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Number Slate Review

Star Ratings:

Number of Movie Titles:
Ease of Use / Navigation:
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Value for Money:
Editor's Overall Rating:
Average User Rating:	None posted

No. of Movie Titles: Approx 5,000

Membership Costs :

Unlimited DVDs for $9.95 per month

Features:

Innovative “DVD Circle” system

Keep DVDs as long as you like

No limits to how many DVDS you rent at once OR per month

No minimum contract

Super-tough reusable padded envelopes

No late fees

Cancel anytime - no extra fee

Introductory offer – 2 weeks for free

Website is secure

Editor's Verdict:

This is clever; in essence very simple. The way it works is each DVD title has a “circle”, i.e. the people who put that particular movie on their wish list. Traditionally the rental company would send your DVD in a prepaid package, you would send it back to them and they’d send it on to the next person who wants it. With Number Slate when you are done with the DVD the company tells you who the next person in the circle is and YOU send it to them. As a result, for every two journeys the DVD would have made it now only makes one, which in theory both means you get your movies twice as fast and the chance of well-traveled discs being damaged or lost in transit is halved.

We say, “in theory”, because this system is still very new. New systems can be unpredictable, but this one sounds very promising, in part because its so simple that there are very few components to it and therefore very few things that can go wrong. Naturally, because it is up the members of each circle how long they keep each disc, you do have to be a bit flexible and what you watch and when, but if you really want to see a particular movie urgently Number Slate allow you to bid money on the website to become the next person to get it (however much you bid is then added to your next monthly payment), although of course if this amounts to more than a buck or two you’d probably be better off renting or buying it the old-school way anyhow.

Because each circle operates independently there is theoretically no limit to the number of DVDs you can have out at once or how many you see each month, it's simply a matter of how many DVDs you put on your list and hence how many “circles” you join (sounds a bit like joining a cult, I know, but it's not). There is certainly an elegance to this system, in theory it almost runs itself: all Number Slate have to do is maintain the website and make sure there are enough new DVDs in circulation to keep the customers happy. The only aspect of control exercised by the company itself is keeping track of whether you tend to pass on your DVDs within what they consider a reasonable time span (their allowances are, it has to be said, quite generous). This effects how often your address will be given to the current holder of a DVD you want as the next address to send it to. And yes, the system does depend on other members being given your address (though not your name – codename's are used), but then so does EBay and that tends to run pretty smoothly for most folk most of the time. This system is designed to ensure fair play for the circle as a whole and to help as many people as possible see as many films as possible, and it's nice, in a way, to see a scheme which encourages consideration for other members. Even so, not everyone will like being involved in the process in this way. Some may feel they are doing the company’s job for them, others may find it odd to think of being part of an egalitarian DVD rental community and miss the illusion of a one-to-one relationship with a provider which, apparently, exists solely to serve their needs.

Number Slate’s argument is that most DVD rental services tell you postage is free but actually increase their subscription charges to cover this cost. Here this is not the case because you have to buy the stamps yourself (a minor inconvenience), which, given that you will be paying for one trip rather than two, still means a big saving – on average about 20%. Of course, the value for money you get will depend on how many circles you join as well as how well the system works – you could end up getting no better value than with any traditional rental service if you’re not careful. You need to have a decent sized list for this system to work in your favour; If there are only 20 movies in the world you’re interested in watching then Number Slate probably isn’t for you (and you should probably think about broadening your mind a bit too. I’m just saying).

The website itself is well laid out, easy on the eye and simple to use. The “circles” system is explained clearly (and just slightly smugly) in as much detail as you care to read. Searching their inventory is simple via a rigorous series of genres and sub-genres. One downside is that the reviews and information about the films themselves are very limited. Another is that the range of movies on offer is, compared to the big boys of the DVD rental game, rather small, missing out on several must-have titles. Number Slate’s rationale for this is that they don’t want to buy DVDs that will just sit on a shelf for ages and often don’t buy titles until members have requested them. The range of features offered by the website similarly palls next to those of many competitors, but if you simply want to rent DVDs and don’t enjoy browsing movie opinions and trivia for hours at a time this may not be a problem. And on the plus side Number Slate’s customer service is widely reputed to be very helpful, friendly and highly efficient.

Admittedly, the DVD circle system will freak some people out, but others, particularly those who have a long list of films they’d like to see and don’t mind so much which comes next, may feel this concept is the future of online DVD rental. Whether it is or not only time will tell.

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