Has anyone felt that Netflix’s UI has deteriorated massively?
I’ve had it on appleTV for several years. It used to be really easy to browse and find content.
But they’ve completely changed the app and now I feel you either need to know what to specifically look for, or happen to find something in the random “suggestions since you’ve watched X” on the main menu which are a fairly random set of X’s.
They even (as far as I can tell) got rid of the helpful list of alternate suggestions when you select a specific movie.
I don’t understand the need for insane UI’s, do companies feel they must make major UI changes so it looks like they’re not stagnating?
Another theory someone said about their complicated UI is that they perhaps massively reduced the size of the available library, and a convoluted UI hides this fact.
Yep. I was actually thinking several times over the last month that I should discontinue Netflix as I don't use it as often as I wish due to the user experience.
I think about putting on a film but then I think about the constant barrage of trailers and the difficulty of finding something good (recommendations are useless), so usually I end up dropping the idea.
Just need to finish Altered Carbon and I'll be dropping it.
They're also deteriorating in terms of product quality.
Tried to watch Bandersnatch last night, and it says "your device is not compatible. Try using a smartphone or a newer laptop"
But I was on a brand new laptop (Windows 10, 7700HQ, Radeon RX480). Netflix is telling people to use laptops, but they forgot to update their own laptop app to support their own movies.
I work in multimedia and interactive video, we have teams of just three or four people who support everything themselves (Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Web, etc). I don't understand how Netflix, with it's millions of dollars, can't do the same. Netflix's marketing claims they "only hire the best of the best" (and they probably do), but their actual product just feels so lazy, it's hard to reconcile the two. Why do you need the best people, if you don't want to build a good product?
Yes it's gotten worse, but all the video services' interfaces are really terrible in various ways. What really drives me nuts about the current AppleTV app are the autoplay previews of every show you linger on for more than a second so you literally cannot get a moment's peace while flipping through the cruddy guide. And many of the previews are obviously computer-generated and are downright terrible.
>I don’t understand the need for insane UI’s, do companies feel they must make major UI changes so it looks like they’re not stagnating?
I've noticed this on more than Netflix. The entire lifecycle of the Xbox 360 I think they made maybe two major UI overhauls. In the year since I've bought my Xbox One the UI has had major changes at least four times. Every couple of months I have to relearn how to find things and it's aggravating.
> Has anyone felt that Netflix’s UI has deteriorated massively?
That's inevitable when you have resident designers who must make things different to justify their tenure. Once you have reached a local optimum, they can make only things worse.
Honestly, I really have started missing the experience of going to a movie rental place with some friends and walking the isles to find a movie. When you don't know what to watch, that was the best way to pick things out.
Their library has increasingly sucked. They've changed their UI to be correspondingly undifferentiating, making this change less apparent without actually viewing the content. There's a good reason -- besides "touchscreen/TV interfaces" -- why user comments are gone, and their star ratings.
Speaking of interfaces, it seems the "tile" interface changes are oriented towards those touchscreen/TV formats.
Basically, I think they're enticing people with (some of) their "Netflix Originals". And they have a (now, very) few new or new-to-them A-list films circulating through.
For the rest, they just hope you'll click on something that sounds or looks (from the tile) like it could be good, and then be satisfied -- or at least put up with -- what you get.
That said, other people still seem pretty positive about their streaming offer. When they offer details from their viewing, I just don't agree.
It's pretty bad and convoluted. I see the same content in 80% of the first ten rows. I don't need "popular" and "trending" next to each other. Just get rid of one. I would love a way to reduce this to a simple grid of 50 items showing the box cover art with no previews unless I click to see them.
I second this. It also doesn’t help that they auto play trailers for whatever show you’re hovering over so you get distracted and can’t focus whilst trying to remember what show you were searching for. It really isn’t as user friendly as it used to be.
I've contemplated canceling only because the Apple TV interface and the auto play is frustrating. The web interface isn't any better and is worse then it was 5 or more years ago even. Not even their content is making up for it.
