Netflix app gets a facelift, new features

If you get your entertainment via Netflix, you will love an updated version of the company’s streaming app for iPhones, iPods and iPads that was just released for a “more immersive experience”. What that means is a crisper, less packed interface which combines your previously watched content, recommendations and latest titles into a single view, with search available throughout the program. Here’s your video…

Netflix promises in a blog post “many more titles and galleries than we have ever shown before on a smartphone”.

The new iPhone experience should more closely resemble the iPad version which was recently overhauled with a new interface. The top of the app’s interface is dominated by a row of your previously watched movies. Your movie and TV show recommendations take up the majority of screen real estate.

Some other tweaks:

Tapping the browse menu gives you access to an extensive list of genre galleries that show even more titles organized into categories. Parents – like me – will really appreciate the children and family gallery with many titles organized by age.

Search is now available everywhere in the app and you can also tap once or do a double-tap on any title to get information or start playback, respectively.

Here’s your video.

Netflix is surprisingly quick to update their app for new Apple devices. Back in March, for example, the company issued a Retina update, just in time for the arrival of the third-generation iPad.

With this latest update, Netflix is looking to benefit from the iPhone 5 lunch this Friday.

iTunes reviews, however, don’t look promising.

This is ONLY good for using with the iPad. It will not allow you to get into your regular queue to add movies for viewing at home. A while back, I remember you could do that. Please bring that feature back! Other than that, it’s a great app.

Another one.

The UI looks a little sharper in some places, but is more clunky pretty much everywhere. Whatever they did, navigating is much less smooth/pleasurable than it used to be.

Netflix is a free download supporting your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad running iOS 5 or higher.