Amazon recently added their streaming movie service to Amazon Prime, and it seems like a pretty great deal. Macworld takes a look at both Prime and Netflix streaming to determine which is your best bet right now.
When Amazon Prime’s streaming feature first came out, we noted that it’s a bit cheaper than Netflix. However, Macworld takes a look at a few other characteristics – notably selection and platform – to see how the two services stack up. The verdict? Netflix is probably still your best bet, unless you really want Amazon’s two-day shipping:
On paper, Netflix’s selection of about 20,000 titles beats out Amazon Prime’s 5000 titles, but there’s a chance Amazon Prime could have the same popular titles as Netflix, right?
Wrong. Amazon Prime’s selection isn’t even close. A quick survey of Amazon’s “Prime Eligible” pages for movies and TV shows reveals a dismal lack of popular and recent titles. None of the Netflix recent arrivals is available on Amazon Prime; however, you can stream these same titles using Amazon Instant Video, the site’s pay-per-view streaming service.
Both services are available on a number of different platforms, like TVs, set-top boxes and Blu-Ray players (though not on the Apple TV). Netflix is available on a few mobile devices, while Prime isn’t yet. Overall, Amazon’s service has potential, but it’s lack of recent titles means it’s probably worth the extra $US16 a year to keep paying for Netflix – for now. Hit the link to read more.
Update: Previously mentioned streaming service Clicker has released a chart comparing Amazon Prime to the other streaming services out there, including Netflix, Hulu and iTunes. You can check out their blog post here, or click on the chart to the left to see the full-size version. [via Engadget]
Amazon Prime vs. Netflix: Video streaming feature showdown [Macworld]