Blu-ray vs. streaming (1 Viewer)

[LincolnSpector]

I'd like to get peoples' thoughts on Blu-ray vs. streaming when it comes to theatrical movies.

I haven't rented a movie on disc in years now, but I still collect Blu-rays, especially of beloved classics. Why don't I just stream them?

1. I think the image quality is better on disc, even when you've got a 1080p stream (I'm ignoring 4K at the moment). The compression is heavier with streaming, and the video quality can change while you're watching the movie. But I'm not entirely sure that I'm not imagining the result.
   
   
2. I know the sound is better on Blu-ray. You don't get to stream lossless.
   
   
3. The extras. I do so love them.
   
   
4. I like the feeling of owning a physical disc. If the studio decides to take that movie out of circulation, I still have it.

Lincoln

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I think in general you'll find that most people on this forum prefer discs for exactly the reasons you've listed.

For myself, I prefer discs when it comes to ownership, but I love streaming for rentals - it's so much more convenient than physically traveling to a video store, or waiting for rental discs to arrive in the mail. I'm not likely to purchase a movie on a streaming service, but I am more than happy to rent one there.

 

[Richard V]

Streaming is no where near as good as the disc. Besides quality of image, there is pixelation and buffering issues to contend with.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I think in general you'll find that most people on this forum prefer discs for exactly the reasons you've listed.

For myself, I prefer discs when it comes to ownership, but I love streaming for rentals - it's so much more convenient than physically traveling to a video store, or waiting for rental discs to arrive in the mail. I'm not likely to purchase a movie on a streaming service, but I am more than happy to rent one there.

That is how I view streaming, too. It's a convenient way to rent a film, especially since the video rental stores near our home are all gone. Amazon often offers digit credits that can be used towards rentals for Prime subscribers if you select delayed shipping on an order, so rentals through them can be quite inexpensive.

I prefer actual disc for anything I want to own, and have yet to buy a digital movie. The only ones I have are those UV codes that come with Blu-ray titles.

 

[Cranston37+]

It sounds like you have carefully thought through an answer for yourself - I say don't worry about what we think and enjoy your collection!

 

[Joseph Bolus]

Just for the record, I'm also with the "Use streaming for renting; Blu-ray for owning" crowd. In some cases if I deem the movie I rented good enough to own, then I'll order the Blu-ray and redeem the included code on the streaming service.

Bottom line: Any movie that I want to view more than once I want on the shelf!

 

[nara]

Besides quality of image, there is pixelation and buffering issues to contend with.

Not an issue if you have a fast broadband connection.

 

[Richard V]

Not an issue if you have a fast broadband connection.

I have 300 Mbits/sec, is that fast enough?

 

[Al.Anderson]

Streaming is no where near as good as the disc. Besides quality of image, there is pixelation and buffering issues to contend with.

I'm a disk/NAS guy, but I have to comment that when using both Netflix and Amazon streaming over Verizon Fios I never have buffering or pixelation issues.

 

[Joseph Bolus]

The best high speed internet provider available in my area is through Charter Cable. I have their 60 Mbps tier and yet I frequently encounter the dreaded "Buffering" message when viewing movies on VUDU in HDX quality. (This is via a ROKU 3 box fed via Ethernet.) At that point I usually have to drop down to SD quality to continue.

I can (somewhat) tolerate that for rentals. But for ownership, the physical disc still satisfies on many levels.

 

[Richard V]

Maybe I need to qualify my statement. PQ and pixilation is not an issue when watching on my computer screen, but definitely is when trying to watch on my TV. BUT, ideally, I DON'T want to watch those channels on my computer, I want to watch them on my TV.

 

[Cranston37+]

I have 300 Mbits/sec, is that fast enough?

The best high speed internet provider available in my area is through Charter Cable. I have their 60 Mbps tier and yet I frequently encounter the dreaded "Buffering" message when viewing movies on VUDU in HDX quality.

Both of you shouldn't be encountering any buffering issues, so something else is going on here. Coincidentally I am also on Charter's 60Mbps tier and never experience buffering.

I'm wondering about your modems/routers. Remember that you can be paying for all the speed in the world, but if your equipment can't handle it, you won't be actually getting it.

Can you maybe download SpeedTest on your TV's and see what it tells you? Or even better yet reply with what equipment you're using?

 

[Sam Posten]

And not or.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Both of you shouldn't be encountering any buffering issues, so something else is going on here. I coincidentally am on Charter's 60Mbps tier and never buffer.

I'm wondering about your modems/routers. Remember that you can be paying for all the speed in the world, but if your equipment can't handle it, you won't be actually getting it.

Excellent points. Some routers (but I don't think all) are only capable of sending a signal at whatever rate the slowest device on the network can receive. So let's say you have a high speed internet connection, and a fast router, and a Roku or similar device, but one of your computers or portable devices can only do wi-fi at a lower speed - some routers will slow everything on the network down to that slowest device.

For what it is worth, I'm a Time Warner Cable subscriber, and I have either their lowest tier or second to lowest tier. I've never had an issue with getting a signal, and whenever I watch a streaming video, my player shows that I am getting the highest quality version (usually 1080p) that the service has to offer. I still find that 1080 stream to be inferior to a 1080 disc because of the additional compression, but it still looks like HD and is very watchable. The difference is more noticeable on my projector than on my TV.

 

[Richard V]

I have a Netgear Router, not sure of the model number, but it is probably their top of the line model.

 

[Cranston37+]

I have a Netgear Router, not sure of the model number, but it is probably their top of the line model.

I encourage you to research BOTH your modem and router to see what speeds they are built for. You will only get speeds as fast as the slowest one of those two, no matter what your ISP sends you. Running SpeedTest.net will also give useful info...

 

[Jim517]

I agree. My speed is 15 Mbps and I never have any issues streaming Netflix HD.

 

[Jim517]

I agree. My speed is 15 Mbps and I never have any issues streaming Netflix HD.

 

[nara]

Both of you shouldn't be encountering any buffering issues, so something else is going on here. Coincidentally I am also on Charter's 60Mbps tier and never experience buffering.

Agreed. I'm at 52Mbps here in the UK and never suffer any buffering or pixellation with Netflix or Amazon Prime Video.(both HD)

There are obviously other factors at work here.

 

[Al.Anderson]

Maybe I need to qualify my statement. PQ and pixilation is not an issue when watching on my computer screen, but definitely is when trying to watch on my TV. BUT, ideally, I DON'T want to watch those channels on my computer, I want to watch them on my TV.

I never watch on my PC (my kids do though), I was referring to streaming watched on my TV (65" LED). But I was only talking about buffering and pixillation; adding in picture quality changes the discussion a bit, I'd say most streaming is not BR quality, something more than DVD but less than BR. If I am watching a movie I haven't seen before, I almost always watch it directly from the disc. Netflix, Amazon, and the NAS are reserved for TV shows and re-reviews.

To the discussion of the network, I did get all cat6 cables and switches. And my Fios is 50/50.