Picture this: it’s the weekend and you want to watch a movie, either by yourself or with your family.  Your current cable subscription might offer several choices, but it doesn’t have the one you really want to see.  You’re stuck going to look for it at the video store, or ordering it from an online movie site – but that will take days for it to even arrive.  You decide to rent a movie online and watch it directly on your computer.

Because of how new online video rental services are, their selections tend to be limited.  Amazon’s Video on Demand service is very fast and effective, but their selection is limited.  But what if there was a way you could watch any movie you wanted just as easily?

There is.  The best movie rental sites now aren’t through the mainstream providers.  Streaming video (either downloadable or where you watch it directly as it streams to your computer) is the fastest, cheapest way to watch any movie you want within just a few minutes.  There are many sites out there now that provide this technology.

The way it works is that you pay a one-time fee for access to your favorite movies (or with some sites, even your favorite TV shows).  You download a small application that gives you direct access to these movies right from your desktop.  The best part of this is that you don’t have to pay rental fees anymore, and you have a much broader selection.

Depending on what streaming video site you choose and how much you end up paying for the one-time signup fee, you’ll get access to different features.  Some sites offer newer films and larger categories, while others don’t have that much variety or charge a subscription-based fee.  Don’t get fooled into one of those; you should only have to pay once.

If you want to watch movies instantly right on your own PC (or your TV, if it’s connected to the computer), streaming video sites are the cheapest, fastest answer.  Otherwise, stick to Amazon for your viewing needs.