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Quintus

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A lot of people, probably even most, still don't have HD. Which is why, like I said, physical media isn't going anywhere.

Blu-ray is far from dead, and while you guys have been waiting and waiting, I've already enjoyed superb picture and sound quality for several years.

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A lot of people, probably even most, still don't have HD. Which is why, like I said, physical media isn't going anywhere.

Blu-ray is far from dead, and while you guys have been waiting and waiting, I've already enjoyed superb picture and sound quality for several years.

that sounds so good, but someday you'll be the one actually paying for stuff, so it will be interesting for you to juggle paying for a house, a car, maybe a wife and kids, groceries, utilities, and then getting all the stuff you seem to be getting. You'll find the reality a little different.

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Internet delivery is going to have to come a long, long, long way before I'm ready to give up physical discs. And that goes for both video and audio. I'm too attached to the principle of ownership, and I don't really feel like I own it unless I've got it in my hands.

John- proud capitalist pig

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A lot of people, probably even most, still don't have HD. Which is why, like I said, physical media isn't going anywhere.

Blu-ray is far from dead, and while you guys have been waiting and waiting, I've already enjoyed superb picture and sound quality for several years.

that sounds so good, but someday you'll be the one actually paying for stuff, so it will be interesting for you to juggle paying for a house, a car, maybe a wife and kids, groceries, utilities, and then getting all the stuff you seem to be getting. You'll find the reality a little different.

Scratch off the wife and kids, he'll be saving a lot of money.

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but apartments and cars cost alot, and you can't live at home for ever, well maybe you can.

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A lot of people, probably even most, still don't have HD. Which is why, like I said, physical media isn't going anywhere.

Blu-ray is far from dead, and while you guys have been waiting and waiting, I've already enjoyed superb picture and sound quality for several years.

You sound more like you're trying to justify your own dive into Blu-Ray than providing any objective viewpoint on this issue.

Meanwhile Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Blockbuster, Best Buy, Samsung, LG, Wal-Mart, Electronic Arts, Activision, Disney, Comcast, and Time Warner, are all investing heavily in digital content delivery (streaming/downloads).

Blu-Ray is dead because it's the intermediary between DVD and Cloud based/digital download entertainment industry. Consider it this way: in countries like South Korea and Japan where consumers enjoy 100 mbps connections, the market penetration of Blu-Ray has been dismal. The only catch is, if you count the PS3, Blu-Ray market penetration in Japan is good. Otherwise it's dismal. These two countries also show the greatest declines in physical media sales.

Comcast already launched 100 Mbps DOCSIS 3.0 connections here in the US this year. And with the government's newfound interest in expanding the US' fiber networks...the wind simply isn't blowing in the direction of physical media.

Internet delivery is going to have to come a long, long, long way before I'm ready to give up physical discs. And that goes for both video and audio. I'm too attached to the principle of ownership, and I don't really feel like I own it unless I've got it in my hands.

Oh, of course there will always be the .5% that will make up a niche market, (and I will be one of them!). But that's an unremarkable number.

Why do I want to carry a Blu-Ray player and 12 discs around with me on a road trip when I can just as easily take an iPhone with 12 movies on it, watching them anywhere. And I can hook that iPhone up to any TV in any hotel. That's the future.

SACD/DVD Audio failed in the face of the inferior MP3. Newspapers and magazines are dying in the face of digital content. Next.

I prefer my CD's with the booklets, I prefer my DVD's, and I prefer my real smelly old books and magazines and newspapers that give you inky fingers. But I know, and we all know, those things are a thing of the past.

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but apartments and cars cost alot, and you can't live at home for ever, well maybe you can.

Yes they do, but they are much more manageable than houses and families. And rent is much easier to pay when you have roommates to split it with. I don't plan on living at home forever, trust me.

A lot of people, probably even most, still don't have HD. Which is why, like I said, physical media isn't going anywhere.

Blu-ray is far from dead, and while you guys have been waiting and waiting, I've already enjoyed superb picture and sound quality for several years.

You sound more like you're trying to justify your own dive into Blu-Ray than providing any objective viewpoint on this issue.

I'm not trying to justify my own dive, but rather showing that waiting for the next best thing is going to force you to stick with inferior quality for a long time. To me, it seems like a lot of people thought Blu-ray wasn't going to stick, much like you are saying in that it's already a dead format. HD DVD, now there's a dead format. I'm quite happy with my Blu collection.

