Redbox Movie Rentals
By Shane Rivers
Redbox is a new movie rental service which has emerged to compete with the likes of Netflix and Blockbuster. While movies are selected online, they aren’t delivered to your door. Instead, the customer picks up Redbox movie rentals from one of 15,000 kiosks located in popular businesses such as Wal-Mart, 7-Eleven, McDonalds and Walgreens. If you’ve been to one of these places recently, there’s a good chance you’ve passed by a Redbox machine on your way inside.
How Redbox Works
Since you’re probably wondering how Redbox works, let me begin by giving a brief explanation. The first step is to log on to redbox.com and choose the movies you want to rent. Each Redbox movie will cost $1 per night (plus tax), and you can keep them as long as you want (actually, the movie will be considered “lost“ after 25 days, and you‘ll be charged an additional fee).
Once you’ve selected your movie, choose the Redbox location where you’ll be picking up the DVDs. Don’t worry if you don’t know the nearest Redbox location, Redbox.com has a handy locator tool which allows you to search as close as 5 miles and as far as 20 miles. You can even select a location in a different city if you’re traveling.
The first time you use the website, you’ll need to enter your credit card information for billing purposes. Once you‘ve received confirmation, you can head to the specified Redbox location at any time to retrieve your movies (it will be reserved for you, and nobody else can rent it). When you’ve finished watching your films, you can drop them off at any Redbox location, regardless of whether you got the movies there to begin with. You must be 18 or older to rent movies from Redbox.
Redbox Movies
Redbox movies come in a wide variety, although they don’t carry every major studio as of this writing. In fact, they’re currently involved in a lawsuit with one of the major Hollywood players. Still, they have more than enough DVDs to satisfy the average moviegoer. New release movies are available every Tuesday. When you visit Redbox.com, you’ll find the following movie categories available:
- Action & Adventure
- Animation
- Award Winners
- Blu-ray
- Comedy
- Crime
- Drama
- Family
- Foreign
- Hit Movies
- Holiday
- Horror
- Kids
- Musical
- Romance
- Sci-Fi & Fantasy
- Special Interest
- Suspense
- Television
- War
- Western
Redbox Pricing Plan
Each night that you keep a Redbox movie, you’ll be charged a fee of $1 (plus tax). If you don’t want to be charged for a second day, be sure to return your movie rental by 9pm on the following evening. If you keep the DVD for more than 25 days, the movie rental is considered lost, and you’ll be charged an additional $25 fee.
Redbox Refunds, Returns & Fees
If your DVD rental is in the wrong case or unplayable, you can resolve the situation by contacting Redbox customer service (1-866-733-2693). If you’re looking for a refund, however, be sure to do it within 90 days of your transaction.
If you lose your DVD jewel case, you can purchase another one from the Redbox kiosk for $1. Just select “Empty Case” to make the purchase.
From time to time, you may find that the Redbox kiosk is full and won’t allow you to return a DVD. If this happens, you’ll either need to return the DVD to a different Redbox location or try again the following day (and pay an additional $1).
If you rent a DVD from Redbox and fail to pick it up by 9pm the following evening, you’ll still be charged the $1 fee, but your movie will then become available for someone else to rent.
Contact Redbox
If you need to contact Redbox, the best place to start is with their website’s FAQ section. If this doesn’t give you what you need, you can either contact Redbox via phone or email.
- The email address is: questions@redbox.com, and you’ll receive a response within 24 hours.
- You can also contact a customer service representative by calling 1-866-733-2693 between the hours of 7am and midnight (central time zone).
- If you wish to send Redbox a letter, you may reach them at: Redbox, One Tower Lane, Suite 1200, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, 60181.
Pros and Cons of Redbox
To summarize, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of Redbox. Keep in mind that some of these cons may eventually fall by the wayside, as Redbox is a new service which is continuing to grow.
Redbox Pros
- Convenient for those who are already going to stores like Wal-Mart or Walgreens.
- $1 rental is much cheaper than traditional video stores.
- Once you’ve selected your movie rental and received confirmation, the movie is guaranteed to be available for you.
Redbox Cons
- Not as wide a selection of movies as Blockbuster or Netflix.
- If kiosk is full, you must drive to another location or keep the movie an extra day and pay another $1.
- Redbox.com does not allow user ratings, reviews, or any community services.
- No video games available for rent.
- No Blu-ray discs available for rent.
- Credit card and internet access are required to use Redbox.