Has Blu-Ray failed?

[Sparky]

Teelie Sorry if it sounded like I was disagreeing with you. I was actually agreeing with you in a roundabout way. That's why I started my post with "by the numbers" However I could have done a better job clarifying myself. No matter what technology comes around the bend the biggest leap in quality (perception wise) will always be VHS to DVD simply because of the jump from analog to digital. (until the leap to Holo TV or some other game changing format). When I mentioned that people sit too far away from their TV's it was an acknowledgement of the diminishing returns involved with higher resolutions.

RoJoHen I wasn't thinking practical. I was just answering the question technology wise. I agree that what they have proposed for a future TV format is just overboard. However I would love that 22.2 surround system. Speakers on the ceiling all around you, speakers at ear level surrounding you and speakers below you. That is surround sound in a literal sense.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

When there are simpler options, why care about physical media?

Because the bandwidth for streaming full HD movies in 1080p just isn't there yet. (iTunes maxes out at 720p, I think.) Plus, it's easier to include loads of extra materials - commentaries, deleted scenes, etc. - with physical media.

And there are some programs that are too obscure for companies to bother streaming them in the first place. They'll put in the effort to stream the latest movies, but probably no more than that. For example, I collect baseball games on DVD (don't laugh ). I care about these games, and so do a fair amount of other people, but I doubt they're popular enough - except maybe for the most recent World Series - for Big Media to bother streaming them on demand.

 

[Itisnotlogical]

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I'm not one to pay two to four times as much for no discernable difference.

 

[RoJoHen]

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I'm not one to pay two to four times as much for no discernable difference.

What? Are you talking about the difference between DVD and Blu-Ray? Where the hell are you shopping that Blu-Rays cost 4 times as much as DVDs?!

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I love Blu-Ray. I can definitely detect the increased quality. As soon as any DVD I have comes out on BR, I re-buy it in a flash. So I'm not worried about that. There are some standard def DVDs I have, such as the IMAX Everest film, that I would love to have on BR, because the standard version is of rather poor quality. But even if the DVD is good, the BR will always be better to me.

 

[RoJoHen]

I love Blu-Ray. I can definitely detect the increased quality. As soon as any DVD I have comes out on BR, I re-buy it in a flash. So I'm not worried about that. There are some standard def DVDs I have, such as the IMAX Everest film, that I would love to have on BR, because the standard version is of rather poor quality. But even if the DVD is good, the BR will always be better to me.

There are very few things that I would re-purchase on Blu-Ray if I already own them on DVD. I keep waiting for Farscape to come out on Blu-Ray, but I have a feeling that's never going to happen.

 

[Trekker4747]

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I'm not one to pay two to four times as much for no discernable difference.

Blu-Rays cost about the same as DVDs pretty much everywhere I shop. Maybe $1 or $2 more. $5 at the absolute most and usually with some "trade-off" in the form of a bonus features disc or a plain DVD disc.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ Here too, BR's aren't much more expensive than regular ones. Certainly not 2 to 4 times the base amount.

 

[RoJoHen]

Yeah, they may have started out a lot more expensive than DVDs, but the prices have dropped significantly.

 

[Sparky]

When there are simpler options, why care about physical media?

Because the bandwidth for streaming full HD movies in 1080p just isn't there yet. (iTunes maxes out at 720p, I think.) Plus, it's easier to include loads of extra materials - commentaries, deleted scenes, etc. - with physical media.

And there are some programs that are too obscure for companies to bother streaming them in the first place. They'll put in the effort to stream the latest movies, but probably no more than that. For example, I collect baseball games on DVD (don't laugh ). I care about these games, and so do a fair amount of other people, but I doubt they're popular enough - except maybe for the most recent World Series - for Big Media to bother streaming them on demand.

Xbox Live has movies and shows streaming in 1080p. The picture quality is "decent" at best. Color fidelity and small details are just not up there. You also get macroblocking during high motion scenes as well as dark scenes and fadeouts. Pretty much all the common issues during the early days of poorly compressed DVD movies. I would much rather have a 720p image at the same bitrate so that the compression issues are negated somewhat.

As for your baseball fetish I understand completely. I love hockey and my Calgary Flames. Unfortunately there is a lack of specific content. I have a subscription to a service on NHL Gamecenter that gets me classic games from the 1960 to now. I can watch any NHL game from the last 3 years in it's entirety. I also get Condensed games (10-12 minute extended highlights from this current upcoming season.) What they consider a "classic" game and what I consider a classic are 2 different things. The worst thing is as soon as I stop paying I no longer have access to any of that content. I can buy a DVD set of Flames Classic games but I am stuck with the content that they decide I should be able to watch.

 

[Amaris]

Yeah, they may have started out a lot more expensive than DVDs, but the prices have dropped significantly.

I remember when DVDs came out and were $35-$40 compared to the $15 VHS cassette (because I was working in an electronics dept. at the time). The Matrix came out a short time later and was on sale on release day for $25. I thought to myself, "no one's going to buy these things as long as they're that much". Sure enough, a few years later, you could get a DVD for $20, then $18, and now unless it's super special edition, $15, and the Blu-Ray for $18-$20. The players even moreso. You can now get a Blu-ray player from Walmart (a Magnavox) for $78. Works great, too, as I have one and have had it for over a year.

