Introduction

Real.com is the home of Real Player, one of the most popular multimedia players on the Web. Like the video and music player, the website is professionally designed and easy to operate. Real.com features links to movies, music, games as well as the latest free downloads for the Real Player.

Though much of the content on the site is free to use, the site vigorously promotes Super Pass, a subscription feature that provides access to games, movies and other multimedia. Additionally, the Rhapsody, a music application, is another subscription product featured on the homepage.

Features

The site features a wealth of multimedia options. First and foremost, you can check out the Real Player updates and make sure your PC is running the most recent Real Player. The download is free and finishes quickly.

Kids and the young-at-heart will want to click on the gaming software, Real Arcade, at the bottom right of the homepage. The download is free and a promotional offer gets you two free games as well. After that, a subscription is required to continue playing.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much – other than the player download – that’s free on Real.com. It’s basically a catalogue for the products they offer. If you’re looking for good multimedia it’s great, otherwise it’s a fairly boring site.

Tips & Tricks

The Rhapsody MP3 store is a must for any IPod fanatic. Download rates are reasonable and the sound quality is what you’d expect from Real – excellent.

If you aren’t really fond of the Real.com homepage – and we weren’t – check out the link to Real Guide at the top left of the page. This takes you to a second version of Real.com which is more appealing and contains the same features.

A must-see is the Real Networks Blog. The link to the blogs is at the top right of the homepage. The blogs highlight all the latest happenings at Real and excellent tips for enjoying your experiences with their products.

Newbie Friendly Rating

The site is easy to use, so it fits the primary criterion for being “Newbie Friendly.” What we didn’t enjoy was the sales pitch feel of the site. Next to nothing is given away at Real.com. Promotional trials of all the featured products are offered, but unless you have money on hand you want to spent, you won’t have much fun at Real.com. We’d give Real.com a Newbie Friendly Rating of 5.