For what it's worth I was that typical guy that was leary of joining Netflix & asked the same questions that started this thread, here about 4 months ago.

Well, about 3 months ago I joined Netflix & have not set foot in a video rental store since. Netflix is the way to go & as fast as can be. If I return a movie on Monday, they have my next rental to me by Wed. As far as new releases go, I get them as soon as they come out if I want one. haven't had to wait yet.

Another big bonus for me with Netflix, is that it has cut down my blind buys tremendously, which is good b/c my blind buying was out of hand.

I work at a video store, and I'm a netflix customer. I love it. I use it to rent obscure titles that we don't get in at the store, documentaries, and stuff we just don't have. Sometimes we won't get certain new releases on dvd, and that's another time I'll use it. It also gives me a broad range of movies to choose from, and forces me to sit down and watch some new things every now and again.

Turn around time is fantastic, and I haven't had a problem yet.

r

I'm a Netflix member and I absolutely recommend it. The DVD usually arrives in 1-2 days for me. None of the discs were scratched. The only downside to Netflix is the lack of variety. I'd go there only for new releases. It's no hassle since they give you a prepaid envelope to send back to them. If you don't want to go through the internet for rentals, I'd suggest to get the Freedom Pass from Blockbuster. It's only $25 and you get unlimited rentals a month, but you can only rent one movie at a time. It's really convenient if you live near a Blockbuster. But in all else, I'd suggest Netflix.

I use it and love it. Turnaround time is 2 days here in San Diego. I rent mainly Criterion Collection DVD's that I haven't seen and don't want to blind buy. I also use them for TV series like Oz and for guilty pleasure movies that I want to see but don't want to buy. I rent between 12 and 15 movies a month. The only bad thing is that you feel compelled to watch them quickly to maximize the value which results in many of my DVD purchases sitting unwatched for weeks/months.

Anyone know how to find out where te distro center is? I'm in NYC and there is a distro center near me in flushing, but I only have a PO box for an address. I would like to find out where it is so I can stop by and trade movies out on the way from work.

Huh? I find Netflix has a huge variety compared to BB. Look at the categories from their homepage or do a search. They have stuff that BB will never have in their B&M stores.

I've been with Netflix since May '03. To date i've rented over 70 DVDs from them (on the 3 out scheme) and never stepped into BB since. Good service and nothing to complain about Netflix to date.

LH

I've been a member of Netflix since I first got my DVD player in '99, and I haven't really rented from any place else since. Their selection is great, and they even have a lot of titles that most Blockbusters (and the like) don't carry, or titles that aren't easy to find as rentals.

In all of that time, I've only gotten one bad disc. One. I've bought more bad discs than that!

Netflix is great especially when, like me, you have a bunch of movies you want to see, so many that there isn't one movie that you have to watch tonight and it has to be that one or nothing at all.

I also like that you can hold on to things as long as you want. So if you rent a DVD and like the movie, you'll have time to watch it again and go through the special features. When I used to rent from stores, with their short rental periods I never had a chance to check out commentaries.

It's a great service. It's not perfect, but then again, what is? The convenience of having the discs mailed to my house and the vast selection by far make up for any small imperfections Netflix has.

I also heartily recommend Netflix. Their selection is vast .. lots of obscure titles. Turn-around time is excellent.

The other thing that I really like about them .. they only stock the widescreen versions of movies. So there's no battle in trying to figure out if you're getting the fullscreen or widescreen version. You just order the movie and it will be the widescreen version. Simple.

What's a video store? I haven't set foot in one for 2 1/2 years when I started using Netflix.

If I had to complain about one thing, its about the jerks that literally destroy the discs, return them, Netflix doesn't notice they're messed up, and then they're sent to me. In one month I had 3 bad discs; two were scratched so bad I couldn't watch them for more than 5 minutes at a time. The third was warped so bad my player wouldn't even recognize the disc. Funny thing is that it only started when I moved and my DC was Minneapolis instead of Denver.

Has anyone else had problems with discs from Minneapolis?

I also have to question the poster who stated that Netflix has a lack of variety. What are they missing? They have just about everything released on DVD. From obscure documentaries and foreign films to the recent blockbusters.

And, if they don't carry something, email them and they will try and get it.

I hope that Netflix comes up with a better sleeve in the future. I find the current one too flimsy and i wonder if some of the scratches on disc is caused by the shipping process.

Sometimes i wonder what people use the discs for as they are so badly scratched.

Benefits still outweigh these minor gripes.

