The Answer Is...Blu-ray! (1 Viewer)

[Walter Kittel]

My goal as a home theater enthusiast is to recreate the cinematic experience (the good aspects of it, not the crying babies, etc. ) as faithfully as possible. Blu-ray is the best means to that end currently available.

 

- Walter.

 

[TravisR]

I'll just echo many other folks' comments and say that I want the best quality available and I want a physical product.

 

[David Wilkins]

I echo many of the above comments regarding quality of presentation and physical ownership. As an occasional purchaser of download, streaming content when the desire and impulse hits me, quality has been notoriously poor. Not only the standard list of compromises inherent to all streaming...but the consistency is a real problem, depending upon bandwidth and traffic loads. Very often the "HD" quality of the stream gets bumped down to SD during the course of a film. There are too many variables in the data chain, for the result to remain consistently high quality. We are many years away from such a thing.

 

[Mike Frezon]

...and they're durable, too.

 

[Malcolm R]

As others have said, having the physical media in-hand is very important and Blu-Ray is the next generation of physical media, with improved pic and sound quality. I don't really see any appeal or advantage of digital downloads. Who wants to watch a film on a computer monitor or 3-inch handheld device? I have several "digital copy" versions of films, but have yet to use them for anything.

 

[bigshot]

With me, it's not why bluray, but "when".

I watch mostly pre-1970 movies, and quite frankly DVD is good enough for a lot of titles. It might be that the upscaling on my Epson 7500ub projector is really good. But when a bluray is well mastered and is sourced from a good film element, it is as good or better than the best screening rooms I've ever been in. It all depends on the bluray.

 

[Finn]

great input all. Keep it going but take it up a notch - outside of having the best picture and sound quality -- what else?

 

[Robin9]

Originally Posted by Finn

great input all. Keep it going but take it up a notch - outside of having the best picture and sound quality -- what else?

What else? Finn, with all due respect, you haven't been paying attention. The posters here have made it clear they don't especially want anything else. They don't want streaming, downloading, branching, picture-in-picture or any of the other childish gimmickry that companies like Sony incorrectly assume is going to persuade people to go Blu.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

 

Originally Posted by Robin9

Quote:



What else? Finn, with all due respect, you haven't been paying attention. The posters here have made it clear they don't especially want anything else. They don't want streaming, downloading, branching, picture-in-picture or any of the other childish gimmickry that companies like Sony incorrectly assume is going to persuade people to go Blu.

 

Exactly. Most of the HTF members are film lovers, so it is all about the movie. Personally, I do not buy a BD for any interactive content -- I am interested in buying a movie, not a video game. Well-done making-of documentaries or those profiling an artist provide some interest, as long as it's not the all-too-common fluff promotional piece.

 

Also, please do not follow the path of Warner Brothers with their ultra-expensive, exclusive uber-collections that include a bunch of collectible trinkets. We do not care if you offer such a package, but also offer a trimmed down version without all the trinkets at the same time for those of us that are not interested in paying for all the collectible items. I initially feared that Fox was going down that road with The Sound of Music, but it appears there will be a regular release on the same date as the collector's edition. The only thing this marketing ploy accomplishes is upsetting many of your customers, as we will wait for the eventual slimmed-down release anyway.
 

 

[John Sparks]

My first big screen was a 55" analog. VHS looked okay, but LDs blew that picture away. Upscaled to a Mit 65711 RPTV (ISFed by 3 of the best in the country) and the LDs (a collection of over 700 w/ only 2 left) took a dump and DVDs looked super (of course depending on authoring.) BDs just blows everything out of the water...but

 

Well, I just built my HT with complete light control and it has an Epson UB9500 projecting onto a 110" JKP Affinity Cinema Contour Dalite screen and I can tell you the DVDs that I own look great upconverted, but of course BDs look better.

 

If BD was not around, I'd be perfectly content to just view DVDs, they look that good on my PJ! I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 1400 DVDs, 50 BDs and 35 HDDVDs. I only double dip to buy a BD if I don't have it on DVD or it's clearly an upgrade in picture quality, and a lot aren't.

 

All my DVDs are watched on my Tosh HDA1 and the picture upscaling is second to none.

 

I am gradually buying more BDs, case in point. All the Roger Cormans Cult Classics that just came out, I bought in BD. I just replaced some of my favorites that I have on HDDVD to BD, in case my HDA1 takes a dump.
 

I don't use streaming or any other medium like that. I like collecting something physical and in my life that happens to be DVDs/BDs, and original old movie posters along with their press books.

 

 

 

[Parker Clack]

Because when produced correctly it is the closest thing to film you can get in your own home.

Because when done "right" its look and sound is often better than your local cinema without all the extraneous crap.

Because it is a physical medium. It is something that you can hold in your hand and enjoy over and over. There is

pride in ownership.

 

Because right now at this moment in time there is nothing out there for the average consumer that they can realistically

purchase that comes close to the amount of pleasure that you can derive from it.

 

 

[Sam Posten]

And that's one thing I like about the streams too. No junk to spend 5 minutes fast forwarding through or being forced to watch to get to the good stuff. On blu some studios are better that others at not making that 'what else' so in your face.

Of course the thing that excited me so much at the beginning of blu was the sheer volume each disk could hold. But it's a fine line in having lots of content vs. Lots of GOOD and easily navigable content.

The superduper new UI tricks on Blu rarely matter to me, often they are an impediment to getting to the good stuff, but as the tech matures this is getting better

 

[David Lambert]

Originally Posted by Robin9

Quote:



What else? Finn, with all due respect, you haven't been paying attention. The posters here have made it clear they don't especially want anything else. They don't want streaming, downloading, branching, picture-in-picture or any of the other childish gimmickry that companies like Sony incorrectly assume is going to persuade people to go Blu.

