Believe it or not! The FORMAT WAR OF THE CENTURY Netflix vs Blu Ray...

100gb discs that get no scratches (i still have to see any kind of tiny scratch in my BDs) that can be placed into any machine and have practically no weight

Or 500+gb discs that aren't so easily portable?

You can not compare the two. Netflix movie download libary it mostly older movies.

Here the trick if you get Netflix you can get Blue Ray movies sent to you to watch on your PS3. Well you watch the stream movies on your 360.

It pays to own more than one system. :)

Digital downloads are becoming vastly popular now with Itunes, Netflix, and Gametap and even the Wii. Do you think Microsoft just started another format war? Now giving the facts that Blu Ray is 1080P and thats a rather big file for a download. But what I also find interesting is a hard drive has a lot faster load times than a Blu Ray. This is going to be a gigantic battle this generation considering Blu Ray has already takin out HD DVD. Whats your thaughts?dabigsiebowski

Digital downloads will not take over for blu-ray/dvd although they will be popular

1) people always feel the need to own a copy on a media they can take with them and call their own just look at the CD its still around despite the Internet filled with sites where you can download cheap mp3s

2) Internet speeds just are not there to allow Digital downloads to become mainstream just go to speed test .net where the average speed in the U.S is only 4mb, 3mb europe

Hard copy > no copy.

Hard copy > no copy.

shadyd1717

[QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

Jandurin

What's a soft copy?

It's not like Netflix won't start stocking Blu Ray movies... I don't see how this is a "format war"?Paul_Phoenicks

Netflix already stocks Blue Ray. You can get Blue Rays sent to you in place of DVDs.

You can not compare the two. Netflix movie download libary it mostly older movies.

Here the trick if you get Netflix you can get Blue Ray movies sent to you to watch on your PS3. Well you watch the stream movies on your 360.

It pays to own more than one system. :)

HarlockJC

[QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

Bread_or_Decide

What's a soft copy?

[QUOTE="Bread_or_Decide"][QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

Jandurin

What's a soft copy?

What I'm afraid of is stuff like Itunes. Buying files you can't use on other players. It has to be universal or nothing at all.

What I'm diggin right now is the digital copy that comes with some DVD's and blurays. Getting a digital copy to use as I please AND having the hard copy is the best of both worlds.

What I'm diggin right now is the digital copy that comes with some DVD's and blurays. Getting a digital copy to use as I please AND having the hard copy is the best of both worlds.

Bread_or_Decide

It might seem now that people prefer to own physical copies of their films but you should not assume that it will always be that way. Take money for instance, people very quickly became accustomed to using 'virtual' money rather than notes and coins for most transactions although the transition is by no means complete. This will be particularly true if download is offered as a cheaper alternative.DrEru

I was watching the gadget show earlier this week and they were talking about weather blu ray or downloadable movies are better.

to cut it short Blu ray won for sound and picture quality, they also had other parts to the challange and found that its actually quicker to go to the store and BUY the blu ray, then WATCH the ENTIRE thing, than wait for your HD movie to download.

You pay more, but then you get so much more.

[QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

Jandurin

If some kind of failure happens with the company, or something happens with the website/server, or my hardrive messes up, with a hardcopy you always have a backup, you cant say that with digital stuff, hard copy is much safer, it's always there, and i'm one of those people that when I buy something, i like to have it in my hand i feel like i actually bought it.

[QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

shadyd1717

If some kind of failure happens with the company, or something happens with the website/server, or my hardrive messes up, with a hardcopy you always have a backup, you cant say that with digital stuff, hard copy is much safer, it's always there, and i'm one of those people that when I buy something, i like to have it in my hand i feel like i actually bought it.

I was watching the gadget show earlier this week and they were talking about weather blu ray or downloadable movies are better.

to cut it short Blu ray won for sound and picture quality, they also had other parts to the challange and found that its actually quicker to go to the store and BUY the blu ray, then WATCH the ENTIRE thing, than wait for your HD movie to download.

You pay more, but then you get so much more.

NinjaMunkey01

[QUOTE="Bread_or_Decide"]

What I'm diggin right now is the digital copy that comes with some DVD's and blurays. Getting a digital copy to use as I please AND having the hard copy is the best of both worlds.