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To me, it seems like a lot of people thought Blu-ray wasn't going to stick,

Oh I supported and fully knew Blu-Ray would win. In fact even on this forum, I vehemently argued in favor of Blu-Ray. And since then I've maintained it would quickly die out to cloud computing. Long before there was this watching things online craze. Let me put it this way, if you want to see the future, look at the porn industry.

'm not trying to justify my own dive, but rather showing that waiting for the next best thing is going to force you to stick with inferior quality for a long time.

I believe in frugality and careful investment. Even if Blu-Ray were to stick for the next 50 years, I would not make an investment right now, simply because it's sill in its infancy. A DVD player in 1997 was utter rubbish in comparison to what you could buy in 2002.

But Blu-Ray will not enjoy a decade like DVD did, and I gladly defer a $1000+ investment for new and shiny coming soon.

Never buy 1.0.

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:blink:

Once my brother makes the official transition to California and I'm out of the house, they'll probably sell it and retire to a smaller place somewhere. I want to move out as soon as possible, but unfortunately one cannot live on minimum wage.

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I even admit I don't have HD broadcasting....yet. I hope next year I can get an HD receiver and pay for it myself. The thing is the damn receiver costs $200. That $200 could go to other important stuff rather than high def broadcasting, that I would not hardly watch all the time. Don't get me wrong I'd love to get it...but right now it's not a possibility.

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Let me put it this way, if you want to see the future, look at the porn industry.

And what choice did the porn industry make? ... Blu.

If you pay for p0rn, you're doing it wrong. That's the future of that industry.

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I own a Blu-ray player (PS3) and yet I do not own a single BR movie. I've never rented one either, in fact I am yet to watch a BR movie on my player at all.

I may stop buying DVDs and move on to BR when I can get the movies for under a fiver, as that is what I pay now for DVD movies from Play.com. I suspect that price bracket [for Blu-ray] will come into place when the 1.0 format is being phased out, for 3D.

I really don't want to spend a small fortune on updating my movie collection to BR and then have to fork out the cash again to replace my BR movies with their inevitable 3D counterparts.

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I actually got to see this

at Siggraph in New Orleans. I nearly got trampled and killed in the process, but it was worth it. Incredible stuff.

There was also this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDTMsF9CAE0&feature=player_embedded

The problem right now is that the latter and former are currently exclusive of each other. What we need is the tactile capacity of the former with the imaging of the latter.

Also, there was another company that did some seriously kick ass work, they're called RabbitHoles, and you can actually have your own 3D hologram in your home for $250 + shipping. Or $300 in Europe + shipping. They've had the display at Siggraph for the last couple of years, and they're always the biggest attention getters. Youtube rabbitholes for videos.

http://www.rabbitholes.com/

I'm trying to convince my better half that we NEED one in our house. But she doesn't think so. It's virtually impossible to hang up in a home. ;)

But anyways, the RabbitHoles, being animated holograms in a window are probably closer to what kind of holograms we will get in the immediate future. Pretty cool stuff.

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I stopped reading Blume's responses when he said that if people cared about quality they wouldn't buy stuff from China? His argument is that BD is dead, which it clearly isn't and is an asinine idea. Yes sales are down, but look at the sales for everything else this year and what will be the major trend you find? Wow, people have no money right now and are looking for alternatives to get the luxuries they are used to. As I already said, most internet connections around the world still are no where near fast enough to justify a complete and utter switch to online streaming, and until it does, DVD/Blu-Ray will not die. As also mentioned, people also expect a great deal of extras and the like, and sites such as Netflix have yet to take the turn to that direction.

Do I concede that the future is online content delivery? Yes, but I think this has been a pretty well known fact for sometime. That being said, "the future" is still about 10-20 years away from being implemented in such a way that a substantial portion of the market will abandon physical discs, and that is a liberal estimate.

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For those interested, Pushing Daisies seasons 1 and 2 can be found at both Best Buy stores and amazon.com for $14.99 this week

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Of course it does!

---

I watched my first ever Blu Ray last night - Pixar's Up

Holy crap!

The picture was simply amazing. It almost looked 3D it was so good and clear

Can't wait to watch more

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What size tv did you see it on may I ask?

I know the question was for someone else but I watched it last night on a 46" on BR, it is beautiful to look at.

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I just picked up a Blu-ray player (Sony BDP-N460) along with my first movie, The Searchers. I refused to buy anything else in stores because of how much cheaper everything is online. Close Encounters of the Third Kind is half the in-store price on Amazon.

