I am the consummate movie buff, but also a bit of a cyberphobe. So while I was enchanted by the concept of Netflix when it first started in 1999, I didn’t join. In 2003 I finally took the chance and signed up for the Netflix plan that allows two movies at a time to be delivered to my home. But it wasn’t until a couple of months ago that I discovered that Netflix lets me watch movies online as part of my membership. I’ve always been happy with Netflix’s service, but with my newfound movies online capability, I’m utterly thrilled!
Netflix offers subscribers an array of plans ranging in cost from $4.99 to $16.99 per month. The full range of benefits for each plan is beyond the scope of this article. Details can be found at the Netflix website. I will say that the $4.99 plan limits the subscriber to two delivered movies per month and two hours of watching movies online. The other plans allow for as many titles as you want delivered each month and unlimited movies online.
In a nutshell, when you’re a Netflix subscriber, you order movies online and they are mailed to your home. You watch them and then mail them back in the prepaid envelope – then you get your next movie title sent to you. Netflix has fifty-five distribution centers throughout the US, so the turnaround is customarily 3-4 days. I have had it take a day longer during holidays.
Netflix maintains a library of over 100,000 titles that are all available to subscribers. They also maintain a directory of over 12,000 movies and TV shows to watch online – instantly. The list of TV shows and movies online is constantly changing. Some are removed and others are installed. So your options are constantly fresh.
Netflix has a great website, which was not always the case in my opinion. Subscribers log in and can browse movie and TV show titles that can either be mailed or watched instantly. I very much like the fact that I can place my cursor over any movie and instantly get the full details of that title – rather than having to go to a new window. If I want the DVD mailed to me, I simply click to add it to my ‘queue.’ If the title is available as one of the movies online, I can either click ‘watch now’ or ‘add it to my instant queue.’
Subscribers to Netflix can access and modify both of their queues easily. This is a very handy feature that allows me to quickly dictate a change in the choice of the movie I get mailed to me next – something I do often. As of this writing, I have twenty-two movies in my queue and seventeen in my instant queue.
For this critic, the greatest feature of watching movies online at Netflix is that it allows me to watch ‘risky’ titles without having them mailed to me. If I am curious about a title on the list of movies online, I can simply click and start to watch it. If at any time during the show I decide it’s a waste of time, I merely click and quit watching. This is so much better than having the movie mailed to me and then mailing it back. More importantly, it has led me to some superb films I likely would never have watched otherwise.
The same as with DVDs you bring home from the rental place, the occasional DVD will have difficulty playing. Can you say “pixilation?” I use a few drops of alcohol and a soft rag to clean these rare titles and have never failed to get the DVD to play properly. I also go to Netflix online and click the ‘report problem’ button – just so they know the DVD was problematic.
I should also mention that Netflix has a ‘ready device.’ This will allow you to instantly watch movies online through your television set, instead of your computer. I’ve never used this service and thus cannot comment on it knowledgeably.
Netflix is a great company that delivers excellent service. My $13.99 per month membership allows me to get the newest releases within days of their availability – without driving down to the rental place. It also allows me to watch countless classic movies online, as well as new and old TV shows. Everything from 30 Rock and The Office to Columbo, and The Munsters are available to watch instantly.
In closing, I want to mention that Netflix has a free trial membership available. Go through the provided link to get the details. Try out the Netflix free trial, peruse the available list of movies online and I am confident you’ll be wonderfully pleased. And on a personal note, you’ll realize that this article was written objectively and is dead-on – – – and that I don’t work for Netflix.
