Online Film Rental

I liked this article especially "Yes, I saw that movie!" Good work. Thanks Bob.

I love Netflix!
Bought the RokuHD box and it paid for itself in 2 months.
Got rid of the cable part of cable because I live in an apt. and they couldn't balance the outside signal box and the shows were always coming in pixilated (sp?).
It wasn't just a matter of saving money, but actually finishing a show!

Hi Bob

I have used computers at work for 25 years but only recently went online (reluctantly I musty say)

My family uses Redbox fairly regularly for a title they have we would like to see. They have in my opinion a relatively limited selection, but usually the most recent in theaters you might have missed going to see, which is usually my situation. For a buck plus tax, its hard to beat if your going by the local Redbox everyday anyway. There are usually quite a few in bigger towns to choose from, and your not locked into returning from the box you rented from, sweet! I have noticed that they are bringing back a few old favorites, so it does offer a bit more to enjoy.

Hi Bob I beg to differ from you about this streaming movie thing that you talk about so entusiastically. First of all, unless you have a super fast computer with 8GB RAM memory and turbocharged HD (10,000 rpm) and internet at 100 MB per second you won't be able to watch these streamed movies without them cutting off, freezing, distortions, delayed transmission and a bunch of problems associated with streaming. have you tried internet TV? it is the same.

And if you buy the netflix device to connect to your tv to be able to watch these movies, you have many limitations the most important of all them is that you won't be able top lend that movie (as you do when you receive DVD by mail)to your brother or a friend to enjoy it too at their home before you return it. Stream movies are a BIG inconvenience in many ways you are prrecluded from watching the movie on your bedroom unless you disconnect the device from the living room and connect it on your bedroom (you can play the DVD anywhere in your home).

Next time please talk about the CONS too.

We love our RokuHD player! We do have a cable modem with turbo and a series N router so the streaming works well for us. Netflix continues to add to the instant watch library. We haven't had cable for years and we don't mind watching TV shows a year behind to get them without commercials and to be able to watch a year through in a month or so.

We use Redbox once in a while. We only seldom hit the Blockbuster store anymore. We tried BB online when it first came out. Not nearly the selection of Netflix especially in the British murder mysteries that we like to watch.

Netflix does not work as well for my friend who mostly watches new movies. She tends to have to wait for them. I seldom wait for even a new release but I think that is because I usually only have one on my queue at the top.

We sometimes buy movies from Amazon to watch via our Roku player. We haven't decided if we will get Hulu Plus when it is available or not. Maybe.

I do think you need a good fast internet service and an up to date router to truly enjoy the streaming. We only occasionally have lagging or pixelating. The Roku boxes have just come down in price, you can get the HD that we have for only 60 bucks now and they have two higher versions with better wireless (and one has a USB port to use for pictures/movies). We have gotten excellent customer service from Roku as well (have had to return a box that didn't work - no problem).

With retirement setting in, we bought a TV the size of a drive-in theater screen, followed shortly by a blue ray player. Strange to say, it has been a year now and we have yet to play a blue ray disk, but Netflix comes through our blue ray player (along with four other streaming video sources including Youtube) I didn't know this when I bought the blue ray player, it was a nice bonus since we were already subscribed to Netflix. Ask about this before you buy a blue ray player. I just got lucky. (The blue ray player is a Samsung)

I LOVE my Netflix! I get about 2 discs a week plus I have the Roku box. I've had the Roku player for 2 years and I use it every day! Roku connects to many other online sites too like Amazon & mp3.com. I use it for a couple other sites, but I use it mostly with Netflix.

I watch the "box" more than I watch TV. I'd recommend it to anyone who loves movies and loves the ability to pick & watch a huge selection of movies & tv shows, old & new. It's really great to watch old tv shows that you loved or didn't get to watch in the past. It even has a search feature so you can search for movies & tv shows to see if they are available for instant viewing.

I've had almost no problems with streaming even though it connects through my pc which is horrible and old. My son uses his PS3 for his Netflix account & he has had more problems than me, but that may be because he connects through a cable account & I use DSL. I highly recommend both Netflix & the Roku player.

My family uses netflix on a regular basis, I travel a lot and have to rely on wireless internet at different locations on my laptop, and have not had too many problems getting a movie to download and play. Occasionally the movie will stop and restart the buffering, but after 2 or 3 times of this Netflix will actually adjust the speed and it runs smooth for the remainder. The biggest issue I have with Netflix is they do not offer a way to censor movies. My 13 year old son had asked to connect his Xbox to it so he could watch movies, then when I went back in to review what had been watched, I found he had viewed Mature rated movies and unrated shows. I have since removed his Xbox from the service, and I will not allow it back on until Netflix offers a way to censor movies like a lot of cable channels provide.

re: Steve's comment about Netflix Censoring movies. V-Chip, Parental Controls and so on can not take the place of parental involvement. YOU should be the censor and mandate to your son, what he can and can not watch.