[venuvedam]

GTO,

I can't thank you enough for the "WhatsOn" recommendation. You have made my life better in an instant! Thank you. If I am willing to wait for a week, it seems I can get any movie I want to watch on my TataSky box.

By the way, Netflix is slowly but steadily improving the collection. When it debuted in January, the collection was 8% that of the US collection. Now it is roughly 23-24%. However, as you rightly said, even the US collection is nothing to write home about.

Jeroen,

As far as I know, Netflix collection is based on the region you are accessing it from. It does not matter which credit card you are paying with. I have been a Netflix subscriber since times immemorial. When I access it in the US - I get the US collection. In India, it is the skeletal version. In the UK, I get the sizable UK collection. The only way to access another country's collection is to use a VPN service and that's against the terms of Netflix service.

Would like to know if your experience has been different.

[nishsingh]

Originally Posted by GTO

What you won't:

Please add that almost all movies are censored. That too over the top censoring. For e.g. I was watching 'AVP: Alien vs Predator' a couple of years back, and the scene were the alien spikes his tail through a predator's head was censored.
Quite often, scenes like these that are critical to the movie, but deemed violent by the channel censor, are removed, leaving me confused as to what had just happened.
This, for me, takes the fun out of watching Hollywood movies on TV.

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by GTO

What you won't:

Originally Posted by nishsingh

Please add that almost all movies are censored.

This is a deal breaker for me. With so many scenes cut out of movies and dialogues beeped out, it just takes out all the fun. I am done with serious movie watching on TV since quite a few years. It's only online or downloaded stuff for me.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by dark.knight

I'm guessing you watch MN+ Gold Class channel quite a lot?

Indian channels have started to flog advertisements out of the movies to an unbearable extent, something that really tests my patience so I've stopped watching movies on t.v altogether. 20 minute sitcoms is about as much as I can handle.

That's why I suggest a set-top box with recorder. Fast forward through all ads!

Originally Posted by Jeroen

So Im very lucky but we get a pretty decent line up from iTunes as well as Netflix.

Netflix USA has the largest collection and it still sucks for movies (great for tv shows though). Movies come on Netflix much, much after TV, and even then, the library is poor.

Originally Posted by tsk1979

A great free resource :
http://www.cinemasofindia.com/

Thanks for sharing! YouTube has a lot of free movies too.

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

Just curious, does it record the commercials as well? Also, where is the recording saved?

Internal hard-drive. Fast-forward through all ads.

Originally Posted by venuvedam

I can't thank you enough for the "WhatsOn" recommendation. You have made my life better in an instant! Thank you. If I am willing to wait for a week, it seems I can get any movie I want to watch on my TataSky box.

Most welcome!

Originally Posted by nishsingh

Please add that almost all movies are censored. That too over the top censoring.

True that. On my way to add it. Thanks.

[chase_nt]

As an avid Hollywood movie fan since childhood I have to say that the choice of English films that are available on DTH today is just too immense. I vividly remember the days when my dad used to bring home one or two of the latest Hollywood films on VHS every week and as the years rolled on it was the turn of cable to supplant the humble VHS thus offering more choice to the people. A few more years down the line it was the turn of DTH which morphed into HD set top boxes and finally into the HD DVR set top boxes. I've been using a HD DVR for the last 5 years and gone are the days when I used to worry about missing a favorite movie or show that was telecast on TV. The beauty of the HD DVR is the fact that you can just skip through all the ads once you record a movie or a show. I haven't watched a single ad in the last 5 years thanks to the HD DVR.


Though DTH does have some great advantages I feel that it can never really supplant my need to download movies off torrents. In fact I frequently use sites such as YIFY or RARBG to get my dose of Hollywood movies. I only use my DTH as a back up to watch movies for the second time once they are released on Indian television. Some of the reasons why I prefer to wait for blu ray rips to come out and then download them off torrents are as follows:


1. I hate sub titles while watching movies or shows . I feel that they are totally distracting. The DTH providers are simply cramming sub titles down the throats of everyone (i'm sure people like me are a minority) however for the benefit of people like me there should be an option to actually turn off sub titles. I still remember the good old days prior to 2010 when none of the English channels had sub titles ruining the experience.


2. DTH service providers nowadays have started on screen ads during movies or shows . I feel that on screen ads while watching a movie are really annoying and it actually feels like I am watching a cricket match with on screen ads.


3. Most of the English films are censored beyond words with the exception of animated kids films like Frozen or Wall E. I find it really reprehensible that I am not able to watch the movie as it was intended to be. There was a time in the mid 90's when we were able to watch English films on cable channels such as Star Movies or HBO without any chopping of the objectionable parts. Its ridiculous that even dialogues containing the mildest of cuss words are chopped nowadays.


4. Only the popular English movies make it to the DTH channels. There are a lot of English films that do not see the light of day on our DTH networks.


These are a few reasons why I prefer to download English movies (its illegal but unfortunately for me I have no other choice) rather than rely on our DTH providers to screen them for us.

