This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Watching Netflix
Netflix is the most popular streaming service today, with more than 182 million subscribers worldwide. It’s the granddaddy of streaming video services, and the default service offered across a variety of devices.
What’s Playing?
In terms of programming, Netflix is a fairly well-rounded service. It still offers a good selection of movies (but not nearly as many as it used to) and also provides a good number of recent and (some) older TV series.
Unfortunately, Netflix’s selection of classic and foreign films has diminished over the years, but it’s still a good source for popular movies from the past couple of decades. That said, it’s not the first service to turn to for classic TV shows from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
Netflix is the leader, however, in original programming, both series and movies. Its original series are well known and well respected, and include Black Mirror, The Crown, Dead to Me, Fuller House, Grace and Frankie, Nailed It!, Orange is the New Black, Ozark, Rust Valley Restorers, Space Force, Stranger Things, Tiger King, and The Umbrella Academy. Original Netflix movies include Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman, The Last Days of American Crime, Marriage Story, Murder Mystery, and Roma.
What It Costs
Netflix lets you include multiple users on your account; it’s not uncommon for children (even grown-up children!) to share their parents’ or grandparents’ account. You can also stream Netflix to more than one device simultaneously—depending on the plan you sign up for.
Netflix offers three plans—Basic, Standard, and Premium. The Basic plan runs $8.99 USD per month, streams in standard resolution, and lets you watch on just one screen at a time. The Standard Plan, for $12.99 USD per month, streams in 1080p HD and lets you watch on two screens at once. The Premium plan runs $15.99, offers 4K streaming (where available), and lets you watch on four screens simultaneously.
Table 6.1 details what you get with each of Netflix’s U.S. plans.
Table 6.1 Comparing Netflix’s Subscription Plans
Basic |
Standard |
Premium |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Monthly price (USD) |
$8.99 |
$12.99 |
$15.99 |
Number of screens you can watch at the same time |
1 |
2 |
4 |
Maximum resolution |
Standard definition |
1080p HD |
4K Ultra HD |
HDR |
No |
No |
Yes |
Dolby Digital surround sound |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Dolby Atmos |
No |
No |
Yes |
Tech Specs
Which plan you sign up for also determines whether you can receive 4K Ultra HD content. Netflix’s Basic plan is in standard definition, the Standard plan delivers 1080p HD with Dolby Digital surround sound, and the Premium plan gives you 4K video with both HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR. Know, however, that aside from original programming, there’s not a lot of 4K content available; look for the Ultra HD icon for 4K programming.
Similar differences exist in the three plans regarding sound quality. The Basic and Standard plans have Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround, and the Premium Plan adds Dolby Atmos.
As previously noted, you can view Netflix content on up to four screen simultaneously, depending on your subscription plan.
USING NETFLIX
Whichever streaming device or Smart TV you have, the Netflix app is easy to use, and there’s lots of content to discover. Just select a tab or section on the left side of the screen and go from there. (Press the left arrow button on your remote to see all of these section options.)
Netflix lets you create multiple users for a single account; this way everyone in your home can have their own viewing profile. When you first log into Netflix, you’re prompted to select a user.
Select the Home tab to view programming by type—TV Shows, Trending Now, and so forth. Scroll to the Continue Watching row to view programs you’ve recently watched.
Select Latest to view the newest programs and movies on Netflix.
Select TV Shows to view episodes of available television shows.
If you selected a television series, select the season and episode you want to watch.
Select Movies to view available movies.
Select My List to view shows and movies you’ve selected to watch in the future.
Select Search to search for specific shows and movies.
)
)
)
)