Netflix DVD sleeves are made w/ Tyvek material which are very very very tough, so the scratches are not produced during shipping. The scratches are produced by asses who can't keep sandy paper and sharp objects away from the discs, and also from disc doctor that repairs scratches by scratching the whole disc up. What I hate the most is the damn finger prints though. HOLD the freaking discs by the edge, not the top and bottom, you selfish ignorant SOBs.

Netflix ($20) lacks porn, but there's always XRentDVD ($25). Man, I love those 2 places.

Walmart has a similiar service. Theirs is a little cheaper (starts at $15.54 for 2 titles out). Anyone try it? They have a 30-day free trial.

http://www.walmart.com/dvd/learnabout.gsp

I dunno about that, I think 19.95 for 3 out is a better deal then 15.54 for 2 titles, plus I heard Walmart is a lot slower.

They also have 18.76 for 3 out. I don't know anything about their service. I thought someone might have tried them. Thanks for the info.

FYI. I tryed Netflix yesterday for the trial. Picked 3 dvd's. They arrived today! Turns out there is a Netflix distribution center less than 4 miles from my home. (Henrietta, NY) I think I am going to love this.

Wow... I'd love it too and I lived next door to you. I heard Nexflix will be opening up a distribution center Chicago. Does anyone know about this?

I've been using Walmart (instead of Netflix) for maybe six months now.

I initally went to Walmart when Netflix refused to stock MGM DVDs six months after their release (Blue Steel and State of Grace). The price is better, the service is as fast as when I was at Netflix, but the selection is somewhat lacking. Walmart doesn't have "You Can't Take it With You" for example.

I've been looking at going back with Netflix and if they do open a DC in Chicago, I'm definitely doing it.

I used to love my Netflix last winter, but when spring came, I had trouble getting through all the movies. I'm considering re-upping for this winter, but then will have to cancel [and lose my Queue again].

I don't understand. What do you mean they refuse to stock Blue Steel
and State of Grace ?? Or where they just uncharacteristically slow in stocking these titles ??

So far I've noticed no delay in them stocking any new titles just released.

Thanks for all the replys. I am actually using the free trial now and dvds were shipped today. I think I'm going to be joining. They have such a wide variety of movies that my blockbuster and hollywood video don't have. I found a lot of movies that I wanted to purchase but will use this to rent it first. I agree this can save a lot on blind buys. Just a quick question about new movies that are released on Tuesday. If there released on Tuesday you probably won't get it until Wednesday or Thursday right. Also will it be a problem because everyone is going after the new releases and they will be all out.

I had too many movies get lost in the mail, so Netflix put my account on hold. They said they'd only lift it if I called my post office & filed a complaint & mailed them a copy. Since my wife mails them sometimes from Philadelphia, and they come from various DCs, I don't know exactly what I was supposed to tell the post office since they could be getting lost anywhere. And meanwhile Netflix continued to charge me even though they were no longer sending me movies. When I called they said my account was on hold & not cancelled so they could still charge me even though they were no longer providing me with a service. I asked if they thought it would be okay if a magazine continued to charge me even though they stopped sending me issues. They just stuck by the "our policy" BS and said that I could have my account reopened if I got them the letter. Now, if someone sends you an email telling you your account has been put on hold would you assume that you would still be billed regularly? They apparently thought I should have. I loved their variety, but don't need to be treated like a dvd thief because their postcard-size envelopes get lost every now & then (I have a collection of over 1,700 dvds & a scratched disc with no box is worthless to me), and I don't appreciate being charged for nothing & customer service who don't seem to understand logic. And I keep getting emails asking me to join again? I thought I was banned? F@ Netflix.

I love it....mostly because I use it to check out things I can't get at local rental places like new Criterions and stuff like that...documentaries and recently release catalog stuff, etc. I still go to family video once a month or so if i'm hankering for a popular new release, but i'm rarely interested in those.....Right now I have Gattaca, Morvern Caller, and I just returned Throne of Blood CC....with Polanski's MacBeth (1971) on the way to replace it (thought that might an interesting double bill of sorts to compare :) ) I keep them in that kind of rotation: foriegn/classic, newer indie, and catalog title. whichever I return from that category I go to the queue and make the next in that category on the list #1. works for me :)

The one thing keeping me from ever trying Wal-Mart is the fact that if a dvd is lost, you have to pay $19.95.

I'll just stick with Netflix.

'Yup', that sounds like Wal-Mart customer service. I always hoped they'd fail at DVD rentals.