Not sure about Investment into 4K :/

[Reflection]

I recently got back into physical media with buying cheap blu rays, i own dvds but moved away from it with streaming. But i am back on board and have been enjoying listening to the commentary tracks on the Star Wars Blu Rays.

I've been eyeing the Panasonic DP-UB450EB-K 4K player which you can get for a reasonable price, but the cost of the actual 4K discs is putting me off, i can get some movies for £1 for a used Blu Ray and that same movie in 4k costs £20, for slightly better image quality and HDR the jump in price doesn't seem worth it, and i've seen HDR on my TV with games and movies on my TV, i know how good HDR can look, but i can't really afford to buy a lot of 4k movies, i would really only buy starting off Blade Runner, Apocalypse Now, and Akira maybe.

Do you guys see 4K Blu Ray discs coming down in price any time soon? ... also i already own 1 4K blu ray (that i can't watch) The Hitcher because i got the box set.

Also how would you rate the difference between 4K and regular 1080p Blu Rays .

[the-pi-guy]

I don't think comparing a used blu-ray to a new 4k is a fair comparison. There are plenty of cheaper 4ks, but I wouldn't expect them to get cheaper across the board.

The resolution advantage can be harder to see for some people, especially depending on their setup.

I personally try to get my favorites on 4k, as well as the cheaper movies. Blu-rays are still great.

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by the-pi-guy

I don't think comparing a used blu-ray to a new 4k is a fair comparison. There are plenty of cheaper 4ks, but I wouldn't expect them to get cheaper across the board.

The resolution advantage can be harder to see for some people, especially depending on their setup.

I personally try to get my favorites on 4k, as well as the cheaper movies. Blu-rays are still great.

I've been looking around online and some places like HMV or Zavvi have like 2 4k blu ray's for £25 or 3 4K Blu Rays for £40, that's not that cheap...

I think they should bring the prices down on 4K movies in general if they want more people to move over to 4K.

[the-pi-guy]

Originally Posted by Reflection

I've been looking around online and some places like HMV or Zavvi have like 2 4k blu ray's for £25 or 3 4K Blu Rays for £40, that's not that cheap...

I think they should bring the prices down on 4K movies in general if they want more people to move over to 4K.

The issue is they don't want people to move over to 4k. Most of these companies want you to stream, so they can charge you every month.

[benricci]

This isn’t a cheap hobby so perhaps 4K is not the right option for you at this time.

[teddyballgame]

I was the same way -- Oh I'm only going to get Apocalypse Now and a few others. Well, it's a slippery slope my friend. Now my backlog even got a backlog

If Blu-ray is working for you (and your budget) and you're happy with the results then don't let the FOMO get ya. Some are based off 4k scans and they're damn good

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by the-pi-guy

The issue is they don't want people to move over to 4k. Most of these companies want you to stream, so they can charge you every month.

Then why even offer it at all, why not just end all physical media and force people to stream.

[Moviefan2k4]

I don't trust streaming services at all, for one main reason - the studios could easily remove any content previously offered, at any time they wish, and you'd still be stuck paying for their service. As a result, I'm sticking with physical media until it dies.

Regarding the 4K format specifically, the resolution is actually twice as wide and tall as a 1080p Blu-Ray image. It would fill up the same space as if you took four individual frames of a film, and place them in a proportionally rectangular space...hence the 4K term. This affords much more clarity when it comes to things like close-up shots of actor's faces, and details like costumes or makeup. Sharper edges in general are also usually improved with things like trees. Throw in the color enhancement features like HDR and Dolby Vision, the entire result is truly night and day when restored correctly.

Of course, no one's perception of the same video presentation will perfectly match, but that's just due to variances in how our eyes work as people. The video settings on whatever HDTV you have will also play a factor, as will the size of the screen itself. Generally speaking, if you're using a screen size below 40 inches, I wouldn't recommend upgrading to 4K at all, because you won't notice much of a difference.

[CSM101]

If you go on the Blu-ray deals page here on this site, there are some 4ks for $8.99 and up. Try a few of those out. Black Friday may bring some great deals as well.

[the-pi-guy]

Originally Posted by Reflection

Then why even offer it at all, why not just end all physical media and force people to stream.

Most is an exaggeration.
But Netflix doesn't particularly want their originals on disc. Disney/Fox rarely put their stuff out, except for movies.

For a lot of these other companies, physical media is additional revenue for people that are either double dipping or aren't interested in streaming.

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

I don't trust streaming services at all, for one main reason - the studios could easily remove any content previously offered, at any time they wish, and you'd still be stuck paying for their service. As a result, I'm sticking with physical media until it dies.

Regarding the 4K format specifically, the resolution is actually twice as wide and tall as a 1080p Blu-Ray image. It would fill up the same space as if you took four individual frames of a film, and place them in a proportionally rectangular space...hence the 4K term. This affords much more clarity when it comes to things like close-up shots of actor's faces, and details like costumes or makeup. Sharper edges in general are also usually improved with things like trees. Throw in the color enhancement features like HDR and Dolby Vision, the entire result is truly night and day when restored correctly.

Of course, no one's perception of the same video presentation will perfectly match, but that's just due to variances in how our eyes work as people. The video settings on whatever HDTV you have will also play a factor, as will the size of the screen itself. Generally speaking, if you're using a screen size below 40 inches, I wouldn't recommend upgrading to 4K at all, because you won't notice much of a difference.

