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Netflix: iPhone Streaming Coming... In The Future

Cory Bohon — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:41:26 -0500

In a recent interview with Reuters, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said that iPhone streaming could be coming eventually.

Netflix is a great resource for watching completely legal movies online streaming to your Mac, Xbox, and some Blu-ray players, but the mobile audiences have mainly been left out of the streamy-goodness.

When asked if Netflix is currently working to bring their movie streaming service to iPhone, Hastings replied, "It’s something that’s likely to come over time. But nothing in the short term. (With) movie watching, we are not focused on mobile yet, but (instead) on the TV, on Blu-ray and on the video game consoles. We will get to mobile eventually, including the iPhone."

Of course AT&T's video streaming terms on the cell network could stop this idea cold just like it did with Slingbox. So, if we even got this application, you'd probably have to connect to a Wi-Fi network. That is, unless the FCC has its way.

via Ars Technica

iPhone To Gain Netflix Streaming?

Cory Bohon — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:09:55 -0500

Netflix might not have the best catalog when it comes to instantly viewable movies, but when it comes to devices it works with, they have you covered. That is unless you're on an iPhone or Apple TV. You can get Netflix on your Xbox 360, TiVo, Mac/PC web browser, and certain other setop boxes.

A new rumor sparked by an unknown industry executive believes that Netflix may soon be making its way to iPhone. Perhaps the application would take advantage of the built-in HTTP streaming, but one thing that's almost certain is that AT&T may get upset over possible bandwidth surges just as they did with the SlingPlayer mobile app.

Of course, this is just a rumor, but it would be nice to watch movies from Netflix (or Hulu?) without paying outrageous fees for iTunes movies/TV shows.

via AppleInsider

Podcast #101: Netflix on the iPhone and Your Questions Answered

Mac|Life Staff — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 17:34:22 -0500

The staff gets excited about the potential of Netflix on the iPhone, then realize that it probably it won't happen and cry a little. We talk about the Google Voice fiasco a bit more and we lament the horror of the Facebook iPhone app and its many shortcomings.

Got a question, but you're afraid to leave a voice message because of Witness Relocation Dept. rules? Drop us a question via Twitter twitter.com/maclife.

This week's Battlestar Applactica picks:

BullBingo - Free

Tweet Reel - $2.99

Don't forget, the Mac|Life staff would love to hear your thoughts, comments and ideas for the new podcast. Just leave a message on the Mac|Live question/comment line: (877) 404-1337, extension 622. Please limit the length of your messages to 1 minute max. We'll review these calls each week and feature our favorites, along with responses, on that week's podcast.

To subscribe to the Mac|Live podcast series through an RSS feed, click here; if you want to subscribe through the iTunes Store, click here.

Understudy Adds Netflix and Hulu to Front Row

Roberto Baldwin — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:41:10 -0600

If you're a fan of the under-appreciated OS X application Front Row, have we got good news for you.

A new plugin for Front Row has popped up in Google code that enables streaming video from within Front Row. The plugin, Understudy, brings Netflix and Hulu right into your Front Row interface.

The developers warn that Understudy is a work in progress and should be treated as so. Users should sign into their Netflix or Hulu account via Safari before loading Front Row after the install.

If we've cut your productivity in half today with this news, we're sorry. OK, we're not sorry, we're too busy watching Arrested Development.

Streaming Netflix for Mac Now Officially Available

Danny Estrada — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 11:53:28 -0600

A while back we were more than happy to announce that Netflix had begun beta testing streaming movies for Intel Macs, much like the service that is currently provided to Windows machines, Xbox 360, and the Roku box. Well now all Mac owners will be able to take advantage of this service without fear of vicious beta monsters swallowing their precious bookmarks.

Best known for their mail-based DVD rental service, Netflix also offers "Watch Instantly" a service, which until recently, was available only for PCs. The service lets you stream over 12,000 movies and TV shows to your computer.

Mac users were feeling out of the loop, thankfully they will no longer have to shlep to the mail box to enjoy movies. As long as you have an Intel Mac, OS X 10.4.8 or later, 1GB of RAM, and a browser with Microsoft's Silverlight plugin, you are good to spend the rest of your weekend in bed with your laptop and commercial-size bag of popcorn.

