Netflix vs. Blockbuster Online DVD Rentals: Comments?

12/20/04 | lowbridge

[lowbridge]

Looking for comments from those who have had experience with one or both of those services.

Got any praise and/or complaints about them?

[lowbridge]

bump

[neb52]

Netflix is good. Lots of titles, especially rare movies you may never have heard of. Pricing is good, even though they have been upping the prices at little over the past year. You get your movies fairly fast and anytime one doesn't make it(USPS machinery eats it) then they will ship a new copy for free. So far I have been pleased. I don't know about Blockbuster's, didn't they just start theirs?

[lowbridge]

Netflix is good. Lots of titles, especially rare movies you may never have heard of. Pricing is good, even though they have been upping the prices at little over the past year.

I thought they dropped their price to around 17-18 bucks?

I don't know about Blockbuster's, didn't they just start theirs?

Yes, as I understand it about a few months ago. They have a price of 17.49. Also a first two weeks free trial. They claim to have 25 thousand titles while Netflix claims to have "25 thousand +"

[ecurbh]

My wife and I used Netflix for a while, and were happy with their service. Huge selection, and very quick turnaround. When we sent a disc back, we would have the next one sitting in our mailbox 2 days later.

The reason we quit after about 4 months was that we had finished watching the movies we ~really~ wanted to see, and could no longer justify the cost. The price was $20 when we were members, and we quit when they announced they were raising their price to $22 or so. I have heard they dropped their price back down since then.

[Corin Stormhands]

Yeah, what ecurbh said. I actually liked the Netflix service and the turnaround was incredible.

I just can't watch enough movies to justify the cost. It's very rare that I have time to sit down and watch a movie.

I did a month free trial with Blockbuster online, but I didn't use it.

[SuziQ]

We've been members of Netflix since Oct. of 2000. We've had nothing but good experiences with them. We are especially fortunate in that we live less than 10 miles from one of the distribution centers. When we mail back a movie, they get it the following day, ship the new one back to us and we get it the day after that! I'm not sure how many movies we've watched in the four years we've been members, but it's well over 300. We enjoy watching movies with our kids, and as they've grown older (the youngest is almost 16), our base of possible movies has expanded.

Once, we sent a movie back that never reached Netflix for whatever reason. Another time, they sent a movie to us that never reached us. As far as I can tell, we've never been charged for either one.

I know that Netflix recently reduced their per month price. I think it's now $17.95, you get a max of three movies at a time, and you can keep them for as long as you want. You set up the list of movies you want to see, and they send you the first three.When you finish one, just pop it into the pre-paid mailer. When they receive it, they'll send you the next available one on your queue, and you just keep that going.

[lowbridge]

I just can't watch enough movies to justify the cost.

I think I can. :-) I think it depends on how one looks at it. Some compare the cost of RENTING DVD's, but I look at the cost of BUYING DVD's.

There are thousands of movies on DVD that I would like to see (some of which I have already seen and/or have on tape.But when re-released on DVD, they have those cool little extras like audio commentaries, documentaries, deleted scenes, etc.), and are not available at the local rental store. I mean, they can carry so many titles.

As a result, if I want to see a movie I would have to buy it. And I just dont have the money for that. I'd go through a video store and see all the titles I would love to have, but cant afford So I go on Amazon and eBay seeking the movie for a cheaper price. And even then it is still out of my price range, or I cannot afford all the movies together I want to see.

How much is the average DVD? Ten bucks? Brand new releases are about 20. So if I rent three at a time, at the 17+ dollar monthly price, a few times a month, I'd be saving money right there.

[lowbridge]

When they receive it, they'll send you the next available one on your queue, and you just keep that going.

Blockbuster does something differently. They dont sit around and wait for the DVD to arrive at their distribution center before sending out your next selection to you.

When you retun the DVD either to the post office or in the mailbox, the post office, the one nearest you, scans the envelope containing your returned DVD. When that happens, Blockbuster sends out the next one(s) in your queue.

