How Good Do You Rate LoveFilm

I was wondering how you find LoveFilm as a rental service. I found myself in Asda some 2 weeks ago and I picked up a Blu Ray film entitled The Box it was priced at £13 and I was gonna buy it. But then I thought hang on a minute I do not know anything really about this film as I had not even seen a trailer for it, and if it turns out be be totally crap I would be waisting my money. So I decided to try out LoveFilms free 14 day trial.

Upon signing up for LoveFilm for there lowest priced package I found out you have to make a list of around 10 films and put them in order of priority. So I put The Box as my highest priority along with Ice Age 3. I signed up for the trial around the bank holiday, and it took them some 6 days before I got my first film to watch, it was Ice Age 3 so I watched that and sent it back after 3 days, that took them some 4 days to receive it and yet it was sent by first class post. So I left just the film The Box as my highest priority after all this film was the reason I decided to sign up for LoveFilm in the first place. And now they are preparing to send me out the film Leon which is in my middle priority instead of The Box.

I must say this 14 day free trial seems a joke, as there is no way they can get the films to you in that time. Now I am wondering if I should cancel, as if this is how it works, I may never get to see the film The Box until next year. I myself used to love the old video rental shops, but there is none around where I live now, but what I would say for a video rental shop, is if they did not have the film you wanted you had the choice to walk out the shop without a film and it would cost you nothing.

So just how do you rate LoveFilm? Do you really think they are worth joining.

I have been with Lovefilm for ages,if i send a film back i usually get my next choice in 48 hours.If i received a faulty one they send out another one the next day.Have to say i cant fault them

Sounds good but I bet its not the case with new releases. They just sent out my next film Leon, I bet I wont get that until next Wednesday. There's no way these guys can send you 2 films in 2 weeks unless you watch the film when you receive it and send it back the next day. It's to late now for me to cancel now as well, because they state that you cannot cancel if I have had a film sent out. Well it's been some free trial I must say. They take 6 days to send a film out in the first place, I had it for 3 days sent it back, and they get it themselves in another 4 days later. Then they sit idle for 2 days before sending out your next choice, which in my case was not my next choice. I think what I will do is just have 1 film in my rental list forget having 10 then if they have not got it to send out, then they surely cannot charge me.

I've been with them since they took over Amazon rentals and have never had any complaints.

I have been with lovefilm on and off for around 5/6 years now, and no matter how big the company has grew over that time Ive never been able to fault them for their dvd rental service!!

I recieve my 2 dvds (I'm on the unlimited 2 dvds at a time £12.99 package) and me being abit naughty I copy them and post them back either the same day or the next. The following day from me posting them lovefilm recieve them back and post me another two that very same day and I recieve them the following day. I litterally have no wasted days, they couldnt phyiscally be any faster than they are.

I tend to keep around 30 titles in my rental list, only around 4 on high priority, to try and ensure I get the ones I want to see the most sooner. And I normally have around 4 on reserve. I do have a few blu-rays on my list, only ones where I think I'll really benefit from watching them in blu like Ice Age 3 (as I cant copy these and will have to keep hold of them longer).

One thing I will say though is that last year I was on a more expensive package (£15.99) I think, where I could also rent computer games... but I found them a NIGHTMARE to get my hands on... other than Resident evil 5 Ps3 I only managed to get myself on I think two other titles, both low rated rubbish that I posted straight back, in around 6 months! So yeah, I got rid of that package!

Good lovefilm tip - if you cancel your account every now and again they tempt you back with 3 months free offers. I dunno about everyone else but that extra £40 comes in handy for me :)

Well that sounds good Rachel for you as your obviously into movies big style by the sounds of it. I myself am only interested in renting Blu Ray films and music concerts. I'm not really a film buff at all but like to watch the odd movie now and then, and have no intention of purchasing an unlimited package from them, I have other debts to pay monthly besides having one just to watch movies, so the £3.99 package is more suited to my needs. I can certainly see whats going on here though as to there actual service, and obviously they treat there customers who pay more money for the packages with a lot more attention, than ones like myself who are on the lowest. The chances of you getting your high priority films are a lot more greater, as you are having loads of films in a month. I myself am on a package that sends 1 film out at a time, and only 2 over a month, so the chances of me getting my high priority film is gonna be very slim. As a matter of fact it might be that slim, that I may as well just buy the film because least that way I will get to see the damn thing now, rather than in some 6 months time when there is less demand for it.

I did however have a shock this morning, I actually received my 2nd film from them, which over all as took them 14 days to send 2 films. They only dispatched it yesterday according to my email from them, so least this ones turned up a lot quicker by post, but I still say the 14 day trial is a con because obviously they have no intention of getting them 2 films to you in time over 14 days for you to send them back and cancel. So your never gonna get the trial for free in the first place. I'm sticking to my guns, I will leave 1 film only in my rental list, and if I do not get it they can shove there service where the monkey sticks is nuts.

