Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs? - Page 5

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I am actually thinking of dumping some of my SD-DVD's especially if they only have a standard DD track. I would only get rid of the SD-DVD if I have already replaced it with a HD counterpart. I am only considering it as I can sell of some of the SD-DVD's and reinvest that money into more HD titles. Some titles that are collectable editions I will keep no matter what. And I will keep the titles that I most likely will not rush out to buy on Bluray or titles that may not see Bluray ever. I do not have a DVD library like some of the other members here but enough to consider dumping some of the SD-DVD's.

To dump or not to dump, that is the question.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Ive been buying from them for some time. Great service! Have bought 3 Blu-Rays there.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Rick: Thanks a bunch for that tip. I've given them a look. Don't see anything there right now I want...except for The Seventh Seal on BD!!! That is TOO COOL...but a little too pricey for me at this point. Although compared to the cost of the Criterion release...maybe not so bad.

Maybe they'll add Sweeney Todd after thee release date?!

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

FWIW I've stepped up the aggressiveness of my sales after taking some harsh looks at some issues . . .

. . . how long it's been since I've spun so many of my discs; how in love I am with HD PQ; how big of an impact Netflix has had on my viewing habits over the past 4 years (huge Queues of stuff I wanna see; the "freshness" of renting more stuff which I haven't seen rather than reaching to the shelf to spin something I own); how mildly ironic it is/hypocritical I feel kvetching about supps not getting ported over from some discs I've owned for years yet still haven't watched; and, finally, realizing that I just don't have/make enough time in the average week to make serious dents in new stuff I wanna see (theatrically and at home), plus re-viewing other movies and watching supps.

I'm pleased with the aggressiveness of Warner's announcements and, on that basis, have looked really critically at my WHV titles. Recent sales include The Client, Eraser (could be wicked to hear those uber guns in Dolby TrueHD someday) and Sphere (after finally doing the SLJ and Dustin Hoffman commentary after, um, 10 years). Ironically, the latter two are 2 of the five titles I received for free from WHV after buying a Tosh DVD player at Good Guys! in 1998.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Bump.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I just started dumping DVD since I am out of storage space. Anything that I have on HD is getting pulled unless there are a lot of extras on the DVD that aren't on the HD version. I am also looking at some titles I have never watched, or watched and wondered why I bouth in the first place. Instead of trying to sell them I have just been giving them away to friends and family. Kids and TV are teh only types of DVD titles I am buying anymore.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'm down to a mere 44 SD DVDs. I actually have more HD DVDs, 54, than SD DVDs at this point.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'm in no hurry. DVD is still watchable to me and I have quite a few titles that I'm not sure I'll bother to replace. I just bought the BD set of Band of Brothers, so I'll probably give my SD DVD set to a buddy of mine.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

DVD is still watchable, but I'm getting close to dumping my remaining 90 DVD movies. I already sold my LOTR EE editions. I just think the longer I wait, the less I will get for them. I will definitely keep my TV show based DVDs though.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

That's what I'm thinking and . . .

. . . despite the sometimes admittedly paltry values the market is offering esp on popular titles, I'd rather try to get a little coin (esp in this economy) to help finance The Big Switch than give them to fam and friends (who sometimes question my techno-fetishism).

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

They shouldn't be asking any questions (or making any fun) if it's yielding them free DVDs!

I've had some very appreciative kids who have benefited from me upgrading various films over the years. My boy (now off to college) has a decent collection of action/adventure classics, while my girl (post-college and married) is thrilled to be starting a collection of classic dramas and musicals.

And then there's my stash of first-generation Disney animated features which will go to the eventual grandchildren.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'm still buying SD DVDs. I have given some away as I've selectively upgraded (either with HD DVD or BD) but I frequently keep the SD as well (other players around the house, I use some of these films in the classroom and we're not HDM "friendly" where I teach). Moreover, there are a number of titles coming out now on SD DVD for the first time that I don't anticipate will be available in BD for a long time to come. As I don't reside in the "SD is unwatchable" camp, I have no qualms about getting an SD DVD if it meets my wants and needs, nor do I feel the need to "upgrade" every title on my shelf just because it's available in BD. It doesn't make financial sense, among other reasons.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

If you're any kind of an Asian film fan you know you can't get rid of anything ever, because you don't know if it'll come back in print. So my DVD collection vastly outnumbers my Blu-ray collection, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, especially with East Asia looking very slow to adopt the high definition.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Yep. I still pick up cheap DVDs of those on occasion in part because of that, especially for cases where they finally corrected some problems and/or brought the PQ/AQ out of the dark ages. Plus who knows if their eventual BD releases (if ever) will be up to par in terms of PQ/AQ anyway. I doubt many films have been well preserved, and they certainly are not as likely to do good restorations of them like sometimes done for Hollywood classics...

