Vudu brings over 5,000 movies to your living room

by Daniel Nasserian - Feb 20 2008, 16:00

With movies on-demand gaining popularity quickly, companies like Apple are trying to get their hardware into people's homes. But lately the rise in popularity for the set-top box Vudu has been making quite the impression.

With products like Apple TV on the market and the pairing of Amazon's Unbox with TiVo, one might think there is no way a small start-up from Santa Clara, California would have a chance at the on-demand market. But mix some strong reviews from CNET and The New York Times with support from all major film studios and 18 independent studios and things can get interesting.

The Vudu service currently offers movies in both full high definition and standard definition and has over 5,000 titles (significantly more than the iTunes store). Older movies can be rented for as little a $1.00 with new movies ranging up to $4.00.

The Vudu box is a sleek looking component that requires little setup. Plug in the power, Ethernet, audio and video cables and set up your free account and you're ready to start streaming movies. Though if your connection is slow, there will be a delay before you can begin watching a streaming movie, the system will estimate when you can begin. 

The Vudu shows a lot of promise but there are a couple of things that may make consumers think twice before buying. Currently the Vudu retails for $295.00, which is not too aggressively priced compared to its competitors. Also, the lack of WiFi can be a turn off since an Ethernet cable must be connected for the box to work and if you have less than a 4Mbps connection, high definition movies must be downloaded instead of streamed. The purchases are held on the 250gb hard drive for 30 days (changes to 24 hours after you begin watching) after the purchase is made and video cannot be transferred to external hardware or portable devices due to its DRM.

All things considered, the Vudu might be a big player in the on-demand market if it can make its hardware and pricing more competitive. The Vudu is currently available at select retail outlets or can be purchased online at their site.

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