ITunes now lets you download movies. You don't even have to go out to buy a movie any more or wait for one to be delivered to your home; you can download one in minutes from ITunes for a decent price.

This weekend I downloaded a couple of movies from iTunes Canada. Currently, the only DVD player I have is my computer so I thought I’d give digital movies a chance. I had always wanted to buy About a Boy but had never gotten around to it and I only had a VHS copy of Much Ado About Nothing and no player, so I bought digital copies of both. They cost $9.99 each; I could have rented them for $3.99 but I wanted to have these particular films to watch over and over. Movies on iTunes sell for $9.99, $14.99 and $19.99. ITunes also has three 99 cent rentals of the week. At the time of writing, those were All About the Benjamins, Hollywood Shuffle and Doctor Strange. They also have occasional sales where movies sell for $4.99.

After downloading the movies to my computer I also loaded them onto my iPod 30g. I found it a little hard to watch a widescreen movie on an iPod without my glasses. When I tried to watch About a Boy I realized that I was going on memory as to what everyone looked like. I think I’ll be watching them on my computer through iTunes in full screen from now on. But, I will try to watch a movie on my iPod wearing glasses. From what I could see, the quality of the picture was definitely comparable to the picture on my computer screen.

The picture quality of Much Ado About Nothing was so much more superior to my VHS copy. I imagine both are comparable to DVD HD quality.

It’s quite simple to buy a movie from ITunes. You just do a search on the title you want and hope it is available; many films are now available for purchase or rental. ITunes offers a large selection of classic and contemporary films.

Here is how to download movies from iTunes in a nutshell, please take into account that I use the Canadian store. I doubt there is much difference. If you notice any difference, please let me know.

1. Create an account giving your billing information. If you are in Canada you will be transferred to the Canadian store.

2. Go to the Movies section in the ITunes store.

3. Browse through the available movies, or search for a specific title. Also check out what is on sale; you can find some great bargains that way.

4. Click on the movie you want to buy or rent. You are then presented with two buttons; buy or rent. Click on one of the buttons.

5. The movie downloads to your movies directory in ITunes.

6. Watch the movie on your computer or load it onto your iPod, iTouch, or iPhone to watch anywhere.