DVD by mail showdown: Netflix versus Blockbuster. There is a clear winner.

…that is, provided you have no intention of renting Blu-Ray discs.  We don’t here at Meandering HQ (and frankly we’re not content with the selection of online titles) so we’re what you’d call “high usage customers”.

On the surface, Blockbuster looks like the better deal: they match Netflix price for price (for example, the 3-at-a-time plan gives you unlimited access to three movies at once for $16.99) plus Blockbuster throws in Blu Ray rentals at no additional cost.

If you like prompt service and an easy-to-use web movie queue, that’s where the similarities end.

Site Usability

Let’s start with searching: predicting titles based on the first few letters you’ve typed in the search box makes Netflix incredibly intuitive and fast.  Blockbuster’s search box?  No such luck, since it only delivers the old ‘type and hope’ method of searching.

Netflix spends an admirable amount in R&D and it shows in both the functionality of their site and its ability to recommend and predict favorites based on your past rentals and reviews.  And once you’ve add the movie to your queue you can still easily access a synopsis, a rating, and even the reason this movie was recommended for you by Netflix.

Simply mousing over a movie in your Netflix queue reveals detailed information

Its elegant interface also makes it easy to add, move, and delete (and even Undo Delete) movies in your queue.

It's elegantly easy to delete (and undo) movies from the Netflix queue

The Widescreen Dilemma

Now that our TVs are widescreen I find myself almost repulsed at having to watch anything in the old 4:3 aspect ratio.  Of course early movie titles will often leave us stuck with no choice, but for those DVDs from an era when distributors would release theatrical and television aspect ratios simultaneously I insist on something as close to widescreen as possible. Oddly, this information is impossible to find when selecting a movie from Blockbuster and simple with Netflix.

Why is adding the aspect ratio so stinkin' hard, Blockbuster?

Same Price, Totally Different Value

Even if these or other issues are nits you’re willing to overlook, there’s still price to consider.  Before we grabbed a Blockbuster subscription our thoughts were pretty simple: if both are the same price and Blockbuster includes Blu-Ray it must be the way to go.

Wrong.  We overlooked an important part of the process: the movie processing facility.  How promptly do these guys accept movies you’ve sent back to them, and how quickly do they convert that newly opened slot in your movie queue and get your next movie in the mail and on its way?

Here there’s literally no contest.  Both get your movie the next day in most parts of the country, but the magic is in Netflix’s handling.  When Netflix receives your movie it gets checked in well before you get up in the morning (you’ll see the email when you check your inbox first thing after that cup of coffee).  With Blockbuster – well let’s just say it could be another day, or maybe even two.  So it could be awhile before you see that next title.

Spread these delays over a month and you find $16.99 doesn’t always equal $16.99.  With Netflix you can potentially turn that $16.99 into 27 DVD rentals sent to your door.  Based on Blockbuster’s lethargic turnaround system we estimate you can’t get any more than 12.  Oh, and did we mention Netflix even staffs crews on Saturday’s and holidays, even receiving their mail from the USPS when the rest of us don’t?

A Queue That Isn’t

And queues are almost meaningless at Blockbuster.  Netflix has complex algorithms that decide who gets what first and movies with a wait get reported correctly.  Blockbuster?  My top queue item says it’s currently available and has for the last two weeks.  Seven items have been sent out since then, and none of them have been that top item in my queue.  Ugh.

Conclusion

In conclusion, choices are easier when they’re cut and dried.  Based on promos and pricing alone it would be easy to choose Blockbuster for your rental needs.

This is, however, a choice between a company that’s doing everything it can to get your business versus one that’s consistently followed other companies innovations rather than leading themselves.  From purely a pocketbook standpoint Netflix is far easier to recommend.

And from a conscience standpoint it’s almost impossible to want to give Blockbuster another dime for making what appears to be the least possible effort while driving itself ever closer to the dustbin of once great American brands.