This is a review after using Netflix’s UK service for a week.
So just over a week ago my girlfriend and I started using the UK version of the IP streaming service called Netflix. This is my review after just over a week’s usage.
As they provide an on demand TV service the first problem that my girlfriend and I experienced was with us! For example they’ve got seasons 1 and 2 of Warehouse 13. We hadn’t seen series two, but we have now! So instead of being forced to wait each week, we watched all the episodes too fast. We’ve now started moderating our use of the service, as basically it is an all you can eat affair. We watched an episode of Dexter, but didn’t like it, so moved onto Joss Whedon’s DollHouse, which is fantastic.
Even though they have a diverse range of content, it won’t be for everyone. Plus expect to see BBC, ITV and CH4 shows there that have been on freeview in the past, plus some that are still repeated such as Poirot.
Movie wise we have only watched two so far, which were ‘Grosse Point Blank’ from 1997 and ‘The Mechanic’ from 2011. Grosse Point Blank is fantastic, and whilst The Mechanic had good action sequences, it wasn’t that good. Which possibly best describes their line-up of movies, some gems hidden amongst some best to avoid. There are plenty we want to watch such as Tron (the original) and ‘The Next Three Days’. Don’t expect the newer movies to be great, but once you go back a bit further there are some great movies to watch, hidden amongst some ones best to avoid.
How we use Netflix
Many people are using game consoles to watch Netflix via their TVs, but we don’t own a console. In our lounge we have a freeview box plugged into a flat screen monitor, and when we want to watch iTunes we connect the laptop to the flat screen monitor, which is how we are using Netflix as well. It’s not ideal, but only takes a minute to setup. I might research if the Roku media box works with the UK version of Netflix, if we stay subscribed to the service.
Using Netflix via Mozilla Firefox (a web browser) is incredibly easy. On the first page once logged in it tells us what we last watched, and if a TV series, we can click to start watching new episodes. They then have a scrollable grid system, showing recommendations and various categories. Then in the top right there is a search box, which we’ve found pretty useful. Plus there is drop-down menus to various categories.
One missing feature that a couple of Twitter friends Adele and Cate have mentioned is no ‘watch later list’, which I agree should be present. I would love to be able to compile different lists and even share them.
We are still using the lowest video quality, which is more than fine. If we had a massive TV I might be tempted to increase the Netflix quality, but we have a small screen. When you are about to watch a movie or tv show it buffers for a short while, then after that no more delays. We’ve not had any stream interruptions at all, but the quality of a broadband connection is also important. We always watch full screen and the onscreen buttons and mouse disappear after a few seconds, then reappear when we move the mouse or pause with a click of the space button. Once we unpause, the content plays straight away.
Complaints in the comments on their Facebook page
I’ve noticed a lot of people complaining about Netflix UK not being updated often enough, the quality of the updates and not having part of this series or that. The reality is, in the UK it’s competing in a tough market, against some established giants that have tied up some nifty deals. We can’t expect it to be as good as the American version of Netflix yet or ever for £5.99 per month. Plus if they had all the seasons of all the shows they had, perhaps there would be less overall choice of tv show.
The conclusion
So my conclusion thus far is, Netflix is great if you use in moderation. If you go hammer and tongs, then expect to be disappointed quickly. For what they provide it is great value for money. Now I’m not saying if the content isn’t update every two or possibly three months we won’t leave, we could well leave at that stage, but we appreciate the great value for money and there is plenty for my girlfriend and I to watch for quite a while.
I’m hoping they do some deals for more old tv shows stretching back over the decades, plus I would love a vintage collection of movies. We are happy customers at the moment, how they grow the service in the UK a few months from now, will determine whether we switch off or not.