[catchjyoti]

@GTO: Thank you. This thread is just after my heart. Though I do not get much time to watch movies nowadays, but I am a big movie buff. More Hollywood than Bollywood though.

And I have been using the Tata Sky HDR recording for years now. The ability to watch a good movie on my time and being able to fast forward through the adverts is a big blessing. I put the recording request either through website or my iPhone app.

A big Thanks for recommending Whats On India app. Just installed it and already like it.

[Isnescrpy]

While I do agree that Netflix's English collection is dismal, I've found its non-Hollywood/Bollywood collection to be pretty amazing. I wouldn't have watched "City of God", "Old Boy", "Y Tu Mama Tambien" and other such exceptional movies if not for Netflix.

[Mithrandir]

+1 to that GTO. I have never used Netflix. But surely in India, if you have a DTH connection and Full HD TV you don't even have to visit the theaters. I have never set a foot inside a cinema hall in last 10 years. But still I have never missed a movie which is worth watching. As you mentioned, every blockbuster Bollywood movie is there on the DTH a month after their release (may have to wait couple of months more for Hollywood movies). So if you can wait for a month (which I certainly can) you can watch any good movie at your home on DTH with high quality Full HD visuals and sound. No need for movie tickets and no need for buying/renting DVDs (thanks to recording feature). These are certainly exciting times that we are living in...

[landcruiser123]

GTO, there's a way to remotely put programs to record using the TataSky mobile app. Used the feature only once a couple of years ago.

Having this from 2011. It was supposed to change the way I watch TV, but all it did was change the way the ladies at home watch TV. 40 % of the capacity in my box is hogged up by serials and nearly 100% of the viewing time.

I only watch cricket on TV nowadays.

But this truly is a great product. Half an hour serials watched by my mom are cut to 16~18 minutes as she zooms through the ads. Movies are fun, considering you can skip all ads.

Originally Posted by GTO

What you'll like:

• No additional subscription costs (assuming you already have DTH TV).

The box is pricey at around 6000 INR, but it's worth every rupee spent if you're the kind who loves your TV.

I also like the Live Pause feature.

Adding two more to what you won't like section:

What you won't:
1. Ladies in the house taking control
2. You can't record two programs simultaneously and watch a 3rd program live. You can record two programs simultaneously and watch a different recorded program.

[sandeepmohan]

I gotto admit that it is a nightmare downloading content illegally and if you are not someone familiar with the process, your desktop will end up with some malicious code or software than can wreck havoc. You can also spend the better side of over half an hour trying to find a movie that you like and then go hunting for a good print.

A handful of ISP's in my city offer really high FUP's and speeds for not a lot of money. I almost always down load a 10gb HD movie, when available.

Most of my movie watching in very much on TV though. While recording exists on one of my set top boxes, I have not tried using it. Yes; the most annoying part of watching a movie over DTH are the annoying ads and you've already said this, the censoring. The Wolf of Wall Street isn't complete without the action and bad language.

I was speaking to a couple of colleagues about the latest movies reaching DTH before Netflix. This information is most certainly not applicable for Netflix India. There is now an official release date for a digital copy for any new movie release and this is always before the DTH and physical copy release. Why? Well if they release the physical copy or air the movie on DTH, who will subscribe for the movie on a internet streaming platform like Netflix.

On the subject of ISP FUP's and band with, I don't think there is any limitation at all. The only barrier is that we have a problem spending money to get a decent internet package that can support high bandwith streaming.

[kadanaJ]

Originally Posted by nishsingh

Please add that almost all movies are censored. That too over the top censoring. For e.g. I was watching 'AVP: Alien vs Predator' a couple of years back, and the scene were the alien spikes his tail through a predator's head was censored.
Quite often, scenes like these that are critical to the movie, but deemed violent by the channel censor, are removed, leaving me confused as to what had just happened.
This, for me, takes the fun out of watching Hollywood movies on TV.

Originally Posted by chase_nt

3. Most of the English films are censored beyond words with the exception of animated kids films like Frozen or Wall E. I find it really reprehensible that I am not able to watch the movie as it was intended to be. There was a time in the mid 90's when we were able to watch English films on cable channels such as Star Movies or HBO without any chopping of the objectionable parts. Its ridiculous that even dialogues containing the mildest of cuss words are chopped nowadays.

Agreed! The sole and only reason I bother with torrent downloads is because of censorship. Get out the way you stupid censor board, it's my choice what I want to watch in my own home. We live in India, not China!

The biggest disappointment for me on TV has been the airing of Game of Thrones on TV. I was super excited to know I wouldn't have to resort to torrents, but they cut out too much of the show on our Indian TV. Makes watching it on the Set-top Box worthless.

[ani_meher]

I don't see live TV if I can help it. Anyways in the prime time the family members have the remote, so I search for movies/serials from 11pm to 12 noon, and record them. Watching them with fast forwarded advertisements is very convenient.