Jandurin

It's a brand new feature. I think only one or two movies right now have it. Forbidden Kingdom will have it and the 3 disc Speed Racer Bluray will have a disc dedicated to the digital download in SD. It'll pick up and more movies should feature it in the coming months.

[QUOTE="NinjaMunkey01"]

I was watching the gadget show earlier this week and they were talking about weather blu ray or downloadable movies are better.

to cut it short Blu ray won for sound and picture quality, they also had other parts to the challange and found that its actually quicker to go to the store and BUY the blu ray, then WATCH the ENTIRE thing, than wait for your HD movie to download.

You pay more, but then you get so much more.

Jandurin

I'm a big film geek and I have to admit that special edition packaging is part of what makes the hobby fun. The LOTR "book" design on the SEE dvd's. The blade runner that came in a suitcase. You can't get that kind of geeky fun from a digital download. I know its not a big reason but its a novelty that I don't want to lose entirely. Heck I stll love looking through the booklets that come with CD's. Check out the lyrics. The design on the CD. Its all part of the product if you ask me. Not just the music or the movie.

What I'm afraid of is stuff like Itunes. Buying files you can't use on other players. It has to be universal or nothing at all.

What I'm diggin right now is the digital copy that comes with some DVD's and blurays. Getting a digital copy to use as I please AND having the hard copy is the best of both worlds.

Bread_or_Decide

technically when you buy a bluray movie you're not really buying the disc but rather a license to play the content. and because of that there are limitations placed on you and thus it's not "universal" either. the bluray format isn't an open standard either. that's why it had to battle HD DVD to become the defacto next standard (if it can ever overtake dvd). there's nothing that prevents soft copy formats from being played on other players except the limitations the creator of the format places on it. for instance, I have a dvd player that will play divx and xvid video formats, even from a usb drive.

I'm a big film geek and I have to admit that special edition packaging is part of what makes the hobby fun. The LOTR "book" design on the SEE dvd's. The blade runner that came in a suitcase. You can't get that kind of geeky fun from a digital download. I know its not a big reason but its a novelty that I don't want to lose entirely. Heck I stll love looking through the booklets that come with CD's. Check out the lyrics. The design on the CD. Its all part of the product if you ask me. Not just the music or the movie.

Bread_or_Decide

I was watching the gadget show earlier this week and they were talking about weather blu ray or downloadable movies are better.

to cut it short Blu ray won for sound and picture quality, they also had other parts to the challange and found that its actually quicker to go to the store and BUY the blu ray, then WATCH the ENTIRE thing, than wait for your HD movie to download.

You pay more, but then you get so much more.

NinjaMunkey01

At present that is certainly true, but while a particular physical format is 'frozen' in development when it goes into production download is only beginning to become a serious option. In summary, while there doesn't seem to be too much competition to BR from download at present this will not be the case for ever. I strongly suspect that irrespective of whether BR becomes an industry standard it will be unlikely to be superceded by another shiny round disk.

DD is the future of renting. Their will always be shelf space in stores for hard copies.

[QUOTE="dabigsiebowski"]Digital downloads are becoming vastly popular now with Itunes, Netflix, and Gametap and even the Wii. Do you think Microsoft just started another format war? Now giving the facts that Blu Ray is 1080P and thats a rather big file for a download. But what I also find interesting is a hard drive has a lot faster load times than a Blu Ray. This is going to be a gigantic battle this generation considering Blu Ray has already takin out HD DVD. Whats your thaughts?micky4889

Digital downloads will not take over for blu-ray/dvd although they will be popular

1) people always feel the need to own a copy on a media they can take with them and call their own just look at the CD its still around despite the Internet filled with sites where you can download cheap mp3s

2) Internet speeds just are not there to allow Digital downloads to become mainstream just go to speed test .net where the average speed in the U.S is only 4mb, 3mb europe

Internets better in the UK than the US, atleast my experience.

