Yea Netflix!

I promise you, this is something I never thought I would enjoy. But Netflix has turned out to be a really nice thing for us.

Being very picky about what we watch, I didn't think I could choose enough movies to make this worthwhile, but I was wrong! Since TV is getting less and less interesting, we started subscribing to Netflix six months ago, and we've averaged 4+ movies a month for a monthly fee of $8.99 plus tax. There are several subscription levels, but at this one, we get unlimited movies, one at a time. If your schedule's not as hectic as ours, you could easily view 2 movies a week under this plan. [If the two of us went to the theater 4 times a month, which we would never have time for, it would cost a minimum of $44.00 for matinee seats without refreshments. Plus, there normally aren't 4 movies in one month in the theaters we are interested in.]

Here are the things I like about it:

• I can return the movie whenever I like. No hurry.
  
• When I'm finished with a movie, I just put it in the envelope they provide, and pop it in the mail. They get it the next day and mail another one out the same day. I get it the day after that.
  
• On the Netflix website, I have a personal "Queue", where I've lined up all the movies I want, in order. When I send back a movie, they send me the one at the top of my list. I can change the list around anytime. I can choose from thousands of movies, and see a good description of each one before I put in on my list (a much better selection than the video store). Amazingly for someone so picky, I have 116 movies (and old TV programs) in my Queue, and I keep adding to it.
  
• If my top movie pick isn't available, they send the next one. This only happens with newly released movies, and I generally don't wait long at all to see a new one.
  
• I rate the movies I've seen, and from that, they recommend movies I might like.
  
• I can put my account "on hold" for up to 90 days and not be billed, or I can cancel at any time.
  
• I can give a gift of Netflix to anyone for whatever amount of time I wish.
  
• Though I haven't done this, there are certain movies that you can watch instantly on a computer.
  
• Anytime I see a movie advertised that I'm interested in, but can't see it at the theater, I add it to my list and it is kept in the "Saved" section until it becomes available for rental. Then they add it to my list.
  
• If there are any problems with the DVD, I can call and they will send out a new one right away. We've only had a small issue with one movie so far (scratches).
  

Check it out at www.netflix.com. Tomorrow, I'll give you a list of my favorite movies I've seen from Netflix so far.