Q. We plan to drive cross county this summer to celebrate the end of Covid, but could we keep watching Netflix in our car and on our trip? Is there a way to do that? We don’t have WiFi in the car so it would be great if there was a way to watch Netflix to pass the time. — Sheila, New Haven, Connecticut.
Sheila, you will be happy to hear that you can watch both TV shows and movies from the Netflix catalog without the Internet so you never have to miss a favorite show during your vacation. It’s a relatively simple process, and here’s how you can do it:
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First, you will need one of the following:
* An iPhone, iPad, or iPod running iOS 9.0 or later;
* A phone or tablet running Android 4.4.2 or later;
* A tablet or computer running the Windows 10 Version 1607 (Anniversary Update) or later.
* An Amazon Fire tablet running Fire OS 4.0 or later.
* Select Chromebook or Chromebox models.
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You can not download a Netflix title on any other device. But if you have one of the five devices listed above, you’re half way home. (You’ll also need the latest Netflix app for Windows 10, Apple iOS, Android and Amazon Fire TV.)
Next, you will need an Internet connection to download the Netflix title, and of course, an active Netflix streaming account.
Once connected to Netflix, you can then search for titles that are available for downloading (watching the title offline) by going to the Menu and clicking, ‘Available For Downloads.’ (Note: Not all titles can be downloaded.)
Once you find a title you want, go its description page and click on the download icon, which looks like this:
If your Internet connection is at least moderately fast, the download should take less than 10 minutes. (By example, I recently downloaded a 90-minute movie in just two minutes using a coffee shop Internet service.)
Once the download is completed, you can access it from the ‘My Downloads’ section of the app you are using to watch Netflix. Click on the ‘Play’ icon next to the title, and it will begin to play, whether you are connected to the Internet or not.
The downloaded title will stay in your Netflix ‘My Downloads’ file so long as it’s available in the Netflix catalog. If the title expires, and is removed from Netflix’s library, it will no longer be available for downloading.
You can also set the video quality of your download, from standard-definition to 1080p High-Definition. The higher the video quality, the longer it takes to download the show or movie.
Last note: If you plan to watch Netflix on an app installed on your hotel’s TV, or one in a vacation rental one, be careful of inputting your user name and password. If you don’t log out of the account before the end of your stay, the next person who stays here will have access to your account. So be sure to log out.
Happy traveling, and happy viewing!
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvpredictions.com. Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
— Phillip Swann
