capture streaming movies from netflix?

[jagabo]

And you are never going to get anywhere near HD quality from netflix streaming!!

Netflix has HD streams. Not full Blu-ray 1080p resolution and quality but better than DVD.

How do you get those ?

Do you have to subscribe to their bluray plan ?

No, I don't think so. I currently have Blu-ray disabled (although it was enabled before) but I still get HD streams.

Because i've seen some current day movies streamed from them and they have compression artifacts all over the place!!

Like I said, they're not Blu-ray quality but they are higher resolution than DVD. I suspect 1280x720 at 10 to 15 Mb/s. There's a little HD symbol in the PC player when the video is HD.

[Noahtuck]

Like I said, they're not Blu-ray quality but they are higher resolution than DVD. I suspect 1280x720 at 10 to 15 Mb/s. There's a little HD symbol in the PC player when the video is HD.

I am going to have to look a little closer, can you give me the name of a movie that show that little HD symbol ?
I don't recall seeing one but that's not surprising.

I have been a subscriber for many a years, off and on, but i have never had a bluray subscription yet and i don't really watch a lot of streaming video from them as i just have dvd's sent to watch.

[jagabo]

can you give me the name of a movie that show that little HD symbol ?

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

I watch a lot more streaming than DVD or Blu-ray. Both our HDTVs have Netflix streaming (one native, one via a Blu-ray player).

[usually_quiet]

EDIT:

THIS IS NOT SCREEN CAPTURING - I AM REFERRING TO CAPTURING WITH COMPONENT CABLES FROM A CABLE HD PVR ONTO MY HAUPPAUGE HDPVR.

I just noticed what you were asking about. My mistake.

This was in regards to recording from another device not the computer itself.

You can screen capture video in an HD resolution @ 30 fps or 60 fps with just a dual core and not drop many frames? Amazing. What type of compression are you using?

my cable hd pvr is set to 720p and if memory serves its a 60fps setting (well 59 something or other is what arcsoft reports).

I'm about to turn in for the night and I'm on a different computer right now so I can post screen shots later.

What type of compression are you using?

I usually set to 4mbs or so if I'm trying to fit a less than 2 hour cap onto single layer dvdr. I go higher if I'm going to be using my wdtv media player - ie no discs.

I have played with video capture enough to see first hand that using light compression generates enormous files even from an 720x480 source, and sometimes results in dropped frames when the HDD can't keep up. Too many dropped frames seems to be a common problem with screen capture software.

By light compression do you mean high bitrate? The hdpvr can go up to 13.5mbs. If memory serves a 2 hour cap at 4mb gets me 4gbs. I don't have my personal scale written down so I eyeball it most of the time.

this is a hardware device remember so I'm not sure dropped frames are as much of an issue. I haven't noticed any in my captures. What I do notice are of course the cable blips and hiccups I normally get every now and then with my comcast hd cable. Not frequent enough to be disruptive just common enough to be slightly irritating.

The results on the whole are quite good. For avchd authoring i tend to leave commercials in and only do basic chapters. Unfortunately the arcsoft software seems to be the only consistently reliable authoring app I have that takes every file everytime. I love multiavchd but once in awhile I seem to get hiccups on my hdpvr caps. I tend to use multiavchd for more special projects - and it does it great.

I just don't do much hd editing on my dual core.

I'm sure usually_quiet you can appreciate why.

It can be cumbersome editing hd. Simple cuts without special effects or wipes or fades aren't too bad. But any compression or reencoding can be time consuming.

But I do like capping at 13.5mbs for my vhs material at 720x480. I've used my panasonic ag1970 with svideo and rca and I get great results. On the tapes that are sp and commercially produced I can get pretty amazing results. I also don't have the file sizes on hand but I've been popping them on my wdtv gen 1 player and they work out quite well.

OK now we are on the same page. To clarify this further...

The Hauppauge HD-PVR uses hardware compression, so the CPU doesn't need to be very powerful to record an already encoded stream from an HD source.

