Netflix update provides the most requested feature: now you can download shows to watch offline

MARK today down as a game changer. Netflix has finally delivered the most requested feature and the timing couldn’t not be better.

Big week for Netflix ... first it delivered a Gilmore Girls revival, now it’s delivered the ability to watch it offline.

NETFLIX has delivered the game changer that its customers have always wanted: now you can download shows and movies to watch offline.

Today Netflix has issued an update for both the iOS and Android apps that will let people download what they want to watch while they’re still on their home or office wi-fi, and then watch it during their commute or on a long flight when either a lack of network access or high data costs are a barrier to streaming.

Airplane mode. Road trip mode. Stuck-in-the-subway-for-20-minutes mode. Your favorite stories are now available for download any time. pic.twitter.com/g7QZA3TyE8

— Netflix US (@netflix) November 30, 2016

The announcement today has some caveats, one of which is only available on a smartphone or tablet.

You can’t download every movie and show on Netflix. If you want to see what you can download, you can select “Available for Download” from the menu.

You can choose between two options with the downloads: standard and higher. One is quicker to download and takes up less space on your device, the other offers higher resolution.

If you no longer want the show or movie on your device, you can delete it from the My Downloads setting in the menu.

Not every movie or TV show in Netflix is available for download, although Netflix says more will be added.

But a quick look shows that The Crown, Orange is the New Black, The Gilmore Girls (both the seven seasons and the new four-part revival) and a wide range of movies are ready to download.

The timing could not be better for those wanting to stock up on shows to entertain the kids on the annual road trip or people who just want something on their phone to watch in case their annual week of camping by the beach is hit by bad weather.