However, sometimes the starting and closing times are different than what is shown in the TV guide, so there is a chance that 5 mins start or end might not be recorded.

I am using Dish TV HD+ that has USB recording. It cost me some Rs.699 or Rs.999, and it is a bliss! I guess Tata sky recorder is some 5k-6k but comes with an internal hard disk. This Dish TV recorder needs external HDD for recording. It can't be viewed on PC etc, it needs to be connected to the set top box. Also, AFAIK, Dish doesn't have online scheduling of programs, and only next 2 days advance programs can be stored (since only next 2 days TV schedule is shown on the set top box GUI).

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

2. You can't record two programs simultaneously and watch a 3rd program live. You can record two programs simultaneously and watch a different recorded program.

Tata sky has some product where you can record on program and see another. Effectively it is like having two cable connections, and the monthly charge too is bit high for this service.

[fine69]

Originally Posted by nishsingh

Please add that almost all movies are censored. That too over the top censoring.

I'm against any sort of censoring which is why the Tata Sky dish is lying somewhere in one corner of my balcony.

I was planning to do what GTO is doing but realized soon that watching non-bollywood movies is a strict no-no when it comes to TV.

I'm a huge movie buff and watch 3-4 movies (at least) every week. In case I'm not doing much on a weekend the count goes upto 7-8 per week.

But why can it not happen on TV. I recently watched Dirty Grandpa and cannot imagine enjoying the movie if it was ever aired on the TV. It reminds me of another movie - Bad Grandpa, excellent movie again but wouldn't work with our type of censoring.

Any foreign movie lover (Hollywood, Korean, French etc.) can tell you that those movies aren't meant to be watched on TV. Of course one can still watch and enjoy a whole lot of movies which don't need censoring but majority of them do.

In fact I remember that when 'The Ring' was aired on TV, probably a decade back, the scenes where faces of the victims were shown were cut. Imagine that!

[GTO]

Mod Note: Please do NOT discuss torrents and other illegal methods. Team-BHP does not support piracy!

Originally Posted by chase_nt

As an avid Hollywood movie fan since childhood I have to say that the choice of English films that are available on DTH today is just too immense.

It is fantastic and the reason behind this thread. I wasted a lot of time on Netflix etc. until finally realising, the solution is right there in front of me!

Originally Posted by catchjyoti

I put the recording request either through website or my iPhone app.

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

GTO, there's a way to remotely put programs to record using the TataSky mobile app. Used the feature only once a couple of years ago.

Thanks! Oh yes, how could I forget the app.

Originally Posted by Isnescrpy

While I do agree that Netflix's English collection is dismal, I've found its non-Hollywood/Bollywood collection to be pretty amazing. I wouldn't have watched "City of God", "Old Boy", "Y Tu Mama Tambien" and other such exceptional movies if not for Netflix.

Netflix does have a small sprinkling of A+ movies, but they are few & far between. That's why they invested so much in their recommendation algorithm (had a million $ contest for it). Netflix needed that brilliant algorithm so that it can find the best of the junk that you'd be interested in.

Originally Posted by Mithrandir

+1 to that GTO. I have never used Netflix. But surely in India, if you have a DTH connection and Full HD TV you don't even have to visit the theaters. I have never set a foot inside a cinema hall in last 10 years.

While I love DTH, I love the theatre experience even more . There's something special about watching a movie in the cinema (especially on recliners).

As you mentioned, every blockbuster Bollywood movie is there on the DTH a month after their release

Even a mega hit like Bajirao Mastani was on DTH in 3 months. It's still not on Netflix or iTunes by the way!

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

I was speaking to a couple of colleagues about the latest movies reaching DTH before Netflix. This information is most certainly not applicable for Netflix India. There is now an official release date for a digital copy for any new movie release and this is always before the DTH and physical copy release. Why? Well if they release the physical copy or air the movie on DTH, who will subscribe for the movie on a internet streaming platform like Netflix.

Look up the movies listed in my opening posts. Which of them do you see on Netflix? At most, 10%.

Originally Posted by ani_meher

However, sometimes the starting and closing times are different than what is shown in the TV guide, so there is a chance that 5 mins start or end might not be recorded.

Tata Sky does a fantastic job. It usually starts recording 8 - 10 minutes before and after. There's ample reserve at both ends. Probably, 1 out of 50 movies, I miss the start or the end.

Tata sky has some product where you can record on program and see another. Effectively it is like having two cable connections, and the monthly charge too is bit high for this service.

Yeah, it's very useful to record two movies at the same time too. Think it's call a 'dual channel' box or something.

[Odeen12]

To access US Netflix. All you have to do is invest in a good VPN service. It's absolutely legal and there's no drop in performance as far as your internet speed are concerned. Have been using Express VPN for quite some time. You can select which Netflix do you want to access. Express VPN customer service is top notch 24X7. Plus with The VPN service you can also access sites like Hulu, HBO, Spotify etc. Retry good for the monies you pay.