I dropped to Netflix streaming only when they raised their prices but it sucks!

[Demonaut]

hardly ever new movies, old tired stuff and poorly rated movies...I know, I know, I should drop it


Any other good streaming sources out there in the same price range?

[phleshdef]

1. Netflix streaming is better for tv shows than it is movies.

I've watched a shit load of entire series runs on there. If you want new movies, you need the DVD service.

[leftyohiolib]

3. the newer stuff comes out on dvd only

[HopeHoops]

2. I use RedBox for newer stuff and have a huge backlog of LaserDiscs to watch.

I miss video stores.

[leftyohiolib]

5. wow i keep forgetting about redbox

[HopeHoops]

7. It's a good deal, but you have to wait 6 months after the theater release plus like 2 weeks.

The extra 2 weeks is to give the retail outlets time to sell the $25 DVDs before they become available for $1 (although it's like $1.12 or something now, but still).

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

10. There's an idea!

What if we had a whole store with thousands of titled (games, too) and you could just drop in and borrow one for a few days and pay for only what you used? Freaking AWESOME business model.

All snark aside, I miss my local video store, too. After watching "The Avengers" I had a hankering to watch the first "Iron Man" and I actually had to wait a week until it was broadcast on cable. No Netflix, no Movies on Demand, no Nothing. Had to wait and then sit through 45 minutes of commercials.

And Blockbuster went bankrupt, how?

[HopeHoops]

11. I think Fye (not sure of actual name) does the video game thing. They use a trade-in model.

Blockbuster went bankrupt because they put too much effort into selling new videos at the expense of their rentals. I bought a lot of used disks there, but the rental selection declined as the new/pre-owned section continued to expand. They also slowly raised the rental price to the point where they weren't competitive with RedBox. That said, you're at the mercy of what RedBox stocks. They rotate the stock (as do the customers), but it's hit and miss. Blockbuster would reserve them for you (without charge) and even call when they came in. How about West Coast Video, Hollywood Video, and all of the small independent stores? They're all gone. All of them. Blockbuster worked hard to put them out of business and a stupid coke machine that spits out DVDs ran them out of business. Paybacks are hell, I guess.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

13. Netflix didn't help...

Their selection (particularly streaming) was MUCH better just a few years ago than it is today. It's like Netflix ran Blckbuster out of business, and suddenly their product went into the crapper.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

17. The problem is that they lost the contract with Starz, AND HBO and Showtime are starting their own

streaming services and will no longer license to Netflix.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

18. I heard that...

So am I going to have to buy eight services to get what I was once getting from one? Where's a good friggin' monopoly when you need one!

[harmonicon]

25. Hollywood Video put themselves out of business, as did Blockbuster.

I remember a girlfriend of mine telling me a story about how she and her dad went to Blockbuster because they wanted to watch some James Bond movies. They only had the most recent ones. Think about that, a business which exists to rent videos to people didn't carry the entire James Bond catalogue.

I worked at a Hollywood Video for about six months once. When Robert Altman died, a number of people came in wanting to rent his movies. We didn't have them, apart from whatever the most recent one was. As one of those guys said to, "I'm surprised that you don't have an entire display of his films up." My only response was, "yeah, so am I."

[HopeHoops]

27. Yeah, but you could find really old movies as well. The price changes did both in.

[harmonicon]

29. I'm sure it was a number of factors combined.

I do remember that there was a really strange pricing structure with innumerable "deals" and special premiums. One, or possibly two very clear pricing system should have been used. I remember that they were totally redoing their pricing and rental periods around the time that I was leaving - I left a week earlier than planned, just because there was no point in having me learn it to leave a few days later.

[HopeHoops]

31. The independent stores were easier and had better selections. The chains drove them out.

Ironically, a simple coke machine drove the chains out of business.

[harmonicon]

32. Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

In my hometown, there was a local place that was great, but the guy running it just ran it poorly. There was demand, but he was bad at meeting it. For example, after he'd moved locations, he starting closing at 9pm. That's like wanting to go out of business.

In another city, where I lived for one summer, there was an incredible video store. I hope they're still in business, but I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't. They were actually always an awful lot busier than the chains nearby.

In any case, I lament the loss of the video store. I really missed having them when I moved to the UK (though, as of last night back in the US for a few months... now with no video stores).

I imagine they'll stay around in some places, but as a niche market, just as there are still record stores specializing in vinyl.

[HopeHoops]

33. Ah, vinyl. I've got a good collection, along with LaserDiscs and VHS cassettes.

I don't have an 8-Track or reel-to-reel tied in to the entertainment center, but everything since then is. It took a few switches, diagrams of the layout, and some tricky wiring to get it to work, but it does. LaserDiscs blow away DVDs, but unfortunately I don't have a remote for the player so there's no "pause" option. We just pee between sides.

[harmonicon]

34. There's actually more vinyl being made now than ever.

It's all just underground. By the numbers, more people are buying records now, but there's no mass appeal for them. Still, there are loads of indie labels all over the world pressing vinyl. I think vinyl + download code is the best format that's ever existed for music. I now see cds as only archival material, and for the information contained in the linear notes. Vinyl is better both for archival purposes, and for real estate for printed information.

The last time I talked to a friend of mine who owns a record store, he said that vinyl sales were what kept him in business. While business on a whole has been down for him (fewer employees, more hours himself, etc.), as a percentage of total business, vinyl has skyrocketted.

[HopeHoops]

35. Vinyl doesn't deteriorate with time. CDs DVDs, and yes, even LaserDiscs will die eventually.

Think about our records - photographs, documents, everything. They do NOT have longevity unless they are printed and stored somewhere. Most digital photographs fade within five years. We're losing our history to technology. It probably doesn't matter because the world is on a path to self-destruction, but for now we at least have LOLCats.

