set of desktop-to-TV cables come in less than $99 I am going to help a friend move her desktop behind her new Vizio and forgo the Roku digital player and use Watch It Now in this manner.

Couple this with Hulu and the networks running shows online her recent decision to eliminate her cable bill isn't going to be a problem anymore.

Netflix is the new Nike. Just Do it.

I had disabled my account for a while, but honestly all I needed was to downgrade my service.

Watch It Now has a much better selection list now. If you have a decent internet connection, this service is well worth the price alone.

First off, happy Saturday Morning to my fellow Chewers!

Second, off, about netflix...
I first subscribed back in 2005 or 2006. I was enjoying the service until I realized I was being illegally "throttled". This means that I was watching movies the same night I received them and then shipped them back the next day. Despite using the service I was paying for exactly as they advertise I should use it, this causes Netflix to hate you and start sending you movies from Alaska ETC so that you must wait much longer. I became enraged and cancelled my subscription. This was a bad move as it turns out as people who were throttled by netflix were able to sue in a class action lawsuit as long as they stayed paid subscribers.


Oh well

So for the next few years I simply purchased DVDs or rented them from our local "MOVIE GALLERY". This ultimately proved to be wasteful as I was spending hundreds of dollars on new DVDs and late fees. The movie gallery cheated me out of alot of funds before I finally quit giving them my business.

So, in January of 2008, I finally signed up for Netflix again. I was making myself broke over DVD purchases so I knew a change was needed. I signed up for the "Five At Once" plan. This worked out great. I now have plenty of things to watch most nights unless I space out and forget to return things, or forget to update my list and get things I do not really care to see.

I also had two disks that were kept out for five months when I lost them, so for a while I was essentially paying the Five-At-Once fee for Three-At-Once...

With all that said, I would give Netflix my seal of approval, and well earned endorsement (stipulating that they DID cheat me and millions of others through throttling)

Absolutely sign up. I've had an account for a couple of years now, and haven't regretted it for a second. One of my favorite things to do is to have Netflix open in one window while I surf CHUD in another window. Anything that's worth seeing, you can just do a quick search and pop it into your queue while you're reading the discussion about the film here. Love that.

This. I'm never at a loss for things to watch. Admittedly though, in NYC I have a one-day turn around. I imagine if the wait is longer, the two-disc option wouldn't be the best option if you wanted to have a disc at home every day.

By the way, I've been a member since 2001. Obviously, I like the service.

Netflix is the greatest invention of the everness.

Only knock is I wish they had a better rating system. But that's it.

GET IT.

Does Watch It Now on the Wii exist right now? I heard it might be coming, but not that it actually was available.

AFAIK the Netflix' Watch Instantly player is still not supported in Opera. And the fact that they just tightened up their Microsoft ties even more and upgraded the player to something with a WMC framework I doubt it is forthcoming soon.

You can use PlayOn (http://www.themediamall.com/playon) to watch through a PS3 or a Wii. I watch that way on the PS3 all of the time, but I haven't tried with the Wii yet.

I beta tested PlayOn, so I got it for $30, but I think it is $40 for non-beta testers. One time fee, never pay anything ever again. Also, you can download a free trial to see how well it works on the Wii.

TYTYTYTYTYTY!!!

I bookmarked that site back when Devin went cableless and have forgotten recently to check it. Will DL this tonight when I get home and see how it works.

No problem!

They just added Wii support maybe 2 updates ago (so about 3 or so weeks ago, I think).

So, Wii support might still technically be in beta. I know dozens of Chewers use it for the PS3, and I've had a good track record with it. I run mine wirelessly so I get the very occasional freeze, but 95% of the time it is within the first 2 seconds of playing, and if I just stop, back out, and try it again it runs fine.

Be warned, though, that fastforwarding and such can cause problems because of the way they have to stream the data. They are accessing your legally streaming data from Netflix, Hulu, etc., but it is just that, a streaming feed. You aren't storing it anywhere, so if you expect PlayOn to be able to fastforward at high speeds, you will be disappointed. They are limited by what Netflix, Hulu, etc. are sending to your computer.

I don't know that I fastforward Netflix material that much. I occasionally rewind it. Has that been a problem other than it rebuffering?

If you go too fast it can freeze, then you have to back out and restart. That can be annoying if you are, say, 80 minutes into a 95 minute movie.

I haven't tested it much recently, but from past experience, the PS3 does 1.5x, 10x, and 60x (I think, and I don't know what options are for the Wii, haven't seen the interface). 1.5x is fine. 60x is bad (freezes lots). 10x is usually ok, but I would only risk it regularly on short programs like half hour tv shows, honestly.

