Do you have a BluRay player? Do you have a DVD player?

I've no intention of upgrading many films if I already own them on DVD, but I won't buy new films on DVD now, unless thats the only release. I enjoy 3D so my BluRay is rather essential.

 

I have two Blu-Ray players, but don't actually own any discs for them. I mostly use it as a device for NetFlix and playing DVDs. I don't really feel inclined to update the DVDs I have. The quality difference isn't that important to me.

 

I have a BluRay player, well my PS3 actually, hooked up to my living room TV as well as a standard DVD player. I've got some DVDs that struggle to worker properly on the PS3 (more due to the nature to the DVDs than a failure on the PS3's part.) No player hooked up to the bedroom TV.

I *do* have a VCR but it's in my closet and I only have out of... Well, I'm not sure why I have it. I don't have any video cassettes.

 

Blu-ray is most definitely NOT a scam. Compared to DVD, the picture quality is almost night and day. TNG looks absolutely incredible in HD. It looks like it could've been filmed yesterday as opposed to 20+ years ago.

I still buy DVDs of things that I don't think are worth the upgrade, like older TV shows, and stuff originally shot on video which can't be remastered in HD, like, again, older TV shows.

 

I still have two DVD/VCR combos that I bought 8-9 years ago and are still going strong. Whenever those die I'll get blu ray players, but I'm just cheap enough not to upgrade anything until I have to. I might have a blu ray player on my computer, but I've never really checked. When I watch anything on my computer, I just stream Netflix.

 

A Blu-Ray player wouldn't do me much good since I have nothing I hook it up to. When my old TV dies and I get an HDTV, I'll probably go ahead and get one, but for now it would just sit somewhere collecting dust.

 

The question is does the OP stream/download in SD or HD?

There is nothing wrong with moving from physical media to OnDemand services. But that doesn't mean there isn't a market for physical based media nor is it a scam.

But the next question is why does the OP think blu-ray is a scam?

You are getting a superior product and are paying either the same or fractionally more.

 

Actually I hit "submit" before I was finished and could elaborate, glad someone asked. What I was thinking is how the industry phases out perfectly good technology in order to sell the same thing again (the so-called "planned obsolescence").

When DVD was launched, every new VHS tape came with a trailer advertising how everything would be more colorful, sharper, sound better and on DVD. The last DVDs I rented came with EXACTLY the same advertisement (non-skippable too, but that's another rant) about Blu-Ray. The only message I get is 10 years from now (or less) they will come with yet another new tech that really improves little and costs as if it was "the definitive" tech. (that's what I meant by "scam". That and the "remastered", "collector's", "director's" re-editions of the same content again and again; Star Wars is the champion in this field)

But they (it's always "them") seem to not even want to wait for tech to become old, to sell the same thing again. VHS lasted what, 25 years? alright, but DVD was the first digital, un-degradable media, and not 15 yrs passed before Blu-Ray came (and it would be sooner had not happened the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD format war).

Now Blu-Ray is the state of the art, but streaming, 3D and whatever are looming around the corner. Soon perfectly good Bluray players and big screens will be in the trash. (that's waste)

I wrote too much now. This Picture ilustrates perfectly my point.

 

That is kind of part of our technology cycle though. Honestly, I have no real issues with it. As much as I miss the old days sometimes, I think it would be a pretty sad existence if I was still watching Betamax/Laserdisc on a 19" Trinitron with an Atari 2600 for gaming.

Blu-ray is also a bigger step up from DVD than DVD was from VHS when talking about pure picture quality. Plus it was a less wasteful transition as Blu-ray players also play DVD's.

 

You didn't put the words "sad" and "Atari 2600" in the same sentence!

 

I actually still have an Atari 2600 hooked to my HDTV.

 

^ I think your cylinders are a scam. Watching plays at the theatre looks a hell of a lot better in my book.

 

Everyones knows phonograph cylinders sound better.

 

Did I unwittingly start a thread about me? wow I must be important.

 

Astonishingly, those fragmentary quotes almost sound like a song.

 

Streaming has several drawbacks.

1.>You need an Internet connection.
2.>You need a fast enough internet connection in order to stream.

Yes it might be 2014 but not everyone has the Internet, and some of those that do don't have a fast enough connection in order to be able to stream in SD never mind HD. I for example I'm still on ADSL that ADSL need even ADSL2+.

From a business sense switching to OnDemand services only is bad buisness as you potentially eliminate potnetial customers. So that's why you have both OnDemand and Physical media.

You know I remember when DVD first came out and it was limite to 1 or 2 metre's in shops eventually that space grew and grew and the space given over to VHS was reduced. The same is happening with Blu-ray. It started with 1 or 2m in shops and has slowly grown over the year.

Business like to make money so they have to constantly come up with new things in order to part us from our money. You know one of the next things that'll reach the market might by DVR-BR to replace the DVR-DVD. And sure 4K, 8K etc.. will come but how is that any different from previous changes in tech? Sure it might be becomming a little faster than in previously but it still changed in the past.

As for multiple releases of the same film, it's only double-dipping if you choose to buy it. Even DVD and VHS re-released stuff so this is hardly a new thing.

Another reason for a re-release is that the market might have grown since it was last released so there might be more people willing to purchase it today than there was 3 years ago. Put it this way Lets say for example in 2011 there was 100 million blu-ray players world-wide. And I want to release a film, how many copies to I make if I think i can sell my film to 1% I'm going to have around 1 million copies pressed. Fast forward to 2014 and there are now 200 million players worldwide that means I have a potential new 1 million customers but I want to maybe generate a few more sales so I have to entice existing owners to buy it again so what do I do, load it with new features do a directors cut etc.. From a buinsess point of view it makes sense.


3D

 

The picture is somewhat wrong - Betamax and Laserdiscs weren't just thrown away due to being replaced by the next Gen technology, they never won the format wars during their own retail period. So HDDVD would belong there.

The jump from cassette to disc, and disc to download is essentially starting from square one again each time. DVDs on the other hand still have their part to play in the BluRay age.

You are right Star Wars is the master of exploiting the chance to sell again in the latest format - it has fans queuing up the original films remastered in HD and still waiting.

Technology will always improve. Wake me when I can watch Star Wars in my own personal holodeck.

 

So, I guess it's not enough that I have to keep buying The White Album again... I also have to keep buying Star Wars again - eh?

(Luckily some fans of the original Star Wars have made an edit that surpasses (imnsho of course) any 'official' release ever made... but you have to look around for it).