The ultimate in amateur erotica and winner of AVN 2007 Best Amateur Series, Homegrown was the first company to distribute homemade porn, beginning in 1982. It's a name that's tried and true and has persevered throughout the years.
Video downloads have No DRM(no license restrictions).
Features:
Full Scenes: Y, Multi-Bandwidth: Y, Vid Caps: Y
Watermarks:
Yes, medium-sized (only select videos though).
Notes:
Classic videos stream in-browser at 640x480, average bit-rate of 300k. 2086 of the videos are Classic vids. Newer updates also posted in MP4 format (640x480, 1300k).
Images
Quantity:
1,356+ Galleries (avg. 125 pics each)
Features:
Hi-Res Pics: N, Model Index: N, Small & Large Pics: N, ZIP Files: N
Watermarks:
Yes, small-sized (only select pictures though).
Misc
Exclusivity:
Most content is exclusive (major content advertised as exclusive).
Download Limit:
There is a daily download limit (nothing in Terms but a user reports a download limit of 7 GB plus a 48 hour ban of user name after limit is reached).
3rd Party:
Yes, live feeds, forum.
Other:
Stories, community.
Dates
Site Launched:
Aug 1997
Listed Date:
11-20-03
Facts Updated:
01-31-12
Content Updates
Update Log:
No
Content Dated:
Yes
Last Content Update: 01-31-12 (as of 01-31-12)
Details: Daily updates of videos and a photo gallery.
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Homegrown Video is an old classic of a site from way back in the day. In fact, our initial visit and subsequent review of the site goes all the way back to the birth of our own site in 2003. Our last visit was back in 2008, where the score increased from to 84.5, for me at least. At that point there was more than 750 image galleries and 1,350 videos, and was already touting the claim to "largest amateur site on the Internet". So, it's exciting to be back, and by the looks of the tour, a lot has changed. Currently there are more than 3,250 videos and 950 galleries plus all the extras that come along with this legend of a site. A membership here has been somewhat expensive in the past, but thanks to a special deal set-up for our users, TBPers can get in on the action for less than $20 bucks per month.
The Pros
Largest Amateur Community Online.
A real and true amateur community. Aside from the massive amount of content, there is an actual community of people that frequent here. Not only will you find member submitted content, but an active forum, news updates, and just all sorts of ways to get involved or admire real sexual amateurs who love to share their sex life online. A few new features include member chat/messaging, an active forum/live feed, member pages (walls), and even increased interaction abilities between users who submit content and member fans. You can even now request videos directly from submitters.
New & Improved Site Design.
A new look for this longstanding website (since 1982!), makes getting around the member's area much easier than before. The design has been smoothed out in the looks department and latest updates are clearly posted, images and videos are separated, categories/tags are offered and cross-linked, model lists, a keyword and advanced search feature (for additional filtering), plus all the Homegrown Classic Extras: cams & live shows, stories, community & features, etc.
Many Viewing & Download Options.
It looks like the new videos offer Flash in-browser viewing options, as well as WMV downloadable clips and a full-length option in high, higher, medium or low formats. They've ever added a iPod download for some videos in high and low formats. I also love the 5-minute clipped segments and lengthy scene/model information that is given with each.
Multiple Daily Updates.
Updates often. Multiple updates are added daily so there is always something new to see. Just this week alone about 16 new video clips and 7 image galleries were added. This is in addition to member chats, active user forums, community profiles & member interaction, submission abilities, Tweets and more.
Other Good Stuff:
Better quality content than before. Although it ranges, streams can go as high as 1000k-2000k. Obviously this is an amateur site and the technical qualities of a lot of the content is indicative of this, but it should be clear that the actual specs and overall viewing quality is quite nice. It's not the best we've seen online compared to some HD out there, but Homegrown Video is doing its best to keep up with the times in terms of overall picture quality, video streaming and options. More importantly, there continues to be improvement over the previous visits.
