Blockbuster Vs. Netflix Vs. Something Else

[RandomAnthony]

Where do you rent videos?

I ask because I dropped Netflix this past fall. I wasn't using the service enough when I was busy, often faced long waits for popular movies, and if I sent back the movie I had I could end up using my monthly quotas on other films instead of the more popular movies I sometimes wanted. I found myself getting movies from Blockbuster more often. I would stop on Tuesdays, get new movies, keep them until the following Monday, then drop them off on the way to work. Although Blockbuster officially wanted the films back quickly they gave you a week as part of a grace period.

However, the grace period at Blockbuster is gone! You now get movies for either two bucks a day or five bucks for five days (I think...). So if I rent on Tuesdays I'd have to drive back over the weekend and drop off the films or face a 2 buck a day late fee, if I understood the guy correctly. That blows. I suppose I could rent on Friday and get the films back ealier in the next week.

Both Netflix and Blockbuster, anyway, are becoming pains in the ass. I love Netflix's selection, but I hate that I can't get popular movies easily from them.

So where do you get your movies? And don't say "go to a local store" because the few local stores in my area blow serious chunks. :)

[[deleted user]]

We have Charter cable, and I rent movies every once in awhile from their on demand. Not sure what cable company you may have, or if they offer anything like this.

I don't rent very many movies though.

[RandomAnthony]

Yes...that's not a bad idea, Jim, we have that too...how long do you get access to the films? I tend to watch films in stages...

[Sally, la reina]

Remember when Netflix first got big and Blockbuster tried to follow its lead and abolished all late fees? It lasted about 4 mos. and then it was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.

We just rejoined Netflix for the first time in 2 years. We'd been TV and movie-service free for a long, long time. We'd go to the theater sometimes, get movies from the library sometimes. Mostly though we just watched shows and movies from pirate websites. It worked fine enough for a while, and we saved a lot of money.

Sweeter's folks got us the subscription for Christmas, and then we matched what they paid and upgraded our service. My favorite thing about it is that we can watch movies on the computer all the time. :)

[Gus]

I never had that problem you mentioned with Netflix. I cancelled them because I was getting to the point where I would order a film, and it would sit unwatched for months. When I realized I rented United 93, and it sat on top of my TV for 2 months, unwatched, I decided I couldn't justify my membership.

I've heard of Greencine - they're Netflix for fans of artsy-fartsy/indie/foreign/hard-to-find cinema. Great for obscure kung-fu flicks. Haven't used them yet.

Mostly, I borrow DVDs from my library. Depending on the film - especially if it's a new release - I can expect a good wait. I don't mind. If I want to see the new release ASAP, I'll either buy the DVD if it's something I want, or rent it from RedBox; they're a DVD company that has rental kiosks at supermarkets and convenience stores. For a $1 a day for new rentals, you can't beat that.

[RandomAnthony]

Yeah, Gus, good point...I should have mentioned I use our libraries for movies, too. Yesterday I got City of Ember from the "Lucky Day" reserve shelf. My wife and kids are psyched...they all loved the book.

Maybe I'll try Netflix again. I've heard they've added more copies of new films...

[Shana]

I used to use Netflix but also realized I didn't watch as many movies as I thought I would. I didn't think I was getting my money's worth. Now we either use Redbox, which is nice becasue it's a flat $1/day fee, or we pay about $5 for 24hours access to new releases on Comcast cable on demand. For me, Redbox is the best option.

[Sally, la reina]

Oh yeah! Redbox works fine for blockbuster-type movie hankerings.

[Shana]

It's true - if you want something that's not a new release or fairly new release, Rebox it's the best choice. That's when I usually break down and go to Blockbuster. Sometimes I get lucky and find what I want.

[[deleted user]]

RA it is usually $4 for 24 hours for the newest releases, so may not work for you, because when the 24 hours is up, the movie is gone.

I was wondering about the Redbox thing, do they have all of those movies in the machine? Do you pay with a CC, or how does it know if you have the movie for more than 1 day? Inquiring minds want to know.

[Shana]

Jim, yes, you swipe your card when you pick up the movie and it just knows when you return it to charge you accordingly. Something else that's nice is that you can return the movie to any Redbox. It doesn't have to be the one you took the movie from. They usually have most new releases.

[Melanie]

We use Netflix and works pretty well for us - I guess we are lucky cuz we rarely have to wait for any of the new releases.

I have heard fabulous things about Redbox, tho.

[Gus]

I haven't had any issues with Redbox. When Iron Man came out on DVD, I rented it from one of their kiosks that same day. It was also good to be able to return it at another kiosk across town.

One small quibble is they don't print receipts. Should you be charged extra for some bogus late fees, you can't really dispute it. That hasn't happened to me...yet.

Keep in mind Redbox only has recent releases. I think they only go as far back as 4 or 5 months ago.

[Félix]

Sally -- what is the etymology of the word "hankerings?"

[Dave]

I use Blockbuster.com and at first I liked it because it was cheaper than Netflix and if you returned the movie to the store you could get a new from the store for free (as opposed to mailing it back and getting the next one in your queue mailed to you.) I'm thinking of getting rid of it though. The selection just sucks. I can never find the more obscure and foreign movies I like, and their website is annoying. Their search engine was designed to find every movie except the one your actually looking for.

[Meen]

I don't use any of them. I did use OnDemand a lot when I had digital cable, but I had to cut out my cable 'cause it's too damn expensive.

[Sally, la reina]

Larry - it looks like it is from the seventeeth century Dutch or Flemish word for "to linger about" or "to hang"

[Heidi]

I use my local library... what's better - I don't have to pay any fees outside of the taxes I already pay. Most of the movies are donations, anyway.

[Félix]

Excellent, Sally. Thank you. I reckon that is correct.

[Sally, la reina]

Hey man, I hanker for things all the time. For instance, it often pays off to hanker about a pizza parlor around 3 am, to see if they have any undelivered pizzas they want to dispose of. Also I've been known to hanker online longer than necessary to see if Mindy or Larry are going to come make me laugh.

[Félix]

I got hankering going on too. I have never hankered around a pizza parlor like that though. That picture makes me laugh out loud.

Is "hanker" related to "hunker?"

[Sally, la reina]

I think "hunker" is Dutch too, but it means more like to squat than to hang. Similar meanings in our era overlap.

[Félix]

Sorta like "hinky?"

[Meen]

Sorry I've made you hanker, Sally. Now I have performance anxiety and have absolutely nothing funny to say.

:[

[Leslie]

I saw something at Office Depot I never saw before--dvds that expire. They were all new releases and cost 4.99. You take them home and to watch it, you peel off this layer of plastic, and the movie works for 48 hours, then it stops working and you throw it away or recycle. I think you can keep it as long as you want as long as you don't take off the plastic. I have mixed feelings about it, seems wasteful, but when it's that much to rent a new release and you don't have to return it-- Anyone else seem these or used them?

[Dave]

They're called DivX or something like that, right?

[Sarah]

I read about those DVDs that expire. Seems wasteful to me. I tried the redbox thing once, and the movie didn't work, and it was a pain to get our money back.

I still like Netflix, and they have a fair number of movies that you can watch online now, though not on a Mac, which makes it useless for me.

[Sally, la reina]

I really don't get things like that about Macs. I know people fanatically love them, and they seem cool, but I just couldn't jive with not being able to do things.