Too many underestimate Blu-ray

[Geezer00003]

Originally Posted by QQQQ!

OMG!!!! Who started the upconverted dvd bullcrap?

Toshiba.......me thinks

[Blu Man]

All my freind think i'm crazy for going Blu. They think it's just gonna turn out like Laserdisc.

[Q?]

Originally Posted by Blu Man

All my freind think i'm crazy for going Blu. They think it's just gonna turn out like Laserdisc.

I really don't hope that this will die...
Have you shown them any blu-ray movies?

[Raymond23]

Originally Posted by aesnakes

Haha Im from Atlantic Canada too, Ive been trying to get my family and friends to convert and its harder then you think.

Some people dont know what the difference should be and they go ahead and get a big screen LCD, get a blu ray player, Hi-Def cable etc and end up pluging everything in using an RCA cable and brag about the PQ.........All the money spend and they use a Walmart RCA Cable......UGH

Yup. But, to fully enjoy blu, everything must be upgraded. And that can be a deal breaker. I love Blu, and appreciate the improvement in PQ/AQ, but know I will have to spend more to get the most out of it, and I can't justify the cost at this time.

I have Blu in the Great Room and Rec Room. Here are the set ups:

Great Room:
-Panasonic 50" 1080i (I won't be able to justify taking this down and getting a 1080p anytime soon) Only has 1 HDMI input, so I need a switch to hook up blu and satelyte to the TV
-Disc Network
-Blu-Ray
-5.1 speakers hard-wired into the ceiling.
-Receiver-The big weak link in the set up. New-ish. But just old enough to NOT have HDMI input/output. So, even though I have 5.1 speakers, I have frigging RCA cables from the satelite and the and the blu ray to the receiver for my 5.1 experience. I usually just use the TV speakers. Ugghh...

Rec Room.
-42" Panasonic 1080i plasma (again, won't be able to justify a 1080p anytime soon, but with the screen size, I think this is fine). This TV is a little newer moder and has 2 HDMI inputs, so no switch needed.
-Disc Network
-PS3
-5.1 speaker systems hard wired into the ceiling
-Receiver. Again, slightly newer then the Great Room one. But still no HDMI. At least it has optical audio. Huge difference. But far from ideal.

So, to get the most out of my set up, I would need:

2 new plasma TV's
2 new receivers
Reroute the ceiling speakers to 7.1 (big mess) in 2 ceilings

Not happening.

Now, even though the TV is bigger in the Great Room, with ceiling spekers, everything shakes in the bedroom. So, unless everyone is watching, TV speakers will usually be used. So the Rec Room is the main movie watching area. So, I can forsee this (rather inexpensive) upgrade:
-Buy one new great receiver with multiple HDMI input/outputs. Put that in the Rec Room to get true HD experience. Move the Rec Room receiver to the Great Room to improve the audio there. Still hard to justify to the five why a 3 year old receiver isn't cutting it, but tearing down ceilings and tossing $1000+ TV sets that work fine is something even I would not want to do.

I suspect it is issues like this that prevent many from adopting blu. The tech is advancing fast enough that your gear can be out of date months after you have dropped some serious money on it...
-

[Bourne1]

Originally Posted by MCT

I had a ladyfriend over the other day and we were watching Event Horizon, which has really nice PQ by the way. After about 10 minutes, she says "whats the difference between Blu Ray and regular movies?". Now either my TV is garbage (it is not...at all), or she was just ignorant to hi-def technology. I went with ignorance. I damn near kicked her out.

This is what I do. I will shut off the 1080p dvd upscale on my PS3 and pop in a regular DVD. About 96% of the time they will see the difference and go "Oh wow! Now put the better disc in". Some times you just have to go the extra step just to prove a point. I'll go the extra step to make a non-believer into a believer.

You can also go with the route by saying "Well you bought HD cable for your HDTV because of the better picture right?".

People will mostly respond, "Well yea, I want the better picture, that's why I bought the flat panel".

So I will respond, "Take that same thought with Blu-ray then.".

[JamesKurtovich]

Most people don't really pay attention to the quality of their movies. My fiance says the only difference between DVD and BD is that BD is brighter.

[Rob J in WNY]

Originally Posted by aesnakes

Some people dont know what the difference should be and they go ahead and get a big screen LCD, get a blu ray player, Hi-Def cable etc and end up pluging everything in using an RCA cable and brag about the PQ.........All the money spend and they use a Walmart RCA Cable......UGH

Ha! That's too funny, but it would not be surprising to see it happen. Composite video is the bottom of the barrel for quality, and most people not familiar with the technology may not realize that HDMI (or, at the very least, component) connectivity is essential to enjoy HD video content.

Incidentally, our local Wal Mart has quite a few LCD and Plasma TVs on display, but NONE of them are displaying a true HD picture, and they're all receiving the same downconverted HD video feed. All those TVs! Not one. It actually makes HD look like its not even worth it (and it's not even a quality SD signal, either). I suspect that somewhere along the chain, someone connected a composite video feed. Whatever the case may be, it's bad promotion. I have wanted to say something to the management, because they should know better! Wouldn't be surprised if someone already has. Their video has been SD like that since I can remember.

For the record, I have not failed to impress anyone of my friends who have come over to see what Blu-ray is capable of. I think that the price of the equipment and discs are a deterrent for some, but, like our Hi-Fi VCRs which cost $400 back in the mid-'90s, we'll see the technology get cheaper. For the most part, most DVD owners just play their discs through SDTVs and TV speakers, and DVDs deliver so much more when played through better equipment - especially the audio.

