Does the Saturday New Release Trick Work for You?

While new DVD releases are available for sale on Tuesday, Netflix ships new releases on Monday so they arrive on Tuesday. Brad writes, "Most people who want a new release do not add it to the top of their queue until after it has been released.  New releases come out on Tuesdays but Netflix can ship out new releases on Mondays. So I put Tuesdays new releases on the very top of my queue and then I send back dvd’s I have watched on Saturday so that Netflix gets them on Monday to send me new DVD’s.  Probably 95% of the time they will send me DVD’s that are to be released that Tuesday if those DVD’s are at the top of my queue. It doesn’t always work but if I have 3 or 4 new releases on the top and I send back 1-2 discs I am bound to get at least one of them which is great cause otherwise I might not see it for months."

Do you ship movies back to Netflix on Saturday so you'll have a shot at new releases? How well has this worked for you?

Comments

[Moom]

It works for me about 90%+ of the time. It alters your viewing schedule a bit, but my wife and I have used Friday night as movie night for quite a while, so we have discs ready to go back on Saturday.

[J]

As titles move from the saved section of my queue to the rent-able section, I'll move them up to the top of the queue. I drop the set off in the mail Friday night, it gets picked up Saturday, Monday they exchange the discs and send me the replacements which arrive on Tuesday. Generally, I get all of the new releases, occasionally one or two of the discs will be replaced with a lower-priority/older title. But I figure I can't be too selfish - have to let some other people get new releases on their first day out too... If I don't get a new release, I leave it/them at the top of the queue and usually within a couple weeks, I get them in a mid-week replacement (or I Redbox them).

Just curious if anyone has figured out a mod for the trick when there is no mail on Mondays? Do you still drop them off on Saturday, so Netflix gets them on Tuesday and gets replacements to you on Wed... or do you drop them off on Friday, so they get to Netflix on Saturday, and to you on Tuesday? Which would be more likely to net you the new releases?

[Benjamin]

I've known about this trick for years. I always stick dvd's that have not been released yet at the top of my queue.

[ugg boots]

Your writing is very elegant, very vivid and lively, I really like you, wish you continued to write better articles, I will often try to concern, oh!

[dewey]

Nothing to see here. This doesn't work at all. I didn't send a disc back on Saturday and get A Serious Man, which releases tomorrow, shipped out today. So please, don't bother trying this.

[Brian]

This usually works for me, but it didn't this weekend, I sent back a movie on Saturday, got notification this morning (Monday) it was received and they are sending the 4th movie on my list, the first 2 movies are new releases that should come out tomorrow, 2/16 and the third movie is Hurt Locker with a "Very Long Wait".

[Chris]

I never knew about this until someone from the Netflix forums mentioned it to me a couple weeks ago. After trying it, I can happily say that it works, and never will I go back to mailing my Netflix movies on Monday to get the new releases on Wednesday!

[Vader]

It works for me, but I normally only bother if its something I've been waiting for. I first discover this beause we have "Friday movie night" and was surprised to get a new release that week.

To everyone else ...

"These are not the new release movies you are looking for." < /waves hand for old jedi mind trick > lol :)

[Chrispy]

well that's just weak, there are some of us who have has movies on their list right when its gets added as "SAVE" right up until it releases and still get the "really long wait" bullcrap, just because you stupid line steppers jump in front of the line last minute, wtf?

its like whenever i go to a midnight release of a game or console there's always freaking cheaters walking up at 11:59 and go straight to the door when it opens and no one tells them "hey there's a freaking line" because everyone's to excited rushing the door

In the end your just forcing everyone to do the same trick effectively making it useless anyways. Its just so annoying not getting up in time to return on sat and not getting movies for another 4-5 days because they dont recieve them until tues

[jayfest]

This is not exactly comparable to a line at a basketball game. First of all, anybody can have only 1 item at the very top of their queue. I can't remember if this trick ever worked for me when I didn't put the new release as #1. Prior to the day before its release, putting a movie into your queue is useless (except to remind yourself) and is NOT comparable to waiting in line for a long time. Second of all, even for non-new releases, it's often partially a matter of timing anyway. You may not get some disc because the days that the movie is available are not days when you just sent one back and need to get a new one.

The trick still works sometimes because not everyone is doing it. Some people will always think "its just so annoying not getting up in time to return on sat". I finished my last disc in a big casino hotel Friday and I had to get dressed at 3am Saturday morning and walk from my room all the way out past the lobby to the mailbox at the door of the hotel (and back) to make sure it got mailed when I wanted it to. If it's important enough to you to get the newest movie, then you'll make the small extra effort.

[Zed]

It used to work almost all the time. HOWEVER, they started skipped ALL new release DVDs. I guess they chose I'm too efficient to rent (I could rent more than 12 DVDs a month - 3 at a time). So you can't expect this method would work forever to everyone...

[JAR442]

Works most of the time for me...other than Anime releases. Does anyone know if you put discs in the mail earlier on Saturday or even Friday night will you have a better chance of getting a new release?

[Pheps]

I tried this and men in black suits came to my door and took away my DVD player, goldfish and autographed photo of Reed Hastings. They wouldn't say where they were from but they said "Don't try the Saturday trick again."

[Lamont]

As many of the posters here have said, it usually works unless you are being throttled.

I just received a "Terms of Service" reminder to acknowledge today, as I blew through quite a few dvd's in the last 2 weeks- they all sucked and I ended up fast forwarding most of them.

You DO have to hold all your DVD's and wait until Saturday to mail them. There are 5 new releases that interest me next week- for some reason the studios like to clump them around holidays. As I am on a 3 at a time plan I will get maybe 2, then have VERY LONG WAIT on the others for 4 or more months.

I am still waiting for the Hangover (Very long wait) and My Sister's Keeper (Long wait)-- in my case if I don't grab a new release the first week it will be many, many months before I get a chance to rent it. I guess I should go buy them then, like the studios want, huh?

[Stefani]

It used to work. Not so much anymore. Lately I usually don't get a movie from my queue until it is already on cable (Stars). Since upgrading to Blu-ray, Netflix only sends me about the 20th movie listed in my queue. For example, Marley and Me has been in my queue (at the bottom) since before it was released. Just got that movie today.

Service sure has gone downhill since I joined in 2004.

[Sam]

The few times (4 or 5) I've done it I gotten the new release on Tuesday.

[Bioadamsnews]

I find that getting my disc into Netflix on Tuesday gets me the new release on Tuesday. So far I have a 75% success rate. In my area, that means mailing out the old disc on Monday. Love getting that e-mail saying I've got the new release.