When I heard that there was a website that let you watch shows online with your friends at the same time, FOR FREE, I couldn’t believe my luck. That website, Rabbit, combines the best elements of Skype and Google Hangouts with one special element: television and movies. It seemed almost too good to be true. So, I decided to test out Rabbit with my mom, who lives over 3,000 miles away in California.
• The Set-Up
It was relatively easy to set up; we didn’t have to download any software or create an account. You just need to have a computer with a working camera and microphone. I created a chatroom by clicking “Chat Now,” and then sent the link for our room to my mom so she could access it too. This isn’t just limited to one-on-one interaction—you can invite up to nine other people to join a chat with you.
Once we got set up in the room (which took me less than 30 seconds, but took my mom a little longer to navigate her camera) we were off the ground running. “I can hear you, Jessie!” Mom exclaimed with surprise, after initially seeming a little skeptical over the entire process. “What are we going to watch?”
• How It Works
The experience felt like a normal video chat. However the key difference: in the middle of the screen I didn’t see our faces, but rather a mini browser window that acted as the control center. From that center window, you can pick from popular options like Netflix and Hulu, or just type in a specific term (like the name of a movie) and it will pull up results for you in a Google search. You can just also load up websites to look at together—helpful when doing this like coordinating travel or buying tickets for an event (or for the simple things, like wanting to simultaneously see everyone’s reaction to Channing Potatum).
Above: Loading up an episode of Fraiser to watch with my mom.
After you’ve selected what you want to watch, it’ll load and play just like if you were watching it normally on your computer. Open up the chat window on the bottom right and you can send messages to each other if you don’t want the sound of your voices to interfere with what’s playing onscreen. While checking out an episode of Fraiser, we reminisced about the infamous eel scene in our favorite episode. Once we switched over to Downton Abbey, we bemoaned the lack of Matthew (why, why did Dan Stevens have to leave the show?).
Above: Starting the first episode of Downton! Will Mary ever find love?
• Helpful Tips
You’ll need a higher speed internet connection (I would recommend no less than 50 MBPS) for this to work with minimal lags and glitches. Every so often we experienced delays with the video loading, or sometimes the talking cut in and out. It wasn’t so bad that we didn’t want to use the site, but it did get a little frustrating to have video pause and buffer. There is also a slight time lag with the browser’s controls. Additionally, you can only use Rabbit in Chrome, Firefox, or Opera browsers. It doesn’t work in Safari or Internet Explorer.
Overall, both Mom and I thought Rabbit was super fun. It was such a treat to hang out with my mom in real time—something that I only get to do when I’m home during the holidays. I can see so many interesting ways to use it. You can catch up with friends from far away, tune into the sports game with your old college crowd, watch your weekly show with your hubby even if someone is out of town—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Despite some glitches, I’m adding Rabbit to my list of ways to keep in touch with people I love who live far from me.
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