Written by Nintendo of America while presenting at the annual Game Developers Conference has announced that Netflix will be coming to the 3DS handheld. At this point details are slim but it’s nice to know that Neflix will be available on my next Nintendo handheld and hopefully this means that Netflix will be adding 3D content in the near future.
Posts in category Blog
Netflix Canada New Arrivals – Updated February 28th, 2011
Movies
Alamar
Please Give
TV Shows
Felix the Cat: Golden Anniversary Edition
Inspector Gadget’s Biggest Caper Ever
Inspector Gadget: Season 1
Mistresses: Vol. 1
That Mitchell and Webb Look: Series 1
The Kids in the Hall: Season 1
Heathcliff: The Complete Series
VeggieTales: The Little Boy That Woodn’t
Netflix Canada on Playstation 3 Review
Once again as a precursor to this review I just wanted to point out that I have tried using Netflix on all major game consoles and each tends to have it’s own strengths and weaknesses. So I have structured these reviews in an easy to understand way that highlights what really matters to you: Strengths, weaknesses, and overall.
Platform: The Playstation 3
Strengths
Netflix on Playstation 3
The strength of the PlayStation 3 first and foremost is the consoles overall processing power which is way superior when compared to the Wii and slightly advantages over the Xbox Console. The difference is not noticeable when compared to the Xbox but when compared to the Wii it opens up the ability to smoothly display Netflix video in gorgeous high definition. Let me point out thought that it isn’t 1080p HD it’s the older 720p HD. But I believe that this is done for good reason. If they were to actually stream at 1080p not too many internet connections could keep up with it and it would put a huge dent in your data transfer caps if you are with an ISP that meters your internet.
The biggest advantage I see for the PlayStation 3 is that it doesn’t feel as much like a gaming machine as the Wii and the 360. Yes this is just an emotional thing but I believe that many of you will appreciate the way Sony has designed the PS3 OS and will enjoy using a console that reminds you of a Blu-Ray player when you are watching movies. The 360 for some can feel a little bit childish and when you’ve got 10 friends popping up and sending you message while you’re trying to watch a Clint Eastwood western. It kind of takes you of the western setting.
Weaknesses
The greatest strength of the PS3 to some will be the greatest weakness to others. The Xbox 360 does a great job of letting you connect with friends in strange and quirky ways. And if want to hang out with your Avatar friends and watch a movie together while you chat via Xbox Live then you will be disappointed with Sony’s offering.
Overall
The overall experience on the Playstation 3 is fantastic. No gimmicks, just a smooth professional experience that is sure to please film purists and audio and videophiles a like.
Rating: 4 out 5
Netflix Canada New Arrivals – Updated February 22nd, 2011
Movies
The Covenant
Cassandra’s Dream
Altered
Who Is Harry Nilsson?
No One Killed Jessica
A Bunch of Munsch
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
Pride and Glory
Orgies and the Meaning of Life
Hank and Mike
Three Kingdoms
Resurrection County
The Secret in Their Eyes
Shadows in the Sun
The Night of the White Pants
Crude Impact
The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations
Alatriste
Micmacs
The Wrestler
The Assassin Next Door
The Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town
Bi the Way
Wizard of Gore
Thieves by Law
Primal
Dread
Almost Heaven
Gray Matters
A Time for Drunken Horses
The Yacoubian Building
American Gun
How to Cook Your Life
Petals
Los Bastardos
Comme T’y Es Belle
I Am Love
Chaotic Ana
Cloud 9
Stories of Lost Souls
My Name Is Juani
Birdwatchers
Twice Upon a Time
Frontrunners
Rapt
Summer Rain
Personal Effects
Gone with the Woman
Bananas!*
The Hungry Ghosts
Mein Kampf
TV Shows
Merlin: Season 1
VeggieTales: Minnesota Cuke
Pulling: Season 1
Farscape: Season 1
Survivors: Series 1
VeggieTales: Larry-Boy & The Fib
Undercover Boss: Season 1
Damages: Season 1
Chef!: Series 1
The Big C: Season 1
Gavin & Stacey: Season 1
The Catherine Tate Show: Series 1
Fat Albert’s Halloween Special
A Bit of Fry and Laurie: Season 1
The Catherine Tate Show: Series 1
Leverage: Season 2
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Netflix Canada Message Board
Today NetflixCanada.net has launched a message board for those interested in discussing the Netflix Service in Canada. We are committed to growing this site into a thriving community of dedicated Netflix users in Canada.
Register today!
Netflix Canada Plans
I have received a lot of questions about Netflix in Canada in terms of what plans are being offered. I think perhaps the confusion comes from the fact that they keep things so simple to understand. Simpler than what people expect in today’s world. They don’t have plans, they just have one price. It’s $7.99 per month and you get the first month free as a trial. We are taut that if something sounds too good to be true why should ignore but I urge you not to in this case. It’s simple, affordable, and has a growing lineup of content. The reason it’s priced so competitively IMO is because they started small in terms of their lineup and they will probably never have all the new movies. It’s not that type of service. If it had everything it would probably cost 50 dollars per month.