But then I remember, I'm not paying for it since another person in the household is paying for it. I only turn it on to either have something on in the background when I'm home alone or for background noise anyway.
>> Has anyone felt that Netflix’s UI has deteriorated massively?
I feel like this is related to the amount of content they have now. When I signed up, I was hunting for stuff to watch, and today, I can't keep up with all the stuff I'm interested in watching. There's too much coming too fast, and the UI just can't handle the volume.
In fairness to Netflix, the iOS App store had the same problem once there was an explosion in the number of apps. It got to the point where I could only use the App store if I knew the name of the app I was looking for.
I don't know if there's an easy UI solution for finding and discovering the right content in rapidly growing libraries, but that seems to be the dilemma for companies like Netflix, Apple, etc.
With respect to pricing, I can live with the hike because I feel like I'm still getting value for my money, especially considering how much I was paying for cable before I cut the cord.
It may also be due to the fact that they get your money regardless of how much you watch per month. It may be an effort to reduce operating costs by having you watch less.
Absolutely in agreement (although I'm on Windows). Here is my list of woes (off the top of my head):
- the supposedly intelligent AI-powered thumbnail/preview generator seems to not understand me in the slightest, often turning me off completely until I look them up on IMDB.
- replacing the 5 star rating system with a thumbs up/down... what about mediocre? Their library (in Europe) contains a huge amount of mediocre stuff.
- some Original Netflix content is only available in the US.
- the selection in Europe is very disparaging.
- after watching some movies e.g. Bandersnatch, you have 5 seconds to full-screen again before it auto-plays some other completely unrelated movie (instead of letting me enjoy the credits and accompanying music). In general I find auto-play only useful with series... although even then some series e.g. Black Mirror I really just want to listen to the great music played during the credits, and I have to scramble to find my keyboard within 5 seconds after watching a sometimes very emotional experience.
- it seems like they are primarily focused on adding series (Recently Added section is 90% series)... they seem to be opting to just fill their library with series as it gets people to keep coming back, but I actually prefer movies most of the time instead of getting sucked into another series.
- no way to disable/pause autoplay of spoiler/trailers when you initially log in, first thing I do after logging in is scroll down until it stops playing.
- sometimes they show an unavoidable/unpausable spoiler/trailer/advertisement right in the middle of the lists as you scroll down.
- why can I only create 4 profiles (and 1 kids profile)?
- I have been vocal lately and clicking the "?" button while watching a movie to leave feedback. I have yet to receive even a notification that they have at least read it, or preferably, that they might be working on any of the bugs/issues I've complained about.
- if you pause a show/movie for > 15 minutes (eg to go make popcorn, etc) and come back to it, your HD (720p of course because it's Firefox) version is replaced with a 240p/360p version, requiring a page refresh.
- no option to change resolution, my LTE modem has bad latency so Netflix auto-selects 360p for me for the first 3-5 minutes... the only solution is to refresh a few times until Netflix detects that my connection is actually sufficient to stream 720p. I was using the ctrl+alt+shift+s to manually set the resolution but they seem to have removed this a few months ago.
- native Netflix app for Windows 10 is horrendously slow and completely unusable.
- 1080p on Edge browser is not much better.
- after watching something from "My List" (where I have about 50 things saved), I have to manually go back to "My List" and find it to remove it... a button to remove it after watching would save me some trouble
- removing an item from "My List" causes the entire page to refresh and the position of everything is apparently random every time
I could definitely go on... it's a mess and it seems to be getting worse. I wonder if I'm an edge case for a lot of these issues... perhaps the general populous isn't bothered by a lot of these things? Otherwise I can't explain how they have so many top-payed engineers and how half of this shit is acceptable.
On the other hand, at least it's not as bad as Amazon Prime Video, which is an utter joke...
The 3rd generation Apple TV couldn’t really run apps. All apps were basically simple web pages that used WebKit and Apple’s TVML. It limited the UI of apps and they were all much more consistent.