10/10 for service.

It is about as efficient as it can get. Send a Blu ray back on Monday and on Wednesday morning you have your next one.

Don't listen to people who complain that you don't always get new releases straight away. That's a sacrifice worth taking for the massive back catalogue of hard to find Blu-ray, DVDs and TV series.

With my plan, I can have 2 discs at home at one time and an unlimited amount in a month for £12.99. I've had the service for a year and a half and have rented 170 discs (mostly Blu-ray and TV shows.) I have saved a FORTUNE on films I want to watch but don't want to own. Let's say that 100 of those discs were blu-rays which would've cost me £15 each, I would have spent £1500. At £12.99 for 18 months, I have spent around £235. I have actually changed my plan a few times to 1 disc at home and once to 3 discs at home. They are flexible and allow you to change instantly.

There are also incentives such as whenever you spend £10 in the LOVEFiLM shop, you get a bonus rental to have at home from your list.

The magazine section of the site delivers interesting movie news and many, many exclusive interviews. Another new feature is that some films can be watched online. Some of these are exclusives which aren't available on hard copy anywhere for about a month. The last one I watched was Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience. Some rentals are on exclusive for about a month like Mesrine (great French gangster film by the way.)

It's a business after all and they want people like me to recommened their £9.99 services and up. Let's not forget that you can rent about 2 Blu-rays from Blockbusters for more than that amount. It is excellent value for money and extraordinarily cost effective. If you're not a film buff, you won't get the most out of the service. It's aimed at bona fide film fans.

IF YOU PUT ONE FILM IN YOUR BASKET YOU WON'T GET THAT FILM. Simple as that. You need at least 20 in your list. They even warn you if you have too few. The service is too cheap for you to be able to get exactly what you want everytime. It's aimed at real film fans who have about 6 or 7 movies they want to watch and don't really mind in which order.

Unless you have a shed load of money to burn on Blu-ray (I still own about 100 discs) then LOVEFiLM is the way forward for big film fanatics.

14 days is too short a period to judge them on really.
I was on LF 3 disc package for several years, and got to see most things I was either curious/unsure about and most back catalogue movie/music/concerts that had been released up to that time. Generally dvds were received 48 hrs after returning.

If you are interested in music concerts, LF is definitely the way to go. I don't think I found any music title (or film, even if deleted) they did not have on their database. The rental demand for music titles did appear smaller, hence I always
got these straight away. The generally higher cost of music titles would suggest
the single disc tariff would work out well and be good value for money.

If on the other hand, all you want is latest releases/kiddie films then blockbuster may work for you. They have many copies, but are expensive and you have to make two trips to get a film! Also, try your local corner shop, some will have latest releases available midweek at half BB price.
BB for everything else is a joke,especially for any true film or music fan.
I haven't rented from them for years, but have found some gems rifling through their 4 for £10 'ex-rental' bins, including 'world' titles worth £20 plus!

This is why I cancelled my LF subscription. Buy it (from the cheapest source online or supermarket sometimes). Watch it. Keep it, or sell it on ebay, amazon or play.com. for less nett cost than renting it, sometimes even making a couple of quid. Back catalogue titles here can be picked up for as little as a penny + £1.24 delivery.

Well I must say from these posts it sounds good, but my 2nd film Leon is faulty and only plays from the 3rd chapter so I cannot even watch the beginning of the film. I must say for a 14 day trial, this service is the pits. You would of thought they would have checked the discs before sending them, especially as its a trial which is aimed at enticing customers not turning them away.

Well if you are desperate to see films as ap, (and a landmark piece of cinema like The Box should of course be viewed immediately) then maybe those ones shouldn't be on your Lovefilm list. Lovefilm is ideal for the things you quite fancy but wouldn't purchase. I enjoy the russian roulette nature of it and the not knowing what the gods of Lovefilm will pick for you next. I am on the £3.99 package and only get Blu-Rays generally. I find the quality of films to be so poor that there aren't enough ones worth seeing to be on a higher package. (There's a few good things on my reserve list to be fair though.)

I was a LoveFilm member for about 4 months and despite having an extensive wish list of around 50 movies found that my higher priorities just weren't coming through. Because I watch Blu-Rays where available I was told this was because of low stock numbers but none of this is pointed out in their literature. Also I would use LoveFilm for less mainstream movies esp foreign language and indi productions.
Gave it up and went over to Sky instead. With the HD+ service it works better for me.

I was with them for a year and then the troubles started. First they sent back a faulty DVD I had returned, then I was two weeks without a DVD
together with letting down friends over two weekends without a DVD.
Cancelled my subscription at least two weeks ago but still receiving DVD's

Some interesting points there I must say in the last 3 posts. I notice LoveFilm also have a streaming service but not many titles on this service at all, not only that I would need to upgrade my PC big style to cope with HD or get one of the new TV's with streaming on. Interesting point about Sky HD Mr. Hill though I am sure Sky's HD box is only 1080i but still good regardless, but do they stream the actual HD sound format, because that plays a big factor in me renting the Blu Ray in the first place. I already have Sky Movies with Virgin and these chaps do not even stream 5.1 despite having a SPDIF socket on the back of there boxes. I do not have an HD box with Virgin and with the 1080i factor it puts me off having one. Does anybody know if LoveFilm actually streams the HD sound format.

