At last it is possible to watch netflix on iPhone!
The wait’s over. Netflix is now available in Spain and there is no excuse not to give it a try. At a minimum, you’ll enjoy a free month without any permanence commitment, and a month gives to a lot when you can access its catalog of tv shows and movies from anywhere. That’s why the first thing I’ve done was go fast and fast to the App Store and download its official iOS app on my iPhone to see if everything they said was true.
A spoiler, the answer is yes. Netflix is a joy. Even with a catalog not particularly extensive (something usual during the landing of the platform in each country, but that is being remedied, they say, quickly), we find ourselves in the dream of any fan of the large (and small) screen.
4K content
For me, one of Netflix’s main attractions is being able to enjoy 4K content so the choice was simple. The terms of the subscription are similar to those of Apple Music, requiring that we register in one of these plans to access the month of trial, but that’s where the bad news ends: first, you don’t need to add any cards, because when you register from the app the subscription will be processed through your iTunes account; second, as I said, there is no permanence and you can cancel the subscription immediately after you register and still continue to enjoy the service until you complete the 30 days of grace. A reminder on the calendar to make a decision will work the same, but it will stay in you.
All Netflix apps have an extremely similar interface and iOS is no exception. The profile selection menu allows the service to differentiate between each family member, learn from their tastes with the things we see and the ratings we give, and offer more suggested content based on this.
It will only appear the first time, although then it is very easy to switch from one profile to another from the menu in the top left corner, which also contains a list to filter by genres. From here, dozens of series, films and documentaries welcome us with open arms in dynamic lists with the most popular of the moment, specific categories or the contents that we have marked to see at another time.
The playback quality is excellent, but we’ll come back to that a little later. Let’s focus in place on the playback controls, with a shortcut to the audio and subtitle options available for what we’re watching, an option to go back ten seconds in case we get off the mark and, best, a navigation bar with a view prior to the scene we’ll jump to. That’s great.
The only drawback is precisely linked to this level of customization with respect to the standard video playback components, and is the absence of support for iOS 9 picture in picture in picture mode. So if you have an iPad Air or higher, or an iPad mini 2 or higher (the models that support this feature), at the moment you will have to decide between watching the video or browsing the Internet, nothing to do both at once. Hulu was facing the same problem and they finally found the solution, hopefully Netflix (and Youtube) will do it soon too.
Quality depends on your connection
Now, yes, it’s time to talk about quality. Unsurprisingly, the app automatically adjusts it depending on whether we are connected to a Wifi network (top image) or not (below). The difference in definition is palpable, especially if you look at the cuts at 100% in the size of the captures, but the truth is that even on a 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus, the thing is not so obvious. The result is that, no matter how connected, we can continue to enjoy favorite series at a speed that, I admit, has been pleasantly surprised. Don’t be fooled by the capture 4G icon; the quality of the signal where I did the test leaves a lot to be desired, and yet the Netflix codec managed to let me jump back and forth of the episode in a virtually instantaneous way.
In short, as far as the iOS app is concerned, remarkable high that will become outstanding as soon as they solve the PiP theme. As for the contents themselves, I refer you to our colleagues from Vaya tele!, but I advance that to be started is not bad: own series like Daredevil, Orange is the New Black, Narcos or Sense8 (of the first thing you should devour) are accompanied by a reasonable number of series and films, some of them even national, that will keep us entertained as they continue to negotiate new additions.
