Is It Worth Signing Up for Lifetime Movie Club?
Cutting the cord but don’t want to give up Lifetime? Join Lifetime Movie Club to keep up with the latest movies. Read here to find out of it is worth it.
Is staying in your pajamas and watching Lifetime movies your idea of a perfect Saturday? But does the cost of cable or satellite take away from the joy of laying on your sofa all day?
Lifetime heard your cries, and now you can watch Lifetime movies wherever you go.
In 2016, the network launched a new product called Lifetime Move Club to make it easier to queue up the films you want to see when you want to watch them.
Lazy weekends have never been simpler or cheaper, right?
Whether you’re an avid movie watcher or you’re looking to follow the crowd in cutting the cord to cable, Lifetime Movie Club aims to satisfy both groups by providing plenty of entertainment available on multiple devices for a price that beats cable.
Is Lifetime Movie Club worth it? Keep reading to find out if the new app is the key to living your best weekend.
What Is Lifetime Movie Club?
Lifetime Movie Club is an on-demand streaming service that features all Lifetime movies al the time. Since 2016, Lifetime lovers can now watch 100 movies whenever they want regardless of the channel’s programming schedule. The network adds new films on a regular basis in the categories of:
Overall, the content categories are simple so that it’s easy to find something to watch without feeling overwhelmed by choice. Plus, there’s enough new content to satisfy all your Saturdays.
Lifetime Movie Club touts the 100-movie figure, but developers add and remove new content all the time. Some users say that while 100 movies may be technically listed, using the app makes it feel closer to 25 films. Lifetime insists there are more, but user experience features may not reflect that.
How Much Does It Cost?
Lifetime Movie Club comes with a monthly subscription fee of $3.99 a month or $39.99 per year. The yearly membership saves you around $8 compared to twelve individual months of subscribing.
Is It Compatible with My Device?
Subscribers access Lifetime Movie Club on the web or an app or channel. You’ll always be able to find it on your computer or tablet (via the browser). But you can also stream it on the go or on your TV using devices like:
Have an Amazon Prime Video subscription? Add the Lifetime Movie Club channel to your Amazon account for the same price after a free trial.
Does It Require an Internet Connection?
Lifetime Movie Club requires an internet connection to set up and log-in, but once you’re ready, you can watch offline.
The app offers a feature that allows users to download movies to the device to watch later. Once the download is ready, you’re free to watch the video anywhere and anytime.
How Many Ads Do I Have to Watch?
Unlike the Lifetime Network or Movie Network channels, Lifetime Movie Club is free from ads.
Can I Watch Lifetime’s Programming on the App?
No, the app and the TV program have entirely different programming structures. There’s no way to avoid missing out on a movie premier unless you have Lifetime included in your cable package.
It’s this structure that sets Lifetime apart from other apps. Its limited, standard on-demand programs keep viewers limited and don’t indulge in the hype that surrounds some of the channels latest releases.
Limited programming is one of the biggest criticisms of Lifetime Movie Club and those like it. It’s not so much an alternative to the channel as much as it is a supplement to it. Some say its supplemental status makes it less valuable.
Take HBO, for example. HBO was always expensive. It required both cable or satellite subscriptions plus an additional package fee. While that worked in the 1990s and 2000s, the internet age thwarted its programming through torrenting and streaming. HBO needed a new way to generate eyeballs without losing out on paid subscribers.
Enter HBO Now. HBO Now is similar to Lifetime in that it offers programs on demand. However, it also runs programming concurrently. Game of Thrones fans don’t need a cable and HBO subscription to join in the rest of the world while watching the premier. They need an HBO now subscription, which is easier and cheaper.
What Movie Lovers Will Love Lifetime Movie Club Most?
If you already use streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video, then the Lifetime Movie Club will fit right into your existing lifestyle. Although it offers over a hundred movies and the titles rotate, it’s still easy to run out of films that excite you. Already participating in other stream sites means it will add value to your entertainment system.
Lifetime Movie Club seems like it should appeal to would-be cord cutters who want to ditch their cable but don’t want to miss out on Lifetime and other channels. However, while Lifetime Movie Club would suit some of those customers, the product might not satisfy avid movie watchers or anyone else who wants access to a broader range of programming.
There is a middle ground that it seems that the creators of the app and others miss: those who want Lifetime-to-go.
Keep your Netflix and your cable and get even more value from the Lifetime app. You get access to the regularly scheduled programming at home, but the app also means you can take it to go wherever you have wifi or phone signal. It gives you access to LMN whenever you’re out of your house.
What’s It Like to Use the App?
By now, you likely have an inkling as to whether Lifetime Movie Network is worth it for you. Either you love the idea of taking an entertainment library on the go, or you’re happy with your current set up.
Before signing up, we recommend looking at the app itself and how simple it is to use. The app comes with benefits like:
But how easy is it to use?
A quick review of feedback found in the app store tells you what you need to know.
When scrolling through the list of movies, you’ll click on the film to get more information about the title like a description and how long it will remain on the app. However, when you go back to the list of films, you get directed back to the top of the list rather than the spot you were at.
Film listings are a point of contention for many users because it impacts usability and is frankly annoying compared to previous versions of the app. Before the summer 2018 update, it was possible to see all the films and the date each was slated to leave the app on the main screen without losing your place in the movie queue.
The new update also appeared to cause several technical difficulties for Android users, which is worth considering for the next round of updates.
Other users lament the choice in films. Some people feel that the options are not only limited compared to Lifetime’s more extensive catalog but also because Lifetime chooses films without considering fan favorites.
Finally, while there are curate lists of films, there isn’t a way to put your favorite movies on a list or navigate directly to the content you were watching. The developer says the feature may come soon.
The Bottom Line: Is It Worth It?
Is Lifetime Movie Club worth it?
If you love Lifetime movies and aren’t picky about what titles are available and when, the app is worth $4 a month. You’ll maximize the value if you previously canceled your cable or satellite subscription.
In our opinion, Lifetime Movie Club has a lot of potential, but it doesn’t quite live up to it. There are so many examples of good ways to share content that the development team at A&E (who own Lifetime) could use as inspiration for its app that it is disappointing that the user experience isn’t more sophisticated.
At a minimum, users should be able to:
Unfortunately, these features aren’t yet available.
Add in the issues that come with updates, and you might find you lose some of the services you pay for briefly.
Overall, however, at only $4 a month, Lifetime Movie Club offers an excellent value proposition, particularly for cord cutters. For less than the price of an average trip to Starbucks, you have access to days’ worth of entertainment on almost any device including your TV.
What do you think? Is Lifetime Movie Club worth the extra investment? Would you use it to replace your cable subscription? Or is it a weak attempt to mimic on-demand content? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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