_Man_

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I am buying SD DVDs as much as ever. If there's "something to see" on an SD title, I upgrade to BD. So far, only a few BDs have totally replaced one of my SDs, due to lack of extras. I will NOT re-buy those BDs if/when the extras get ported over.

Anybody with hundreds/thousands of DVDs knows that replacing them with BDs is impossible right now, and likely will be for years, so it's not even a conceivable proposition.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I've cleared out a few. (Batman Begins, Spiderman 2, both on BD now). And need to clear out some more.

But mostly I've simply stopped buying SD-DVDs altogether. I really don't even like to re-watch my old SD-DVDs anymore either.

Exceptions are: The Three Stooges Collection and a few remaining seasons of Cheers. Both of these may be years off, if ever, before they are on BD.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'm dumping those DVDs which I've upgraded to BD as long as the BD contains AT LEAST as much extra content as the DVD.

So THE ROCK and the PIRATES trilogy and RATATOUILLE, for example, the DVDs went bye bye. But DIE ANOTHER DAY and THE MUMMY, for example, I'm holding onto.

I'm also still buying DVDs for those films that you just can't/won't get on BD. In the last few weeks I've picked up two Goldsmith-scored classics BLACK PATCH and STUDS LONIGAN.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

'Mission difficult but not mission impossible, Mr. Hunt.' Some with that large of a collection could approach a company like Amoeba and sell a chunk of it on consignment.

Although I understand sentimental value, anyone with thousands or even hundreds of DVDs probably hasn't watched at least, say, 60%+ of them in the last, say, 18 months.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

In most cases, I think if my wife (and the kids) can't sell the old DVDs via a simple stoop/garage sale on a couple nice weekend afternoons, I'll just either keep them or give them away to family and friends -- not really worth the hassle otherwise...

BTW, what's up w/ that film version of Carmen (the opera) going for the ridiculous price on eBay?? Reminds me of the early days w/ OOP titles like the original release of Platoon, which I still have. Maybe I should doublecheck to see which ones I should try to hock off on eBay and not just lump everything into a simple stoop/garage sale.

_Man_

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

It depends on various factors, but here's my angle on the upgrading situation:

NEW RELEASES: I have completely ceased purchasing new release titles on DVD as pretty much every new title has a BR counterpart.

CATALOG TITLES I OWN: I will upgrade only if all the extras are ported over and if there is a significant A/V improvement. My angle depends on the studio offering the release.
Warner: Under this standard, this makes upgrading most Warner catalog releases I own no-brainers. So when a BR version is announced with a solid release date, I immediately place the DVD version for sale (as others have pointed out, the earlier I sell, the more I will be able to sell them for.) (Sold the Shawshank 2-Disc SE and recently placed Amadeus 2-Disc SE up for sale)
It seems as though Criterion will be falling into such a grouping as well.

FOX/UNI/PARA, etc: I usually take a wait and see approach to see what the A/V and extras situation is like, as we all know how hit and miss they can be, especially FOX. (Thus Planet of the Apes was a no brainer BUT not necessarily so with Butch Cassidy)
If the release is movie-only or has fewer (and similar) extras than the DVD version I currently own, It will be passed up. BUT if the movie-only BR version offers a SUBSTANTIAL PQ/Audio improvement over the DVD, then it will be purchased ONLY IF it can be purchased at a good price (my threshold is that it must be less than $16-17 new) and the DVD will be retained if it offers significant extras.

