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Crackle

- Star Review

Last Updated: 7/31/2009

Crackle Star Rating

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Watching up and coming talent can be fun, especially when our team is on a break. In fact, it was during one of these breaks that the Star Reviews reviewers came across Crackle, a video sharing service still in its infant stages. Formerly known as Grouper, we noticed that Crackle tagged itself as ‘Launching tomorrow’s stars.’ Of course we had to take a look, so see what we ran into below.

What’s New Crackle Video Sharing?

Contests galore – uploaders can win pitch meetings with Universal, one night stands at the Improv, and more
Upload playlists of favorite clips onto your PSP (Playstation Portable)

Star Reviews Favorite Crackle Feature:

People's Choice selections-Every day site visitors determine two clips which will be featured in different channels based on frequent viewing stats.

Crackle Video Sharing Features:

Subscribe to different channels, playlists, etc.
Upload videos up to 100 MB in size
View clips of stand up comedians, musicians, animated shorts, etc.
ScreenBites-best Hollywood clips
Daily Joke
High Wire-Ultimate comedy showcase videos

About Crackle's Video Sharing Service:

Crackle used to be known as Grouper, a video sharing service similar to YouTube. In August 2006, the site was purchased for $65 million by Sony Entertainment Corporation. Now the site's focus is less on video sharing and more on encouraging talented folks to submit footage of their skills in an attempt to land a big break in the entertainment field. Eventually, Sony plans to add more of their own copyrighted content to the site, too. If you’re an aspiring comedian, musician or simply enjoy doing weird, out-of-this world things, there is channel here to feature yourself on.

Navigating the Crackle Video Sharing Site:

Crackle's web site is a little more difficult to navigate than other video sharing sites. The home page is almost too cluttered to find videos through. There is a search box in the upper corner of the site, but browsing through the channels requires making more choices. Videos begin playing automatically, including upon entry to the site, making page load times a little lengthy. This wasn’t the most up front video sharing site we reviewed, but if you have patience, you’re sure to find some fun stuff here.

Using Crackle's Video Sharing Services:

Viewing Crackle's videos is fairly easy once you track them down. You only have to click on the video, and it opens up in the site's player. You can also opt to view the videos in full screen mode if you feel so inclined. Uploading videos is also fairly simple. When you click on “Upload” from the main screen, just choose “Add Videos” to begin uploading your videos to the site. If you hit the next tab, you can add details and descriptions for the clip. Once you add in the details, just hit “Start Upload” to add the file to the web site. Take note that you must be signed up to perform any of the above actions.

Video Sharing Pricing:

Crackle doesn't cost anything to use whether you're viewing site content or adding video clips. However, you will find plenty of ads along the sides of the site, which just comes with the territory when using many video sharing services.

Crackle Customer Support:

Crackle does not provide many customer support options but that's not unusual for video sharing services. The site does boast an impressive collection of FAQ's which provide useful responses to common questions, but we couldn't find all of the answers we were looking for within those questions.

Thankfully, you can use a form on the site to ask a question. We did just that and received a response by email in less than 24 hours. The response answered our question politely and completely, not to mention it provided us with the necessary instructions for signing up for the service. We must commend their email support, as other free video sharing services don’t offer this caliber of customer service.

Upside:
Free service. Unique site concept with loads of contests. Fast email customer support.

Downside:
Site difficult to navigate. Ads can be a nuisance.

Summary:
Star Reviews did find some advantages of using Crackle, particularly if you are serious about trying to break into an entertainment career. This video sharing service offers aspiring musicians, comedians and anyone else in general the chance to showcase their talents or hidden passions. The site's contests offer some unique possibilities for achieving fame, plus using the service is free and fairly straightforward.

Unfortunately, there are plenty of ads here and the automatic loading clips can be annoying if you're trying to briskly browse the website interface. On the plus side, Crackle does offer fast and effective customer support by email, which is a step ahead of their competitors. Overall, when we compare video sharing services, Crackle's benefits outweighed its drawbacks and we do recommend their site.

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A bit better then Youtube.

by Guest

I agree, the advertisements needs to go on that website, it gets very irritating every single time you go on some videos. Otherwise this is a great video site, has like old movies or classics, and it supports High definition which is a blessing as well.