Should You Watch Movies Online?
People often ask me what the best way to watch films online is. Until a couple years ago, it was not a good option because of the high bandwidth requirements, but today, with so many internet users on highspeed connections, watching movies online has become quite feasible. Indeed, today there are many ways to view your favorite films over the internet.
High bandwidth is crucial for watching movies online, so if you are still on a slow connection, the first thing to do is upgrade your connection speed.
For people who do not want to spend money, it is possible to watch movies free on sites like Hulu. However, be aware that the selections will be limited, and also, the films will be interrupted for commercials. But this is still a great option for watching some films online.
A better viewing option that offers more title selections to choose from is to try renting the movies online, which can be done at both Blockbuster and iTunes. At these sites, you pay around 4 dollars to rent a movie, which you can watch on your computer for a limited time. It is similar to traditional movie rentals except that you download a file to your computer.
Perhaps the most economical option for avid movie fans is to join a site like Netflix or Blockbuster. The benefit here is that for a monthly fee, you can have unlimited DVDs delivered to you each month. Although you do have to wait for the DVDs to arrive, this typically only takes a day or two, and shipping is free.
The reason I think Netflix or Blockbuster is the best option is because it is cost effective, the selection is very robust, and I believe it is only a matter of time until these services begin offering download movies as part of their service.
In the case of Netflix, you can already view some 17,000 films online with your membership, although the films you can watch free online are usually older, not so popular titles. Blockbuster, on the other hand, allows you to exchange your DVDs at stores if you don’t want to wait for your next titles to be delivered to you.
All said, watching movies online is great, but because of the lower cost and greater selection, I still think Netflix or Blockbuster is the best way to go for now.
Check out these links to get a free trial for Blockbuster and a free trial for Netflix.