Netflix vs Lovefilm – which is best?

Which is best?

There's nothing better than relaxing at home and watching a great movie. In recent years the selection of on-demand films has been greatly improved with new companies entering the market.

With Netflix and Lovefilm leading the way I thought I'd compare the offering from both services.

Netflix

What you get:

• Unlimited movies and TV episodes streamed over the internet
• Monthly charge of £5.99
• Over 10,000 titles available with an emphasis on TV shows rather than movies
• Watch on TV via PS3, Wii, XBox 360, PC or any streaming device
• Watch using iPad, iPhone as well as Android or Windows phone or tablet. Just download the free Netflix app and log into your account
• Watch on as many devices as you like but only on one at a time
• Movies and TV episodes start playing in seconds with no need to wait for downloads
• No commercials and you can pause, rewind and fast forward as much and as often as you like
• 3 video quality settings to help manage your data usage
• Offers HD and surround sound but picture quality will depend on internet speed

Lovefilm

What you get:

• Unlimited movies and TV episodes  streamed over the internet
• Postal service available for movies, TV episodes and video games
• Monthly charge of £4.99 for unlimited streaming
• Monthly charge of £5.99 for 3 DVD or Blueray discs per month by post
• Monthly charge of £7.99 for unlimited streaming plus DVDs and Bluerays by post
• Monthly charge of £11.22 for unlimited streaming plus DVDs, Bluerays and video games by post
• No limit to how long you keep the DVDs for the postal service and postage is prepaid both ways
• Watch via PC, PS3, XBox 360, Kindle Fire HD  plus iPad and many internet enabled TVs
• Up to three films can be streamed at any one time
• Over 7,500 titles available with a greater emphasis on movies rather than TV shows
• No commercials and you can pause, rewind and fast forward as much and as often as you like
• Offers HD but picture quality will depend on internet speed

Which is best?

One of the major drawbacks of both services is their lack of recent releases, anything less than one year old will probably not be available on either service. The reason for this is that new releases are offered to pay-per-view then put out on DVD before being available to streaming services.

So which is best? Costs are comparable so it really depends on what you prefer to watch, as Netflix offers the best TV show catalogue while Lovefilm has the best movie catalogue. Picture quality for both depends on your internet speed so Lovefilm's postal service may be useful in low speed locations.