This is the nail for me. Their original content has been lackluster at best and for them to be pushing that as the reason for the price hike is no good. It was the reason for the last few hikes as well and nothing has changed. There have been a few that are interesting to watch (stranger things of course), but for every one that is good there are at least 20 that are garbage. If they want to put out original content fine, but they need to go for quality not quantity like they are. It's like they don't say no to anything people create under netflix. This on top of the fact that in the last 2 years and into this year they've basically butchered their catalog of tv/movies from other companies (fox,disney, ect..) to where if those are the things I want to watch I might as well go else where. I'm not saying that's their fault, but I'm sure they could strike a deal with these media companies if they like vs spending the money on originals that are just there to fill the UI.
Originals can be shown worldwide. They'll have to get a worldwide license for other content.
A huge chunk of international content are original stand ups because they're easy to make. The amount of licensed content available in my country is pretty negligible.
I've been wondering if the last Great Unbundling will be followed by another Great Rebundling. I'm no expert in any of this, but it seems unlikely that the new "channels" of Netflix et al. will prevent their programming and delivery methods from be bundled until it becomes disadvantageous to their growth (ie monthly subscriptions can't generate enough revenue).
It seems to me there is an explosion of content that will be able to be monetized far beyond just subscription lock-in. I wonder what the method of monetization will be after the gold-rush of building subscriber bases?
Netflix's original proposition and value was one of convenience (and price), but I wonder how long that will last. Will households juggle 4+ subscriptions of $15/mo? I'm not sure that is why cord-cutters originally cancelled their cable subscriptions.
My off-the-top-of-my-head list of current and coming soon subscription services (that also produce content) is: Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO, YouTube, CBS, Disney/Fox, NBC, Apple. Technologically, it seems like there are some serious hurdles to "bundling" these together.
I wonder if the future "bundle" will actually be a service that manages subscriptions for you, with things like highlighting newly available shows since the last time you subscribed.
Interesting, I was just talking about cancelling all our streaming with my girlfriend last night. I'm tired of just how bad the quality is. Most Netflix Originals aren't even at Lifetime movie quality when looked at objectively.
For myself, I've been pursuing a strategy where I rotate the streaming service. We use Sling during the times of the year where we care about it. We probably get about two months of Hulu every couple of years, and catch up on the stuff we want. I'd rotate Netflix if the kids weren't using it for morning cartoons so much. I'd rotate Amazon Prime if I weren't using Prime for things unrelated to the streaming, and I probably ought to run the math on that even so. I rotate some other more obscure services like anime streaming. I mix in some other things I can't get any other way via purchasing them directly from Amazon. (Still surprised there aren't any other streaming services that have adopted the "default catalog for free + purchase premium content" the way Amazon has.)
Because streaming services tend to retain their catalogs, you don't necessarily need to have all of them all the time. Especially if you can disconnect yourself from the need to watch "the latest episode" of something that comes out every week. I'm the only one in my family that has, really, but it's worth it if you can cultivate the mindset.
You also sometimes get the "Waaaaah! We want you back!" deals, too, which makes it even cheaper. I'm doing what I do for other reasons, but, hey, you want to do that for me, whatevs.
The end result is that not only are you generally at like $20/month, you frequently have something you're excited to watch as a new service rotates in that you've not had for a year, in a way that you don't if you just have all of them all the time.
We have gone a full circle from having cable with a bunch of separate overpriced packages which you buy for the sake of having access to one or two shows, to having the internet where you're signing up for equally as expensive packages and services all for the sake of having access to one or two shows on their platform.
As long as the content providers continue to make it so difficult, piracy will win, if nothing else when it comes to convenience.
So, this comes at weird time for me. I haven't had an HTPC/Plex setup powered up for over 3 years because one or two streaming subscriptions got the job done. But, the streaming services are all, mostly, focusing on their own content (which is OK, I guess), loosing rights to 3rd party content frequently, and now apparently raising prices. This means I no longer have easy access to what I frequently want to watch at a good price.
I fired Plex back up a few days ago, and I suspect I'll kill off at least one streaming subscription soon (probably hulu). I'm also really enjoying watching stuff without MASSIVE ARTIFACTS EVERYWHERE in dark scenes (all streaming services are pretty affected by this, its damn near unavoidable).
