Overview:
Published here on Mr. Pink’s almost one year ago, my initial review of the DVD download site Videobox was glowingly congratulatory and overwhelmingly positive – a stance I’m usually quite reluctant to take on any site, no matter how good it seems to me. (I’m generally a cynical but cautiously accepting kinda guy, and that applies to the subjects of these reviews, not just my view of America’s political climate, the “Going Green” trend, and new reality television shows.) Videobox, however, was able to cut through the bullshit and deliver something truly worthwhile: a video website that, lo and behold, held tons of high quality videos that looked and sounded great, starring a huge roster of impeccable pornstars. Not many sites can claim that they do the same.

Lately, the Videobox team has made a few significant changes to the way the site operates and what it has to offer its patrons. With the introduction of two premium channels – kind of like premium cable channels for those who need more – there’s now more content on VideoBox than ever before. Evil Angel and Vivid are the two premium providers and, unless you’ve been living in an avian/swine flu quarantine camp for the past five or six years, you’ll no doubt recognize both names and get a little tingle in your trousers. Vivid is undoubtedly the single most recognizable adult brand name if you discount the dinosaurs of softcore publishing – Playboy, Penthouse et al – and has developed a style all its own. With high production values, exotic locations, and professional technicians, Vivid is also home to the Vivid Girls, a group of some of the finest pornstars in existence. Evil Angel is the lesser known of the two studios. Founded in 1989 by John Stagliano, Evil Angel has gone on to great success in the hardcore market, winning accolades and over 50 industry awards. Now that these two studios are allowing their material to be featured on VideoBox, I’d say we can expect even more furious beat-off sessions than ever before.

“So there are these new channels, or whatever, but how do I get to the hot shit?” Well, my understandably impatient friend, these two channels are dubbed “premium” for a reason: you gotta pay a little extra. A basic membership gets you full access to the regular VideoBox library, unlimited viewing, and five new DVD titles every day; a premium membership adds on DVD resolution downloads, Tier-1 bandwidth, and preferential customer service; the two premium channels can be added to either membership at the sign up stage and cost an additional $17.95 a month. Each channel offers three new DVDs each week, as well as access to everything on their roster that has previously been added to VideoBox.

One thing that hasn’t really changed about this fantastic site is the way it is used by members. Logging in brings you to a page that offers links to the Newest DVDs, Recommended DVDs and Scenes, and any DVDs or scenes you’ve recently looked at. A thorough list of content categories (with everything from Amateur to Transsexual) sits to the left and some quick links to the complete content archive are on the right, allowing you to view DVDs and scenes by date or popularity. A model index also helps you find your favorite fucker and all her online content. The number of high-profile, extremely exciting pornstars available on VideoBox is staggering for a first time user, and experienced members will thank their favored supreme being for the great selection of newer, fresher faces also online. Furthermore, you can click on the Channels tab in the top menu bar for access to content from Vivid and Evil Angel only, excluding all else.

After browsing for a while, checking out what’s on offer, and finally making a selection, you’ll go to a DVD page that gives you all the necessary information: cast list, categories, studio, date added to the site, and a synopsis of the plot (if there is one) and action. You can add the whole DVD to your favorites list or scroll down the page and take a look at each scene. One of my favorite things about VideoBox is the way they preview content. Not only are viewers given six screencaps to look at, but all of these screencaps can be clicked for a few seconds of footage, giving you a fantastic look inside the scene without going to the trouble of downloading or commencing a stream. You can also click on the performers’ names to find more of their content or check out the comments section to see what others have said about whatever you’re considering viewing. You can download straight from this page in one of five available video formats, click the Play Now button for fantastic streaming video, or make a Custom Clip – a feature that enables you to isolate particular portions of a given scene, only downloading or streaming exactly what you want. Only interested in the initial striptease and blowjob? Don’t care about anything but cumshots? Just wanna see some slut get railed by one guy, but not the three that show up later in the scene to finish her off? No problem whatsoever.

The downloadable videos look fantastic in all five formats – 320x240, 480x352, and 640x480 WMVs, a 640x480 H.264 video, and a 320x240 iPod compatible MP4 – although it would be great to see some High Definition movies online in the near future. Lack of HD videos is often one of the nails in the coffin of a merely “okay” porn site, but VideoBox is impressive enough that its lack of true HD content is just a slight annoyance, not something to get truly pissed at. Both streaming and downloadable videos do look very good despite their somewhat meager resolutions, and it’s safe to say that most potential members would be very satisfied with the available quality. You’d be hard pressed to find another site that offers such a wide range of fuck flicks, with everything from softcore queen Justine Joli teasing us in gorgeous stockings and lingerie to Ashley Blue (who I’m pretty sure I spotted outside a donut shop on Melrose a few months back) taking it from seven guys at once, with every hole used, abused, and re-used over and over until she’s totally spent. You’ll get the softest of the soft and the hardest of the hard. There’s S&M, spanking, and all kinds of fleshy fetishes, as well as computer-generated animated porn, cartoon sex parodies of Sailor Moon and Dragonball Z, and, of course, the definitely impressive and eagerly anticipated Evil Angel and Vivid catalogs.

VideoBox could only feature what I’ve mentioned so far and it’d be one of the better porn sites currently in operation, but they don’t stop there. Most sites that host a blog use it for mundane update notices or shit like “site down monday back soon”. Videobox, however, features one of the more engaging and enjoyable blogs of any I’ve seen on an adult website. From obvious topics like “What’s your favorite scene?” to a celebration of Eva Angelina’s work on the eve of her post-natal return to porn, a discussion of pornstars and their tattoos, and Alison’s (the blog-mistress) list of the Top 10 Asses in Porn. The Favorites feature is also a blessing. When a site has this much content – 6,465 DVDs and 36,103 scenes – it’s easy to forget that you intended on downloading a certain video, losing it forever. VideoBox allows you to add any scene or DVD to a list so that you can immediately access it later. You can even create your own lists based on any theme or reasoning you like. One thing that VideoBox doesn’t do, however, is tell you, in a succinct and easily digestible way, the best and worst things about the site. For that you must turn, once again, to the sexperts here at Mr. Pink’s!

Pros:
- With five new DVD titles added every day (plus six premium channel DVDs per week), you’ll never be waiting too long for something fresh and tasty.

- There are over 6,000 DVDs already online, covering all manner of pornographic styles, subjects, and situations.

- A porn site with an entertaining, interesting blog is a rarity these days. VideoBox has the best!

- Membership is very reasonable, at only $9.95 per month for a basic membership.

Cons:
- While the premium Vivid and Evil Angel channels are definitely pretty exciting, it’s a shame that you have to pay extra to download their content.

- The content online at VideoBox is primarily non-exclusive and can usually be seen elsewhere on the ‘net.

- The lack of High Definition videos is a little disappointing. Hopefully they’ll arrive in the near future.

Conclusion:
Oh, VideoBox! Where would I be without you? I suppose I’d be sitting at home beating off to lackluster porn displayed in low resolutions that I just spent an extraordinarily long time trying to find. VideoBox, you champion of champions, you’re consistently working to improve yourself and for that I must give you my heartiest congratulations. Membership is also pretty damn reasonable. Just when I think I can no longer afford a regular monthly membership to a porn site, I take a look at you, VideoBox, and realize that, just like Otis Rush, I can’t quit you, baby.