After almost a month with Vongo, Starz' new online movie service, I'm canceling it rather than extend the subscription. The strengths and weaknesses I detailed 3 weeks ago are still there after a lot of use, but what really stands out is a surprising lack of quality in the video delivery. The graininess is most evident when output to a TV, but even on my laptop, the quality is noticeably weak, probably close to a VHS or worse. It's not a deal killer by itself, but I now notice it every time I use the product. It doesn't heve to be HD quality, but I'm not sure that this level is sufficient by today's standards, even it accelerates the download process a bit and takes up less room on the hard drive.
The second issue continues to be breadth and quality of content - having had 3 weeks of new product releases now, it's clear that even with 500+ movies, media junkies like me will have trouble finding more than a few movies a month worth watching, at least after one has plowed through the backlog of movies you want to watch. There just isn't enough new product flow each month. This is not easily fixed, but if Starz could bring in additional library content such as tv shows, then it would probably change the value equation.
Finally, the editorial approach is certainly better than on the Real Movie service, but is still pretty lackluster. It doesn't surface the breadth of content actually in the system, forcing users to laboriously search for content, and the front door isn't alive enough to direct users in any direction. This should be easily fixable at relatively low cost, but there hasn't been any progress there.
Verdict - not worth $10 a month in current form, but still a step forward vs previous subscription alternatives.
Ever used Davetv?
Posted by: Millen CeSoir | February 08, 2006 at 10:40 AM
I'm downloading it now. It looks very Akimbo-like right now, which is a bad sign, but I'll check it out.
Posted by: Sean Ryan | February 08, 2006 at 04:30 PM
I don't advise the use of vongo.The service sucks. I had tech problems downloading it so I canceled after seven days .I made serveral emails and calls one of which was a cancel my subcription. Can you belive even though I never got to use the service after a week they would not refund my money.Most places let you have a trial period at least!My advice is don't wast your time on them.
Posted by: James | March 23, 2006 at 08:52 AM
Well, someone will get this right eventually... I wonder if it'll be an established player (Blockbuster, NetFlix, etc), or a startup.
What's DaveTV?
Posted by: cj | March 31, 2006 at 06:46 AM
Vongo behaves like a virus. I was unhappy with the Vongo selection and then the application kept trying to check for updates every time I started the computer. There seemed to be no way to prevent this from happening. There also seemed to be no unistall option, so I stopped all Vongo related processes and deleted the Vongo directory. Now everytime I start up my computer, Vongo tries to reinstall itself. Ridiculous. I can't believe a service like this ignores basic software and user experience best practices. They better respond to my email request for help with better skill than evidenced by the writing of their website FAQs.
Posted by: Sean | April 07, 2006 at 05:38 AM
hey, if i only stumbled across your site earlier, i would have never signed up for this bogus vongo service. I'm waiting on the phone to cancel the service, Its about 1 hour after i've signed up. About the 20 minutes (so far) i've on hold trying to cancel this.
Posted by: Wesley | May 13, 2006 at 07:11 PM
Looks like I will have to get a charge back, since there is no customer service there. It just keeps playing that stupid hold music. I been on hold for 4 and a half hours.
Posted by: johnny | May 17, 2006 at 03:13 PM
Boy this service sucks !!
No video control, bogs down the whole system with no way to stop. Starts up with computer with no way to disable, and no, I repeat no customer service. If you want to waste your money, this is a good way.
Posted by: James Behrens | June 02, 2006 at 10:31 AM
No one answers their phone..so I can not cancel. Tech problems galore, including no sound after downloading. I wish some started a class action against Starz/Vongo..I bet their is money to milk from their company.
Posted by: Tee | June 03, 2006 at 06:00 PM
I had no technical problems with Vongo. The content was a combination of old stuff, and pay-per-view for anything recent. They also raise a very high barrier to cancellation, rejecting any attempt to cancel except by phone, which leads to a 40+ minute wait on hold. Save your money and your time, don't do it.
Posted by: PJC | June 08, 2006 at 08:34 PM
1-702-852-7700, ask for Vongo customer service. The downside is you pay for the call, but I got through immediately, so it was worth it to me. With so many people having internet long distance, unlimited long distance on cell phones, etc. this may be the way to go.
Posted by: PJC | June 14, 2006 at 09:41 AM
Don't sign up. There are a couple good movies but its impossible to cancel.
Posted by: larry | July 29, 2006 at 10:59 PM
We just cancelled vongo last night..I was on hold for over 30 minutes then when the guy found out I was cancelling all of a sudden he couldn't hear me. It was about 5 minutes of me saying hello then I would hear him say hello. My husband got on the other line and said as*&ole says hello - there was a giggle then all of a sudden they could hear me - what are they hopping for?? Do they think that people won't cancel if they think the phone cuts out?
Posted by: Jenn | August 15, 2006 at 06:40 PM
I am glad I found this site, I was about to sign up with the service. Well if you guys cant find a way to uninstall, try using the orginal download, it will give you a repair or remove option. Worked for me. Good luck
Posted by: Cesh | August 16, 2006 at 02:34 PM
Forget VONGO! The future in downloadable movies is at WWW.REELTIMETV.NET The site opens up Sept 12. Check out their demo and be amazed!
Posted by: Rog | August 17, 2006 at 11:59 PM
Vongo is like any video game or software's demo version: looks great on TV yet when you use it, it falls FAR short of expectation.
I installed it at 4:20 p.m. and I cancelled by subscription at 9:30 p.m. that same day.
Here're the problems I see:
1. Poor selection of movies
2. Unstable platform for the movie player (I couldn't fast forward and my movie crashed 1:05 minutes after I started)
3. Poorly trained customer service dept. They use an answering service, and even the rep that worked there are fed up with complaints from Vongo customers. The rep said, I can't believe they released this piece of crap without fully testing it.
In conclusion, Vongo is a model doomed for failure. I hate to the person running Vongo b/c if I'm the shareholder, I will make sure that his head would roll.
Posted by: John | August 29, 2006 at 04:04 PM
A much better service will be launching September 12th.
www.reeltimetv.net
a crappy URL, but they have purchased www.reeltime.com and that will probably be up before launch.
DVD-quality content, will soon have device to wirelessly transmit to TV set, etc. etc. Working on big content deals and have some signed. Keep an eye on it should be much better than Vongo.
Posted by: Adam | September 01, 2006 at 01:31 PM
Was wondering what is the number to cancel vongo? Ki m
Posted by: Kim | September 03, 2006 at 08:38 PM
Glad i found these reviews, i was about to install vongo. Thanks guys.
Posted by: Jj | September 04, 2006 at 09:51 PM
I'm another Vongo victim. They don't really care a lot about having customers. Customer service is not existant. Difficulty downloading the software. Difficulty using it. It EXTREMELY difficult to remove the software from your computer. It burrows into hidden files. Don't go near it.
Posted by: Hank Chymann | September 06, 2006 at 07:29 PM