...but screen capture software recording at an HD resolution demands a more powerful CPU to be able to perform software-based compression in real time. I suspect there is even more overhead involved with HD screen capture than for an HD capture device that does encoding using software.

Comparing HD captures to SD captures, there is 6 times as much data to process for 1080i, and 5.33 times as much data to process for 720p.

[Megahurts]

If you would like to know more about your download stats:

Shift-Alt and left click on the movie window and a menu will apear. Click A/V Stats and it will display bitrate, frame rate and much more.

[martysmarty]

http://audials.com/en/tunebite/index.html

Audials Tunebite works great, screen capture method.

I've also got Audials Tunebite software for this kinda jobs. Actually have it since a couple of years ago and been using mostly to download videos from youtube, vimeo and a couple of video sites I like but recently I also use it from now and then to record some streaming movies or tv shows I like from Netflix, for timeshifting of course.

Works pretty good to record videos from netflix subscription or from other video streaming sites I usually go to plus it's waaay cheaper than a hd pvr, if you ask me.

If you don't have a lot of money to spend on this, using some sorta screen recording software might be a cheaper solution.
As I said, also depends greatly on your budget.

Myeah, this I have to think about, good point though about my budget.

200 bucks or more for a hd pvr or some other new hardware might a bit too over my budget just to use it to record streaming movies from Netflix, pretty sure gonna sleep in the dog house if the girlfriend finds out.

This piece of software sure looks way cheaper bun still not sure how good it works.

Have to give this some thought.

[handyguy]

Someone wrote how to capture it with VLC:
http://forum.videolan.org/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=58200

[usually_quiet]

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[usually_quiet]

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[Marquitos306]

Just wondering, though might be a sorta stupid question, if you guys use Netflix watch instantly: is it also possible to capture or download streaming movies from Netflix watch instantly in any way?
I just want to save a couple of movies for later playback, going away for a couple of weeks and I won't have any internet connection.
Any ideas if this is possible or not?

I record movies from Netflix all the time for me and my family only. I have a Sony dvd recorder and a Grex to open the copyright protection. I don't sell videos and only make one copy for personal use.

[bluesbabe2]

I record movies from Netflix all the time for me and my family only. I have a Sony dvd recorder and a Grex to open the copyright protection. I don't sell videos and only make one copy for personal use.

Thank you for that info. Could you explain more about your setup? (I am not good with computers, and most of the previous posts have sounded like they require more savy than I am equipped with.) For example, I can only get netflix on my computer, since I have no other equipment. How do you get it? I glanced at Grex, but it doesn't list computers as a signal source. And which sony are you using? I assume you mean a standalone.

For over 6 years I have been trying to track down a 1980's cult film never released on DVD, and less than 50 libraries in the entire USA have a copy of the VHS, which have long waiting lists for it. I've tried finding used copies online, but they are poor quality bootlegs and cost a fortune. The only place I have found to "rent" a viewing is on netflix instant. I am considering getting netflix for no other reason than to finally have my own copy of my favorite movie. I would appreciate any guidance you can give me.

[jagabo]

Could you explain more about your setup?

Since he is using a Grex he has some device which outputs composite or s-video. Maybe something like a WDTV Live Plus or a DVD player with Netflix ability. Many computers have those outputs too. It sounds like he's capturing with a set-top DVD recorder but any standard defintion analog capture device would work. The Grex is necessary to strip out the analog copy protection signal.

For over 6 years I have been trying to track down a 1980's cult film never released on DVD... The only place I have found to "rent" a viewing is on netflix instant.

What film is that? Just curious.

[bluesbabe2]

Since he is using a Grex he has some device which outputs composite or s-video. Maybe something like a WDTV Live Plus.

Wow, thanks for the instant response.
What exactly is a WDTV, and what other things could you get netflix instant on? I only have a tv, a tivo, and a computer- no wii or xbox. Can a WDTV be connected to the internet? I poked around a little, and there seem to be a lot of versions of it. I don't think my laptop has s-video out- would composite be a lesser quality?.

What film is that? Just curious.