This is great and all, but I don't actually want to or enjoy having to run plex, manage storage space, and spend the time/money acquiring + ripping used blurays or otherwise obtaining high quality content. I want to pay for a single streaming provider on a subscription model and have access to everything, and I'd probably pay what it cost, but that's not really an option anymore....
Well, the golden age of streaming was great until it lasted. With competition increasing alongside Netflix's prices I'm sure we're going to issues soon. I bought a new TV last week, and it came with dedicated buttons for Netflix and Amazon Prime. I should have asked if they will put out a better remote next year when I want to have Disney, Hulu, and CBS all Access on there too.
Am I happy about a price hike? No.. but it still beats the hell out of cable which I found myself paying $100+/mo to watch mostly commercials. I couldn't take it anymore.
I agree that the Netflix content can be hit-or-miss.. usually more miss.. but it does have some movies and shows on there I find myself coming back to and re-watching. It also keeps my kids entertained with their selection of cartoons/animated shows so that is a plus.
We don't watch many TV shows, but we do have a Hulu (commercial free subscription) which again is quite affordable.
All in all, I still feel that I have a better alternative to cable/satellite TV. If prices continue to climb to the point where they are closer in cost, I may re-evaluate this again.
The average cable bill is $107. So we know Americans are willing to pay at least that much for TV. Streaming currently competes on price, but they know full well that they can make a lot more money if they can compete on content rather than on price...
What's the difference now between online streaming providers and cable? Now to watch what I like, I would have to have AmazonPrime, Netflix, HBO and BBC Player. Netflix is now no different than cables were 15 years ago. Ads were replaced with webtracking and profiling. They are constantly removing 3rd party movies and TV shows, adding their own production which usually is quite bad (less than 6 stars on IMBD) and now increasing prices?
I agree with you and I'm concerned that the streaming market is going in a less-user-friendly direction.
That said, for me Amazon Prime is $10, Netflix HD is $13, and HBO is $15. I can't get get BBC in the US, so let's swap in Hulu for $8/month.
Total that's $46 per month for 4 of the largest streaming video services. Whereas the average cable bill is now $107[1].
The other advantage is that you can pick and choose exactly what you want to subscribe to. Don't watch Netflix originals? You can drop it and subscribe to Disney's new service. Or Acorn TV, CBS All Access, DirecTV Now, ESPN+, FilmStruck, etc.
It's amazing how many people here -- presumably reasonably successful people -- are butt hurt about paying a few more dollars a month for unlimited, high quality (in terms of streaming quality) content.
I fail to see this as a cynical attempt to squeeze more money out of consumers. Netflix is cheap. Really, really cheap. They're putting a ton of money into original content. The streaming quality is fantastic.
No, it's not all amazing content. How much f'n content do you need? Get off the damn couch, go outside, get some work done, whatever.
I'd pay good money for a Rotten Tomatoes score for each Netflix movie. The Netflix Recommendation Engine is nothing more than an attempt to sell you bad movies.
I think we can expect Netflix to go from ~$13/mo to ~$40/mo over the course of the next 30 years.
For now they’re content to suck the life out of the networks. But generations of Americans have shown a willingness to pay $99/mo or more for their entertainment, which Netflix is pleased to provide.
We are the frogs in their pot, slowly being boiled. But, oh my, is it ever a nice hot tub.
I think we can expect that purely because of normal inflation.
$40 per year in 2048 would reflect a 4% annual increase. So if your price prediction is correct, it doesn't really say much about the streaming content market specifically.
I really don't understand some of the pearl clutching in this thread when it comes to "re-bundling", you can get Netflix, Hulu and HBO for less than half of any non-promotional cable package out there (not including discounts for Netflix and Hulu via subscriptions through other platforms). How much TV do you watch??
It's not how much you watch. It's being able to watch what you want. Suppose one of those three don't have the thing I want to watch, now I have to sign up for another bundle?
