Coming off of what was an invitation-only beta period, Redbox Instant is now available for the pubic. At this point the invitation is no longer needed and signing up requires nothing more than a visit to the Redbox Instant website. Well, that and the action of actually signing up. We should also give the warning right from the beginning, there is a free trial available, however you will need to provide some credit card details in order to get started.
That out of the way, Redbox Instant offers unlimited movie streaming along with 4 DVD credits (per month) to use at a regular Redbox kiosk. The free trial period will cover one months time and outside that, the service will set you back $8 per month. Based on that Redbox Instant seems like a pretty nice deal, especially for those who may be comparing the service to Netflix.
Aside from the appeal for those who want a low-priced combination of streaming and regular DVD rentals, you may want to consider where you are doing your watching. At the moment Redbox Instant is available for Android as well as iOS and the Xbox 360. It is also available for select Samsung branded smart televisions and blu-ray players.
Device support aside, we should also make note that the Redbox Instant Android app has recently been updated. In fact, it has been updated today. The update brings the app to version 1.0.3 and it remains available for devices running Android 2.3 or later. This update was on the minor side and brought some “design enhancements” as well as closed captioning support for select movie titles. Of course, those using the Redbox Instant app will also be able to browse movies, reserve movies at the box, bookmark favorites and stream.
[via Redbox Instant]
Redbox Instant seems like a cool service, but I don’t see the appeal when DISH Blockbuster @Home is just 2$ more per month. That small amount gives my family and I unlimited rental of Blu-ray/DVD movies, TV shows and video games delivered to my mail box. We can stream thousands of movie and TV shows as well. I know after working a long day at DISH, the last thing I want to do is run around trying to find a Redbox that isn’t out of the movie we want to rent; I prefer to know that it will be waiting for me when I get home instead.