I get all of my Blu-Ray titles from Amazon, and I get them for less than $10. I can get the DVD equivalent for $5-$8, so the cost has already come way down. Whomever is paying 4x the price of a DVD, I have this great Blu-Ray component drive for PC. Wave of the future. I'll sell it to you for a scant $200. Shop around*, you can't find a deal like that!

(*Just don't go shopping anywhere like Walmart, Amazon, Target, Kmart, Meijer, Sears, Best Buy, Staples, Fry's, H.H. Gregg, Circuit City, CostCo, Radio Shack, Sam's Club, Newegg, Office Depot, or Micro Center.)

 

[RoJoHen]

Hell, I do most of my shopping at Best Buy, and I still manage to get stuff for super cheap. You just have to work your way around their system.

 

[Teelie]

Teelie Sorry if it sounded like I was disagreeing with you. I was actually agreeing with you in a roundabout way. That's why I started my post with "by the numbers" However I could have done a better job clarifying myself. No matter what technology comes around the bend the biggest leap in quality (perception wise) will always be VHS to DVD simply because of the jump from analog to digital. (until the leap to Holo TV or some other game changing format). When I mentioned that people sit too far away from their TV's it was an acknowledgement of the diminishing returns involved with higher resolutions.

I realize that now. I've been rather tired all day and misread it, although the argument did seem strange at the time, it makes more sense now.

 

[Trubinator]

Blu-ray is here to stay. Shop Amazon and you'll get 'em cheap.

 

[BillJ]

They have it tied to the internet which is inevitable everything with a computer chip will be but it also currently allows them to lock you out of the system if they decide they don't like the "after market" alterations you make. Anything that effectively disables and bricks your hardware because the manufacturer doesn't like what you're doing (legal or not) is immediately something to be wary of.

I've had my Magnavox for eight months and have yet to do a firmware update nor is it connected to the internet... and it plays everything flawlessly. Now my PS3, on the other hand, seemingly updates everytime I turn the damn thing on.

Then again, I don't make 'after-market' alterations. So I'm pretty sure I have little to nothing to worry about. YMMV.

 

[Amasov]

It seems to me that a lot of movies being released to home video these days include both a BLU-RAY and DVD copy of the film. It's almost as if it's more like a transitional phase. I don't remember there ever being VHS/DVD combination.

 

[Teelie]

I've had my Magnavox for eight months and have yet to do a firmware update nor is it connected to the internet... and it plays everything flawlessly. Now my PS3, on the other hand, seemingly updates everytime I turn the damn thing on.

Then again, I don't make 'after-market' alterations. So I'm pretty sure I have little to nothing to worry about. YMMV.

Some Blu-Ray discs require an internet connection to verify your hardware is intact, unaltered and your key is valid to access all features. It's not common but it still exists on some discs to utilize them and it's still a potential problem waiting to happen if something/one screws up.

They've settled down with requiring firmware updates, I believe the last major one was in October of 2009 (which some older models couldn't upgrade properly) but it doesn't mean you won't require one soon. It doesn't mean there will be either. It's just simple for them to brick your machine because they suspect you're pirating or that you did something else they disagree with.

 

[Candlelight]

I will only buy certain Blu-Ray titles that either:
- Are older movies / tv shows that have a decent backing by the studio for restoration / extras, such as the Alien or Star Wars sagas.
- A 'recently' shot movie / tv show that is "made" for Blu-Ray / HD such as Planet Earth or Avatar.

 

[Amaris]

I've had my Magnavox for eight months and have yet to do a firmware update nor is it connected to the internet... and it plays everything flawlessly. Now my PS3, on the other hand, seemingly updates everytime I turn the damn thing on.

Then again, I don't make 'after-market' alterations. So I'm pretty sure I have little to nothing to worry about. YMMV.

Some Blu-Ray discs require an internet connection to verify your hardware is intact, unaltered and your key is valid to access all features. It's not common but it still exists on some discs to utilize them and it's still a potential problem waiting to happen if something/one screws up.

They've settled down with requiring firmware updates, I believe the last major one was in October of 2009 (which some older models couldn't upgrade properly) but it doesn't mean you won't require one soon. It doesn't mean there will be either. It's just simple for them to brick your machine because they suspect you're pirating or that you did something else they disagree with.

I haven't had a single problem yet, and I too have a Magnavox Blu-ray player, the same one for $78 at Walmart. I get Blu-ray titles from Netflix, and haven't had a single issue yet. Remember that whole fiasco with Blu-ray authentication when Avatar was released? I didn't have that problem. The Blu-ray played first time, on time, without a single issue, and my Magnavox doesn't have a network connection, and has never been updated.

 

[BillJ]

Some Blu-Ray discs require an internet connection to verify your hardware is intact, unaltered and your key is valid to access all features.

Man... we've been really lucky then.

We own nearly a hundred Blu-Ray discs and receive two to four a week from Netflix and have never had an issue playing a movie.

I haven't had a single problem yet, and I too have a Magnavox Blu-ray player, the same one for $78 at Walmart.

It's the same player that I paid $128 for. Price dropped a few weeks after I bought mine.