I've used Netfilx's DD service for a short time, and it is terrible. They have older movies and the quality is inferior. If you look on their website, it even says that the films are "near DVD quality." I want Hi-def movies, not "near DVD quality" movies. Further, hard copies are not "the past." If this were so, why are companies spending tons of money to develop higher capacity discs. Further still, why are the majority of people saying that they would not prefer DD to having a hard copy on their shelves. I agree that for rentals, once bandwith increases, DD may find a market. But for film ownership, it has no advantages over blu-ray.romans828_2002

Microsoft will have pure Hi Def within a year depending console sales along with dlc sales.

I have a dvd player that will play divx and xvid video formats, even from a usb drive. Ontain

[QUOTE="DrEru"]It might seem now that people prefer to own physical copies of their films but you should not assume that it will always be that way. Take money for instance, people very quickly became accustomed to using 'virtual' money rather than notes and coins for most transactions although the transition is by no means complete. This will be particularly true if download is offered as a cheaper alternative.Jandurin

Yes, but it has not eliminated the need for cash. It has just provided an alternative means to pay for stuff.

[QUOTE="shadyd1717"][QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="shadyd1717"]

Hard copy > no copy.

Jandurin

If some kind of failure happens with the company, or something happens with the website/server, or my hardrive messes up, with a hardcopy you always have a backup, you cant say that with digital stuff, hard copy is much safer, it's always there, and i'm one of those people that when I buy something, i like to have it in my hand i feel like i actually bought it.

I am all for downloading but that defeats the whole point of downloading.

for large files you may need a blu ray disk, for HD movies. so it would be quicker and would not cost much more to go with blu ray, plus as I said before the picture and sound quality would be better.

DD is the future of renting. Their will always be shelf space in stores for hard copies.

Bread_or_Decide

for large files you may need a blu ray disk, for HD movies. so it would be quicker and would not cost much more to go with blu ray, plus as I said before the picture and sound quality would be better.

NinjaMunkey01

[QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="DrEru"]It might seem now that people prefer to own physical copies of their films but you should not assume that it will always be that way. Take money for instance, people very quickly became accustomed to using 'virtual' money rather than notes and coins for most transactions although the transition is by no means complete. This will be particularly true if download is offered as a cheaper alternative.romans828_2002

Yes, but it has not eliminated the need for cash. It has just provided an alternative means to pay for stuff.

That is definitely true. However I (and most people I know) only use cash for a small percentage of purchases, and exclusively for smaller transactions.

[QUOTE="Bread_or_Decide"]

What I'm afraid of is stuff like Itunes. Buying files you can't use on other players. It has to be universal or nothing at all.

What I'm diggin right now is the digital copy that comes with some DVD's and blurays. Getting a digital copy to use as I please AND having the hard copy is the best of both worlds.

Ontain

technically when you buy a bluray movie you're not really buying the disc but rather a license to play the content. and because of that there are limitations placed on you and thus it's not "universal" either. the bluray format isn't an open standard either. that's why it had to battle HD DVD to become the defacto next standard (if it can ever overtake dvd). there's nothing that prevents soft copy formats from being played on other players except the limitations the creator of the format places on it. for instance, I have a dvd player that will play divx and xvid video formats, even from a usb drive.

As long as its not like Itunes. I want an open market of "digital film movie players" and files that can play on them all. Of course bluray and DVD are still restricted in terms of region and what player plays them (they must be a licensed dvd and or bluray player of course) but at least you know that every film released in your region on that format will play on one of many available players. Itunes on the other hand says you can only play this on one music player. Unlike CD's that played on any CD player not just Sony or Panasonic. Does that make sense?

Believe it or not, it will never take off with the mass market. Why? Bandwidth caps from ISPs. Downloads taking over are a thing of the future, not the present. Whoever thinks DLs are now is just ignorant. I'm not wasting a significant amount of my 60GB bandwidth on my movies.Albanian_Killa

the digital download versions will be encoded in a good compression scheme. right now we have dvd movies that get compressed into comparable quality at 1/8th to 1/10th of the original size. I do agree that the Internet infrastructure at the moment will not be able to handle it.

It's not like Netflix won't start stocking Blu Ray movies... I don't see how this is a "format war"?Paul_Phoenicks

true, but i'll admit this, if I have an option of paying 15-20 bucks a month, whatever netflix charges, and I can watch any movie I want any time, I rather do that than spend 20-35 bucks a pop for a dvd or b-ray movie. I'll miss the extras on the disk, but honestly how many people even pay attention to the extras, and how many people actually watch the extras more than once?