I find that bundling is actually taking place. With every major cell phone provider you can get a plan that bundles in netflix/prime/hulu/directv now respectively. Also comcast now offers it's own xfinity wireless plan. And since everyone has a cell phone it starts to make sense to bundle.
Well, at least for the moment, it's easy enough to cancel and pick up again in a few month's time when there is sufficient new content to justify the price?
If it were not for this option I would be exclusive to amazon by now.
[+] [-] jeffwass|7 years ago|reply
I’ve had it on appleTV for several years. It used to be really easy to browse and find content.
But they’ve completely changed the app and now I feel you either need to know what to specifically look for, or happen to find something in the random “suggestions since you’ve watched X” on the main menu which are a fairly random set of X’s.
They even (as far as I can tell) got rid of the helpful list of alternate suggestions when you select a specific movie.
I don’t understand the need for insane UI’s, do companies feel they must make major UI changes so it looks like they’re not stagnating?
Another theory someone said about their complicated UI is that they perhaps massively reduced the size of the available library, and a convoluted UI hides this fact.
[+] [-] magicalhippo|7 years ago|reply
I think about putting on a film but then I think about the constant barrage of trailers and the difficulty of finding something good (recommendations are useless), so usually I end up dropping the idea.
Just need to finish Altered Carbon and I'll be dropping it.
[+] [-] maxsilver|7 years ago|reply
They're also deteriorating in terms of product quality.
Tried to watch Bandersnatch last night, and it says "your device is not compatible. Try using a smartphone or a newer laptop"
But I was on a brand new laptop (Windows 10, 7700HQ, Radeon RX480). Netflix is telling people to use laptops, but they forgot to update their own laptop app to support their own movies.
I work in multimedia and interactive video, we have teams of just three or four people who support everything themselves (Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, Web, etc). I don't understand how Netflix, with it's millions of dollars, can't do the same. Netflix's marketing claims they "only hire the best of the best" (and they probably do), but their actual product just feels so lazy, it's hard to reconcile the two. Why do you need the best people, if you don't want to build a good product?
[+] [-] skywhopper|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ramblerman|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] MrMember|7 years ago|reply
I've noticed this on more than Netflix. The entire lifecycle of the Xbox 360 I think they made maybe two major UI overhauls. In the year since I've bought my Xbox One the UI has had major changes at least four times. Every couple of months I have to relearn how to find things and it's aggravating.
[+] [-] _pmf_|7 years ago|reply
That's inevitable when you have resident designers who must make things different to justify their tenure. Once you have reached a local optimum, they can make only things worse.
[+] [-] brightball|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pasbesoin|7 years ago|reply
Speaking of interfaces, it seems the "tile" interface changes are oriented towards those touchscreen/TV formats.
Basically, I think they're enticing people with (some of) their "Netflix Originals". And they have a (now, very) few new or new-to-them A-list films circulating through.
For the rest, they just hope you'll click on something that sounds or looks (from the tile) like it could be good, and then be satisfied -- or at least put up with -- what you get.
That said, other people still seem pretty positive about their streaming offer. When they offer details from their viewing, I just don't agree.
[+] [-] lancesells|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] traviswingo|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] amaccuish|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lenticular|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] b3b0p|7 years ago|reply
I've contemplated canceling only because the Apple TV interface and the auto play is frustrating. The web interface isn't any better and is worse then it was 5 or more years ago even. Not even their content is making up for it.
But then I remember, I'm not paying for it since another person in the household is paying for it. I only turn it on to either have something on in the background when I'm home alone or for background noise anyway.
[+] [-] slantyyz|7 years ago|reply
I feel like this is related to the amount of content they have now. When I signed up, I was hunting for stuff to watch, and today, I can't keep up with all the stuff I'm interested in watching. There's too much coming too fast, and the UI just can't handle the volume.
In fairness to Netflix, the iOS App store had the same problem once there was an explosion in the number of apps. It got to the point where I could only use the App store if I knew the name of the app I was looking for.
I don't know if there's an easy UI solution for finding and discovering the right content in rapidly growing libraries, but that seems to be the dilemma for companies like Netflix, Apple, etc.