Nailed it.

 

I mean, I'm sure we all want the same "favorite" extras on BD that we're used to seeing on DVD (deleted scenes/bloopers/lost footage if you prefer that, like I do; commentaries and behind-the-scenes featurettes for those that prefer that sort of thing). But the new-to-BD supplements have been junk, by and large.

 

Yesterday I kicked in a film on Blu-ray (most of you will know which one), and was horrified when the main menu came up and it had, generated via BD-Live, my local time and date, my local weather forecast (including an icon of a stormy cloud) and temperature, and scrolls across the bottom of upcoming just-announced BD titles from the studio. What a horrible feeling that was of "being targeted"! Geez, I felt like the studio exec was sitting on the couch next to me, trying to find out everything about me and personally get me to buy the rest of his studio's catalog. Uh, no thanks. WAY too in-your-face.

 

The BEST use of BD-Live I've seen coming up is Universal's S6 release of The Office, promising to use the process in a Hulu-type manner to bring us - on the big HDTV screen! - the most recently aired 5 episodes of the show's 7th Season. Sweet. Nothing else compares to that, frankly. Next-best use I've seen is the David Gerrold pieces on the ST:TOS S2 and S3 sets. But then I've known Gerrold (albeit online only) longer than I've known my wife, so he's always a treat. Still, I got good feedback about those pieces from fellow fans of the BDs. Can't think of much else I've heard good feedback on, BD-Live wise, on any title (TV or film based). Maybe the "group chat" stuff that includes the film makers, but that's few and far between...a single "event" that isn't a permanent feature for the owner of the disc to enjoy.

 

And THAT is one of the probs with BD-Live: as digital downloads themselves, there's not a sense of permanence about that material. People (especially people who buy physical media in the first place) want their extras on-disc, not on a server somewhere.

 

[Brian Borst]

As for bonus materials, I don't really care how they're done (HD, SD, PiP or Warner's Maximum Movie Mode) as long as it's informative, and it doesn't take too much space away from the movie itself. I really like the older supplements from earlier DVD and Laserdisc releases to be included as well. Some studios are so hung up on creating new features in HD, that they're forgetting that sometimes there are already perfectly fine documentaries that already exist. Creating new features is fine, but the older ones shouldn't be forgotten. And, as some of Warner's releases show, a lot of SD content can fit onto a single Blu-ray,

 

[ahollis]

Originally Posted by Parker Clack

Because when produced correctly it is the closest thing to film you can get in your own home.

Because when done "right" its look and sound is often better than your local cinema without all the extraneous crap.

Because it is a physical medium. It is something that you can hold in your hand and enjoy over and over. There is

pride in ownership.

 

Because right now at this moment in time there is nothing out there for the average consumer that they can realistically

purchase that comes close to the amount of pleasure that you can derive from it.

 

Yes.
 

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Everyone has pretty much covered my feelings

on "Why Blu-ray?" It's a great format, though not

perfect. I still get very frustrated over the load times

on some of these discs. It can take a good 5 minutes

from load to start of picture on even the newer

standalone players (unless you go with a top line Oppo).

 

Count me in as someone that has never been
intrigued by BD LIVE content. I never watch it.

Somehow I think most of the public out there

doesn't either. I'm open to the concept, but most

of the stuff I have seen demo'd at studio functions

seem rather gimmicky. Certainly, I don't need to
chat online with other people while watching a film

and I would rather not have to log in online to access

additional content that could have easily been put on
the disc itself.

 

Now branching? That's a great idea that never gets

utilized. Perfect example is Fox's upcoming release

of Last of The Mohicans. Why couldn't the theatrical

and Director's versions be optionally branched? Even

a title like Rocky Horror Picture Show which has an
International ending could have been branched (and

perhaps it is) on this upcoming release.

 

The one thing that often bothers me is that we have

this great format with all this capacity and the studios

under utilize it. Once in a while you'll get a release like

Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Alien Quadrilogy

that really takes advantage of multiple versions via

branching and full use of extra content -- done right the

first time. But unfortunately, the rest of the time, it

seems the studios still want to milk consumers with multiple
Blu-ray versions of the same title. such as the recent

MGM release of Escape From New York which could

have had benefited by having all the DVD supplements

rolled into it.

 

These are small nitpicks. On the whole, I really enjoy

the Blu-ray experience -- so much so I still raise an

eyebrow when people say "DVD is good enough." Well,

I always seem to enjoy watching a film on Blu-ray far

more than DVD.

 

[Chad R]

Quality. I don't care about extras. Don't need BD-Live. I just want movies in great quality, something downloads or pay-per-view does not deliver.

 

[bigshot]

I do have to admit that beyond the simple viewing of high quality images and sound, I despise the bluray format. I hate the fact that there are multiple sets of nested menus. I hate the startup loading time and fascist forcing you to watch trailers and logos. I hate having to update firmware just to watch a movie. I hate the inconsistency and vagueness of the menus. (James Bond). If I had the ability, I would rip all my blurays and strip them down to just the movies. I'll probably be able to do that in the not too distant future.

 

[nolesrule]

I agree with your list, though I think they are poor production choices rather than something inherently wrong with the format.

 

Video quality, audio quality, and quality extras are my priority. The rest tends to get in the way.

 

[Finn]

I hear you loud and clear and my intention is to not minimize the importance of the premium sound and picture quality that the best Blu-ray discs offer but to go deeper into what makes you a fan. Is it a personal connection to a film from your youth (Star Wars), a movie that you watched with your father and you want to revisit with your kids (Sound of Music). What inspires you in Blu-ray?