Reduced pricing for TBP users! This is huge! Readers of The Best Porn can now gain access to this amazing amateur community for less than $20 bucks per month. This is an incredible savings and the lowest price this site has been offered at for some time - don't miss out on this offer!
The Cons
Quality Can be Inconsistent & Image Sizing is Small.
Such is the case with amateur content in general, user-submitted content and etc. While some great looking videos are being added recently, quality can still be inconsistent at times and the further you go back in the archives, obviously, it's going to suffer some. And while the images look okay, they're sized quite small at just 750p, although I did find a few up to 1000p.
Older Videos Lack Options & No ZIPs For Image Sets.
The older (and even some of the newer) videos don't offer all of the same great options that are being offered more recently. Not all scenes offer the iPod download and some don't have all of the different WMV quality/Flash options. However, it should be noted that efforts are being made to go back and re-format the content to include all of the same great options that are being added for the newest scenes.
Minor Negatives:
Some of the videos are streaming-only. If you go to some of the video sections of the site, you'll find that many of the videos there will only stream. It's a shame that such a large portion of the site cannot be saved.
While the member community is quite large, many of the users don't have active profile pictures or content to check out aside from their favorites.
Bottom Line
A large archive of amateur content in one incredibly active community.
Homegrown content is a big draw to those of you old school amateurs, swingers and exhibitionistic online networker's looking to hook up and share your lifestyle with others. In fact, it's the one and only even worth considering and given all the recent changes in design & navigation, I'd say a membership here is a better deal than ever! It's not even that pricey at this point (for TBP users), and so now you're getting even more for your money, as if there wasn't enough beforehand. It's exciting to see this classic site continue into the future of Internet porn. I suggest you get all your amateur sex buddies together and give this site a shot - you're sure to have some old school fun in Homegrown Videos new and improved member's area!
Site Details
About the Content:
Downloadable exclusive hardcore videos of real amateurs having sex.
Download Managers:
Yes, should work.
Channel Max: 8
Able to pause/resume.
Test Software: IDM
Live Cams:
Access Homegrown Cams with free basic video chat (ppv shows).
Logging In:
Only user/pw required.
Saved after closing browser.
Videos don't require pw.
Very easy!
Model Appearance:
Mix of white and black models.
Mostly amateur-looking.
Body types from thin to bbw.
Model Info:
Thousands of models total.
Ages 18-mature.
Mostly U.S. based.
Other Content:
Large community & forum.
Erotic stories.
Live cams.
Twitter.
Member chat.
Other Details:
Little to no condoms.
No music in videos.
Members can rate and comment on scenes.
Pic Details:
Amateur level photography.
Little to no airbrushing, nice!
Mostly good lighting, bright colors.
Good mix of indoor/outdoor.
Some out of focus/poor lighting shots.
Pic Dimensions (HQ):
Most = 750 x 563
Sizes vary a little.
Streaming Player:
Medium WMV and Flash players.
Can jump ahead immediately.
5-10 second buffer.
Smooth playback.
Average quality.
3 quality settings.
Updates in Last 7 Days:
16 new video scenes.
7 new image galleries.
(on par with previous updates)
Re-Review Status
Review Completed
New review has been completed on Jul 28, 2010 and will be released in less than a week.
We have an active member pass required to do a new review.
Outside Review dates and scores are submitted to us directly by the approved review site periodically. We have limited control over the scores displayed.
DISCLAIMER: ALL MODELS APPEARING ON THIS WEBSITE ARE 18 YEARS OR OLDER.
Protecting Minors
We are strong supporters of RTA and ICRA, two of the most recognized self labeling organizations. Our site is properly labeled to assist in the protection of minors accessing inappopriate content. For information about filtering tools, check this site.
To report child pornography, go directly to ASACP! We're proud to be a corporate sponsor.
Have concerns or questions about porn addiction? We recommend this helpful resource.
Largest Amateur Community Online.
Quality Can be Inconsistent & Image Sizing is Small.