Once they have that electronic confirmation from your post office, they send out your next selection(s). I have no idea if Netflix is doing this too.

[isom35]

netflix is great, I saw no need to try blockbuster. netflix has some bizarre hard to find stuff, including a great selection of the "Something Weird" titles from Mike Vraney. my only beef with netflix is that their search engine is weird. I did a search for Ilsa, didnt get the Ilsa movies, but did a Dyanne Thorne search, and they popped up.

[lowbridge]

We seem to have the same taste in movies :-)

[weegee]

I wish that Netflix had an alphabetical list of every title listed, (say in a list, with columns for category, year, and director/actor) or at a minimum a way to look through the titles alphapetically.

There are some good (and rare) DVDs at Netflix (including some Bear Family rockabilly DVDs) but you may have a hard time finding them if you don't know to look for them.

They don't have every Something Weird release and it is difficult to track down just which titles they DO have (some customers have created online lists but they are not complete).

Also, it would be nice to look at "new releases" by past weeks as well as upcoming weeks.

I also wish that "recommended" films would eliminate movies that have been rated already. I've rated some films that I have not seen NOR do I want to see.

[BJClinton]

File-sharing is free.

[weegee]

I don't have cable and seldom see movies in the theater. Since I am renting the movies/tv shows that I DO want to watch, rather than chosing something to watch out of what's ON and I choose WHEN I watch something, I can find the time to watch programming at my schedule.

Also, I use Netflix sometimes to compare a release of a film to another DVD (say the import version) or laser disc that I already own (do I need the upgrade? Maybe I just want to watch the commentary track or the bonus footage for something I did see in a theater...). Since I don't always have to watch the full disc (just checking it for some of the content), I can drop those back in the mail within a day.

This has helped me to make better decisions in choosing which discs I do BUY.

[lowbridge]

File-sharing is free.

And illegal. :-)

In any case I cannot download movies onto this ancient computer of mine. I would need a whole brand new computer to be able to do that (and I'm on dial up, not the fancy shmancy broadand whatever)

[BJClinton]

Egad. That's so....1990's.

[lowbridge]

There are some good (and rare) DVDs at Netflix (including some Bear Family rockabilly DVDs) but you may have a hard time finding them if you don't know to look for them.

Unless I'm just not finding it due to their search engine, Blockbuster has the John Waters film Pink Flamingos (25th anniversary edition). Netflix does not. Blockbuster has Arch Hall, Jr. films (The Sadist, Wild Guitar, etc). Netflix does not. Blockbuster has the 12 volume DVD of the tv show One Step Beyond. Netflix has the 9 volume DVD.

[weegee]

That may have as much to do with the specifics of the content of Pink Flamingos. The film still was the subject of an obscenity bust in the 1990s (Arizona?).

What's odd is that Walmart SELLS Pink Flamingos and the X/NC-17 rated Pink Flamingos violates Blockbuster's stated prohibition on such videos.

Ratings Defined

All films carried at blockbuster.com carry ratings that have been established by the Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. In order to provide a wholesome environment for you and your family, we do not carry films with ratings of NC-17 or X. Please refer to the guidelines below when shopping for movies on our site:

The years since Viacom has owned Blockbuster have long violated this stated policy. Certainly the website only came into being AFTER Viacom bought the chain. They've openly lied for years.

You can rent Thriller: A Cruel Picture (aka They Call Her One Eye) at Netflix and Blockbuster (both of which label it as "unrated").

I couldn't find Emanuelle In America (or ANY Emanuelle film) at Blockbuster (although Borders sells this extremely questionable title).

The sleaziest of 1970s exploitation films have come to home video and are available at the corner chain with no requirement to keep them "behind the counter" as would be done with an independent operator if that was the only source for such materials. It is even questionable if such materials can be sent through the mail (in the case of Pink Flamingos or Emanuelle In America).