My tv is a 50 inch Samsung tv, it has HDR support and has great colours but its not super expensive and not oled or anything.

I was looking at regular Blu Ray players and some say they upscale Blu Rays to 4K, would it be better in terms of upscaling to get a 4K payer that has upscaling for regular Blu Rays or a normal Blu Ray player that also has the upscale feature, does it make a difference in this regard?

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by Reflection

My tv is a 50 inch Samsung tv, it has HDR support and has great colours but its not super expensive and not oled or anything.

Mine is a 65-inch Vizio, that I paid $650 for three years ago. Its not insanely high-end, but it does a good enough job for me.

Originally Posted by Reflection

I was looking at regular Blu Ray players and some say they upscale Blu Rays to 4K, would it be better in terms of upscaling to get a 4K payer that has upscaling for regular Blu Rays or a normal Blu Ray player that also has the upscale feature, does it make a difference in this regard?

Upscalers are very tricky, because what they're basically doing is trying to expand the image artificially with information not present in the source. No matter how good an upscaled Blu-Ray image appears, it will not hold up when compared to a properly-restored 4K version. Think of it this way: imagine you have a photo that's about the size of a postage stamp, and you want to turn that same shot into an 8x10. You could try scanning it at a ridiculously high resolution, and then manipulating it with Photoshop or a similar program after that. But it still won't have the same quality as if you had an original version of that image at a larger size. You can't replace information that doesn't exist.

[Modren]

Originally Posted by Reflection

I was looking at regular Blu Ray players and some say they upscale Blu Rays to 4K, would it be better in terms of upscaling to get a 4K payer that has upscaling for regular Blu Rays or a normal Blu Ray player that also has the upscale feature, does it make a difference in this regard?

I would imagine that a UHD player that upscales to 4K probably wouldn't deliver noticeably better results than just letting your TV handle the upscale. I would honestly just get a UHD player and only pick up 4K discs when you find a good deal or it's a title you particularly love. You don't have to upgrade your whole collection in one fell swoop.

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

Mine is a 65-inch Vizio, that I paid $650 for three years ago. Its not insanely high-end, but it does a good enough job for me.

Upscalers are very tricky, because what they're basically doing is trying to expand the image artificially with information not present in the source. No matter how good an upscaled Blu-Ray image appears, it will not hold up when compared to a properly-restored 4K version. Think of it this way: imagine you have a photo that's about the size of a postage stamp, and you want to turn that same shot into an 8x10. You could try scanning it at a ridiculously high resolution, and then manipulating it with Photoshop or a similar program after that. But it still won't have the same quality as if you had an original version of that image at a larger size. You can't replace information that doesn't exist.

I was looking at players like the sony X700 and people were saying one of the issues with discs locking up or freezing was having the upscaler feature on, and turning it off solved the problems, i just wonder if it makes a difference with that type of issue with the lens reading the discs being on a regular blu Ray player vs a UHD player.

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by Modren

I would imagine that a UHD player that upscales to 4K probably wouldn't deliver noticeably better results than just letting your TV handle the upscale. I would honestly just get a UHD player and only pick up 4K discs when you find a good deal or it's a title you particularly love. You don't have to upgrade your whole collection in one fell swoop.

I'm not sure how good my tv is with this though, i would mainly use it to play regular Blu Rays which is why i was interested in the upscale features on the players.

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by Reflection

I was looking at players like the sony X700 and people were saying one of the issues with discs locking up or freezing was having the upscaler feature on, and turning it off solved the problems, i just wonder if it makes a difference with that type of issue with the lens reading the discs being on a regular blu Ray player vs a UHD player.

My player is the X700, and I initially experienced repeated freezing problems, which frustrated me because I'm on a tight budget and the player was over $200. But after searching both YouTube and various articles for a while, I came across this guy, who showed me how to turn the upscaler off and change a few other settings as well. I haven't had any problems since.

Sony 4K Player Freezing & Skipping? Try These Settings | Back to Basics #5 - YouTube

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by Moviefan2k4

My player is the X700, and I initially experienced repeated freezing problems, which frustrated me because I'm on a tight budget and the player was over $200. But after searching both YouTube and various articles for a while, I came across this guy, who showed me how to turn the upscaler off and change a few other settings as well. I haven't had any problems since.

Sony 4K Player Freezing & Skipping? Try These Settings | Back to Basics #5 - YouTube

Did you notice much of a difference in the picture with the upscaler on vs off?

[Deadend45]

You need a lot of patience but many UHD boxsets (not LEs) per disc have come down to under $10USD.

[Moviefan2k4]

Originally Posted by Reflection

Did you notice much of a difference in the picture with the upscaler on vs off?

Not really, but that's because I was only watching 4K discs at the time. I haven't used my X700 for any standard Blu-Rays yet, but the video I linked said that Sony's upscalers are often terrible anyway, so its best to let the HDTV do that conversion.

[kingreed]

4K is not for everyone. But if you have a 4K TV and a 4K blu Ray player I would suggest buy cheap 4K’s first to see if you like it before really making a huge investment in the technology. Regarding streaming apps and services there’s not much in the way of 4K content yet. I wouldn’t recommend them yet for 4K. There is some 4K but it’s on sports only not movies.