(smile) Big Time/Tom Waits

[jagabo]

What exactly is a WDTV

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=320

and what other things could you get netflix instant on?

Many Blu-ray players have Netflix. You can also view Netflix via many game consoles: PS3, XBox 360, Wii, etc.

Big Time/Tom Waits

I verified they have it:

[bluesbabe2]

OMG
Are you watching it right now.....!!!???

[jagabo]

I just started playing to verify it was available. And to get an idea what the picture quality was like.

[bluesbabe2]

I just started playing to verify it was available. And to get an idea what the picture quality was like.

you're killin' me...
I can hear it
I can see it
I can even smell it.........

I'm in pain.

[bluesbabe2]

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=320

Many Blu-ray players have Netflix. You can also view Netflix via many game consoles: PS3, XBox 360, Wii, etc.

Well, yes, but as I said I have a tv, a tivo, and a computer. Let me elaborate- it's an old analog tv, it's a used series 2 tivo, and I don't even get Hi Def cable. I get 20 stations, for $17/month. No xbox, no Wii, no PS3. Netflix was supposed to email me a list of compatibles, but it never came.

I had already looked online at WD TV before I posted. There are so many versions of it, and I'm not sure I really understand. They talk about wireless and storage space and I don't quite grasp what it actually IS. Is it a central dispatching unit for sending media from one place to another, or is it a place to KEEP all your media? Or is it essentially just a receiver, that's fancier if you pay more?

[jagabo]

The WDTV series are media players. They play media files (from network shares, USB drives) and internet content like Youtube and Netflix (some models) and output HDMI and analog video. The WDTV Live Plus and Live Hub support Netflix. You can connect both to the internet (ethernet cable or wifi) to play Netflix content. The Hub has an internal hard drive to store media files (but it does not let you store the Netflix content it plays directly).

There is no way to download and save Netflix videos at this time. At the behest of Hollywood, Netflix goes to great extents to prevent you from keeping copies of the streamed video. The only way to retain copies is to use screen capture software or to take advantage of the "analog hole" (or to get a black market HDCP stripper for encrypted HDMI signals). Ie, use a device that outputs analog video and record that with a VCR, DVD recorder, or video capture card. But even the analog output of most devices is protected by Macrovision or CGMS-A. So you need either a device that strips those protection signals away, or a recording device that ignores them.

What Marquito306 described is using a player that supports NetFlix and a DVD recorder:

(internet connection) --> NetFlix Player --> composite or s-video --> Grex -> composite or s-video --> DVD recorder.

If your computer has a composite or s-video output (many do) you use that instead of a stand alone media player. It may not require the use of a Grex as many computers don't support Macrovision or CGMS-A copy protection (ie, they don't add the signals to their video outputs).

Another possibility is to use a VGA to composite scan converter. Those convert VGA output of a computer to a standard definition video signal. For example:

http://www.amazon.com/PC-To-TV-Video-Converter/dp/B001CJOLBW/

You'll still need something to record that video signal -- a VHS deck, a DVD recorder, a video capture card, etc.

The screen capture methods require software that can record whatever is on the computer screen. The advantage is that everything is done in software so you don't need any external hardware. The disadvantage is that can be tricky and require a fast computer in order to get clean results. Look at programs like Fraps, Camtasia and VirtualDub.

[bluesbabe2]

jagabo
Thank you so much- that was thorough and very helpful. I now feel like I have at least a working overview of this. The down side is that it has also made it clear to me it's a lot of either expense or trouble to go to, just to get a copy of one hard to find movie. Every potential option you have listed, also presents an obstacle for me in one way or another. There's only one that I might still look into further, but may I ask, when you say a "fast" computer, how fast do you mean? My laptop is decent, but perhaps not exceptional....
BTW, what was your conclusion about the picture quality of that movie? Was it even worth going to the trouble of persuing this? It was never released on DVD- only VHS.

[handyguy]

Easy: Play it fullscreen on your computer, record with a camcorder or your digital camera.

[bluesbabe2]

I can do it on my dual core just fine (2gb ram vista premium 32bit).