TV SHOWS: More reluctant to upgrade these to BR because TV shows get watched very frequently around here in bedrooms, in cars, or on laptops. Newer shows I do not own worthy of home theater viewing will be bought on BR only if the price is right (e.g. Lost) but classic shows I own (e.g. Dick Van Dyke, I Love Lucy, Happy Days, etc.) if ever released on BR will be purchased ONLY if they are substantially improved overall and the sale of my DVD version will be sufficient to cover 75% of the BR purchase cost.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'll have to admit I'm actually still purchasing SD's. I'll probably pick up Hancock for $14.99 today rather than spending at least $11.00 more for BR as I doubt I'll watch this more than once (with friends - still cheaper than @ theater). Oh, and I'm still a sucker for the Wal-Mart $5.00 bin.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

^ Yup, I'm still buying "pure" comedies only on SD. Mainly when under $10, which is my new limit for a single DVD. Action-comedy, with something to see and not just mainly a dialog-driven performance, I buy in BD. Partly because I have not been impressed with the PQ of the "pure" comedy BDs I've seen so far, upscaled DVD is about as good and lossy audio is OK for the sound IMO. However, I am not using a PJ, and if I was I'd likely have a different scheme...

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

FWIW, I'd put Paramount at or near the top in terms of extras and PQ, along with Sony and Disney, because those companies maintain a fairly consistent level of production, with the added bonus of almost always including not only the DVD extras but more often than not upgrading those extras to HD and including Bonus View/PiP or BD-Live.

Fox has improved tremendously in terms of providing extras, although sadly their status as a distributor for MGM means that when MGM releases shoddy product they get blamed. Universal has occasional problems with PQ and extras, but when they deliver they're often giving us quality products on par with Para/Sony/Disney, IMO.
I have to admit I'm confused here. Why spend even $14.99 for a movie you'll only watch once? I mean, I could understand if it was <$5, but isn't that the entire point of renting, in which case you could watch it in Blu-ray to your heart's content?

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Ron, I agree Just my Fav's or if I get a really good deal, I recently got the Apes Bl Ray set and I owned the Evoltion set, was'nt gonna spring but got the Blu Set for 68 bucks for all 5 films, too good to pass up.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I never claimed to be logical - but (1) I hardly ever go to theaters because of so many bad experiences (2) I never rent (3) my OCD drives me to ownership just in case I want to watch it again at my impulse. (OK. I lied, I might want to watch it again). I have plenty of movies on Blu ray which I am sure I want to watch again. I just haven't seen any reviews of Hancock that have convinced me.

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I'm kinda new to BR; the only two dvds I've actually replaced so far are Sleeping Beauty. In that case, the difference between the BR and the old SD is night and day--the BR is a vastly superior improvement over early releases of this film! I also replaced Poltergeist, which is a far better transfer than the old dvd--FAR better.

To be replaced eventually: the LOTR trilogy, the Pirates Trilogy, all 5 Harry Potters, all the Star Trek movies, the Shrek trilogy, all the Star Wars movies, and any other random titles that end up with a very, very good BR release which improves on their counterpart old dvds. At the moment I have given up on all SD, except for tv shows which I feel are unlikely to ever have a BR release.

I've been blu for about 3 weeks! So far I've collected: Tropic Thunder, Iron Man, Narnia, Sleepy Hollow, Indy Jones & Crystal Skull and that's it for now! I'm eyeing sales over this coming weekend and also popping into Circuit City from time to time, because they're having a fire sale. The stuff's only 25% off so far, which isn't that great, because CC always charged top dollar for everything in the first place. In other words, their 25% off sale price is more or less equivalent to Fry's and Best Buy's regular everyday price. Not much improvement, there!

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Picked up a few more bargain bin priced DVDs today (along w/ a few bargain priced BDs) that I might've otherwise rented -- none of them are on BD just yet, and no idea if I'd eventually want any of them on BD either. If nothing else, they'd probably make for good loaners to family and friends since none of them (AFAIK) have jumped on BD yet.

Also picked up an opera concert DVD for a good price -- it's the kind of "special interest" title that probably will never benefit much, if at all, from the BD format...

_Man_

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

I plan to get rid of the DVDs that I upgraded to hd-dvd/blu-ray. I am going to give them to people I know

Re: Anyone else clearing out their SD-DVDs?

Just replaced the Pirates trilogy--Fry's had the trilogy set for $37.99 on Black Friday.