I guess it's not until you invest in the format and begin to browse the available titles that you realize how much is missing. Where the hell are the landmark all-time favorite blockbuster films like E.T., Jaws, Back to the Future, Star Wars or Titanic? I skipped on all Star Trek because I thought the sets were a bit too expensive at the moment. Additionally, I'm aware of this outcry that resulted from the release of TOS movies from the ST/Blu-ray nerds. I'm content with the SE DVDs of all the ST movies for now. Blu also needs more Spielberg, Hitchcock and Cameron. I chuckled when I realized there were already TWO versions of T2 available on Blu. Actually, I think technically there are three. How the hell many times shall they release that one? I don't even know which one to get right now.

Edit: holy crap does this look incredible. It's almost like 3D!

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So I got the Momitsu BDP-799 a couple of weeks ago:

bdp-799DVD-Momitsu_s.jpg

I didn't post earlier because at first I hadn't much time to play with it, then I ran into some troubles, and then I was too lazy.

In a way, this might be the worst piece of hardware I ever bought. It might just be some sort of production problem, though I rather get the feeling that the firmware upgrade might be responsible. For a few days (after it had been working fine the first three days), I couldn't get useable audio output. Now I discovered two rules which, when followed, remove all troubles:

1) Don't have a disc in the drive when turning it on, and always turn it on using the button on the player, never on the remote (I'm slightly unsure about the exact bit causing the problem, but following this exactly works fine). Otherwise, it will fail to correctly read a BD most of the time.

2) Don't turn on the projector before the player has started outputting sound (or, don't plug in the HDMI connection to the projector). Otherwise digital audio output over coax SPDIF will be garbled, and the only way to get it back to normal seems to me to connect the player to my computer screen via HDMI. No kind of reset of disconnecting (not even from power) helps. Not sure if the player, the projector, or the combination of the two is to blame for this.

Two very weird problems, but now that I know about them, everything works like a charm. At times the drive can produce rather loud high-pitched sounds, but the cupboard holding the player blocks them effectively. I'm still happy I bought this player, because to my knowledge, it was the only region-free Blu player I could get my hands on. HKFlix, where I bought it, have since stopped selling hardware, and there have been speculations that perhaps them selling region-free Blu players caused the hardware manufacturers to put pressure on them. Which at best makes me regret not completely boycotting Blu altogether.

Still, picture quality at 720p ranges from nice to quite amazing. And either I've already gotten too used to Blu, or 720p upscaling of DVDs isn't the player's strong suit, but the last DVD I watched on it really looked rather lame. Still waiting for an expected price drop in 1080p projectors to update mine, for maximum picture quality.

Oh, and Lost on a 100" screen is awesome. :huh:

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I just picked up a Blu-ray player (Sony BDP-N460) along with my first movie, The Searchers. I refused to buy anything else in stores because of how much cheaper everything is online. Close Encounters of the Third Kind is half the in-store price on Amazon.

I guess it's not until you invest in the format and begin to browse the available titles that you realize how much is missing. Where the hell are the landmark all-time favorite blockbuster films like E.T., Jaws, Back to the Future, Star Wars or Titanic? I skipped on all Star Trek because I thought the sets were a bit too expensive at the moment. Additionally, I'm aware of this outcry that resulted from the release of TOS movies from the ST/Blu-ray nerds. I'm content with the SE DVDs of all the ST movies for now. Blu also needs more Spielberg, Hitchcock and Cameron. I chuckled when I realized there were already TWO versions of T2 available on Blu. Actually, I think technically there are three. How the hell many times shall they release that one? I don't even know which one to get right now.

Edit: holy crap does this look incredible. It's almost like 3D!

Apparently, most of those are on track for 2010, but it was the same with DVD in terms of how long it took the big ones to come out. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that a new HD remaster is needed to get the best possible picture, and while some companies are just throwing our their DVD masters on BD for catalogue titles, they don't look great because BD shows up the inherent flaws in the masters, as they're only supposed to be output at 480p (which is why the ST-TMP director's edition is not on BD, as IIRC it was only rendered at 480).

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I just picked up a Blu-ray player (Sony BDP-N460) along with my first movie, The Searchers. I refused to buy anything else in stores because of how much cheaper everything is online. Close Encounters of the Third Kind is half the in-store price on Amazon.

