Finally tried Redbox

[mom-from-missouri]

We tried it once, and never will again.

We returned the movie, but they kept charging us for it, for 4 days. Took numberous phone calls and emails and then they only adjusted 1/2 of it off. I found their customer service reps to be very rude.

Not to mention it is 18 miles from my house....

[red92s]

I'm in a fairly busy metro area with tons of RedBox machines scattered around. Nearly every time we have wanted to rent (or return) a movie, there is a line of people. It's frustrating having to stand behind some other couple as they browse though each page of options, discuss half of them, get to the last screen, then start the process over again.

[nick__45]

I'm in a fairly busy metro area with tons of RedBox machines scattered around. Nearly every time we have wanted to rent (or return) a movie, there is a line of people. It's frustrating having to stand behind some other couple as they browse though each page of options, discuss half of them, get to the last screen, then start the process over again.

I don't use Redbox much recently because there isn't time to watch it due to my wife school schedule. It is pretty stupid (the schedule is). I just got a Blu-ray player so I'll be sure to get Blu-ray movies since Netflix stream doesn't have neither Blu-ray or new movies. My experience with Netflix stream service is horrible but it is cheap and I don't have any TV service so I am keeping it. Otherwise, I would drop it for lack of contents and horrible release dates.

I think the price on Redbox has gone up and that is somewhat understandable as rents and utility cost have gone up in addition to licensing fees. They are everywhere here and some places like Giant and Walmart have them at each door so to prevent you from having to stand in a long line with idiots taking forever to make a selection and you'll end up being late. The worst place to rent them is Walmart as shoppers there are known to take their time and end up not renting anything while wasting your time in line. The worst part is that they'll be wearing their pink pajamas (even the males) while doing it. I don't live in the city (I am glad for that) so the closet one is 1/8 of a mile away and it takes me about 6 minutes to get there due to 2 lights. I usually go to Giant to get Redbox as people there are civilized and I can get some food while at it.

[disneysteve]

My experience with Netflix stream service is horrible but it is cheap and I don't have any TV service so I am keeping it.

I do wish there was a way to stream current releases. Really, I'm not sure why they don't allow this. What's the difference if they ship me a DVD or stream the movie to my house? Either way, there should be a way to compensate the studio.

That said, we enjoy watching older films and especially old TV shows. My daughter also watches a lot of Japanese anime' on Netflix that she can't get anywhere else.

[nick__45]

We tried it once, and never will again.

We returned the movie, but they kept charging us for it, for 4 days. Took numberous phone calls and emails and then they only adjusted 1/2 of it off. I found their customer service reps to be very rude.

Not to mention it is 18 miles from my house....

You must live way out in the stick. As soon as you returned it, you should get an email telling you you have returned.

In my opnion, it is better than Netflix because you can get more movies in a month than Netflix for the same cost and you can get them right away without waiting.

[flipyourdebt]

When is Redbox going to make an express return line so you don't have to wait for the lady with 6 kids to finish picking out 10 cartoons?

[glycemic]

No problems for us either. If it's a weeknight it works easier - convenient drop offs. No issues with billings. Limited selection but who cares. And the Xbox listings are cool too for the kids.

[safari]

I do wish there was a way to stream current releases. Really, I'm not sure why they don't allow this. What's the difference if they ship me a DVD or stream the movie to my house? Either way, there should be a way to compensate the studio.

Studios don't like the streaming subscription service because their margins are very small, even compared to the the disc rentals. Studios want people to buy movies instead of renting them. In the past there was a 28 day window after a Warner Bros. movie was released on a disc before people could rent it from Netflix. Now it is extended to 56 days. This is just for disc rentals. Some movies may never be available for streaming because studios don't want to cannibalize their sales. The content available for streaming usually includes old movies or the stuff few would consider buying.

[AccountantSalary]

We're fortunate in that our grocery store has several Redbox kiosks next to each other. So if the lady with the five kids spends 10 minutes picking out a cartoon, the next kiosk is free for people in a hurry.

[disneysteve]

Studios want people to buy movies instead of renting them.

That might be what they want, but they've got to realize by now that it isn't going to happen. I just heard a report this week that experts are now saying that blu-ray discs, the latest home movie technology, are becoming obsolete as the number of movies being downloaded is growing rapidly.

Really, why buy a disc when I can pull it up on demand anytime, any place, on any of my devices?

[safari]

That might be what they want, but they've got to realize by now that it isn't going to happen. I just heard a report this week that experts are now saying that blu-ray discs, the latest home movie technology, are becoming obsolete as the number of movies being downloaded is growing rapidly.

Really, why buy a disc when I can pull it up on demand anytime, any place, on any of my devices?

Studios realize that physical media is quickly becoming obsolete, which is why they are starting to include digital copies of the movie for free whenever you buy a DVD or a blu-ray. Warner Bros. Has this new model called Ultraviolet, which lets you stream the movies you own to various devices. It's a digital locker in the clouds that keeps track of the movies you purchased and you can watch them any time anywhere. Disney is coming up with a similar service, which will protect the consumers from media formats going obsolete. You buy the movie once and you can play it anywhere on all platforms, which makes your purchase future proof. Basically instead of purchasing a physical disc, you're purchasing a license to play that movie on any platform. There are plans to let people claim ownership of all the DVD's and blu-rays purchased in the past, so if you bought a DVD 10 years ago, you would be able to register it in your digital locker and watch that movie in HD on any device.

[disneysteve]

Studios realize that physical media is quickly becoming obsolete, which is why they are starting to include digital copies of the movie for free whenever you buy a DVD or a blu-ray. Warner Bros. Has this new model called Ultraviolet, which lets you stream the movies you own to various devices. It's a digital locker in the clouds that keeps track of the movies you purchased and you can watch them any time anywhere. Disney is coming up with a similar service, which will protect the consumers from media formats going obsolete. You buy the movie once and you can play it anywhere on all platforms, which makes your purchase future proof. Basically instead of purchasing a physical disc, you're purchasing a license to play that movie on any platform. There are plans to let people claim ownership of all the DVD's and blu-rays purchased in the past, so if you bought a DVD 10 years ago, you would be able to register it in your digital locker and watch that movie in HD on any device.

That all sounds great. I'd certainly be willing to pay to buy the license for a favorite movie if it gives me the ability to watch it any time on any device indefinitely. That sure beats the hundreds of VHS movies I have piled up.