Oblivion 4K UHD (2013)

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Sky_Captain

Yes, those subs are from the UHD. The menu looks identical to the UK BD, complete with stupid symbols.

What, they're persisting with those bloody symbols even on the UHD discs? Ugh.

[PRO-630HD]

Does the streamed DV version contain the same lack of detail that is prevalent on the UHD bluray in certain scenes?

[legends of beyond]

Originally Posted by PRO-630HD

Does the streamed DV version contain the same lack of detail that is prevalent on the UHD bluray in certain scenes?

According to a few people earlier in the tread, no.

[gates70]

Originally Posted by PRO-630HD

Does the streamed DV version contain the same lack of detail that is prevalent on the UHD bluray in certain scenes?

What lack of detail ? It is slightly softer than the BD but I didn't see a lack of detail at all. I for one thinks it looks fantastic, just not AS sharp.

[FilmFreakosaurus]

Originally Posted by gates70

What lack of detail ? It is slightly softer than the BD but I didn't see a lack of detail at all. I for one thinks it looks fantastic, just not AS sharp.

That means it has lack of detail. When a 4k Blu-ray has LESS detail than the lesser format...

that's a problem.

[ray0414]

Originally Posted by gates70

What lack of detail ? It is slightly softer than the BD but I didn't see a lack of detail at all. I for one thinks it looks fantastic, just not AS sharp.

Major lack of detail in some scenes.

Even Vincent Teoh of HDTVtest agrees the 4k version is less detailed (his exact words).The softness (dnr) has scrubbed away details. Such a shame too.

[gates70]

Originally Posted by FilmFreakosaurus

That means it has lack of detail. When a 4k Blu-ray has LESS detail than the lesser format...

that's a problem.

Well when I can see the pours on someone's face, I don't consider that a lack of detail. Like I said, it's not that much softer than the BD and the colors and HDR make it even better than the BD for me...but opinions and all.

EDIT: Oh and let's not forget the ATMOS track which totally rocks!

[ray0414]

Originally Posted by gates70

Well when I can see the pours on someone's face, I don't consider that a lack of detail. Like I said, it's not that much softer than the BD and the colors and HDR make it even better than the BD for me...but opinions and all.

It varys scene to scene. Yes there are scenes here and there that show pores on faces, but that doesn't represent the entire movie, but if you want to be in denial that's your prerogative.

[gates70]

Originally Posted by ray0414

It varys scene to scene. Yes there are scenes here and there that show pores on faces, but that doesn't represent the entire movie, but if you want to be in denial that's your prerogative.

Yes that's it, I'm in denial, you caught me Like I said, opinions and all that stuff.

[gates70]

Here is my denial...but don't let facts get in the way of the self proclaimed experts of Blu-ray.com

"The Blu-ray already had a reference audio/video presentation so you better believe the 4K Ultra HD nearly doubles down on that refinement (a couple exceptions are noted in the A/V parts up above)."
http://whysoblu.com/oblivion-4k-uhd-blu-ray-review/

"This Ultra HD upgrade of the movie isn't a leaps and bounds improvement over the already reference-quality Blu-ray in terms of visual appeal, but for those who don't already own the release or who want to upgrade to the outstanding Atmos audio, they should certainly choose this over the stand-alone Blu-ray release. Recommended.
http://ultrahd.highdefdigest.com/340...ahdbluray.html

"Universal's UHD 4k release makes good use of every pixel, yielding a gorgeous final result"
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/comm...lu-ray.349170/

"Oblivion” looks simply incredible on 4K UltraHD Blu. I gave the original Blu-ray a 5/5 for video score, and while this new 4K encode isn’t 100% 4K PERFECTION, the increases over the Blu-ray are quite noticeable."
http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...ay-review.html

"Don’t get me wrong: Oblivion looks and sounds terrific on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. It’s just not nearly as much of a visual improvement (over the previous Blu-ray edition) as we’ve seen with most other titles on this format"
http://www.thedigitalbits.com/item/oblivion-uhd-bd

[ray0414]

I can post just as many reviews mentioning the softness and lack of deail, including from Vincent Teoh and Stacy Spears of spectracal. I can also Include screenshots, which is much more revealing than a bunch of "words" that show you nothing.

[darkedgex]

Originally Posted by ray0414

I can post just as many reviews mentioning the softness and lack of deail, including from Vincent Teoh and Stacy Spears of spectracal. I can also Include screenshots, which is much more revealing than a bunch of "words" that show you nothing.

If by "screenshots" you mean "me holding my camera and taking a picture of the screen" instead of "taking a frame directly from the encoded data, can we please stop doing that. Photos of screens does NOTHING to further the conversation.

FYI: I'm in the camp that thinks this has less detail than the BD, and even wrote a letter to Universal about it (naturally I've heard nothing back, apparently they're too busy counting the money I gave them). But trying to make your point with photos of the screen doesn't move the conversation anywhere...

[ray0414]

Originally Posted by darkedgex

If by "screenshots" you mean "me holding my camera and taking a picture of the screen" instead of "taking a frame directly from the encoded data, can we please stop doing that. Photos of screens does NOTHING to further the conversation.

