While Apple and Microsoft have had movie rental services for years now, Google has been slow to the game. On the mobile side of things, Android users had been fairly restricted when it comes getting movie rentals onto their devices. Industry giant iTunes has been supplying iOS users with mobile entertainment for years and Zune had options for Windows Phone users.
Today Google catches up with the other major players by offering video rentals via Google Play. If the movie rental brick and mortars didn’t have enough pain, Google is here to drive the nail in the coffin.
After downloading a new Google Play Movies app you your Android device, you can begin watching a movie on YouTube, then fire up then transition to your phone or tablet. The movie detects your place in the movie and picks right up, just like a Kindle e-book.
It’s a good solid solution to a problem that should have been solved a long time ago. The lineup of titles seems a little sparse, particularly in the New Releases area. Given YouTube’s availability on so many devices, Google Play Movies is a compelling offering that should be considered.
Prices
Movies on Google Play generally rent for between A$3.99 and A$6.99 but there are actually some older titles for free.
Quality
A lot of the titles I checked out were available in DVD quality (480p), but some are available in HD (720p).
Google have made Movies nice and easy to get to with a link at the top of YouTube, right between Browse and Upload.
More info @ Google Play via eftm.
