03:49 PM by Bob Russell in Miscellaneous | Lounge

A lot of our readers are content junkies. Not just ebooks and web clips, but audio and video content also. As a result it makes sense to present a comparison between the top two (US) DVD rental options, which is what I intend to do here.

The Basics

Each company offers DVD rentals without late fees. You pay for a monthly subscription, and pick the DVDs you want to borrow on their website. You have a personal queue of requested titles, ordered by your priority. They queue also shows you the availability of the title, which might be available now, in a short while, in a long while or coming in the future.

They ship you some dvds, and you get to watch them on your time schedule, and return them in a prepaid shipping envelope. The trick is that the longer you keep it, the less dvds you get to see because you are allowed a maximum number of dvds out at one time determined by your subscription plan, up to 8 at a time for the most luxurious plan.

When they receive a returned dvd, they pick out another one from your queue and send it to you. There are never any costs to the customer for shipping. And you don't have to travel any further than your mailbox to participate.

There are free trials for both services, so you can give them a try without risking your hard earned money. Both services have greatly expanded their distribution centers, so shipping times are minimal for most areas of the country. Blockbuster had been planning to make stores into shipping locations also, but I don't know how far that plan has progressed.

One nice bonus of the Blockbuster plan is that they offer two free in-store rental coupons each month to subscribers just for that last minute movie fix.

WalMart has briefly tried to enter the market, but was not very successful. They ended up passing the business on to one of the other competitors. I think Amazon was rumored to be interested in competing also, but I don't believe they have a service. They simply send people to one of these services.

Pricing

As indicated, the price is basically a factor of how many dvds are out at any one time. If you watch a lot of dvds, then you may find that you are without titles if you choose the 2 dvd package. For example, you may receive two movies one day and return them the next. Then you have to wait for them to be returned, processed and shipped back before you can watch another dvd. Some of the least expensive plans also have a maximum number of dvds per month that are allowed.

There was also a class action lawsuit against NetFlix because they advertised unlimited rentals, but the complaint was that it's not really unlimited. Some small settlement was reached, so if you have been a NetFlix customer in the past you might want to check to see if you are eligable for a settlement (in the form of something like a free month or an additional dvd for a month if you are already a customer).

Blockbuster also offers some additional bonus coupons from time to time. A couple of times they gave me a coupon for a free used dvd, and occassionally add another free rental in-store. Very nice of them, and a nice touch that makes you feel like they really do care about customers.

I can't guarantee the pricing, but it seems that they offer the following monthly plans..

Blockbuster
8 at a time - $47.99 plus tax
5 at a time - $29.99 plus tax
3 at a time - $17.99 plus tax
2 at a time - $14.99 plus tax
2 at a time - $11.99 plus tax with 4 per month max
1 at a time - $ 9.99 plus tax

Each of these plans comes with two in-store free rental coupons per month.

NetFlix
8 at a time - just $47.99 a month
7 at a time - just $41.99 a month
6 at a time - just $35.99 a month
5 at a time - just $29.99 a month
4 at a time - just $23.99 a month
3 at a time - just $17.99 a month
2 at a time - just $14.99 a month
2 at a time - just $11.99 a month with 4 per month max
1 at a time - just $ 9.99 a month

Pricing is clearly very close between the two services.

Shipping

One of the key factors in value received is how long it takes to receive a dvd and ship the next one back to you. This will differ depending on your particular location, but here is what I have experienced from a major city.

The majority of returned dvds, say roughly 75% for NetFlix and 90% for Blockbuster are received the next day and removed from my queue.

Then Blockbuster is also slightly better at return shipping the next dvd quickly than NetFlix. In fact, when they got slow recently, they even offered me an extra dvd out at a time added to my plan for a month. This was NOT even due to a complaint on my part, but was completely handled proactively on their part. One can overlook other shortcomings a lot easier when they do nice things like that for you!

Blockbuster has some nice, and easy to use envelopes. I prefer them slightly in comparison to the Netflix envelopes, which are a little harder to open and reload for returns. But they both work fine, so no issues either way.

If you don't receive a dvd, or it's received damaged, or it is the wrong dvd then you can report it and they will send a replacement item for you.

One negative for Blockbuster here is that they have several times shipped the wrong dvd to me. That's a bit frustrating. Especially when I report it and they do it again! (Yes, that has really happened!)

So both services are pretty good, but I give the edge to Blockbuster (from my location).

DVD Quality

I have not had any problems with NetFlix dvds not being playable, but have had some issues with Blockbuster. Quite a few do come cracked or with a bubbled surface or scratched. I've rented more from Blockbuster than NetFlix so that could be the reason. The really frustrating thing is when I get a bad dvd from Blockbuster and report it, and then they send me a "replacement" that turns out to be the very same dvd with the same defect/damage.

So based on my experience so far, NetFlix wins on the DVD quality.

Customer Service

I haven't had as much opportunity to test the NetFlix customer service, so I can't say too much about it. But Blockbuster has some good and some bad. On the good side, I can say they are relatively consistent at getting back in about a business day. They appear to genuinely have the intent of serving the customer and taking care of problems. They have at times even offered me a free rental coupon in apology for their mistakes.

