:11: Hulu, Netflix and ESPN3 = My Life

Being without cable television for the first time in my life has reduced my exposure to whatever is available on Netflix Watch Instantly, Hulu Plus and ESPN3, all via Xbox Live on the Xbox 360. While I thought this would be absolute torture, it has actually turned out to be rather convenient.

Netflix is hands down the best of the three but all are very useful and could forever change the way people watch movies and TV.

First, Netflix provides its content with no commercials and while both Hulu Plus and ESPN3 have commercials, but they are much shorter than standard TV commercial breaks.

Second, there is a wide variety of movies and TV shows available on Netflix including most of my favorites plus a few that I have grown to love such as Lost, Mad Men and How I Met Your Mother. Hulu Plus has some popular TV shows, but still doesn’t come close to the inventory of movies available on Netflix.

 

 

Third, these applications can be used all around the house and even across the country with just one account. While my parents in California are happy renting 2 DVDs at a time from Netlfix, my 4 roommates and I in Oregon can each have our own game systems set up in our rooms with the convenience of Netflix Watch Instantly. Then by paying for Hulu Plus, we are able to watch more shows with that same convenience.

Finally, the best part about these applications is that they will always improve. As the months go by, Netflix, Hulu, ESPN and even Xbox all provide updates for a faster, smoother and overall better experience.

If you love watching TV and movies, I would highly recommend buying an Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii or a PlayStation 3 and subscribing to Netflix and Hulu Plus because it will free you from the slavery that is programmed television.