redbox

Reserve game or movie rentals with Redbox for Android

In the past, it was easier to load the Redbox Web site and reserve copies of movies or games there. The reserve feature is especially useful in heavily populated cities, where something might be gone by the time you make your way to the physical Redbox. With access to this same functionality on your mobile device, you can easily reserve a rental during (provided you're not driving!) or before your commute home from work or school.

Grab a copy of the new Redbox app for your mobile Android device. You will need Internet connectivity to use the … Read more

Mountain Lion roars onto Macs

Mountain Lion roars onto Mac computers and Netflix is getting some new competition:

Mac users can now upgrade their operating systems to version 10.8. The official CNET review praises Mountain Lion for its cloud functionality and useful updates to some core apps. However, a lackluster gamecenter and a dictation feature that requires an internet connection are a bit disappointing. So should you upgrade? If it were any more than $20 we'd say no, but the price for this update is just right.

Apple also announced its Q3 earnings, and while iPad sales soared, a drop in iPhone consumption … Read more

Disney delays DVD releases to rentals, Netflix

If you were hoping to catch "Friday Night Lights" star Taylor Kitsch with his shirt off in Walt Disney's "John Carter," you may have to wait a few more days.

Disney has begun delaying select title releases to rental companies and Netflix by 28 days, which means the studio has held back on the June 5 release of Kitsch's "John Carter" to places like Redbox, Blockbuster, and Netflix, according to Home Media Magazine.

Disney is the last of the major studios to begin embargoing its DVD releases, a practice it started with … Read more

Three ways to save big on video games

Video games are an expensive hobby. A typical new release for a console like the PlayStation or Xbox costs about $60. That might not seem like a lot relative to the number of hours of entertainment you can reasonably expect from a game, but it's still a pretty big chunk of change.

For example, when LEGO Star Wars III and LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean came out last year, they were priced at $49.99 apiece. My kids desperately wanted both.

Sorry, kiddos, but in my day we dropped a quarter in a slot and liked it. No way … Read more

Redbox partners up to challenge Netflix

Google is working on augmented-reality goggles, say goodbye to Blockbuster Express kiosks, and Redbox and Verizon team up to take on Netflix.

Links from Monday's episode of Loaded:

Redbox pays $100 million for NCR's Blockbuster Express

At a time when the DVD appears to be dying, Redbox has acquired NCR's entertainment business for $100 million.

NCR is a company that specializes in automatic teller machines and retail kiosks. If you used one of those self-serve ticket machines at an airport, chances are you've used an NCR product. The company began operating more than 10,000 Blockbluster Express DVD kiosks after acquiring the brand from the original Blockbuster video rental service (Blockbuster went bankrupt and the brand and some of its stores were acquired last year by the Dish Network). Apparently, NCR couldn't make … Read more

Redbox rebuffs Warner Bros., won't delay rentals for 56 days

The 56-day rental window Warner Bros. has reportedly tried to impose on its partners didn't go over too well with Redbox.

The kiosk-rental company announced yesterday that its contract with Warner Bros. had expired and that it had no intention of entering into a new agreement with the film studio. The company did assure customers that it has other ways of getting access to Warner Bros. movies and TV shows, and that they'll still be available in its kiosks.

"Redbox will continue to provide our consumers with affordable access to new release movies from all major studios … Read more

Redbox breaks up with Warner

BlackBerry London details leak, Sony gets a new leader, and Redbox thinks a deal with Warner Bros. is a stinker.

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

Warner Bros. to force Netflix, Redbox to wait 56 days for DVDs?

Warner Bros. has kicked off a new trend that could make it even harder for you to rent a DVD when you want, according to a report.

The movie studio has signed a deal with Netflix, Redbox, and Blockbuster, requiring the rental firms to wait to rent DVDs 56 days after they go on sale, All Things Digital reported yesterday, citing sources. The deal is expected to be announced at the Consumer Electronics Show next week.

If the companies did, in fact, ink the deal, it could be a major blow to the rental companies. Currently, consumers are forced to … Read more

Verizon may hook up with Redbox for Web video

Verizon Communications is in talks with Redbox about an online video service that would compete with the likes of Netflix and Hulu, according to Bloomberg.

The telecommunications would work with Redbox, which runs a chain of movie-rental kiosks placed in front of supermarkets and retail stores, to create a content-distribution plan, Bloomberg said, citing unnamed sources. The deal would provide Verizon with experience on working with content providers and align it with a brand known for movie delivery. Redbox is a unit of Coinstar.

The news comes after Reuters reported that Verizon was ready to create its own online video service, … Read more