I've been reading this thread because there's one movie (never on DVD) I'd like to save a copy of and I can't find it anywhere but netflix. I have a 2.25 Intel Core 2 Duo running XP - would that be sufficient? May I ask what you use for capture? (or were you not referring to screen capture...)

[jman98]

Reply Video Capture (NOT free) MIGHT work, but you'd have to get a copy and test it. I think it may have a demo mode you could try, but I'm sure there are limitations on that. Netflix and Hulu and other streaming services use a type of technology that does a very good job at preventing copying. I've never heard of any free programs that can defeat. Programs like Replay Video Capture work because they copy the streaming media as it plays on your PC.

I thought Netflix only had stuff available from DVD/BD so it seems odd to me that they would have something available for streaming that is not on DVD, but I can't personally say that you're wrong.

[jagabo]

when you say a "fast" computer, how fast do you mean? My laptop is decent, but perhaps not exceptional....

It depends on how large a screen area you want to capture and the software you're using. Just try it for yourself. There are free programs with the ability to capture from the screen. VirtualDub and VLC for example.

BTW, what was your conclusion about the picture quality of that movie? Was it even worth going to the trouble of persuing this? It was never released on DVD- only VHS.

It was watchable. If you really like the movie and want a copy I'd say it was worth capturing.

[olyteddy]

...I thought Netflix only had stuff available from DVD/BD so it seems odd to me that they would have something available for streaming that is not on DVD, but I can't personally say that you're wrong.

One of my all time favorites Sometimes a Great Notion was the first movie shown on HBO and was only released on VHS (and film, of course). It's currently on NetFlix WI. I'm sure there are others.

[jman98]

...I thought Netflix only had stuff available from DVD/BD so it seems odd to me that they would have something available for streaming that is not on DVD, but I can't personally say that you're wrong.

One of my all time favorites Sometimes a Great Notion was the first movie shown on HBO and was only released on VHS (and film, of course). It's currently on NetFlix WI. I'm sure there are others.

Thanks for the info. But...
http://www.amazon.com/Sometimes-Great-Notion-Universal-Vault/dp/B004LLIRRM
It was released on DVD in the UK as well in April 2009.

Often when people say "It was ONLY released on VHS" they are quite wrong.

[fritzi93]

Because i've seen some current day movies streamed from them and they have compression artifacts all over the place!!

You have a more discerning eye than the general public, I think it's safe to say.

I don't have streaming, but watch movies on Encore HD over Comcast cable, also the free On Demand HD movies on occasion. I see bitrate starvation, but my wife doesn't know what I'm talking about. I wouldn't be surprised if Netflix is even worse.

[jagabo]

Because i've seen some current day movies streamed from them and they have compression artifacts all over the place!!

You have a more discerning eye than the general public, I think it's safe to say.

I don't have streaming, but watch movies on Encore HD over Comcast cable, also the free On Demand HD movies on occasion. I see bitrate starvation, but my wife doesn't know what I'm talking about. I wouldn't be surprised if Netflix is even worse.

Keep in mind that the quality you get varies depending on the bitrate of your connection and what's available at the time. And some movies/shows are encoded better than others.

[olyteddy]

...I thought Netflix only had stuff available from DVD/BD so it seems odd to me that they would have something available for streaming that is not on DVD, but I can't personally say that you're wrong.

One of my all time favorites Sometimes a Great Notion was the first movie shown on HBO and was only released on VHS (and film, of course). It's currently on NetFlix WI. I'm sure there are others.

Thanks for the info. But...
http://www.amazon.com/Sometimes-Great-Notion-Universal-Vault/dp/B004LLIRRM
It was released on DVD in the UK as well in April 2009.

Often when people say "It was ONLY released on VHS" they are quite wrong.

Interesting...I already have it on DVD+R (encoded from the VHS version)...

[zodiac-]

I'm going to drag this thread from the dustbin, I'm wondering how this device would do recording netflix streams as described above http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_hdpvr2-gaming.html has hdmi in/out.