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So I finally broke down the other day and ordered Netflix. In theory, this is a two week free trial. In practice, even if I don't like it, I'll forget to cancel in that period, and they'll get at least one month's money out of me. I guess that's the point of a 'free trial'.
So far, what's not to like? They seem to have an extensive catalog, and the service works. My first DVD arrived just a couple of days after I signed up. It seemed to me to be very flimsy packaging for a DVD, and I wonder what happens if it gets damaged, or stolen from the mailbox? I guess I'll find out at some point. Anyway, I was able to quickly build a long list of things I'd like to watch at some point.
My main interest though was not in the DVD side of the service; I'm much more interested in the 'on-demand' programming. I'm personally at a point where I'd be willing to give up cable service, since the majority of what I watch is available either by antenna or online (ABC having an impressive online service for current seasons). Comcast find themselves in the ridiculous position as of February of actually providing an INFERIOR copy of terrestrial broadcasts via their cable system; they will contine to deliver an analog version of these signals, when they are actually being broadcast in digital format (though not necessarily HD format).
For a long time the main reason for me to have cable was access to BBC America. They used to run a lot of the leading edge drama and documentaries that I enjoyed. In the past year though, along with broadcast US TV, they've deteriorated into a channel that incessantly re-runs 'reality' shows. Now a few of those I can watch occasionally; but every day, with a limited number of shows available? Well, that's just not interesting.
So back to Netflix; what I hoped to be able to do was search for programs I enjoy (Midsomer Murders for example) in the on demand catalog. But as far as I can figure, search is a global function. THIS is the one feature I've found so far that is sadly lacking in the system, and I hope at some point they realize/fix this. Finding the one or two shows available on demand from the list of hundreds returned by a search makes the on demand side of things less usable. True, you can browse the online catalog, and narrow your search by general category, but even that turns up long lists of programs in seemingly random order.
The quality of their streaming content is very high; they appear to be using the same technology that ABC does, which produces very smooth motion full screen HD content, with few artifacts or hesitations in the stream. (Other services such as HULU seem to have lower-grade streaming technology, but I'm sure they'll catch up).
It's definitely more work to find and watch shows online, rather than on cable. But with a low subscription price for Netflix (I signed up for the $9 a month service) or totally free content (if you forget about the $60 a month for high speed internet) then this is definitely the direction of the future. I'm currently using my laptop as the interface, but if I stay with Netflix, I'll probably spring the $99 for at least one Roku box. (And Netflix access is going to be built into new TVs now, so the Roku boxes will not be necessary for new equipment.)
Of course, Comcast recently introduced bandwidth limitations to their Internet service - coincidental? No, I don't think so. While the current bandwidth limit of 250GB per month is more than sufficient to cope with the amount of streaming I'll be doing, I won't be surprised if I see an increase in temporary drop-outs in Comcast service, making streaming unreliable, or else if they step-by-step reduce the bandwidth provided in their 'base price' - making it necessary to purchase more bandwidth to watch streamed TV. Comcast and other cable companies would LOVE to be able to tier their Internet service offerings.
As to FiOS - Albuquerque is a communications backwater. There is no profit in rolling out this infrastructure in such a small market. For now, I'm stuck with Comcast or nothing.
So far, what's not to like? They seem to have an extensive catalog, and the service works. My first DVD arrived just a couple of days after I signed up. It seemed to me to be very flimsy packaging for a DVD, and I wonder what happens if it gets damaged, or stolen from the mailbox? I guess I'll find out at some point. Anyway, I was able to quickly build a long list of things I'd like to watch at some point.
My main interest though was not in the DVD side of the service; I'm much more interested in the 'on-demand' programming. I'm personally at a point where I'd be willing to give up cable service, since the majority of what I watch is available either by antenna or online (ABC having an impressive online service for current seasons). Comcast find themselves in the ridiculous position as of February of actually providing an INFERIOR copy of terrestrial broadcasts via their cable system; they will contine to deliver an analog version of these signals, when they are actually being broadcast in digital format (though not necessarily HD format).
For a long time the main reason for me to have cable was access to BBC America. They used to run a lot of the leading edge drama and documentaries that I enjoyed. In the past year though, along with broadcast US TV, they've deteriorated into a channel that incessantly re-runs 'reality' shows. Now a few of those I can watch occasionally; but every day, with a limited number of shows available? Well, that's just not interesting.
So back to Netflix; what I hoped to be able to do was search for programs I enjoy (Midsomer Murders for example) in the on demand catalog. But as far as I can figure, search is a global function. THIS is the one feature I've found so far that is sadly lacking in the system, and I hope at some point they realize/fix this. Finding the one or two shows available on demand from the list of hundreds returned by a search makes the on demand side of things less usable. True, you can browse the online catalog, and narrow your search by general category, but even that turns up long lists of programs in seemingly random order.
The quality of their streaming content is very high; they appear to be using the same technology that ABC does, which produces very smooth motion full screen HD content, with few artifacts or hesitations in the stream. (Other services such as HULU seem to have lower-grade streaming technology, but I'm sure they'll catch up).
It's definitely more work to find and watch shows online, rather than on cable. But with a low subscription price for Netflix (I signed up for the $9 a month service) or totally free content (if you forget about the $60 a month for high speed internet) then this is definitely the direction of the future. I'm currently using my laptop as the interface, but if I stay with Netflix, I'll probably spring the $99 for at least one Roku box. (And Netflix access is going to be built into new TVs now, so the Roku boxes will not be necessary for new equipment.)
Of course, Comcast recently introduced bandwidth limitations to their Internet service - coincidental? No, I don't think so. While the current bandwidth limit of 250GB per month is more than sufficient to cope with the amount of streaming I'll be doing, I won't be surprised if I see an increase in temporary drop-outs in Comcast service, making streaming unreliable, or else if they step-by-step reduce the bandwidth provided in their 'base price' - making it necessary to purchase more bandwidth to watch streamed TV. Comcast and other cable companies would LOVE to be able to tier their Internet service offerings.
As to FiOS - Albuquerque is a communications backwater. There is no profit in rolling out this infrastructure in such a small market. For now, I'm stuck with Comcast or nothing.
