Free DVD Rental Online

DVD Guru back again. Here is my review of the Tesco DVD Rental UK service, which is quickly making its way up the ranks as a great all round DVD Rental company.

Free Trial Period: 14 days (2 weeks)
Number of Titles: Over 56,000
Game Rentals: Yes (only 98p extra)
Adult Titles: Yes
Phone Support: No, Email or Post
Min: £3.88, 1 Disc at a time, with 2 Discs per month
Max: £14.66, 3 Discs at a time, Unlimited Discs per month

They are the leading supermarket chain in the world and are swiftly trying to do with DVD Rental, what they did with frozen chickens; take over! Powered by LoveFilm, Tesco holds itself to the same high standards, whilst operating as a separate entity, making them a great second choice after your LoveFilm free trial has ran out. What’s more is they’re cheaper!

Tesco ships its titles from the LoveFilm warehouse, with the same high standards.

The normal Tesco free trial runs for 14 days (2 weeks) and can be canceled at any time from your account options or by email. The only rule is that all of their DVDs are returned before you cancel, which is common sense really.

As far as Tesco’s website goes, it is one of the more basic out there, but sometimes having no frills makes the process simpler. After all, DVD Rental is all you’re really after right? The layout is simple and easy to navigate, with an order process comparable to most of the other websites out there.

You can browse DVDs by the usual list of genres or use their “Hotlists,” which group DVDs by new releases, top rated, coming soon etc. They also have Blu-Ray and the now defunct HD-DVD, as well as all major console games. One of their cool features is a “top 100″ ranking for each major genre, allowing you to pick a good movie even if you have no idea what to get. Also, a nice bonus for regular shoppers of Tesco is the integration of their Clubcard points system.

Although they do not have phone support like their counterpart, they do have swift email support. Upon testing at 5pm in the evening, I was replied to personally by 11am the next working day. So if you are choosing to cancel by email (maybe your web access is limited at the time), make sure you do it a day or so in advance, just in case.

The rentals themselves are sent out by first class post for expensive packages or second class for the budget packages, either the same day or the day after, depending on when you set up your list (presumably before midday). The discs will come in Tesco branded packaging with a prepaid return envelope, and I believe a box to tick if the disc is faulty (but don’t quote me on it). All of their packages are outlined below :

1 Rental at a time, 2 Rentals Maximum per month, £3.88 (second class post)
1 Rental at a time, 3 Rentals Maximum per month, 5.85 (second class post)
2 Rentals at a time, 4 Rentals Maximum per month, £7.32 (second class post)
1 Rental at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £8.78 (first class post)
2 Rentals at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £11.72 (first class post)
3 DVD Rental at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £14.66 (first class post)

WITH GAMES: 1 Rental at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £9.76 (first class post)
WITH GAMES: 2 Rentals at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £13.68 (first class post)
WITH GAMES: 3 Rentals at a time, Unlimited Rentals per month, £17.59 (first class post)

If you plan on only using a free trial then the last package is a no brainier!