Mr. D. Le Clercq as just made an interesting point as well regarding them sending the same faulty disc back. I notified LoveFilm yesterday that my film Leon was faulty and I have posted the film back with the box ticked faulty this morning. What is really gonna be interesting here is the fact that I only left 1 film which is The Box in my rental list, its now showing Leon in there as well because they obviously have to send me a replacement. But it will be interesting to see just how long they get the film to me, perhaps they got more chance with Leon as its been out for sometime, but if they have not got enough copies available I wonder if they will send the same faulty disc out.

Mr Lucas..... heres your best piece of advice yet.... ADVOID THE BOX ;)

amazon were much much better, after a month of lovefilm when it changed over I havent been back.

I have just cancelled my account. I was told that I would receive a £20 amazon voucher with my free trial, 3 months later, still nothing. The service was good but I never had any luck getting new films, always ended up buying them before I got them, my older films were no problem mind you.

Everytime I emailed them about my voucher I got somebody different everytime..not a good idea, as your always getting told the same thing, so canceled this morning!

try Blockbuster...they always send the top movies quickly. Lovefilm is a great website but that is about it.

The downside to LoveFilm is that their Priority List is a complete waste of time. I only have a few titles in High, most are in Medium and a few in Low. I havnt had a DVD/Game from the High in months, there are titles that have been out for months now but I still havnt received - incidently none of these titles are flagged as either "short wait" or "long wait".

As regards to their turn around service I noticed when I send back 3 titles at once they almost always only send 1 title upon receiving back the returned disks (normally by next working day) but then dont send another 2 until the day after. I have 27 titles in my queue so its not like there isnt enough for them to choose from to send me and only 10 of these are titles (all in Medium priorty) that are indicated as there being any sort of wait period.

But in all I am very happy with LoveFilm, yeah they do have those 2 annoying things ive mentioned but I have saved a fortune in not buying dvd's and games that ended up being total rubbish as I rented it first!

OMG The Box is a classic example of my saving money from renting first, that film was totally rubbish!

I've had 3 'high priority' brand new releases in the past week... The Road, Precious and Have you heard about the Morgans? Brilliant stuff Lovefilm! Now lets see if I can get Up in the air when I post these ones back...

Please dont slag the Box off...its really not that bad! :)
I do however really like lovefilm. I think their service is amazing - and I agree that you need to have a few titles as high priority, and more than 10 films in the list to make the most of it. I normally get 3-4 discs a week (im on the unlimited 3 discs at once one)

Well since my last post, I got a replacement for Leon straight away, and it worked fine. I sent it back and got The Box which I can say that I am glad I never actually brought it, but I must admit it's not as bad as what people are making it out to be . It's very much like watching something from the Twilight Zone which is watchable and really OK if you like that sort of thing, which I don't mind at all. It's far from a classic movie though that I would buy myself. Lovefilm seems to be OK at the moment as regarding to getting things out quicker by post. I will stick with the same package for now of 2 films a month and hopefully get to enjoy the service a lot better. But I must say the trial period was a disaster.

EasyCinema is worth a look for those who rent fewer discs - a flat rate of £1.99/disc which is hard to beat elsewhere unless you rent enough to warrant an unlimited account. They are a Lovefilm brand. Bit slow on delivery though - normally takes 3 days to get a new one but has recently grown to 4 days (ie in the post Monday morning, they confirm it's received and what my next title is on Tuesday morning, send it out Tuesday night, it normally arrives on Thursday but more recently Friday).

The problem I find with Lovefilm is that it seems to send the most recently added film first. That's not what I want because I'm then never going to see the films I added a couple of months ago. For example, I have 27 films on my list and added one last week. That's now the one I'm being sent next. I can affect this to some degree by making some films high priority, but that means I have to move each film up to high priority when I'm ready to see it. What's the point of having a list? I might just as well order them as I want them.

I rent a load of TV titles rather than movies. Every other disc is usually faulty!

Tried on brand new equipment and several 'older' DVD players and computers. Of course the automated threat letters get sent out after 2 faulty discs on the trot.

Did blockbuster in parallel for a while. The discs are more scratched but ALL have played without issue from Blockbuster. Just waiting for end of current sub period and then LoveFilm can take a walk.

Turnaround is lousy with LoveFilm too. The so called extra disc when one is faulty is a farce because they take so long to despatch it.

The order they send stuff is quationable too. Obscure titles marked as High priority and they usually send low Priority stuff.

On the 15.99 package. And wont be going back to them as Blockbuster have been truly superb.