I guess it's not until you invest in the format and begin to browse the available titles that you realize how much is missing. Where the hell are the landmark all-time favorite blockbuster films like E.T., Jaws, Back to the Future, Star Wars or Titanic? I skipped on all Star Trek because I thought the sets were a bit too expensive at the moment. Additionally, I'm aware of this outcry that resulted from the release of TOS movies from the ST/Blu-ray nerds. I'm content with the SE DVDs of all the ST movies for now. Blu also needs more Spielberg, Hitchcock and Cameron. I chuckled when I realized there were already TWO versions of T2 available on Blu. Actually, I think technically there are three. How the hell many times shall they release that one? I don't even know which one to get right now.

Edit: holy crap does this look incredible. It's almost like 3D!

Your thesis statement is incorrect. I was able to get HPHBP cheaper in the store than online. There are still many things cheaper in the store, plus I still believe shopping is a tactile experience.

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Blu movies really seem to be cheaper in the US. The best prices I've found so far are usually at Play.com, somewhere between €10 and €15. Current movies are always €20+. I just ordered Inglourious Basterds (limited) for €23.49.

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What size tv did you see it on may I ask?

I have a 42" Samsung LCD TV. Its nice.

I have a LG BD390 and its awesome so far - but haven't had a chance to do much playing with it yet

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Got The Aviator and Interview With the Vampire for $10 each, plus An American Werewolf in London. I should have gotten the 2-disc Casino Royale CE at Wal-Mart for $15. I'll probably go back. Need more Blu-ray. Now.

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Yea my Wal*Mart has the 2disc Casino Royale too.... I also feel like I should have gotten it when I saw it. Its $25 on amazon

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Yea my Wal*Mart has the 2disc Casino Royale too.... I also feel like I should have gotten it when I saw it. Its $25 on amazon

Yeah it's a really good deal, especially when Target and Best Buy are charging 10+ dollars more for the other version.

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Almost bought my first disc yesterday, it was Total Recall, HMV had it for a tenner. I picked it up, had a look at the back but then thought nah, it'll be going for a fiver in 6 months, before placing it back on the shelf.

Tight arse? Nope. Smart? Yes. It ain't like I haven't seen it a million times before already.

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I'm always mixed, whether to pay full price for media or not. Prices are falling, but not fast enough given that DVDs have now been mainstream for over 10 years.

It disappoints me to go into an HMV and find TV box sets going for £60 because really very little of that is actually going towards the discs themselves.

Generally, the only time I will pay more than about £5 or so, is if it's a smaller publisher/label who is making a bigger effort to get stuff released, because I feel their risks should be rewarded. A major studio pumping out three versions of the latest blockbuster gets none of my sympathy. My brother owns at least two DVD versions of Shawshank Redemption, and also now has it on Blu. The studio behind that must be raking it in.

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I'm always mixed, whether to pay full price for media or not. Prices are falling, but not fast enough given that DVDs have now been mainstream for over 10 years.

It disappoints me to go into an HMV and find TV box sets going for £60 because really very little of that is actually going towards the discs themselves.

Generally, the only time I will pay more than about £5 or so, is if it's a smaller publisher/label who is making a bigger effort to get stuff released, because I feel their risks should be rewarded. A major studio pumping out three versions of the latest blockbuster gets none of my sympathy. My brother owns at least two DVD versions of Shawshank Redemption, and also now has it on Blu. The studio behind that must be raking it in.

Would you feel the same if a company released a score on LP, CD and then expanded CD?

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But the labels are working with what's available to them, or what they can legally/financially release.

Movie studios don't have that problem - the movie is there, plain and simple.

Obviously there are exceptions, as with some score releases, but I don't think it's as cut and dry as that. For example, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION was originally released on VHS in 1997, as a movie-only DVD in 1999 when DVD and the concept of special editions were still in their infancy with the majors, and as a special edition in 2004, by popular demand, with the next release being the Blu-Ray (much the same as the upgrade from LP to CD). Obviously I'll agree that it is used as a marketing tool, and some companies go way too far (if you're an Evil Dead fan, the words "Anchor Bay" are a dirty word to you), but DVDs at the height of their popularity were similar to score releases, with people begging for more features or even a film's release (for example Star Wars). But it's gotten out of hand simply because people will buy them, and the demand for them is still there, even if BD is now cutting in on the market, but now we have people clambering for films to be released on BD, so the whole situation is repeating itself.

Edit: I don't mean to sound patronising, as I'm sure you know the history of DVD, it's just something I've always had a big interest in, although funnily enough it's been overtaken by scores.

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There are definitely exceptions with DVD/Blu-ray double/triple/etc. dips. Picture and sound quality improved, discs of special features were added.

In many cases, improved and expanded DVDs were expected or demanded.

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