After years of being on people’s wish lists, Netflix has finally started rolling its most oft-desired feature: the ability to download movies and shows for offline viewing. This option is available in the Netflix apps for iOS, Android, and Windows 10. RELATED: This means a couple of things: you can watch Netflix on the go without eating up your data cap, and you can watch your favorite shows or movies while on a plane or subway with no data connection. That’s pretty huge. Of course, there are caveats, too. Firstly, the option to download movies or shows isn’t available for the entire Netflix catalog yet, but rather a specifically curated subset. A large part of the offline catalog includes Netflix original shows (which, let’s be honest here, is some of the best stuff on Netflix anyway), along with some other select titles.
Dec 1, 2017 - When inside the Netflix application, the menu should have the option to filter for “available for download” or some similar wording. At least, that is how you would. Earlier today, Netflix dropped a blog post announcing that you can now download Netflix content—including movies and TV episodes—and watch it offline. Immediately, an update to the Netflix iOS.
I imagine the selection will continuously change, which should keep things fresh. So, how do you get this new feature? It’s actually incredibly easy. The first thing you need to do is make sure you have the latest version of the Netflix app on your respective device (yes, Windows users, you’ll need the Windows 10 app—this doesn’t currently work on the website).
Once you have the app installed, it will be quick to let you know about the new feature as soon as you open it up. Front and center, baby. You can always select “Find something to download” to get started, but if you happen to navigate away from that window, you can also open the menu by swiping in from the left side and selecting “Available for download.” This will show the entire offline catalog. Before you start going download crazy, however, you should be aware of some of the new settings regarding downloads.
You can choose to only download content on Wi-Fi (which is highly recommended, and on by default), as well as what quality to download. Unfortunately, Netflix isn’t very straightforward with the options, just “Standard” and “High.” As you can probably assume, Standard will take up less space, where High will eat up more.
On my Pixel C, I could definitely see pixelation and artifacting with the “Standard” setting, but things cleared up quite a bit with “High.” I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that the latter is 720p, but there’s no documentation that directly states this. The first time you open a title that has the download option available, Netflix will kindly let you know with a small popup.
Even after that window is gone, however, grabbing a show or movie is super easy: tap the download button right next to the episode name or below the movie description. When the download starts, a progress bar will show up at the bottom of the screen. When it’s finished, a notification will appear letting you know it’s ready to go. On Android, you’ll also get a notification in the shade. To access your downloaded content, slide the menu open (again, sliding in from the left) and select “My Downloads.” Movies will start playing as soon as you tap the entry, where shows will open a list of everything you’ve downloaded from that series.
Tap on one of those entries to play it. When you’re ready to delete an item, tap the icon in the upper right corner (on the My Downloads page)—it’s a pencil on Android, and reads “Edit” on iOS. On Android, check boxes will show up next to the downloaded content—tap those boxes for the entries you’d like to remove. On iOS, red Xs will show up next to the titles. Tap the X to remove the download. Alternatively, if you’d like to remove all downloaded content, you can head back into the Settings menu by sliding in from the left and scrolling down to “App Settings,” then tapping the “Delete All Downloads” button. And there you have it: Netflix’s new offline feature in a nutshell.
Netflix binge watchers, your biggest wish is finally coming true. You can now watch shows offline.
Netflix's mobile app added an option for users to download films and TV shows in advance to be able to watch it later without an internet connection. That means if you're about to go on a trip or travel by plane, you can just predownload shows to watch anytime without worrying about data. But there's a catch. Not every show and movie can be viewed offline, but Netflix says many are included, such as its original series Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black and House of Cards.
But just because it's a Netflix original doesn't mean it will work. The film The Little Prince can't be downloaded, at least not yet. And neither can some licensed shows and movies.
Such as the BBC Sherlock. To tell if a show can be download in advance first, you have to update the app, it's available for iOs and Android. And then, look for an arrow symbol next to a title, that indicates it can be downloaded. There's also a new category on the Netflix app menu, called available for download, which lists all shows that can be viewed offline. And speaking of shows, I have some big news about this show. After five years this will be the final episode of CNET Update.
But dear fans, don't be distraught. You'll still find me everyday on CNET dishing out tech news. I'm just no longer confined to this little spacey, future world backdrop, even though I shall miss it It's pointy edges and colors. Several of us on the CNet team will be giving you daily breaking news reports, and it also gives me the ability to do some bigger reporting projects for CNet, so stay tuned to see what's in store. And a big thank you also, goes out to our awesome update fans. To give this a proper sendoff, we of course, have to play a mashup of some of the best moments throughout the years. From our studios in New York, I'm Bridget Carey.
Thanks for watching. MUSIC Welcome to the premier episode of CNET Update. Every weekday I'll give you a breakdown of the biggest stories in tech and how it impacts out lives. MUSIC Perfect. Shatterproof is right. Yourself doing Yoshi could travel through green pipes.
The app is available for Windows. But seriously, if you think the photo of the dress was blue and black you need to have your eyes checked. MUSIC Our next contestant is one of the largest online retailers in the world.
Facebook is just the latest company, said to be incorporating bots into its messaging services. And no, get out of here, I'm not talking about those bots, I'm talking about chat bots. The emojis are coming to life, would you like a donut?
Then express yourself with these augmented reality filters. Those are not your roots, Larry. SOUND I can't give up ont hat little guy. For CNET, I'm Bridget Carey, see you in the future. Bridge, one to beam up. Reporting from our studio in UNKNOWN, I'm Bridget Carey, queen of update.