I prefer to deny Blockbuster/Viacom my money. I also was unable to bookmark or copy links for titles on their website (which is somewhat frustrating).

Some titles like Johnny Cash's Five Minutes To Live are listed on BB and not Netflix but only for purchase (and back ordered at that). Some of BB's listings are just titles with no sale or rental.

I think that there will always be title discrepancies between any mailorder companies renting titles. I don't use rental to replace purchasing totally, but it is nice to be able to preview a DVD title much as I would a CD IN a store.

For the record, I own the deluxe version of The Sadist (with commentary track), a budget release of Nasty Rabbit, and the Something Weird double feature of The Choppers with Wild Guitar. There are budget releases of all of the films but I think that I have the best print sources with these releases just as I suspect that the MS3K release of Eegah has the best print. For what it's worth, Blockbuster has only listed the budget editions of all these titles (and I only see them listed for sale, not rent).

FWIW, I will leave you with the news that Norton Records is releasing an Arch Hall Jr. & The Archers CD right about now (with the excellent Konga Joe from The Choppers and songs from his other films).

[lowbridge]

What's odd is that Walmart SELLS Pink Flamingos and the X/NC-17 rated Pink Flamingos violates Blockbuster's stated prohibition on such videos. The years since Viacom has owned Blockbuster have long violated this stated policy. Certainly the website only came into being AFTER Viacom bought the chain. They've openly lied for years.

Ah who cares as long as we get to see the video :-)

Pink Flamingos [25th Anniversary Edition] NC17 Available Now

I also was unable to bookmark or copy links for titles on their website (which is somewhat frustrating).

Yeah, their website IS a pain in the neck. I cant right click on any of their links to open a second browser. (Which would make things easier for me.) Their website pages takes some time to download. I dont know how fast it is for those with broadband, but I'm on dialup. And whenever I want to add a movie to my queue, or manage my queue, it makes me log in. Even between adding movies to my queue. If I havent shown any kind of activity while I'm just browsing the site, when I finally find a movie I'd like to add, I click on the button to add it to my queue, instead it takes me to a log in page where I have to log in AGAIN just to add the movie. This despite the fact I've got that "remember me" box checked.

For the record, I own the deluxe version of The Sadist (with commentary track),

Who is doing the commentary on that? Is it Vilmos Zsigmond?

and the Something Weird double feature of The Choppers with Wild Guitar.

Does that have a commentary track for both or one of those films? Also, does your copy The Choppers have Arch doing the song "Monkey in my hatband"? I heard that was left out of the movie in some DVD release(s). (if it doesnt, then go to Sinister Cinema. I bought that movie from them, on videotape, years ago, and it had Arch doing that song in it)

There are budget releases of all of the films but I think that I have the best print sources with these releases just as I suspect that the MS3K release of Eegah has the best print. For what it's worth, Blockbuster has only listed the budget editions of all these titles (and I only see them listed for sale, not rent).

It's a mystery why they are offering it for sale and not for rent. Ah well, I'd prefer to own or rent the editions with the commentary. (Whatever editions has the commentary.)

I've already seen and owned all of Arch Hall's films, including Nasty Rabbit. I bought them all from Sinister Cinema years ago, at the usual 16.95 price. But wound up selling them on eBay for a handsome profit. (Got 40 bucks for my VHS copy of Nasty Rabbit)

Sold my Eegah tape too, but what the hell. Years passed and I wound up buying it again, this time on DVD at my local supermarket for 5 bucks :-) (not the MST2K version, just a budget version)

Say, whatever happened to Nancy Czar of Wild Guitar anyways? The IMDB doesnt give me much info. Man, she was cute and hot, hot, HOT. (Got a few of her movies on VHS: The Wild Scene, Winter a go go, and What's Up Front)

[N. Theknow]

I quit Netflix for the same reason.

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