The service has been in the beta testing stages since November 2nd, and is still undergoing some testing, but we can't wait to catch a few episodes of Little Britain.

Podcast #63: Netflix on Mac Goes Live and Apple Comments on New Mac Rumors

Roberto Baldwin — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 23:02:38 -0600

Netflix opens their Watch Instantly beta to anyone with an Intel Mac willing to opt-in. Apple breaks their usual media silence concerning rumors and shares its holiday hardware release plan in one sentence and we share the greatest iPhone pedestal ever.

A Canadian band is chosen for our weekly, "Keep or Delete." Each week we download and review the free iTunes song of the week and decide whether we're going to keep or delete the file. This week's artist:

Beast - Mr. Hurricane

To subscribe to the Mac|Live podcast series through an RSS feed, click here; if you want to subscribe through the iTunes Store, click here.

First Look: Netflix "Watch Instantly" for the Mac

Michelle Delio — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:03:32 -0600

Netflix has finally made their “Watch Instantly” streaming service available for the Mac platform.

If you own an Intel-based Mac, you no longer have to stalk your mailbox waiting for those little red envelopes to show up in order to get your video fix -- you can stream them from Netflix. PowerPC users are still out of luck, and Linux users are also not able to access Watch Instantly.

The new Watch Instantly service uses Microsoft’s Silverlight, a browser plug-in that supports rich internet applications, AKA: animation, audio and video and vector animations among other media.

Netflix’s Silverlight-based Watch Instantly service is still firmly in beta, with all the expected glitches you’d expect in a not-ready-for-primetime offering.

Video and voice don’t always synch perfectly, sometimes lagging by half a minute. TV series and animation appears to have more synching and playback issues than movies. Playback performance issues and problems seem to be about equal on Mac and Windows machines.

The new player does not support closed-captioning/subtitles, a significant concern for people who have hearing disabilities or non-linguists with a taste for foreign films (or anyone who believes in accessibility, period).

The player also doesn’t disable the computer’s screensaver or energy-saving settings, users need to turn these off manually if they don’t want the movie to be interrupted due to the system thinking the computer is not in active use. Dual monitors are not well supported; movies playing in full screen on our secondary monitor reverted to embedded view every time we clicked on our primary screen.

Not all of Netflix’s library is available through Watch Instantly, the selection for Macs appears to be identical to what is on offer for Windows users. There’s a broad choice of current TV series and a decent selection of classic and new films.

Overall playback performance is good, with minimal stuttering and caching. Fast-forward and rewind work smoothly and there’s a spiffy thumbnail feature that lets you preview content as you move back and forth through chapters. Firefox delivered the best performance in our tests, with IE coming in second.   

Problems seem to be spontaneously manifesting for some Mac users though, judging by the comments on the Netflix blog. Some people are reporting the usual vague and unhelpful error messages. One person posted some helpful advice on the blog -- make sure to exit the player by clicking the “Back To Browsing” button, or you’ll be locked out of Watch Instantly for at least two hours, as the system doesn’t automatically release licenses if you simply close the application.

All in all, it’s a decent start and none of the errors seem insurmountable -- assuming that Mac users are willing to install Microsoft software on their pristine machines.

Mac Users Can Now Opt-In to Netflix Watch Instantly

John Pitko — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:32:23 -0600

Netflix has finished their first phase of beta testing the Mac version of their "Watch Instantly" movie player. Mac users with Intel machines can now brave the wild and wooly world of beta testing by opting in to test out the new service. The media player is based on the Microsoft Silverlight media technology used during the 2008 Olympics webcasts.

Netflix posted a list of items you should consider before downloading the media player. Remember, it's still in the beta process.

- There may be bugs. We are logging all errors.
- Not all movies are available to watch with Silverlight. You may notice errors or lower than normal quality when watching certain titles.
- Our new player works on PCs and Intel-based Macs.
- Windows users should be aware that if you opt in, you will need to use Silverlight on all the machines you use to watch instantly.

Some users have already expressed concern about opting out if the player isn't ready for final release. Control and sound issues have also been plaguing some users, but overall the reviews have been positive. Netflix is also adding more content to attract users to this part of the beta, such as movies and episodes of Heroes, CSI, and NCIS. Just hit the "Watch Instantly" tab that is provided.