I have a series of stories I’ve been wanting to write, and now’s the perfect time. Monies are getting a bit tighter with the cost of oil and gas continuing to beat up people’s wallets. Whether that’s from commuting to work, summer road trips, paying skyrocketing airfare prices, or any number of other transportation-related expenses, having low-cost alternatives for your favorite activities can go a long way.

Enter: Your public library system.

No, literally, walk into your local library. Many people think libraries are antiquated spaces full of only books and old magazines, but did you know that many are actually awesome digital hubs where you can check out and access modern technology?! I’m going to cover a few of those items in detail over the next few weeks, beginning with this article and DVD rentals. Yes, that’s right! Blockbuster Home Video is long gone, and Netflix killed off DVD rentals by mail in September 2023, but you no longer need them because you can check out DVDs at many local library branches.

Everything old is new again

Libraries are more awesome than most folks today realize

If you have a standard DVD player, you already have what you need. If you or your kids have a gaming console with a disc tray, you likely already have what you need. If you have a 4K TV, just know that DVD resolution is lower, but that’s where 4K UHD Blu-ray players like the one I recently reviewed come in handy! They will upscale your DVD so it looks better on your higher-resolution 4K TV.

I’ll cover some basics of renting from my local libraries, specifically the Los Angeles County Library system. Your local library should share a similar process, though things may differ by region. In my case, you have to decide whether you want to check out DVDs from the Los Angeles County Library System or the city-run Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL). To increase your options, you may want to utilize both. Just be sure to remember which system you’re “renting” from. More on that in a moment.

Make it a Blockbuster Public Library night!

Books aren’t the only items you can check out

Of course, the first thing you’ll need to do is visit a library and get a library card. You can also get a digital library card online without physically visiting a local library, but there are some limitations to that route that we’ll get to in a moment. Once you have either your physical card or your digital or student card, here’s what you need to know — keep in mind this information is to give you an idea of what this process looks like, as your own local library system may have some differences in some of the requirements and protocols.

Let’s talk loan periods, limits, and renewals first. You can check out a DVD for seven days and renew the loan up to three times. That means you can check out a DVD for up to four weeks. The LA County library will automatically renew the DVDs on their due date as long as your account is in good standing and no one else has placed a hold on that title.

You can check out up to 50 items on a standard library card at any given time, but as I mentioned earlier, if you have a digital card or student card, that limit drops significantly to three items. You can also place up to 50 holds if the movie you want is currently checked out or located at another branch in Los Angeles.

Life comes at ya’ fast!

What if I keep a title too long?

The LA County Library is a “fine-free” system, which means that you do not accrue daily overdue fines for returning items late. That said, their policy on DVDs that stay out too long is this: after 28 days or more past the due date, your account is billed a replacement fee. The LA County Library’s website says that the fee is usually around $30 for a DVD. The good news is that if you return that DVD to any of their branches or bookdrop boxes, they’ll remove those fees from your account.

If your account has more than $10 in bills or has 10 or more overdue items, your borrowing privileges are paused until you resolve those issues. If you’ve had a DVD too long, but you’re finally ready to return it, you can drop it at the desk or outdoor bookdrops at any LA County Library location. Which is to say you don’t actually have to return the DVD to the library location where you checked it out. In this case, just be sure you’re returning to an LA County library, not an LAPL (Los Angeles Public Library) location.

FAQs

Random things you might want to know

If your child has an account, and you’re managing it, and they’re under 18, you can explicitly restrict them from checking out DVDs.

This may differ at other libraries around the nation, but just to give you an idea of what you’re working with, the LA County library system has over 58,000 DVDs in its catalog across its entire network of branches. Looking right now at what new titles they have, among them I see: the children’s animated movie, GOAT, MERCY, SCREAM 7, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, and AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. I also did a bit of digging and found they have all the main Star Wars theatrical-release DVDs.

Let us know if the comments below if you already knew about this awesome resource, or if you didn’t, and you’re going to be making it a Blockbuster Public Library night soon!