RentAnime Review
Online anime rental seems like the perfect option, at least for the fans that don’t want to download illegal fansubs. I’ve already reviewed Blockbuster’s anime offering, now it’s time to take a look at a more specialized outlet.
RentAnime
RentAnime is run by the folks at AnimeNation, an anime retail site that’s been around since 1995. If you’ve been a fan of anime for a while you’ve probably heard of AnimeNation. Whatever opinions you may have formed about them can probably be safely transferred to RentAnime. I’ve never had any problems with them, neither the retail or rental branch.
Pros
- Much Better Anime Selection -
- New Anime Added Constantly -
I have yet to think of an anime that I couldn’t find on there. Because they specialize in anime, and probably because they sell anime, they have a much better inventory.
This is probably because they’re run by AnimeNation. AnimeNation has to keep on top of new releases so they can sell ‘em, so it makes sense that they’d also order some to use in their rental program.
Cons
- Horrible Website -
- Useless Search -
- Slow Turnaround -
This is probably the biggest problem that RentAnime has. The website needs a complete overhaul. The only way to find an anime is to know what anime you’re looking for. The “Rental Categories” are not categories at all, they’re alphabetical listings of the anime that they offer. That is mind bogglingly bad.
Because of the lack of categories, I have to include the site search here too. This is what I got when I searched for “shojo”.
I find it incredibly hard to believe that RentAnime has absolutely no shojo anime. They need to fix that A.S.A.P..
The amount of time between sending back a DVD and getting the next one in the mail is unacceptable. I sent back DVDs to RentAnime and Blockbuster on the same day. I had new Blockbuster DVDs a couple of days before I even got the e-mail from RentAnime telling me they got the DVDs. That could probably be fixed with some regional shipping centers.
Bottom Line
RentAnime has a great selection of anime. They’ve also got enough of it that it’s not often you have to wait very long for a particular title. The problem is waiting to get any titles thanks to their slow turnaround.
Once again I have to say that the website needs to be re-worked. Finding something to watch can be a huge headache unless you know the exact anime you’re looking for.
The selection is amazing, but if they can’t fix at least one of their problems I might have to look for another specialty anime rental site.
Anime, Rental, RentAnime, Rent Anime, Online, AnimeNation, Anime Nation, Review
May 19th, 2008 at 10:56 pm
I have to agree with Jason’s assessment of RentAnime. Their website is ‘okay’ with me but certainly nothing to brag about. Also their ’series lock’ is no good. I had it turned on and one of the first set of titles they sent was number 11 of a 12 part series. How bogus is that?!! But the biggest drawback for them is the LONG turnaround time!! It takes 5 business days or more for each DVD to go each way, which means at least two weeks from the time they say they’ve shipped a title until they receive and ship the next, even if I watch and mail it the day after I received it! I did their two week free trial, during which I viewed a total of four titles. I viewed close to a dozen NetFlix titles in the same period, and both plans were for 3 out at a time. I’ll give them a month to get their act together. If things do not improve by then, I’ll cancel and try someone else.
January 28th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
So what is the best place to get rentals online? I am in Michigan and I had the same problem with Rentanime getting the movies to me. They were pretty good with customer service and the selection is great but the shipping is just horrible. I would send back a DVD and had a full rental queue so they had plenty to choose from and it still took weeks to get my next request. They always claimed it was the postal service but none of my other mail or shipments seem to take so long. Some one suggested Animelane but I’d never heard of them…Any suggestions?
January 28th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
@Dina >> The only other rent by mail services I’ve tried are Blockbuster and Netflix. The problem with those is selection. They don’t have nearly as much anime as RentAnime does.
There are some good points in their favor though.
Blockbuster gives you coupons for free in store rentals, which is great if you live near a Blockbuster store.
Netflix has a great streaming service that works very well.
Give one of those a shot if you’re ready to move away from RentAnime.
I’ll check out some more anime rental places soon and write up some more reviews.