Netflix Canada New Arrivals – Feb 9th, 2011
Movies
Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief
Tooth Fairy
Appaloosa
41-Year-Old Virgin Who Knocked Up Sarah…
Our Family Wedding
Growing Op
ExTerminators
A Very British Gangster
TV Shows
The Tudors: Season 4
Top Gear: Series 9
SNL: The Best of Adam Sandler
Weeds: Season 2
SNL: The Best of Commercial Parodies
Zip.ca versus Netflix in Canada – Which one is better?
When it comes down to it comparing Zip.ca to Netflix in Canada is like comparing apples to oranges, or in our case it’s like comparing maple syrup to Canadian back bacon. But before I get into what’s so different about the two options allow me to first detail the few things they do have in common. They both offer movies and tv seasons and they both charge a monthly fee. But that’s about where the similarities end.
Zip.ca is a service that provides you with the opportunity to have physical disks mailed to you so that you can watch content on your dvd or blu-ray player. Netflix is a service that allow you to instantly watch streaming content via the web without the need for physical disks. Which option is right for you depends entirely on what kind of person you are.
The Argument for Zip.ca
If you go with Zip.ca you will have some advantages. The selection of movies and tv seasons to watch is far more fleshed out then what you would get with Netflix. Don’t be surprised if many if not all the new movies you are accustom to renting at a rental shop are available via Zip.ca. Plus, with Zip.ca you will not even need an internet connection at home. You could manage your queue on your cellphone or from a work computer during breaks. If you do have an internet connection you might also prefer Zip.ca since it doesn’t use up any of your internet bandwidth. In the future companies may start dinging you for going over your monthly data transfer limit.
The Argument for Netflix in Canada
Netflix provides a decent selection of movies and tv seasons to you in the most convenient way ever. You can watch content then shut down your tv and Netflix player and then come back the next day and continue watching where you left off. You never need to swap disks in and out and you certainly won’t need to keep track of a shipping envelope and remember to drop off the Zip.ca movies in the mail when you’re done with them. Plus, it’s cheaper then Zip.ca. The cheapest Zip.ca plan is still 2 bucks a month more than Netflix and with that plan you only get one disk at a time so there would be serious downtime in between movies.
At the end of the day the choice is yours. But for me personally I found Netflix to be much more enjoyable overall and I can still go and rent something if I’m looking for a movie not available on the Netflix service.
Netflix Canada Selection Improving?
One question many folks have had for me has been “Is Netflix’s Canadian Selection Improving”? And let me start off by dispelling a popular notion that is patently false. The selection of movies and tv shows available on Netflix on day one isn’t the be all end all of what the service is going to provide. Yes they have been constantly adding new content to the service including a slew of new movies recently including Percy Jackson and Harold and Kumar.
It seems like they keep adding content on approximately a weekly basis and they are certainly adding new content at a pretty steady rate. The trouble is that people keep comparing the Canadian selection to the American selection which is really unfair at this point. They need to negotiate separately to get the rights to content for the states and Canada. So it’s not like Canada just has way less content it’s just that they had to start from scratch when they launched in Canada and the United States was years ahead. Give it a few years and I bet the Canadian side will almost be on par with the American side in terms of content.
Using Netflix on Wii
I just wanted to start off by saying that I have tried Netflix on all three major video game consoles and all three seem to have their various strengths and weaknesses. So I will structure these reviews by breaking them down into three simple categories: Strengths, weaknesses, and overall.
Platform: The Nintendo Wii
Strengths
On the Wii Netflix is very intuitive and easy to use. There is something about being able to sit on the couch with a beer in one hand and the Wii remote in the other hand and browse the Netflix library. Thanks to the systems one handed controller Netflix feels just like regular tv except it’s enhanced due to the accurate pointer of the Wii remote controller. It’s nice to be able to point and click through the various Netflix menus.
The next difference about the Wii is going to make it into the strengths and weaknesses category. The Wii has a lower resulotion making the picture quality on par with watching a DVD movie. It still looks great and uses up a lot less bandwidth. I have found on 360 that it will often pause the movie to re-adjust the picture quality several time during a movie and this never happens on Wii. And in Canada more and more ISP’s are starting to crack down on heavy internet usage. Watching Netflix on the Wii is a good way to lower the amount that you download off your ISP.
Weaknesses
While watching Netflix on the Wii still looks great it certainly doesn’t look as good as it does on the 360 and PS3. If you’re a picture quality buff you may be slightly disappointed with the Wii’s picture quality especially on a larger screen.
Overall
The Wii is a great way to watch Netflix. It’s simple, intuitive, and let’s face it a very high percentage of homes in Canada have a Wii system hooked up to their tv. If all you have is a Wii it’s really a no brainer and certainly beats running a cable from your PC to your television set.
Rating: 4 out 5