Physical & Digital EST: The Future of Home Video Discussion Thread

[zodwriter]

If a person can simply pay their mobile phone provider and be able to have fast internet speeds to cover every need including quality HD and beyond streaming to television what reason will anybody have to continue supporting cable companies? The outrageous price gouging is what is killing broadband.

[whipnet]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

yeah, maybe in 10-15 years. People get carried away with timelines.

Don't forget, you will need around 300gig allowance per month to even get near regular 4K content, especially with a family. Realistically, probably closer to 450 gig.

My family of 3 with one XBOX and 3 Roku's use 1 TB per month easily. No 4K.

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[Steedeel]

I don't believe we can get to that point in the timespan you claim. I still think that's a good way away.

However, thanks for your replies. Nice to not have someone jump down my throat for having different visions.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by whipnet

My family of 3 with one XBOX and 3 Roku's use 1 TB per month easily. No 4K.

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Yeah, it's just me and my apartment so forgive the difference in estimates. I can imagine that would boost needs especially with game downloads etc..

[zodwriter]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

yeah, maybe in 10-15 years. People get carried away with timelines.

Don't forget, you will need around 300gig allowance per month to even get near regular 4K content, especially with a family. Realistically, probably closer to 450 gig.

Exactly! That's the biggest hurdle digital has. Data caps are the stupidest thing Broadband companies ever came up with. Unlimited data plans range between $30-$50 more per month. While mobile phone companies provide unlimited data for far less and as wireless speeds increase Broadband subscriptions will continue to decline. 1TB per month is the standard cap limit for most Broadband providers but streaming, downloading, gaming and just doing basic internet activities eats that up quick, especially if it's a family household.

[whipnet]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

game downloads etc..

This and 4K are the true killers with data caps....

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Exactly! That's the biggest hurdle digital has. Data caps are the stupidest thing Broadband companies ever came up with. Unlimited data plans range between $30-$50 more per month. While mobile phone companies provide unlimited data for far less and as wireless speeds increase Broadband subscriptions will continue to decline. 1TB per month is the standard cap limit for most Broadband providers but streaming, downloading, gaming and just doing basic internet activities eats that up quick, especially if it's a family household.

HD will be the preference until things are opened up (if ever) Netflix can get a pretty solid 720p for around 2.5Mbps. I think 1080p is around 3.5-4Mbps.

[zodwriter]

Cable companies are just shooting themselves in the foot out of panic because so many people have dropped and continue to drop cable television. It's no shock that most cable companies will provide cheaper deals when TV is bundled with phone and broadband. They are desperately trying to hold on to a platform that is on it's last legs. If cable companies were smart they would adapt and just charge for channels as individual apps for any streaming devices. It cuts out the middle man and eliminates the need for expensive cable boxes. People are not going to back away from streaming, it's now the norm and really the only thing keeping cable companies in business is sports TV.

[whipnet]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Cable companies are just shooting themselves in the foot out of panic because so many people have dropped and continue to drop cable television. It's no shock that most cable companies will provide cheaper deals when TV is bundled with phone and broadband. They are desperately trying to hold on to a platform that is on it's last legs. If cable companies were smart they would adapt and just charge for channels as individual apps for any streaming devices. It cuts out the middle man and eliminates the need for expensive cable boxes. People are not going to back away from streaming, it's now the norm and really the only thing keeping cable companies in business is sports TV.

Yep. And this is exactly why cable companies are buying media companies.

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[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Cable companies are just shooting themselves in the foot out of panic because so many people have dropped and continue to drop cable television. It's no shock that most cable companies will provide cheaper deals when TV is bundled with phone and broadband. They are desperately trying to hold on to a platform that is on it's last legs. If cable companies were smart they would adapt and just charge for channels as individual apps for any streaming devices. It cuts out the middle man and eliminates the need for expensive cable boxes. People are not going to back away from streaming, it's now the norm and really the only thing keeping cable companies in business is sports TV.

I still say it's a good 10-15 years away from being completely streaming.

I'm boring myself even now though. .

Goowpd weekend to all.

[zodwriter]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

I still say it's a good 10-15 years away from being completely streaming.

Ten to fifteen years moving at today's pace. Again technology is not slowing down. Virtual reality will be completely mainstream by then. People won't be thinking anything about TV when they have their own personal Holodecks. VR is still in it's infancy but it is coming along nicely and is pretty good. I doubt very much in that time we will still be debating this topic.

[whipnet]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Ten to fifteen years moving at today's pace. Again technology is not slowing down. Virtual reality will be completely mainstream by then. People won't be thinking anything about TV when they have their own personal Holodecks. VR is still in it's infancy but it is coming along nicely and is pretty good. I doubt very much in that time we will still be debating this topic.