On the negative side, Blockbuster hardly seems to even read the text I send when I contact them. They are equipped with stock answers and I even wonder if maybe they autogenerate the responses with some kind of AI because sometimes it really doesn't seem like they read what I said. On the other hand, like I said, they have offered coupons in apology so while they may not staff for good personal customer contact, they do seem to care about keeping customers happy.

On the NetFlix side I asked a question and never received a response. Not a good sign.

This one is hard to judge due to limited experience with NetFlix, so I'll not pick a winner. But I have to say that on the whole BlockBuster customer service is simply adequate, not exceptional, but NetFlix customer service is suspect.

Website

I find that NetFlix seems to have more titles, and more titles in stock on their web site, plus the more useful information about titles. I like the way the BlockBuster queue works slightly better when trying to reorder items. I like the NetFlix queue better in how it handles But the Blockbuster site often doesn't allow you to right mouse click and open in a new window, which is a quicker way of looking at a link and returning to the original page.

They both allow you to see your queue without having to log in each time you return.

I'd have to call this one a tie, and both web sites are quite good.

Overall

Both services are really good. I like BlockBuster, but they both do their job well, and provide a great service for those who love to watch dvds.

If you have certain dvds that you just "must" have, either new releases or other popular titles that can be out of stock or missing, then you might want to go with NetFlix. If you want prompt shipping and in-store coupons, then BlockBuster has the slight edge.

Another thing to consider is that both services are evolving, and will probably be taking some quantum leaps into video on demand at some point. No, that's not a scoop, just an obvious observation. Fortunately, you don't have to sign away 2yrs of commitment like when you pick a wireless carrier, so you can afford to choose your current favorite and watch the market as it changes.

I really don't think you can go wrong with either service, and I definitely recommend either one as a hassle-free and simple way to rent dvds.

12:43 PM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Yeah, I know, pretty much any pda on PalmOS or Pocket PC platform can be a great mp3 player limited mostly by the size of the storage card.

But this software seems to make a Pocket PC look and work just like an iPod.
You can get it here.

I haven't tried it, nor do I have any way to tell if the software is safe and stable, but I'm sure there's someone adventurous out there who will try it out and let us know.

11:13 AM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

It's time for all you Palm fans to pump up your MP3 player again with the latest podcast from 1src. 1src's podcast #53 talks about software compatibility issues with the Palm TX and LifeDrive Update 2.0, possible Linux-based Treos for 2006, and the question why noone has picked up any rumors about new Palm handhelds and Mobile Managers yet.

Related: PalmAddict Podcast #34

05:34 AM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Tune in to PalmAddicts' latest Podcast #25 in which Tyler talks about multitasking, the forthcoming TCPMP 1.0 player, leaked Treo 700w manuals and the latest iTunes developments.

More over at PalmAddicts.

05:09 AM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Historians and technophiles alike will enjoy Gartner's two-part analysis of where Palm company came from and where they're heading to. While the first installment talks about how Palm struck gold with the original Palm Pilot in 1996 - only to see its commanding lead slip away over the next few years to competitors like Handspring, RIM, and HP -, the second installment explores Palm's partnership with Microsoft.

In sum, Palm’s future depends on fundamental questions about the market for PDAs. Will the smartphone establish itself as the single device that people carry, or will consumers continue to prefer to tote a second device as well, such as a music or video player? Secondly, will Palm's relationship with Microsoft remain strong? And, finally, will there be a legitimate resurgence of handheld business for Palm, or will the company need to succeed mostly with smartphones? Whatever the answers, if the past nine years are an indication, Palm will not hesitate to make drastic changes to its business model, if it feels the answers to those questions demand it.

Related: The Engadget Guide to How Palm Became Palm Again

04:25 AM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

In a PalmAddicts rant headlined All future Treos to run Windows Mobile? Not so fast.., Jimmie expresses his discontent with Pocket PC fans who continue to proclaim the death of Palm OS.

I am on a rant, I just don't understand why fan sites from the "other side" almost enjoy writing the death of Palm OS, on what now seems to be a monthly basis. They should be happy that they can finally experience a Treo.

I agree with his sentiment about the pervasive anti-Palm smear which is quite apparent in many Pocket PC communities. Listen to me, whose primary handheld device is a Pocket PC: Palm stated repeatedly that they do not plan to abandon Palm OS - and the introduction of the Treo 700w is not going to change their plans.

04:54 PM by MishaS in E-Book Software | Reading and Management

A new version of FBReader is released. This release is targeted to fix problem of Maemo port. Changes:

• Key configuration dialog is fixed (when you tried to select an action for the key, an empty rectangle was shown instead of action list)
• "How To Start" document now uses the latest icons.
• Clicking [X] in non-fullscreen mode now behaves the same way as on other platforms (if you are in text view, the application will be closed, if you are in any other view (library, recent books, footnotes, ...), the view will be closed and you will return to the previously active view)

04:06 PM by Colin Dunstan in Miscellaneous | Lounge

More PDF-related news for today: The PDF file of US President Bush's Strategy for Victory in Iraq speech contains hidden in the document's properties the name of Peter Feaver, a Duke University political science professor.

The discovery that Feaver was the originator of the plan has stirred controversy in Washington. The New York Times has reported that Feaver co-authored an analysis of surveys regarding the popularity of the Iraq war with the American public and concluded that citizens will support the war, despite fairly heavy casualties, as long as they believe it will ultimately succeed.

My humble advice to the government: ban Adobe PDF and advocate open standards instead.

[via GCN]