BluRay.com vs. HTF on iPad (1 Viewer)

Wow, it isn't even close! BluRay.com wins hands down.

I have no trouble getting BluRay.com to format using Safari on the iPad. No long loading times, no constant stalling and problem issued reloads, no obtrusive ads, no scroll lock ups, just instant loading, reading and posting. Same for DVDTalk.

HTF on the other hand is a HUGE mess! It just won't format for the iPad under any circumstances. And don't try to sell me on TapaTalk because that APP has so many user unfriendly aspects to it I barely know where to start. In concept, it's brilliant; in execution it's junk.

As for the HTF APP, it's an improvement, but still leaves a lot to be desired. Like TapaTalk it imposes several unnecessary steps to get to where you're going, formats content very tiny and eye straining and seems to only offer the Web View option once you're in a specific thread (if I'm wrong on this, kindly tell me how to lock the Web View in permanently). Adding insult to injury, it has no memory for members I have placed on IGNORE, opening revealing
posts that I don't wish to see.

BluRay.com on the iPad is a pleasure to visit and spend time at; HTF is frustrating and exhausting. Is it any wonder the former has huge levels of participation?

Glen,

Thanks for providing your feedback. You might be surprised to learn that we had to choose our current forum software largely because it was possible to convert from Huddler. That option really was our only one at the time.

Our platform today IP.Board has some issues with mobile phones and tablets in the web browser. That's one of the reasons we offer Tapatalk.

The ownership is actively working towards the next phase of HTF right now. A large part of that is going to be a brand new back end for the forum that works wonderfully on mobile devices and tablets.

Finally, as for advertising, we realize it can be annoying for some members. Unfortunately it's the best way to support the site and grow. If you want the ads gone, just click on the Support HTF link on the top of the screen and sign up for our supporter program. You'll have the option to choose a free Blu-ray to offset the cost.

We are listening and actively trying to make things better. Thanks again for your feedback and continued membership on HTF.

I'm using HTF with Safari on an iPad Air right now and I don't really see any major issues. Posting and reading posts, threads and reviews is just fine.

By the way, while you may find Bluray.com easier to view on your iPad, there's no comparison with HTF in terms of forum content. I visit Bluray.com forums for my daily dose of laughter, irrelevant chit-chat and ridiculous drama, then I come to HTF to actually discuss movies on Blu-ray.

I use vanilla safari on iPad as well, and other than having to occasionally resize what I'm viewing it works much better for me than any app does. I had similar frustrations to what you posted above in the past but today it seems pretty usable to me.


Which iPad are you using Glen? Full size or mini? Air or older ones?

I'm using an iPad 2, Sam, with iOS 8.

As for the content differences between the two sites, there's irony there regarding the contentions above and it makes me smile. Outside of my friend Bob Furmanek's threads, I no longer participate in the Blu threads here on any level and quite awhile ago abandoned the Blu forum at HTF for BluRay.com. I won't elaborate on the irony, but just leave it at that.

I am however still on the TV and DVD boards at HTF and enjoy the discussions and especially the people THERE very much. As I said in response to a sarcastic PM from one of HTF's admins regarding my OP above, if I didn't care about being here or the future of HTF, I wouldn't even have bothered posting what I did. He should have known better given how long I've been a member here. I'm glad Dave Upton offered a more professional and helpful reaction, for which thanks.

I'm excited for HTF mobile upgrades! I've done much, maybe most, of my HTF browsing on an iPad the last three years. The iPhone completely lost its mobile version late last year, and the iPad has great opportunities for enhancements. This is really good news!

I've been having many issues with the HTF app on my iPhone 6+ and the 5s before it, but I just downloaded the update for iOS 8 and it is a much better experience.

Professor Echo said:

As for the content differences between the two sites, there's irony there regarding the contentions above and it makes me smile. Outside of my friend Bob Furmanek's threads, I no longer participate in the Blu threads here on any level and quite awhile ago abandoned the Blu forum at HTF for BluRay.com. I won't elaborate on the irony, but just leave it at that.

Click to expand...

There is no "irony". Refer for example to the Fright Night thread over at Blu-ray.com - over 170 pages of pointless replies, uneducated opinions, incorrect assertions, whining, and absurdly over-dramatic bickering. Any useful facts or genuinely interesting opinions in that thread could be summed up in less than 5 pages of a normal thread. A thread like that would not, could not, ever happen here. Aside from the fact that HTF members generally don't have single-digit IQs, the moderators here would nip that sort of rampant stupidity in the bud.


I know some of the members here also post on Blu-ray.com and last time I checked I still had a valid account there (with the same nickname and avatar). But I stopped posting there or taking any of their discussions seriously back in 2012. It's clear that Blu-ray.com is the McDonalds of home theater forums; quantity over quality. Sorry to be so blunt, but there it is. If you feel more comfortable posting there, or find their content more useful, good for you. But make no mistake that the site is aimed squarely at the lowest common denominator, and the few good posters there are vastly outnumbered by a sheer army of people who post just for the sake of posting.


Note that I have no personal grudge against the site as I was never reprimanded or banned there. I just value a site like HTF where discussions tend towards civil, constructive sharing of often educated opinions.

As the subject seems to be changing from what I intended, which was to compare the technology between the two sites, not the content, I'm now on the verge of abandoning this thread as well.

Thanks to Dave Upton for the useful reply.

Anymore news on this?

TapaTalk, which I use for 9 different forums, has no issues...except HTF.

I still have ridiculous hang ups on the bespoke app, TapaTalk and in mobile Chrome/Firefox.

Not kidding...

I have to have my tablet and phone together, constantly swap back and forth between ALL FOUR OPTIONS to use the forum on BOTH devices...at once.

When is the cure coming?

(Case in point. I know I have Android. This was the first "feedback thread" that would open. I replied using the bespoke app on my G3. Went to go "add this part in parentheses", had to switch to my G Pad using TapaTalk for "edit" to finally work)

It's got nothing to do with HTF and everything to do with IPBoard (our software) and Tapatalk's plugin. We are going away from the mobile app entirely when we upgrade in the next few months. Until then, you can always try using the tapatalk app itself and just search for our forum.