They need to stop introducing VR until it's Star Trek quality. HAHA.
I remember the huge push of lame ass VR back in the 1990's. They pushed it hard, it was terrible, it didn't work out.

The latest with Oculus and such is better, but they are still years down the road as you mentioned.

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[zodwriter]

Originally Posted by whipnet

They need to stop introducing VR until it's Star Trek quality. HAHA.
I remember the huge push of lame ass VR back in the 1990's. They pushed it hard, it was terrible, it didn't work out.

The latest with Oculus and such is better, but they are still years down the road as you mentioned.

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Agreed! Oculus is doing some amazing things right now. In 10 years VR will be mind blowing.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Ten to fifteen years moving at today's pace. Again technology is not slowing down. Virtual reality will be completely mainstream by then. People won't be thinking anything about TV when they have their own personal Holodecks. VR is still in it's infancy but it is coming along nicely and is pretty good. I doubt very much in that time we will still be debating this topic.

VR is struggling at the moment. Combined Oculus and Vive sales are less than 1 million. I own a Playstation VR headset and I am desperate for this tech to succeed because I love it. I'm hoping E3 introduces some big games because the Ps VR games have dried up. The best experience so far was the Resident Evil game. It was playable from start to finish in VR and it was tense!

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by whipnet

They need to stop introducing VR until it's Star Trek quality. HAHA.
I remember the huge push of lame ass VR back in the 1990's. They pushed it hard, it was terrible, it didn't work out.

The latest with Oculus and such is better, but they are still years down the road as you mentioned.

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I read constantly about the lower res graphics before buying the headset. However, you completely forget about that because of the sheer immersiveness of the experience. It is truly stunning but it really is a 'must try' device.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Agreed! Oculus is doing some amazing things right now. In 10 years VR will be mind blowing.

Oculus is getting trounced by Vive VR headset at the moment. They need to move fast to get people back onside.

[whipnet]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

VR is struggling at the moment. Combined Oculus and Vive sales are less than 1 million. I own a Playstation VR headset and I am desperate for this tech to succeed because I love it. I'm hoping E3 introduces some big games because the Ps VR games have dried up. The best experience so far was the Resident Evil game. It was playable from start to finish in VR and it was tense!

I was just reading this morning how Zuckerknob is not too excited about his investment and how it's going.

Oculus stole the tech apparently and Facebook had to pay another 1/2 Billion on top of the 2-3 billion buyout. Sales are far slower than expected.

The problem is putting something on your face. In fact all wearable tech fails eventually. Even the Bluetooth earpiece is now reserved for the truly self absorbed. Apple watch, Google Glass..... nothing survives. We don't want to wear our tech plain and simple.

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[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by whipnet

I was just reading this morning how Zuckerknob is not too excited about his investment and how it's going.

Oculus stole the tech apparently and Facebook had to pay another 1/2 Billion on top of the 2-3 billion buyout. Sales are far slower than expected.

The problem is putting something on your face. In fact all wearable tech fails eventually. Even the Bluetooth earpiece is now reserved for the truly self absorbed. Apple watch, Google Glass..... nothing survives. We don't want to wear our tech plain and simple.

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If someone can crack it, it will explode. The possibility of visiting other countries, experiencing events from a first person persepective and being able to experience unlimited scenarios is just mind boggling. I am all in on this tech. I mean, who cares what you look like when you are home?

If they can get them like designer sunglasses, they may achieve mass market appeal.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by whipnet

I was just reading this morning how Zuckerknob is not too excited about his investment and how it's going.

Oculus stole the tech apparently and Facebook had to pay another 1/2 Billion on top of the 2-3 billion buyout. Sales are far slower than expected.

The problem is putting something on your face. In fact all wearable tech fails eventually. Even the Bluetooth earpiece is now reserved for the truly self absorbed. Apple watch, Google Glass..... nothing survives. We don't want to wear our tech plain and simple.

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How about airpods then? They have been a big success for Apple. .

[randian]

Originally Posted by zodwriter

Cable companies are just shooting themselves in the foot out of panic because so many people have dropped and continue to drop cable television.

Comcast stupidly overcompressing its QAM channels and downrezzing them to 720p is only acccelerating the trend. If halting or slowing cord cutting was the goal that was a dismal failure.

I prefer QAM to streaming, because unlike IPTV commercials can be skipped (if the MSOs choose to insert non-skippable commercials and pre-show advertising, which you can be certain they will once the IPTV transition is complete) and I can use any size hard drive I want in my DVR (instead of the insultingly small drives in MSO DVRs).