LOVEFiLM Instant Review About This Review

Review Period: March 2012 - (on-going) — Review Published: July 6th 2012 — Revised: 22/12/2012

I reviewed the LOVEFiLM Instant service on a Laptop, Mac, iPad 2, Sony TV, Sony Blu-ray player PS3.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Short Summary

LOVEFiLM Instant Review - Reviewed by UK Film Rental on - Rating: 4.6/10

What is LOVEFiLM Instant?

Screenshot: LOVEFiLM.com home page

LOVEFiLM Instant is a new way to watch films online. Watch titles instantly on your PC, laptop, Mac, PS3, Xbox 360, iPad, or internet-connected TV or Blu-ray player. Thousands of titles are available as part of your LOVEFiLM package and at no extra cost.

Here are some of the key features as described by LOVEFiLM -

How does LOVEFiLM Instant work?

Registering on is simple and you can start watching your favourite films within minutes if you follow these 3 steps:

Is LOVEFiLM Instant any good?

Here is an overview of the best and worst bits we found based on our full LOVEFiLM Instant review below. Click + to expand.

Is LOVEFiLM Instant worth it?

After using it for over four months, I think the films available justify the £4.99 monthly subscription, and I would recommend giving it a test drive.

You can read my full review below, or try LOVEFiLM Instant for yourself and

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Films & TV

Update: August 1st 2012 - LOVEFiLM has announced a deal with the independent film studio Miramax, giving members access to hundreds of hours of high-quality content including new titles such as , , and .

LOVEFiLM Instant for Movies

Just Browsing: List of most popular films

There are around 3600 feature films included with LOVEFiLM Instant and new films are being added every week. There are recent Hollywood blockbusters like The Social Network, Taken, and The Dark Knight as well as older classics like Scream, Jackie Brown, and The Talented Mr. Ripley. You'll also find a lot of films you probably won't have heard of - you will find some obscure, undiscovered treasures and some cheap, rubbish films thrown in the mix as well.

Latest releases are not included for free with LOVEFiLM Instant. Instead, they are available as pay-per-view and can be found under the Box Office section. Over time, most new releases will become available as part of the Instant package, although there is no hard and fast rule for determining when a particular film will be available for free. New PPV titles are priced at £3.49 and drop to £2.49 over time.

I also found plenty of films to keep the kids entertained with family classics like Mary Poppins, The Chronicles of Narnia, Spy Kids 3 and 101 Dalmations to name a few. Plus there are loads of TV programmes for the little ones including Fireman Sam, Thomas the Tank Engine, Pingu, Barney and Friends, and Bob the Builder.

Here are some of the most popular films watched by LOVEFiLM Instant customers this year. All of these movies are FREE with a LOVEFiLM Instant subscription.

Recently Added Films

Here are some films which have just been added to the LOVEFiLM Instant catalogue. All of these movies are FREE with a LOVEFiLM Instant subscription.

All LOVEFiLM Instant Films

The films above are just a snapshot of the huge catalogue of films available through LOVEFiLM Instant. Here are some links to relevant sections on LOVEFiLM.com where you can browse the whole movie selection to get a better idea of what is including for free with the Instant package.

LOVEFiLM Instant for TV Series

With LOVEFiLM Instant you have over 4300 television programmes at your finger tips. Through their partnership with BBC Worldwide, LOVEFiLM Instant brings you hundreds of top quality BBC programmes, from popular dramas series like Spooks and Dr. Who, to documentaries like Attenborough's Planet Earth and Human Planet. There's also a lot of US TV series with complete box sets available to stream.

These are a few of the most popular television programmes watched by LOVEFiLM Instant customers. All of these series are FREE to watch instantly with a LOVEFiLM Instant subscription.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Devices

You can use LOVEFiLM Instant on a number of platforms. From laptops and iPads, to Blu-ray players and games consoles, LOVEFiLM have managed to create a fairly consistent design between devices with a good user-interface.

LOVEFiLM Instant on a Computer / Tablet

Watch LOVEFiLM Instant on your TV

Most modern Smart-TV's already have the LOVEFiLM software pre-installed on them by the TV manufacturer. I tested LOVEFiLM Instant on TV's made by Samsung, Sony, LG, and Cello:

LOVEFiLM Instant on Games Consoles

There's no better way to watch films than on a big screen, and it's easier than ever to watch LOVEFiLM Instant on a large TV by streaming movies through your video games console.

LOVEFiLM Instant on Blu-ray Players

I would recommend updating the firmware on your Blu-ray player to ensure you are using the latest version of the software. Many systems periodically update automatically, but double checking won't hurt.

Other Ways to Watch LOVEFiLM Instant

In addition to the methods above, LOVEFiLM Instant will be accessible through a growing number of devices as LOVEFiLM partners with even more product manufacturers in the future.

Several additional Sony products are compatible with LOVEFiLM, including Sony Network Media Players and Sony Home Entertainment surround sound systems purchased since May 2010.

