I’ve defended Netflix on these boards several times. However, they’ve really started to go downhill.
I’m tired of them receiving my movies and then scheduling the next ones to ship the next day. This is a real pain especially over the holidays with the three day weekends and holiday mail rush.
Also, I’m tired of movies shipping from all over the country. I wish there was a way to use their website to estimate the time a movie will take to ship to YOUR address. I’m usually indifferent to the top ten movies in my que. I’d much rather have #7 sent to me and arrive tomorrow than #2 arrive next Monday.
Third, I’m annoyed that my return envelopes are now coming from other locations as well. I’ve got envelopes to return dvds to Denver, Minnesota, Florida, California, and Oregon. Previously, they’d all return to Coppell, TX. Luckily, I have a few Texas return envelopes left. Obviously, mailing the DVD across the country takes longer as well.
Anyone else experiencing similar frusteration?
I signed up for a free trial of blockbuster online to see if that works better.
I don’t have any major issues. They always ship my next movie the same day they receive the one I sent back (I usually manually reorder my queue to pick my next 3 movies). I always receive the movie the next day after they ship it (except the one time when the mailperson delievered my movie to my neighbor).
It’s sending movies back that seems to take forever, in my case. I actually haven’t even noticed if the return address changed, I’ll have to check that. Though I think you may be wrong in your assumption that it takes longer to deliver across country.
Nope. They receive the movie the day after I ship it and send the next one out the same day without fail. If I drop a movie in the mail on Monday, I get the next one Wednesday.
Also, if you happen to return two movies at once you can put them in one envelope and thus stockpile your local return envelopes so you don’t end up mailing DVDs across the country.
There’s a debate as to whether none, some or all USPS distribution centers return them to the “Nearest Netflix …” office anyway as printed just above all addresses whether distant or not, since that would save the USPS money and it’s to everyone’s benefit.
I had so many problems with Netflix I decided to cancel. They had a page where you can freeze your account for a few months to think about cancelling so I chose that option so I could keep my queue up in case I hear things get better.
I was worried I’d still be billed but looks like they at least got THAT right. At first I love Netflix but after six months the service started sliding downhill so fast that my last dvd took almost two weeks to arrive, and this was after I’d sent back a damaged disk (the fifth one in six months).
Let me know if BB is better. I might consider trying them out but I don’t even want to use the free trial if it’s all more of the same.
I’ve got the same issues as the OP (I’m outside of Little Rock, AR). It’s to the point now that, since I’ve gone through most of the obscure titles in my queue, I’ll cancel and go back to my local rental palce, where they’ve gone back to $1.50/night rentals. Since my pattern is usually to watch and return asap anyway, this’ll work out better.
I’ve been using Blockbuster Online for about a year now and while it was a little sketchy at first, if anything their service has been improving. I’m not sure how Netflix works, but with BB each DVD comes in its own little pre-addressed envelope so as soon as you’re done with it you zip it up, pop it in the mailbox and it’s on its way back. They send you the next one in your queue as soon as the one you returned is scanned from your post office - you don’t have to wait until they actually receive it before your next one is on the way. If I drop one at the post office in the morning, I usually receive an email notification in the evening that it has been scanned and that my next one is on its way. I average about a two-day turnaround. I’ve only received one bad disc, and I notified them via their website and a new one was sent to me before I had time to send the defective one back. All in all I’ve been very happy with BB.
I bet they get conflicting complaints about this. If I have a movie listed as my #1, then usually that’s the one I want to see next, even if it takes an extra couple of days.
Just recently I had an entire season of a TV show, six disks, at the top of my queue. I watched the first three disks and sent them back. Instead of shipping the next disks in the series, Netflix skipped over them and sent movies that were further down in my queue.
I understand why they did it - probably the TV disks would have taken longer to get to me, even though they showed availability as “now”. But damnit, I wanted to finish that TV show!
I’ve been using Netflix for about 4 years now and I think they just keep getting better. Turnaround time is very fast- watch a movie Monday night, drop in mail Tuesday, they get it Wednesday, I get replacement on Thursday. It’s like clockwork.
The only complaints I have are I get a broken/unplayable disc about every 2-3 months, but if I note it on the website they send the replacement before I return the unplayable one. Also, a couple weeks ago I put one in and it wouldn’t play at all- it had a ring on the back as if someone used it as a coaster. I figured, oh well, I play this one instead- took it out of the sleeve and it came out in 2 pieces.
I think they’re starting to suffer a bit from discs getting worn out by traveling all over the country, but other than the occasional damaged disc, I’m very happy with them.
The service has had ups and downs for me. Most of the time they’re fast. But every few weeks or so, they slow down. Then they pick up again.
there’s no discernable pattern to it, so I just suppose the PO and the local center just has its ups and down in terms of efficency. Still worth twice the price, IMHO.
It’s a Texas center, but I don’t recall the exact name. But that could be it. Why do you ask?
I have noticed that if it’s a more obscure movie (read: anything over 5 years old) it has to come from Des Moines or New Brunswick. And that adds an extra day or two to the transaction.
I dumped them because of turn around time. They sent me an email saying that they had made it better. I tried them again and indeed, it has been really good. But I am a light watcher of movies, so my “really good” and yours may differ. If I send movies back on Monday, I’m content if I get them again before the weekend.
I’m in New Jersey, and I’m served only by the center in New Brunswick, NJ. No problems for me, except the occasional scratched disc (and that’s bound to happen).
I have the same experience. The DC area is served by a facility in Gaithersburg which is just a stone’s throw away. If I drop a DVD off at Union Station in the morning on my way to work, often it arrives in Gaithersburg that afternoon and I get my next DVD the next day.
My queue is mostly made up of foreign and obscure films and I’ve never had to send them anywhere else but Gaithersburg.
I think I’ve had 1 broken disc and 2 unplayable discs in 3 years.
I can not say enough good things about this company – service AND selection.
The tragedy of the commons rears its head. You do realize that if Netflix is giving you a return envelope to another part of the country, it’s because it will be more efficient overall to send the disc there than to your local station, right?
I’ve only been with them for about two months and the only time the shipping time has sucked is on my current one. I sent it out last Friday and just got the “received” email today, which annoyed the crap out of me.