Also, I used to notice that if I did too much ff/rew, sometimes it would lag a bit and get choppy (in terms of frame rate, that is). I haven't actually tried it in over 6 months, though, as we've managed to not have a reason to ff/rew for a while. Also, it IS possible that some of that would be alleviated with a wired connection (I use wireless).

Personally, I like actually getting out of my house once in awhile, and going to the video store/record shop is a great excuse to get out and do something. With the shrinking of both video stores and record shops there is almost no reason to leave the house anymore cause their selection is severly dwindiling. Part of the fun of going to the video store/record shop was the drive/walk plus the atmosphere of the store, people, etc.

Everyone says that there is no selection at Blockbuster or whatever, but I also hear the same people complain that Netflix is always out of the rare DVD's they want to watch anyway. Most of the people I know that have Netflix actually watch less movies than they used to(this does not include people on here, because people on here are hardcore movie watchers). I'm also a bit tired of hearing people say "I'm putting it in my queue", cause more often than not that is where it stays. I'll ask my friend's, month's after we talked about a movie "have you watched x movie yet?", "No, but it's still in my queue!". Wether there is a movie I want to see or I have it checked off in my head or on some online resource, if I haven't watched it, it really doesn't mean anything.

Also, people claiming that Blockbuster is too expensive, they obviously don't know about the Rewards program. Basically, from Monday thru Wednesday you can rent one movie and get a non-new release for free. I usually rent 6 movies at a time for the price of three. Plus, if you pay for more than five in a month you get a free new release rental, and you are always guaranteed a free non-new release rental, every month for an entire year. I agree Blockbuster's selection is not as deep as I am sure Netflix is, but if I want to rent a movie I know they will have, I can go get it and watch it immediately... on my tv.

Last time I rented movies from Blockbuster the person in front of me had the Rewards program and the cashier asked if he would like to rent 3 older movies with the 3 he was renting. His response..... "Uh, that's ok". I ended up, with all the free rentals I have accumlated, renting 8 movies for the same price.

I can see why people like Netflix, but it just kind of sucks that the option to go to a physical store could potentially be eliminated in the fairly near future.

I don't understand why anyone would at this point need to ask people about it. It's $15 for a month so just try it ... if you don't like it, stop using it. It's not like you're committing to a year membership and hundreds of dollars or anything.

RCA must work for the blue and yellow ticket company.

There are so many other things to go out for, I don't think losing the 20 minutes wadding through a Blockbuster is going to turn someone into a shut-in.

And the last time I went to that place was because my brother didn't have the time to go pick up The Descent for our movie night two years ago. Seeing the eighteen other people in line picking up shit like Big Momma's House II, Date Movie, and Fuckin' Flightplan is maddening.

At least on Netflix I can avoid the "Local Favorites" Top 50 list of movies. Let's see what's on there today!

...Well I guess they're proving me wrong, because the top ten for Irving, Texas:

Oklahoma!
Predator
Saw III
Primal Fear
Bleach II
Kung Fu Hustle
The Score
Collateral
The Big Bang Theory: Season 1
WWE: The Rise and Fall of WCW

That's fairly range-y. Sorry to mistaken you dullards.

Fuck Blockbuster.

I'm a member in good standing at 2 local very cool video stores which are independently owned and operated. Even netflix members should get out and support local video stores, blockbuster is the Wall-mart antichrist to these places.

As for netflix, when i lived in the UK i rocked the shit out my lovefilm account (same thing as netflix) but my schedule in canada means that some months I'll blaze through 30 movies and some months I won't even get to watch 1 DVD and I just don't think it's right for me to:
1. pay a monthly fee for something i may not get around to using some months.
2. have a couple of DVDs hanging around my place for up to a month when someone else has them on their queue.

I like the video stores because I can get what i want right now (they also have a very decent 3 old movies {or 2 old 1 new} for $10can for a week deal that i LOVE) and i'm much more likely to pick up stuff that i wouldn't necessarily look at normally. Also if I'm on a thematic tip I can theme my choices, having a hitchcock night or ealing comedies - when i was on lovefilm i'd get my movies through and it'd typically be something like: kung-fu hustle; the reader and ran, all great films but hard as hell to get through in one sitting.

Plus - my wife always wanted to chip in with a few choices on Lovefilm and so when one of her bullshit movies finally turned up it'd sit on top of the TV for 2 weeks as she got-around-to-it. She'd also see what I'd ordered the hit me with the fatal "oh i want to watch that too" so it'd again sit around until BOTH our schedules (and mood) matched.

