Netflix - Not bad! Qwikster - uh, never mind...

Hmm, I've never been able to get the search to reveal anything that isn't already available via those on-screen options though.

I think this is pretty common on various platforms. If you really want to browse the entire streaming selection, do it on a computer.

http://instantwatcher.com/titles/all

13,500 titles

― johnny crunch, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 11:50 AM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

instant watcher is a sweet site 4 browsing

#protip

yeah the ps3 interface is pretty terrible. I usually just browse netflix on my computer and add a bunch of stuff to my list and then when I want watch something just pick something out of my list. My list has about ~100 movies right now.

^^^ this is really the best way to do it IME

Oh, so if I add it to my "watch instantly" queue from the computer, it'll be there when I access my list through the PS3? I didn't know that!

yes, your Instant Queue stays the same everywhere you log in, even on mobile.

"The streaming selection is, as of the last few months, shockingly awful."

Every time someone says this I just roll my eyes.

I feel kind of silly for not knowing that, but I'm glad to know it now.

maybe all 800k ppl just didnt know how 2 search & build their instant queue!

Every time someone says this I just roll my eyes.

Try reading the thread before you get all dickish about it. I was referring to what was being shown as available through the PS3 platform which really is shockingly awful.

fwiw I have not and do not intend to cancel my membership, the price is still great!

You aren't the only person on this thread (or who I've had conversations with IRL) who has said this. Maybe all of them are PS3 hampered though.

As others have mentioned, the video game platform access to streaming content is truly horrible and I'm guessing that, yeah, there might be a large percentage of people that don't know they can access more than what options are shown.

I have a Roku for streaming, but the interface on that is pretty bad too. It's hard to tell from looking at it that there are more selections available than the smattering that they suggest in each genre. Even Netflix's web interface is pretty weak, IMO. It's surprisingly hard to find popular New Releases - it's almost like they deliberately hide them to dampen demand. And browsing is kind of frustrating - it doesn't seem to organized well. The whole recommendations feature is also kind of useless 95% of the time.

i suspect they found via testing that people like it better when you give them fewer choices

thats generally true

obvs giving them the right choices is key

I go to instantwatcher.com on my iPad while sitting on the couch. Add movies and them just refresh the queue on tv.

"The whole recommendations feature is also kind of useless 95% of the time."

Really? I think it works really well on the website.

Agree that Roku's interface is crappy too, but I don't use it.

http://instantwatcher.com/titles/all

13,500 titles

― johnny crunch, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 11:50 AM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

instant watcher is a sweet site 4 browsing

― ice cr?m, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 11:53 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

#protip

― ice cr?m, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 11:53 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

yo good looks! i never knew about that site

yeah the netflix recommendation algorithm works really well ime, one of the best things about the site, i wish spotify had a similar feach

true most of my queue is populated through endless recommendation strings

Can you add movies to your Netflix streaming queue directly via instantwatcher, or do you have to do it through the Netflix site?

The former, according to a button on each film's page. Though I haven't tried it myself yet.

yah it works, uses netflix apis same as ps3 or w/e

Truth

its more of a browsing experience than a place you can find the thing youre looking for

This is my issue w/ streaming.

Does Kevin John Bajingo still post around here? He often said how much he hated Netflix, but I never asked why, and now I'm curious.

yah obvs itd be better if it had everything... someday

Y'all should convert this into an ILX instant view recommendations thread.

There already is one of those.

Netflix Watch Instantly Recommendation Thread

at least 2 of them actually

Netflix Streaming Film Recommendations: Because You Can't Always Play With Yourself

Ya u really gotta use the website or wtv if you're watching via ps3.

There isn't everything but there is a lot. All twilight zone eps in HD!

I find the HD stuff to be dubious, at best. Either it's not true HD, or it's been altered from its original format (ie HD, but cropped from 'Scope to 1.85). Basically, Netflix streaming is standard DVD quality, to my eyes.

I know what HD looks like yall

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKYKyIObXyM

Also do you have your vid quality settings on high?

I find the HD stuff to be dubious, at best. Either it's not true HD, or it's been altered from its original format (ie HD, but cropped from 'Scope to 1.85). Basically, Netflix streaming is standard DVD quality, to my eyes.

― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, October 25, 2011 6:44 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

yeah it's not HD and it's miles away from bluray.

still way better than I thought it would be, though.

im telling you guys, buy buy buy, i wish i had money

― max, Wednesday, September 21, 2011 3:07 AM (5 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

yeah if it werent for my total opposition to individuals owning individual stocks, still tempting

― ice cr?m, Wednesday, 21 September 2011 12:55 (1 month ago) Permalink

Well I hope you guys didn't.

Problem is it still is/was priced based on expectations of high growth. Yesterday we found out they actually are losing subscribers, which is way worse than just not growing really fast, obv. I guess the case for buying would be that they're going to grow internationally, but it's kind of hard to guess whether Netflix will take in, say, Latin America in 2012 the way it did in the US years earlier.

Reed's interview in NY Times yesterday suggested that folks who want DVDs soon will be a) people in rural areas and b) "film-school types." Leaving out c) people who want to watch all those movies that aren't available for streaming.

Dude's ahead of the curve, but speaking to someone associated with Goldman Sachs yesterday, Netflix is approaching pariah status to the extent that there are predictions that Blockbuster will ultimately take it out on the streaming front. Which would be very ironic.

Though to be fair, the more distribution heads to a streaming model and away from physical discs, the more films will be available for streaming. At least in theory. If no one rents, then studios aren't going to let thousands of films go unseen. Well, OK, they probably won't.

I still think u should buy Netflix stock. I also don't think u should buy stocks for the short term.

If Netflix can maintain market share and pricing power as the streaming video pie grows, then I think it's a buy - but that's a big 'if'. It's hard to think that streaming is going to be anything other than a low-margin business. It seems like the only necessary participants are the content producers and the content consumers, and anyone in between is going to get squeezed.

I heard a piece on the radio yesterday that explained Netflix's erratic behavior later as a desperate, pre-emptive attempt to avoid being the next AOL - that is, opening the door for others to take over. But Netflix may be predestined to do just that, because surely what it does is neither proprietary nor unique. It's value is its name, but its behavior is, ironically, devaluing that name.

its a little worrying that they're losing so much market capitalization since their big advantage right now is that they have money to spend on deals--amazon doesnt, really, and i dont think hulu has the desire much less the cash--hastings says his strategy is to lock up content in exclusive deals at high prices, which is smart business but not great for the consumer, unfortunately.

i mean if yr buying stocks on a month-to-month basis you probably shouldnt buy netflix, as the last year has shown, but im willing to bet on it in the long-term. not 100 percent confident but then again im not actually spending the money on the stock