There is also a digital set-top box called ONYX which can stream Internet TV services such as LOVEFiLM and BBC iPlayer. I didn't bother testing the option as these devices don't seem to be very popular yet (if ever?) but I imagine the set up and user user interface is similar to other internet-enabled products.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Pricing

The LOVEFiLM Instant package is priced at £4.99 per month.

LOVEFiLM describes the current monthly cost as a "special launch price", although I reckon with the recent UK launch of , the healthy competition between the two rival services should ensure this price won't rise any time soon.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Free Trial

Everyone gets to try Lovefilm Instant free for 30 days with no obligation to continue after the free trial period.

During your free trial period you get full access to the Lovefilm Instant service; there's no limit to the number of films you can watch and you have the choice of thousands of movies from the complete LOVEFiLM catalogue - just the same as paying customers.

If you decide to continue your LOVEFiLM Instant subscription, you will be automatically billed £4.99 monthly until you cancel your account. If you choose to cancel your subscription during the free trial you will not incur any charges. Cancelling is easy and can be done online by logging in and navigating to the 'My Account' section of the LOVEFiLM website.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Picture Quality

Update: June 4th 2012 - LOVEFiLM has announced it will make films available to watch online in High-Definition, including many movies you can watch for free with the Instant package. This will allow users to stream hundreds of films online in near-Blu-ray quality! I have updated this section accordingly.

Standard Definition

Films in normal definition look fine on devices with small screens likes iPads and laptops, but when I viewed SD content on my 40" TV, although it was still watchable, the picture looked a bit fuzzy and blurred. I think if you are used to watching movies on DVD, then the difference will be unnoticeable, but if you've already made the switch to Blu-ray and you are accustomed to that level of sharpest and detail, the picture quality of standard definition films will be less than impressive on LOVEFiLM Instant. Luckily, LOVEFiLM is continuously converting films to HD and all of the latest releases now are in the HD format by default, so going forward this problem will soon be history.

LOVEFiLM recommends a minimum connection speed of 2Mbps. As an easy test, if you can watch BBC iPlayer without any problems, you will be fine streaming films with LOVEFiLM Instant. This is also where the free trial is handy - you can try it for free and check if your broadband speed is good enough before being charged.

HD Content

LOVEFiLM Instant HD

Since June, 2012 more content has become available to stream in High Definition. A small icon in the top right of the film poster indicates the film is available in HD, in either 720p or 1080p depending on the device you are using. There are no extra charges for viewing HD content, it is included free with your monthly subscription.

The question now is: How fast does my broadband connection need to be to watch HD movies? The official minimum speed quoted by LOVEFiLM is 4Mbps for 720p and 12Mbps for the full 1080p resolution. If your internet speed drops, LOVEFiLM automatically switches to the lower bandwidth version and the film will continue to play in standard definition without any interruption. Broadband speeds are improving all the time. The average UK broadband speed is 7.6Mbps (as of Feb 2012) meaning the majority of UK residents will be able to watch films online in 720p HD quality with their current broadband set-up.

My broadband speed hovers around the 6Mbps mark and I haven't experienced any problems watching films in HD. I have noticed that films buffer when they begin, typically lasting for around 10 seconds, and then stream perfectly right the way through without any pauses or those annoying loading symbols. Films look stunning as well. I watched anything that is available in the UK.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Sound Quality

Back to Stereo

The sound quality with content on LOVEFiLM Instant is the same as if you were watching it on a DVD - if you are using the stereo speakers in your computer or TV that is. On the other hand, if you're used to hearing movies through a surround sound system, you might feel a little under-whelmed. When I first starting using LOVEFiLM Instant, I spent ages trying to sort out the 'surround sound problem' - I tried playing around with the settings on my TV and at one point I even resorted to fiddling with the HDMI cable and digital optical cable that connects my surround sound to my TV. After searching on the internet definite answer that LOVEFiLM Instant will not play films with surround sound no matter what you try - at the moment anyway.

Surround Sound

In fact, the lack of surround sound is my only major certain with the LOVEFiLM Instant streaming service, but hopefully, just like the HD content issues, I'm sure LOVEFiLM will start supporting surround sound sooner rather than later, especially since has supported this right from the beginning. If you take a look at the forums and LOVEFiLM blog posts, you'll see lots of people complaining about the lack of surround sound support, so this is clearly an area where LOVEFiLM know they've got to sort things out pronto.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Frequently Asked Questions

I've published a list of answers to the most common questions people ask about LOVEFiLM Instant. Click on the question to reveal the answer.

LOVEFiLM Instant Review Visitor Comments

Thanks for reading my review of LOVEFiLM Instant! Feel free to leave your thoughts about it below, especially if you are a current LOVEFiLM customer. Ask a question if there's something you're not sure about or let me know if you have spotted a mistake. You can also email me at james@lovefilminstantreview.co.uk

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