[harmonicon]

36. Exactly.

The cats will keep loling long after we're gone, surviving on a seemingly endless supply of canned food though.

[HopeHoops]

37. Cats are quite capable of finding their own food in the wild.

[RobinA]

21. This Has Me Puzzled

What happened to video stores? I'm 53. Wonderful was the time when you could go to the store with friends. And pick out a movie. And watch it with friends at home. Awesome! We never had this when I was growing up! Ain't technology wonderful!

Now you can't do it. Oh, you can get movies mailed to your house. But that doesn't do me any good when I just want to sit with friends and watch movies on Saturday night. On Demand? Hardly the same thing. My closest video store? 18 miles. Whose idea was this?

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

22. There was a place in Columbus, OH

While I was at THE Ohio State University, that would special order really obscure titles (if it was on VHS, they'd order it). It cost a little more, but then the owner would have it in stock. I guess his plan was that if he could rent it 3-4 times, it would pay for itself and his place would be the "destination" for film buffs.

Loved that place.

And you're right. My roommates and I would go down and "debate" what movie we wanted to see that night. With side debates into whether Stanley Kubrick was over-rated, which one of would eventually marry Linnea Quigley, etc.

[Xyzse]

4. You can try Amazon Prime

I only have Netflix Streaming, but Amazon Prime has a slightly worse navigating feature, I guess comparable selection in videos, but gives you the option of buying or renting titles that are not included in the Prime Membership, which has much newer stuff.

[Demonaut]

6. I tried amazon but the search and navigation is terrible, mostly the same movies too

oh well, redbox it is

[Xyzse]

8. Agreed

That is what I meant.
The only difference is the bad navigation yet the ability to buy or rent videos.

[pipi_k]

28. Don't have it myself but

Mr Pipi is an Amazon Prime member, so we both get free 2 day shipping on lots of stuff, and while I can't access the movies and things with my own account, I can sign on with his account and get them on my iPad.

I myself have Netflix streaming, and while the OP is correct about lack of newer movies, there is still lots of interesting stuff to watch. I have loads of documentaries on my queue, and a couple of old TV series I didn't watch when they first came out.

Also, I just got a free PBS app yesterday for my iPad, and, checking it out, it does look promising.

[hibbing]

9. I did the opposite

Hi,
I was doing both the streaming and dvd option, I hardly ever used their streaming, so when they bumped up their prices I switched to just dvds.

Peace

[Scout]

12. me too. dropped streaming, kept the dvds.

i am happy with the selection, mix of old and new, tv and movies.

[bikebloke]

14. Also stuck with only DVD's.

Cheaper than before.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

16. Yeah

DVDs have gotten crazy cheap ever since the Blu-Ray market started picking up and I'll still grab one or two if there hasn't been a Blu-Ray release or if I'm just not feeling particularly picky about the format. Actually, nowadays, it's not very unusual to be able to simultaneously buy 3-different copies of the same movie (i.e. Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital Copy) as part of the same package.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

38. I'm "Netflix-free" at the moment, but...

...if I were to start it up again, it would be DVDs for me too. What I found, more often than not, was that I wanted to watch a streaming movie they didn't offer, so it became a process of what I'd "settle" for.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

15. We subscribe to Netflix/Hulu/Blockbuster (and occasionally rent Redbox)

So, aside from missing Cartoon Network (Star Wars:The Clone Wars), we feel pretty well taken care of in terms of being able to watch movies and shows and the best part is that it's all ON-DEMAND. That plus we have a very sizable DVD/BD collection, so nobody's hurting by having unsubscribed from ridiculously overpriced Comcast Cable a couple of years ago.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

19. I have 159 titles in my queue

Netflix is great for the following:

1. TV series, although HBO and Showtime will no longer license their series to Netflix streaming, since they plan to start their own streaming services

2. British TV and miniseries

3. Foreign films

4. Classic films

5. Documentaries

These happen to be some of my favorite genres. I have no interest whatsoever in any of the recent blockbusters, so Netflix streaming suits me just fine. In the unlikely event that I wanted to see some movie that consisted of explosions and car chases or gross out comedy, I'd go to Redbox.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

23. Funny thing about Netflix..

Maybe this is just my imagination, but it seems they have different content depending on what platform you use. I swear there are things available on my computer that aren't available on my PS3 (and vice versa)

And one night, I found all these great Bollywood Films (but didn't watch them because I was on a mission elsewhere), but now I can't find them!

Anybody know where to look?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

26. A lot of titles come and go, depending on the contract Netflix makes with whoever owns the rights

but if you go to the computer website, pull down the Watch Instantly tab, and then click on "Foreign." That will lead you to a list of countries and languages. Under "Indian," you will find "Bollywood, Hindi-language, Punjabi-language, Tamil-language."

[Kaleva]

20. I've watched alot of excellent foreign films on Netflix

I don't mind movies with subtitles and the characters speaking the appropriate language instead of perfect English seems to add to the enjoyment of the movie. The latest was a movie called "The Front Line" which was a South Korean movie about a company of South Korean soldiers serving on the front line during the Korean War.

[harmonicon]

24. There are countless free ones.

I can't think of a name of one off the top of my head. Companies like Netflix are screwed until they can offer a product that's actually better than what people can get for free.

So that I can nip any argument about this in the bud, this is all the argument I need:

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/game_of_thrones

[NickB79]

30. Not streaming, but local libraries are pretty well-stocked

At least the ones here are. Lots of new titles, box sets, etc. I too dropped down to only streaming Netflix to save money, and now just check out movies at the library. They even have most of the popular new releases and only charge $1/day (Redbox is up to $1.25 now).