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June 4th, 2005

Netflix: Worth It?

(I know, I couldn’t believe we hadn’t written a Ping about Netflix before, either!)

So, I’d like to share with you the current television entertainment situation in the McAleer household. We’re paying $19.99/month for “expanded basic” cable from Comcast, but it’s approaching the final month. And to be honest we’re not that comfortable with the normal rate, which is – I’m not joking – $50/month. So one idea my smart wife put forth was to dump Comcast back down to the “super incredibly basic” package ($14/month, local channels only) and getting a Netflix subscription.

The reasons for Netflix? Well, we own about 18 or so DVDs but really don’t watch them – renting seems like it’d be better for us. We also have TiVo, naturally, which maximizes our TV usability. Netflix seems mighty appealing in that we could get a steady stream of movies we’ve wanted to see, as well as TV programs we miss like Six Feet Under.

I thought the cable/Netflix combo was a great replacement for DirecTV, which we’re unable to get in our current place for myriad reasons. (I still carry a torch for the day when we can get it again though, because with the DirecTV/TiVo box it was the best TV ever.) As a bonus, it’ll get us watching a little less TV.

I’m ever curious if any Pingers have given this setup a shot, and what you think. Also I wouldn’t mind general thoughts on Netflix and its competitors.

Posted in Consumer Commentary

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