With respect to pricing, I can live with the hike because I feel like I'm still getting value for my money, especially considering how much I was paying for cable before I cut the cord.
[+] [-] swebs|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] glenneroo|7 years ago|reply
- the supposedly intelligent AI-powered thumbnail/preview generator seems to not understand me in the slightest, often turning me off completely until I look them up on IMDB.
- replacing the 5 star rating system with a thumbs up/down... what about mediocre? Their library (in Europe) contains a huge amount of mediocre stuff.
- some Original Netflix content is only available in the US.
- the selection in Europe is very disparaging.
- after watching some movies e.g. Bandersnatch, you have 5 seconds to full-screen again before it auto-plays some other completely unrelated movie (instead of letting me enjoy the credits and accompanying music). In general I find auto-play only useful with series... although even then some series e.g. Black Mirror I really just want to listen to the great music played during the credits, and I have to scramble to find my keyboard within 5 seconds after watching a sometimes very emotional experience.
- it seems like they are primarily focused on adding series (Recently Added section is 90% series)... they seem to be opting to just fill their library with series as it gets people to keep coming back, but I actually prefer movies most of the time instead of getting sucked into another series.
- no way to disable/pause autoplay of spoiler/trailers when you initially log in, first thing I do after logging in is scroll down until it stops playing.
- sometimes they show an unavoidable/unpausable spoiler/trailer/advertisement right in the middle of the lists as you scroll down.
- why can I only create 4 profiles (and 1 kids profile)?
- I have been vocal lately and clicking the "?" button while watching a movie to leave feedback. I have yet to receive even a notification that they have at least read it, or preferably, that they might be working on any of the bugs/issues I've complained about.
- if you pause a show/movie for > 15 minutes (eg to go make popcorn, etc) and come back to it, your HD (720p of course because it's Firefox) version is replaced with a 240p/360p version, requiring a page refresh.
- no option to change resolution, my LTE modem has bad latency so Netflix auto-selects 360p for me for the first 3-5 minutes... the only solution is to refresh a few times until Netflix detects that my connection is actually sufficient to stream 720p. I was using the ctrl+alt+shift+s to manually set the resolution but they seem to have removed this a few months ago.
- native Netflix app for Windows 10 is horrendously slow and completely unusable.
- 1080p on Edge browser is not much better.
- after watching something from "My List" (where I have about 50 things saved), I have to manually go back to "My List" and find it to remove it... a button to remove it after watching would save me some trouble
- removing an item from "My List" causes the entire page to refresh and the position of everything is apparently random every time
I could definitely go on... it's a mess and it seems to be getting worse. I wonder if I'm an edge case for a lot of these issues... perhaps the general populous isn't bothered by a lot of these things? Otherwise I can't explain how they have so many top-payed engineers and how half of this shit is acceptable.
On the other hand, at least it's not as bad as Amazon Prime Video, which is an utter joke...
[+] [-] scarface74|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] humantiy|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] r3bl|7 years ago|reply
A huge chunk of international content are original stand ups because they're easy to make. The amount of licensed content available in my country is pretty negligible.
[+] [-] oflannabhra|7 years ago|reply
It seems to me there is an explosion of content that will be able to be monetized far beyond just subscription lock-in. I wonder what the method of monetization will be after the gold-rush of building subscriber bases?
Netflix's original proposition and value was one of convenience (and price), but I wonder how long that will last. Will households juggle 4+ subscriptions of $15/mo? I'm not sure that is why cord-cutters originally cancelled their cable subscriptions.
My off-the-top-of-my-head list of current and coming soon subscription services (that also produce content) is: Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO, YouTube, CBS, Disney/Fox, NBC, Apple. Technologically, it seems like there are some serious hurdles to "bundling" these together.
I wonder if the future "bundle" will actually be a service that manages subscriptions for you, with things like highlighting newly available shows since the last time you subscribed.
[+] [-] JohnJamesRambo|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jerf|7 years ago|reply
Because streaming services tend to retain their catalogs, you don't necessarily need to have all of them all the time. Especially if you can disconnect yourself from the need to watch "the latest episode" of something that comes out every week. I'm the only one in my family that has, really, but it's worth it if you can cultivate the mindset.