[QUOTE="Bread_or_Decide"]

DD is the future of renting. Their will always be shelf space in stores for hard copies.

Jandurin

Hahah. I love new tech and I'm always willing to go with whatever is most convenient and new. To accept DD as the future of owning theirs a list of things I'm waiting and looking for. So until those things exist Its not my top choice right now. So we'll see. I'm still buying cd's and only downloading music singles and or hard to find albums. So I kind of mix it up.

[QUOTE="romans828_2002"]

[QUOTE="Jandurin"][QUOTE="DrEru"]It might seem now that people prefer to own physical copies of their films but you should not assume that it will always be that way. Take money for instance, people very quickly became accustomed to using 'virtual' money rather than notes and coins for most transactions although the transition is by no means complete. This will be particularly true if download is offered as a cheaper alternative.DrEru

Yes, but it has not eliminated the need for cash. It has just provided an alternative means to pay for stuff.

That is definitely true. However I (and most people I know) only use cash for a small percentage of purchases, and exclusively for smaller transactions.

And I, myself fall into that category. But we still use it, and as long as there is a demand for bills, they aren't going anywhere. I guess that's my point. DD may find a place amongst many, even a majority, but it will never eliminate the demand for physical copies.

[QUOTE="NinjaMunkey01"]

for large files you may need a blu ray disk, for HD movies. so it would be quicker and would not cost much more to go with blu ray, plus as I said before the picture and sound quality would be better.

Jandurin

thats wont stay the same though, DVD used to be expensive, in time blu ray will get cheaper.

and until we all have 50meg download speeds, downloadable HD movies wont be very popular. BT and virgin media are going to use fibre optics to increase download speeds, but that will take years and years.

[QUOTE="Paul_Phoenicks"]It's not like Netflix won't start stocking Blu Ray movies... I don't see how this is a "format war"?LEGEND_C4A

true, but i'll admit this, if I have an option of paying 15-20 bucks a month, whatever netflix charges, and I can watch any movie I want any time, I rather do that than spend 20-35 bucks a pop for a dvd or b-ray movie. I'll miss the extras on the disk, but honestly how many people even pay attention to the extras, and how many people actually watch the extras more than once?

You can rent the extras disc as well as the main feature.

[QUOTE="Ontain"]

technically when you buy a bluray movie you're not really buying the disc but rather a license to play the content. and because of that there are limitations placed on you and thus it's not "universal" either. the bluray format isn't an open standard either. that's why it had to battle HD DVD to become the defacto next standard (if it can ever overtake dvd). there's nothing that prevents soft copy formats from being played on other players except the limitations the creator of the format places on it. for instance, I have a dvd player that will play divx and xvid video formats, even from a usb drive.

Bread_or_Decide

As long as its not like Itunes. I want an open market of "digital film movie players" and files that can play on them all. Of course bluray and DVD are still restricted in terms of region and what player plays them (they must be a licensed dvd and or bluray player of course) but at least you know that every film released in your region on that format will play on one of many available players. Itunes on the other hand says you can only play this on one music player. Unlike CD's that played on any CD player not just Sony or Panasonic. Does that make sense?

Yes, and i agree that iTunes is the worst (dont' know why ppl are okay with the hardware and software lock that apple puts on all it's products). For digital to really take off it needs to be open to many manufacturers. netflix's method is interesting in that since they can do it for pc's and the xbox as well, i would thinking that allowing access with other appliances will also be possible.

Netflix rocks for this. It's like having Starz, but you control what movies get shown and when. I like that.

But I'll always buy hard copies. I do not accept not owning physical content. I want to do what I want with it once I buy it. If I want to take it over a neighbor's or my girlfriends, I don't want to have to lug the entire console or some such.

It might seem now that people prefer to own physical copies of their films but you should not assume that it will always be that way. Take money for instance, people very quickly became accustomed to using 'virtual' money rather than notes and coins for most transactions although the transition is by no means complete. This will be particularly true if download is offered as a cheaper alternative.DrEru

kudos! 8)