FYI: I'm in the camp that thinks this has less detail than the BD, and even wrote a letter to Universal about it (naturally I've heard nothing back, apparently they're too busy counting the money I gave them). But trying to make your point with photos of the screen doesn't move the conversation anywhere...

1st of all, thanks for writing to Universal. Did they respond?

2nd of all, your approval of whether or not I post cell phone pictures doesn't bother me. These newer cell phones when used correctly can capture very accurate pictures. These aren't 2006 flip phone cameras. My cell phone takes better pictures than some hand held cameras not to mention takes 4k videos that are sharper and clearer that some of these 2k upscale movies!! (I download my videos to usb and play them on a 65" tv and look incredible.)

The pictures I posted in August of the trees came out perfectly to show the difference in softness between the 2 versions. As long as the pictures accurately represent what we're seeing with the eyes, who cares what camera is used? As cell phones get more advanced cameras, it could become more common.

I showed some of my pictures to Stacey Spears of spectracal/spears&munsil and he was so intrigued that he decided to do some investigating and may very well be including this botch of a disc in a huge report he is presenting later this month to the SMPTE.

For those that don't mind the softness here and there and love the hdr and Atmos, thats awesome. But can we at least not deny that something went wrong with the overall resolution? It's blatantly obvious.

[RealorFake4K]

Here is the thing... it shouldn't be softer (or look worse) in ANY part of the 4K disc.

The worst case scenario is it should look identical to the Blu. That is what bothers me. I've personally demoed A/B scenes and there is a definite problem with the 4K transfer/encoding.

---edit---

Also, I am in the opinion that pictures of screens are like Wikipedia/IMDb... While it may give you an idea of what is a fact, it shouldn't be trusted 100%. It's a good starting point. I agree SOME of the photos of 'Oblivion' and 'The Martian' are "aesthetically-accurate". Unfortunately, they will have to do until we can get legit screen-grabs off the discs.

[vincentric]

Originally Posted by ray0414

2nd of all, your approval of whether or not I post cell phone pictures doesn't bother me. These newer cell phones when used correctly can capture very accurate pictures. These aren't 2006 flip phone cameras. My cell phone takes better pictures than some hand held cameras not to mention takes 4k videos that are sharper and clearer that some of these 2k upscale movies!! (I download my videos to usb and play them on a 65" tv and look incredible.)

The pictures I posted in August of the trees came out perfectly to show the difference in softness between the 2 versions. As long as the pictures accurately represent what we're seeing with the eyes, who cares what camera is used? As cell phones get more advanced cameras, it could become more common.

I showed some of my pictures to Stacey Spears of spectracal/spears&munsil and he was so intrigued that he decided to do some investigating and may very well be including this botch of a disc in a huge report he is presenting later this month to the SMPTE.

For those that don't mind the softness here and there and love the hdr and Atmos, thats awesome. But can we at least not deny that something went wrong with the overall resolution? It's blatantly obvious.

Don't mind the naysayers. I consider myself as one of those elitist screencap dork scientists but at the same not snobby enough that I don't mind looking at screenshots (such as some of yours and Geoff's excellent BvS comparison) every now and then. Better than nothing until we have direct UHD BD screencap capabilities and calibrated TVs/monitors to view them on.

I may try posting a few comparisons of my own showing Oblivion's UHD BD blurriness.

[darkedgex]

Originally Posted by ray0414

1st of all, thanks for writing to Universal. Did they respond?

As I said, not yet, and it's been a while (I wrote back in August) so I've written off getting anything from them.

2nd of all, your approval of whether or not I post cell phone pictures doesn't bother me. These newer cell phones when used correctly can capture very accurate pictures. These aren't 2006 flip phone cameras. My cell phone takes better pictures than some hand held cameras not to mention takes 4k videos that are sharper and clearer that some of these 2k upscale movies!! (I download my videos to usb and play them on a 65" tv and look incredible.)[...]

I'm sorry, but no. Your methodology is inherently flawed. We need to be working from frame grabs off the disc (PNG files, or in the case of UHDBD, something capable of utilizing HDR metadata) to do a true apples to apples comparison. I don't care how good you think you are, whether you use the very best DSLR or an iPhone 6, if you're taking a picture of the screen you're introducing variables that can affect the overall appearance.

I think, until we hit that point where we can see actual frames on a monitor with the ability to A/B them as we can today with DVD and Blu-ray, this type of anti-science method is a terrible way to make your point.

IMO, we're better off sharing timestamps of where we think the movie looks softer, and letting folks do their own comparison at home.

[wesslan]

I will be very interested if this shows up on DV disc in 2017, maybe time to correct their errors like early Universal blu-rays than looked awful and often worse than their hd-dvd even by universal themself. They always loved that dnr button....

Can always hope we get the atmos track somewhere else like Lucy HK blu-ray

[Frank169]

Originally Posted by ray0414

The softness (dnr) has scrubbed away details. Such a shame too.

Saw it on a Sony VW1000 4K projector, that's a very good analogy you used to provide the correct graphic idea.

[kristoffer]

So Universal still use DNR in 4K. Damn. I still have hope for the remastered Bourne Identity though.

[(W)KRP]

Wow what a thread. Read part yesterday and part today. This is why I hesitate buying any tech hardware. Always something coming out to account for just to be up to date. I have to worry about the software too with releases like this.