DVR vs. NetFlix

[King Bob]

Gene will probably say this goes on the movie forum, but I leave that judgment for the wisdom of Greg.

Anyway, what's your opinion on this one?

We just cancelled NetFlix - too many of the discs were damaged (particularly older titles) and their selection is not that deep on anything that isn't new. I like to check out old movies I've missed, so it failed on that account. On the other hand, one week of recording got me most of Woody Allen's films with almost no effort AND no cost. If we had some of the premium channels, we could get the new stuff too.

[El Dingo]

Interesting. I think I've had a grand total of 3 damaged discs from Netflix over the last 8 years.

Since I mainly get my 'mainstream' stuff from them it's a great deal (I got in on the old $9.99 for 2 discs at a time thing).

I'm a member of a hardcore BitTorrent club that provides me with free downloads of obscure and HTF titles (and pirated new ones) so I'm covered there.

I have to say NetFlix is well worth it for me.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Hmmmm...well, the caveat is that i pay for neither service, but I find digital cable (comes with DVR around here) works out pretty well without the premium channels. There is always something on sometime and you can save it for later or have it waiting for you when you want. I have some Zatoichi, New Dr. Who and season two of Eureka waiting for me.

[The Queen]

They don't serve the same needs unless you have NO time on your hands and/or you're not into instant gratification.

1. Love Netflix. Getting a damaged DVD is very annoying, but Netflix is great for catching movies we didn't have time to see in the theatres and don't want to wait until they're out on a "premium" channel. And of course, I would never watch a movie edited for and interrupted by commercial television: complete waste of time. Another Netflix plus: there are occasionally extras on DVDs that are worth watching. Love those gag reels. I didn't know the actor who played Hiro on Heroes was a genuine behind-the-scenes computer geek who made the leap to actor until I watched the DVD extra -- that was interesting.

2. Love the DVR - it's one of those things I can't believe we lived without. When your waking hours are between the hours of 4 AM and 8 PM, you'd miss a lot without a DVR. We rarely bothered with the video tapes because it was a pain in the posterior - our lives are filled with all sorts of fun nonsense we'd missed before. And pausing live TV is very, very convenient when you have dogs that need a moment to deal with the person walking by or an urgent need to get more snacks without missing dialog.

3. Re Premium channels -- I do still occasionally watch HBO; mainly cause we have it. If we didn't, I probably wouldn't miss it. I'm told they have an interesting series on Thursday nights about the Bunny Ranch that my cousin Jill produces -- I should probably at least turn it on to see her name in the credits one of these days...

4. Direct TV. Would be very unhappy without it. Love my NFL Sunday Ticket -- especially the interactive toys they've added that give me live alerts whenever one of my fantasy football players scores some points for me! If I were rich, I'd buy the Big Ten Channel and ESPNU so I could watch all my Fightin' Illini football and basketball games. If I ever win Lotto, I'd buy ALL the sports channels so I could access any game any time. Sigh.

I know, I'm talking to the wrong crowd.

[King Bob]

In contrast to El Dingo, we had three damaged discs in a row during August. That was about the last straw. So when the billing credit card expired, we just dropped NetFlix.

Admittedly the DVD extras can be nice, but I usually don't watch them - about half the time it seems like the "making of" feature is boring. I do like the gag reels though.

So far the DVR is better for me. Also you can catch all the weird documentaries - I just saw one about guys who have love dolls.

[Drunk Monk]

DM knows his limitations. It's one of the things any addictive personality must learn in order to live a healthy functional life. DM cannot have access to so much video or he'd never see the light of day again. It'd just be watch, watch, watch. Might as well pump me full of heroin and toss me into a room full of pillows.

DM has a crappy, broken, tiny TV with a built-in VCR that only receives about a dozen channels, hooked in with a cheap Asian DVD player. No Netflix. No DVR. None of that stuff. There's discussion of renting a hi-res wide screen for T's B-day (we're tentatively planning a movie night theme - kid's party's got to have themes nowadays, doncha know?). DM talked to one rental place and they said we could do it but we'd have to have it for a month minimum. Mrs. DM mischievously told DM we could do Netflix too that month - she's just being an enabler.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Because of all the Brothers, I know mine's the biggest. Innuedo? I'm talking about the TV or the altar before which everything else pales.

[Drunk Monk]

Because that's what we have now - 42" of beautiful HDTV. Mrs. DM told me to run out and get one and I got it than a junkie steals your spoon. I've been busy all weekend, but tonight, I'm planning to watch Heroes on it.

It's been a lot of evolution for DM over the last few weeks. He now has his first pair of reading glasses, a cell phone, a big fat HDTV and a medical cannibis card. What's next? You all might never know because there's no reason for DM to even surf the web any more. He's got a big fat HDTV. It was really fun chatting with y'all over the past few years here, but my telenovelas are calling...

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

This just doesn't sound right? What happened? Did you accidently knock her into unconsciousness? I can understand the glasses and the cel phone( Did you get the Jitterbug with the really big numbers?)( You'll understand that reference now that you bow down before the great glowing eye) This is why we need Mrs. DM on the forum. This really warrants explanation.


Wait a second . . . . She let you buy it. YOu just can't plug it in.

[The Queen]

Because that's what we have now - 42" of beautiful HDTV...

56". With surround sound.

My boyfriend treats me SO nice.

[Drunk Monk]

ok, so you beat me by 6". :oops:

but we went from a 13 inch tv/vcr that had a broken power switch so the only way you could turn it one was with the remote (and sometimes it just turned on by itself after you just turned it off), so the size of the growth was more.

Only caught the last half of Heroes and it looked like crap with our old ghetto antenna (a Radio Shack cheapy). Guess I need that cable next...

[The Queen]

I'm the first to admit my math isn't the best, but I thought that 56 minus 42 is 14. Then again, I am thinking in Base 10 -- perhaps you're not.

Or is 6" some kind of "guy" reference??? hock:

[Drunk Monk]

eh, typical merc-n-retro error. i totally flipped the second digit in my subtraction. my bad. my dyslexia. or maybe it's the new glasses.

so last night i finally had the change to fiddle with the new tv. i discovered how to properly set the stations and accessed all the hd and digi channels. OMG! letterman in hdtv was freakin awesome! like i said earlier, it was sure nice hanging w/y'all here. now that i have this, i don't think i need anything more.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Had she finally given up on you and let you give into your urges. she's found something else and wants to distract you with something shiny. She is smart.

[Drunk Monk]

...she's been on the front lines as I've succumbed to chronic pain. I think she might be subconsciously thinking that this will be some anesthetic, to help me get through. Or perhaps that's just the way I'm using it now.

Meanwhile, I have a problem. The one HD channel I want (11 because that's what Heroes is on) is all messed up. I'm getting a signal, but the pictures all broken up into horizontal lines. Do you think this is an aerial issue?