You also sometimes get the "Waaaaah! We want you back!" deals, too, which makes it even cheaper. I'm doing what I do for other reasons, but, hey, you want to do that for me, whatevs.
The end result is that not only are you generally at like $20/month, you frequently have something you're excited to watch as a new service rotates in that you've not had for a year, in a way that you don't if you just have all of them all the time.
[+] [-] azhenley|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] michaelflux|7 years ago|reply
As long as the content providers continue to make it so difficult, piracy will win, if nothing else when it comes to convenience.
[+] [-] jdc0589|7 years ago|reply
I fired Plex back up a few days ago, and I suspect I'll kill off at least one streaming subscription soon (probably hulu). I'm also really enjoying watching stuff without MASSIVE ARTIFACTS EVERYWHERE in dark scenes (all streaming services are pretty affected by this, its damn near unavoidable).
This is great and all, but I don't actually want to or enjoy having to run plex, manage storage space, and spend the time/money acquiring + ripping used blurays or otherwise obtaining high quality content. I want to pay for a single streaming provider on a subscription model and have access to everything, and I'd probably pay what it cost, but that's not really an option anymore....
[+] [-] xnyan|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] SketchySeaBeast|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] adrianmonk|7 years ago|reply
A current gen remote has dedicated buttons (with logos) for Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and CBS All Access.
I saw an older one recently, and it had buttons for Netflix and Blockbuster. I had forgotten that Blockbuster ever had a streaming service.
[+] [-] Phillips126|7 years ago|reply
I agree that the Netflix content can be hit-or-miss.. usually more miss.. but it does have some movies and shows on there I find myself coming back to and re-watching. It also keeps my kids entertained with their selection of cartoons/animated shows so that is a plus.
We don't watch many TV shows, but we do have a Hulu (commercial free subscription) which again is quite affordable.
All in all, I still feel that I have a better alternative to cable/satellite TV. If prices continue to climb to the point where they are closer in cost, I may re-evaluate this again.
[+] [-] bryanlarsen|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] akerro|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] baumandm|7 years ago|reply
That said, for me Amazon Prime is $10, Netflix HD is $13, and HBO is $15. I can't get get BBC in the US, so let's swap in Hulu for $8/month.
Total that's $46 per month for 4 of the largest streaming video services. Whereas the average cable bill is now $107[1].
The other advantage is that you can pick and choose exactly what you want to subscribe to. Don't watch Netflix originals? You can drop it and subscribe to Disney's new service. Or Acorn TV, CBS All Access, DirecTV Now, ESPN+, FilmStruck, etc.
[1] https://www.leichtmanresearch.com/78-of-tv-households-subscr...
[+] [-] wilsonnb3|7 years ago|reply
Have you ever even used cable? Online streaming is vastly superior.
You get to choose what you want to watch instead of watching whatever is on.
You can watch it on a much wider variety of devices than just your tv.
It’s much cheaper than cable.
There are no ads.
[+] [-] w1nt3rmu4e|7 years ago|reply
I fail to see this as a cynical attempt to squeeze more money out of consumers. Netflix is cheap. Really, really cheap. They're putting a ton of money into original content. The streaming quality is fantastic.
No, it's not all amazing content. How much f'n content do you need? Get off the damn couch, go outside, get some work done, whatever.
[+] [-] AimForTheBushes|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pwaivers|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] swamp40|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Polarity|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] iambateman|7 years ago|reply
For now they’re content to suck the life out of the networks. But generations of Americans have shown a willingness to pay $99/mo or more for their entertainment, which Netflix is pleased to provide.
We are the frogs in their pot, slowly being boiled. But, oh my, is it ever a nice hot tub.
[+] [-] velcrovan|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] UncleMeat|7 years ago|reply
Boiled frogs?
[+] [-] toomuchtodo|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 40acres|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] choward|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] amelius|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sjg007|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dazc|7 years ago|reply
If it were not for this option I would be exclusive to amazon by now.