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Netflix Review

Company:

Netflix, www.netflix.com

It’s a scenario we’ve lived through too many times. Another slow Saturday night and there’s nothing but an old SNL re-run on the tube. You pull out your (pathetic) DVD collection, which is still overwhelmingly made up of scratchy VHS tapes. Despite your best efforts, you find nothing but the same titles as the last time you checked (why are you surprised?). So you put on your shoes and a jacket and drive out to the video rental store. After half an hour of wandering around staring at mostly blank shelves (other than 25 untouched “Guaranteed in Stock” copies of Glitter), you’re ready to call it quits. You finally choose a movie with a flashy cover just to end the pain. And guess what? You drive all the way back home and after the opening scene realize you rented this same lame sequel last month. AGHHH!

Now it’s Monday morning and you’re scrambling to get out the door by 7:30. Just as you put the car in gear you realize your video rental is due today or you’ll get smacked with a late fee bigger than the cost of buying the movie outright (which you might as well have done since you ended up renting it twice!). So you re-park the car, grab the video, drive 5 miles out of your way to the rental store, and then pull into work 15 minutes late. That’s what I call a bad start to an already unwelcome Monday.

This scenario can easily be avoided with a subscription to Netflix. The Netflix service is super-convenient, very affordable, and couldn’t be simpler to use. Here’s what you can expect from a subscription.

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Getting Started

Starting your subscription with Netflix is quick and easy. I recommend beginning with the FREE trial subscription (either 2 weeks or 1 month) for two reasons; (1) you can quit at any time without any obligation, and (2) hey, it’s a couple weeks’ worth of free rentals! Simply visit www.netflix.com and choose the free trial. If you haven’t cancelled the subscription by the end of your trial period, you’ll be automatically subscribed.

Hop onto their site and start adding movies to your queue. Search for titles by name, actor/actress, genre, release date, etc. With one click the movie is added to your list of future rentals. Before you know it you’ll have 50+ titles all lined up and ready for you!

The first set of movies will be sent to you through US mail in thin red envelopes. Tear off the perforated edge and slide out your DVD. When you’re finished with the movie, slip it back into the same envelope and seal the self-sticking edge. Pop it into the mailbox and away it goes! Postage paid, pre-addressed. It couldn’t be simpler.

Appearance

The Netflix service is great – but it’s their Web site that makes it truly outstanding. The interface is easy to use, the format is well organized, and the more time you spend on the site the more features you’ll discover. For example, after you’ve added a movie to your queue, a list of Netflix recommendations pulls up for you to choose from. Want to learn more about a movie title you don’t recognize? Click on the link for a full description, MPAA rating, and user rating. Netflix has done an excellent job of making the Web site absolutely flawless.

Features

• A HUGE library of old and new movies – you’ll never find a movie they don’t offer
• A large menu of pricing options
• Easy-to-use Web site and fully interactive queue
• High-quality, unscratched DVDs

Pros:

• Endless list of movie titles to choose from: romance, action, comedy, westerns, oldies, everything!
• NO LATE FEES EVER
• Convenient, convenient, convenient… you’ll never go back to the rental store game again
• Fantastic Web site
• Notification e-mails letting you know which DVDs were returned and which new titles are on the way

Cons:

• Price could drop a little bit, since $17.99 per month (the plan used for this review) would be enough to add quite a few movie channels to your satellite service
• Turnaround time from return to send could be faster than a full week

Adding It All Up

Netflix service is all about convenience, and fun. They couldn’t make it easier to use, and it’s like Christmas morning each time a new DVD comes in the mail (if you’re like me and forget what titles have moved up to the top of your queue). I found that I watched a lot less boring television programming because there were always a couple movies lying around.

All in all, I highly recommend the Netflix service and even became a (happily) paying subscriber myself. Watch out video rental shops, you’re on the way out…

A special thank-you to Netflix for providing a free trial period for review on UpgradeAdvisor.com.

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