
Netflix’s new plan: save a buck with SD-only streaming - shawndumas
http://arstechnica.com/business/2013/12/netflixs-new-plan-save-a-buck-with-sd-only-streaming/
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sergiotapia
I got Netflix this December 1st and it's been amazing! My wife enjoys it a
lot, she sees lots of romantic comedies. My kids watch Lazy Town and I get to
see a lot of shows I never heard of such as Archer.

The service is now indispensable for me. I think a lot of people will get this
plan, not to save money, but to be able to watch videos faster with less
choppyness.

I don't know why but Netflix on my PS3 is lag free, and looks DVD-like. But on
my PC or Mac or phone or ipad it's very laggy and takes a long time to buffer
and pauses to buffer during the video.

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MBCook
Different devices can get different streams from Netflix (to support different
encoding/decoding and bitrates/capabilities, I expect).

The implementations behave differently, that's for sure. For example I know my
Apple TV buffers at the top resolution it can before playing video so it
starts in HD. My older TiVo (and my PS3?) start playing instantly but you can
notice when it switches over to the higher bitrate streams.

For fun, on the PS3 you can press a button (select?) which will display the
current video and audio data rates from Netflix in the corner in a small font.
You can watch it adjust as network conditions change.

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interpol_p
That's weird, my Apple TV (latest model) starts in a lower res and you notice
the HD stream "pop in".

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ams6110
Fully on board with this. I would much rather have SD resolution that's quick
and responsive than HD that continually pauses to rebuffer, or freezes up for
no apparent reason, pixelates, and generally makes itself insufferable.

Negroponte nailed it 20 years ago. HD pictures are not the issue. Content on
demand is.

[http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/1.01/negroponte_pr.html](http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/1.01/negroponte_pr.html)

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__pThrow
It also maybe a win for tablets streaming over capped mobile plans where an SD
stream may suffice and incur less bandwidth overall.

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brownbat
I'm torn. I want 1080p content from Netflix, but they seem reluctant to
deliver that to the Windows 7 box I use in my living room. Apparently if you
have Windows 8, or any number of devices, you're fine.

[https://support.netflix.com/en/node/8731](https://support.netflix.com/en/node/8731)

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cheald
Just pay $30 for a Chromecast. It's a much nicer experience than trying to
wrangle a Windows machine, to boot.

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brownbat
> Just pay $30 for a Chromecast.

I already own an HDMI cable. The "wrangling" involved plugging that in, along
with a dongle for a wireless mouse and keyboard, then turning on High DPI
mode.

I get general purpose computing from my couch. None of the living room
solutions I've seen so far come anywhere near my experience.

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IvyMike
It occurred to me that maybe this is just a marketing hack. Some people out
there are just cheapskates, and need to feel they are getting a deal. I am
related to several such people.

This is a way to make those people feel happy.

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tiquorsj
Sounds like a market test or elasticity check to me as opposed to a full blown
plan. Though I guess selling SD for ~80% of the price probably represents much
better margins on the bandwidth.

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w1ntermute
I don't know, with the recent slowdown in cellular data speeds as the networks
have gotten overloaded, there might not be much point in streaming HD video to
your mobile device when you don't have wifi. For someone who's on the road a
lot, I can definitely see value in an SD only plan.

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MBCook
Huh. Maybe this is designed for people with data caps?

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mrfusion
Speaking of SD on Netflix. I just got an Apple TV and the only way I could get
iTunes to sell me SD movies was to change the settings to tell it my tv is SD.
But now Netflix will only stream in SD. Total bummer.

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jamroom
You should be able to go into Settings -> iTunes Store -> Video Resolution and
set it to SD - then your purchases are in SD but you can still view in 1080p
(at least I believe so).

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mrfusion
That's actually exactly what I did. But it seems like everything in Netflix is
in SD now.

(But perhaps I'm only watching things that come in SD anyway?)

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jordwest
The article seems a bit sarcastic, but let's not forget that the discount is a
full 12.5% discount.

You guys have it pretty damn good, $7-8 for unlimited streaming would be
amazing. Here in Australia we have nothing comparable to Netflix. The closest
thing is Quickflix - it's twice the price and doesn't have anything you
actually want to watch.

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romanlevin
You should get a VPN. Sure, it will cost you a bit extra, but Netflix has
absolutely no qualms accepting your non-American credit card and you'll be
able to watch other region-locked content. The VPN I use has absolutely no
problems delivering HD content from Netflix and Hulu.

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jordwest
The legalities of this are still a grey area however. Some have suggested that
bypassing geo-licensing restrictions is as bad as straight out torrenting:
[http://www.smh.com.au/digital-
life/computers/blogs/gadgets-o...](http://www.smh.com.au/digital-
life/computers/blogs/gadgets-on-the-go/is-paying-netflix-the-same-as-
stealing-20130717-2q3e2.html)

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gcb1
that shows a total lack of touch to their own product, or the more probable
answer, they are bleeding thanks to content owners boycoting them and so they
are scrapping the bottom end.

see how this thread is full of joyfull clients on their first months? everyone
loves it... until they ve seen all of it, which is very limited to begin with.
and they only add things like sharknado...

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thezach
I'm not meaning to gripe, and netflix is still worth the few bucks a month...
but it seems like the service is declining. From content losses to constant
buffering issues it often leaves me wondering if i should continue to
subscribe or just use other means of getting content.

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legohead
sounds like more of a setup to eventually charge $1 more for 4k

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monksy
Anyone have a wget one liner for getting all of the videos?

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monksy
Oopps..meant to post this on the Computer Chaos club videos.

