PS3 Amazon Instant Video Service

[Digital-Nitrate]

PS3: The First Console to Offer Amazon Instant Video

Hi again, PlayStation community. I’m here to bring some good news today: Amazon Instant Video is available now on PlayStation Network, making the PS3 the first and only video game console to offer the service! Head on over to the TV/Video Services category of the XMB, where you can download and install the new Amazon Instant Video app right now for free. Once you launch the app, you’ll have instant access to thousands of streaming and downloadable movies and TV shows for rental or purchase. There are more than 120,000 commercial-free movies and TV shows for rental or purchase, including new releases, classic favorites, major TV shows, full seasons and even new episodes of some of your favorite TV shows the day after they air. Many of the DVD and Blu-Ray titles on Amazon.com are also offered on Amazon Instant Video available through this new app.

If you’re an Amazon Prime member (I am!), you’ll also be able to watch as many of the more than 17,000 Prime Instant Videos as you can handle, at no additional cost. If you’re not yet an Amazon Prime member, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial right there within the app or just sign up—it’s $79 per year and totally worth it.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Has anyone compared the audio and video quality of the same movies and TV shows from Amazon's and Netflix's streaming services?

My main issue with streaming services in general is the quality of the video and audio even with so-called HD content.

Now to be reasonable, for many movies and certainly TV shows, for me the picture and sound quality is not that important, but for content with great cinematography and sound, no streamed content I've seen comes close to what Blu-ray offers.

Supposedly Amazon has or is going to start offering some content in 1080p, but unless the bit rate is also increased, the quality will still suffer, just like much of the 720p streamed content is already compressed and picture quality suffers because of it, and as such, even DVDs (480p) look better than any HD streamed content I've seen.

If anyone knows of a site(s) that does comparisons of different video streaming services, especially ones that approach it from a very technical side, please post them here or let me know about them, thanks!

 

[Northstar]

I have been waiting for one of the consoles to get an Amazon app so I'm happy about this. I tried it out and am a tad bit disappointed, mainly with the fact that they changed the in-movie controls from what I am used to on the PS3.

My biggest gripe is still with the dis-organized nature of Amazon Prime's selection. Instead of having all the season's of a show under one icon you have to hunt down individual seasons for the most part(Some do have it condensed but most don't). It would also help greatly if they would let you make a queue of movies/shows.

 

[Ellis]

I have been waiting for one of the consoles to get an Amazon app so I'm happy about this. I tried it out and am a tad bit disappointed, mainly with the fact that they changed the in-movie controls from what I am used to on the PS3.

My biggest gripe is still with the dis-organized nature of Amazon Prime's selection. Instead of having all the season's of a show under one icon you have to hunt down individual seasons for the most part(Some do have it condensed but most don't). It would also help greatly if they would let you make a queue of movies/shows.

If it is a new service then I imagine it will be improved in time