Mar 9, 2010

Ways to Save on Movies

After moving, we had to opt to receive cable.  (Had to, as in we could only receive two network stations via antenna--none of which allowed us to watch Survivor!)  Out of 14 years of marriage, I believe we have only had cable for 3 of those years.  But, now we are back on the wagon.

So, to help me come to terms with ourgreatly inflated tv/internet bill, I decided to address what we spend on renting movies.  First off, I canceled Netflix.  Could never get a new release.  Just not worth it for us anymore.

So, my two big strategies (and I will warn you--neither of these are secrets) are to use Redbox for the new releases we want to see ASAP, and to record as many movies off Starz and Encore as we care to see.

First, Did you know you can reserve movies at Redbox?  Not only can you reserve a movie before it is released, but you can also search to find the closest Redbox with the movie you want to see, and then reserve it to pick up within the next couple days.  (You can't use promo codes when you reserve a movie)

When you sign up for an account at redbox.com, you will receive an email with a code for a free rental.  The code is BREAKROOM.  It can be used once per credit card.

Now, when we just feel like watching a movie and don't have any particular title in mind--that is when I turn to Starz/Encore (which were free with our cable package).  I have been watching what newer releases are being shown and recording them with the DVR.  Now we have a list of titles we can choose from whenever we feel like watching a movie.

A couple ways to search for newer movie titles is to go to the Starz page.  (You can also search Encore, which is Starz' little sister that shows older hit movies).  There are a couple of boxes on the right hand side of the page. 

Coming Soon  --  Shows new releases that will be shown in the next few weeks.  (For example, "The Proposal" and "Julie and Julia" are both coming up in April)

Starz on Demand --  Shows top movies available on Demand.  IMPORTANT to note is that all (that I am aware of) on Demand movies (you pay to see them immediately)  are also scheduled to play on the Starz network on certain dates.   You can also see the full list of On Demand movies-then, just click the title you like and view the schedule for when it comes on next.  Set the DVR and voila!

For me, I think the secret to making this work is to record any movie we might want to watch.  Then it is ready to go in our "library".  If we were to just wait until we wanted to watch a movie, then the pickings would be slim to none.

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