Don't get me wrong though - I'd be all over it if our schedules change.

incidentally if any uk chewers want to know how to get free months of lovefilm subscription, PM me!

Don't think about it, just do it. Seriously, I wouldn't be without it.

Netflix is fucking awesome. I have the 2-at a time membership with a 1 day turnaround...they have an amazing selection of blu-rays, which is all I watch now unless it's not available, so I settle for the dvd. I hook my macbook up to my HDTV for the instant watch...it doesn't get any better...I can literally watch 5 movies a day with this program if I'm feeling like a loner that day.

Recipe for success:

Netflix Watch Instantly
1 year old Lenovo laptop
Motorola S9 wireless bluetooth headset
Brand new Iogear USB Bluetooth dongle purchased this afternoon

Cordless movie watching wherever I go.

I've also been a member since 2000 and I've never once considered canceling. I rent Blu-Rays, DVDs, and stream onto my 360. So I'm taking full advantage of what Netflix has to offer. I think I get the most bang for my buck watching TV show though since I don't like to buy those.

Make sure you are friends with your mailman.

What about streaming to a PS3 for Mac users?

I've heard this program recommended, anyone tried it? http://www.nullriver.com/products/medialink

I use their other product - Connect360 - with my iMac and my 360. It's great, but there's no Netflix integration. It just streams content that you have stored locally on your Mac.

Netflix + Xbox Live = bliss. Another great thing about Netflix is that if you go through a spurt where you don't have time to watch movies and don't feel like paying for something you won't be using, you can simply put your account on hold for a while.

this thread should have died a long time ago. There's nothing to think about. Get a netflix account. Use the hell out of it. That's it.

I've been using RedBox a lot lately.

I guess the plan is to put Netflix streaming on all available devices once the exclusivity contract with MS runs out. This includes Wii and PS3.

I just bought the Roku box to go along with my Netflix account.Best $100 I ever spent.

God, I'm getting frustrated with Netflix Instant Watch movies.

I first tried watching White Zombie, but the quality was so poor I had to turn it off after five minutes. The sound was so low and crappy, I had to turn up my speakers all the way and it still wasn't enough. It just wasn't watchable.

Ok, so I then tried watching Carrie. But it looks like some of the sides are cut off! WTF Netflix?
For streaming movies, is it wrong to at least expect the equivalent of the DVD? It's not even worth streaming if I'm going to get an inferior version of a film.

Sorry for the rant but I had to complain about it a bit.

Streaming through the XBOX on a my 47" LCD was hit and miss. The TV size combined with a weak bandwidth from time to time make some films an unwatchable mess but lately they've been coming through pretty nicely. Sometimes the quality will drop for no discernible reason but if you stop, go out of the Netflix menu and then go in to continue where you left off the quality is back to where it should be and its smooth sailing. Also, pausing for a few seconds when the video goes a little choppy seems to straighten it out too. I know these seem like a hassle but its few and far between and better than nothing I guess.

I just watched the HD Repo Man the other day and it was really great, no issues at all.

Netflix willing to delay renting new releases if the price is right.

I mostly use Netflix for catching up on older titles, but if this happens, it's bound to piss some people off.

What is this? I'm debating getting a PS3 so I can stream movies, but this is much cheaper.

*Nevermind, Google is my friend.

It's amazing. We forget we actually have discs sent to us.

The Last Days of Disco has been sitting on my shelf since August.

So HD on Netflix thru a PS3 should be 720p. Sometimes it is and sometimes Netflix throttles it to 480p WS. Anything that is being advertised as SD should be WS if its available but so far I haven't seen any SD content in WS.

I just got the disc for my PS3 and was really excited to see if it worked. After hooking it up to my HDTV and queuing up a bunch of titles, I'm annoyed and disappointed, like others.

The quality is piss-poor (I'm on a DSL line) and so fuzzy and muted, I turned off a few of the films out of sheer frustration. I got a maximum 1.5 mbps at times, which is VHS quality.

If this is the future, I'm really unimpressed.

I haven't found anything over 480p, and I'm not sure if it's my connection or what. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN was in 480p. Had to turn it off.

I've actually noticed most of what I chose to be 480p. I have a 25 down and 10 up Fios connection, so I'm pretty sure bandwidth isn't a problem. However, I've also noticed not to judge it as soon as it starts playing as it takes a couple of minutes to fully buffer and the quality gets much better. Regardless, I've watched a bunch of stuff and I only got the disc Friday. I just try and watch a bunch of movies I wouldn't get on DVD or Blu-ray...It's perfect for browsing and a quick watch. It's no worse than DVD quality anyway, for me at least.