[JamesKurtovich]

Also, those TVs in Wal-Mart and other big retail chains that have the Blu-ray player and HDTV playing a movie always look horrible. Last time I was there, they were playing Wall-E, and it looked worse than the DVD.

[stargazeruk]

Originally Posted by JamesKurtovich

Most people don't really pay attention to the quality of their movies. My fiance says the only difference between DVD and BD is that BD is brighter.

Most people I know don't have a tv bigger then 42 inch TV. Most are arround the 32inch tv size. Some people seen the quality and love it but won't buy it due to higher cost and rather stick with DVD untill the prices drop. Others say they don't see the difference.

But I do agree with what you said most realy only look when they want to but most don't think or pay attention to PQ. They only pay attention to whats happening on screen.

My brother in law borrowed my PS3 to show off HD to his parents. He had a hard time explaning the difference to them and decided to showed them instead. The PS3 they thought did a better job then the DVD player and the blu-ray blew them away and now they are shopping round for a decient standalone blu-ray player.

[Q?]

I can't remember how the DVD system was recieved at the time?
Compared to VHS I think it was an easier sell as opposed to DVD to Blu-ray?

[Blu Man]

Originally Posted by JamesKurtovich

Also, those TVs in Wal-Mart and other big retail chains that have the Blu-ray player and HDTV playing a movie always look horrible. Last time I was there, they were playing Wall-E, and it looked worse than the DVD.

When I was their they were playing Kung Fu Panda and it looked fine.

[MCT]

yeah some of Wally World's TV's are great. My god son got a 32' Sharq Aquos from there, and when he hooked up his XBox 360, the resolution was jaw-dropping compared to what he had before on his SDTV. So crisp and clean.

however his movies dont look nearly as good as his games do. He's kinda young and he keeps asking me "my Blu Rays look great right?" and I just dont have the heart to tell him they look average as hell compared to my picture. Would anyone happen to know why his games look better than his BD's?

[bogo5]

I'm just starting to get into Blu Ray (got 6 epic titles all ready) + (5K on display & sound) & everyone around me are dissing it, they are clueless, they don't even own a HDTV.

I even had someone say HD 720p wasn't impressive when he hooked his ps3 up to a normal TV.

BUTTTT..... When they eventually come up & see my setup they will bow down like a dvd noob & feel my wrath...

[VinnAY]

Originally Posted by MCT

however his movies dont look nearly as good as his games do. He's kinda young and he keeps asking me "my Blu Rays look great right?" and I just dont have the heart to tell him they look average as hell compared to my picture. Would anyone happen to know why his games look better than his BD's?

a video game is all computer generated (think animation) which is super clear and crisp vs a BD movie that is film.

[Louisville Slugger]

Heh, it seems our "kind" is harder to find these days. My dad got a Pioneer PDP-6010FD about five months ago and I've been trying to convince him to go Blu-ray. I've brought my PS3 down a couple times and he definitely enjoys the picture. It just isn't a priority for him at the moment. He is content with HD over DirecTV. I keep telling him it's a whole different picture between compressed satellite with lossy sound versus 1080p and lossless sound. I also mention HD movie channels like to crop their movies so it fills the screen. Then he goes "yeah, but it should fill the screen." I tell him the directors are not filming a movie to fill a consumer's HDTV in hopes they'll be happy. I then pop in the Blu-ray and show him how much picture he wasn't seeing. It ruins the experience.

Anyways, I finally got him to pull the trigger on the Sony BDP-S550 this morning. He got $100 in rewards money at Best Buy after buying the TV and the Sony was on-sale so I convinced him. It came out to about $241 after taxes. Since the unit is back ordered they'll ship it to us for free. It should arrive in the next one or two weeks.

I was nice enough to run the 6 analog cables from his receiver. They're quietly waiting to be connected to the S550.

[MCT]

thanks man. Is there any way to improve his picture at all? It's only 32 inch, but I dont know how much that matters.

[Louisville Slugger]

Originally Posted by bogo5

I'm just starting to get into Blu Ray (got 6 epic titles all ready) + (5K on display & sound) & everyone around me are dissing it, they are clueless, they don't even own a HDTV.

They're jealous, People want what they don't have.

[coachD]

Originally Posted by italiano17771

nothing against females, but i find myself having a much harder time showing them the difference. its alot easier with guys...once they see and hear they can appreciate the difference. just my experience.

Same here. My wife is just not into HD like I am. Agggh! How can she be driving on the road? I love my baby, but this drives me crazy!

[VHS4Ever]

LOL, my family use to say the same thing to me. Start watching a lot of HD and then switch back to SD. They will be begging for the HD.

I'm always the person in my family to introduce them to a new technolgy. Same thing happen back in the VHS to DVD days too.

Do you know people who buy HD TV and not have Blu-rays or HD Programing. I do and it is lame. It kind of defeats the purpose of having a HD TV. This are probably the same people who say they can't tell the difference between blu ray and dvd.

Also some people just don't really care for picture quality. All they care about is a picture on the screen. These are also probably the same people who can watch low resolution steam movies on full screen. I simply can't, because it is a waste of time.

[richieb1971]

I've heard the most BS in my time.

1) A friend told me he preferred DVD because the sharpness/brightness of blu ray hurt his eye's.

2) Nobody who I know would buy a BD player since it expensive and doesn't offer anything above DVD that they are interested in.


One thing you must realise. If people don't want more than a 32" TV, having blu ray is totally pointless. I took DVD's and Blu rays to work and on that HDTV I couldn't honestly say BD was any better. The details are squished because the picture is so small so its like taking everything away from BD.

The other thing is how are peoples eye's?

Something that comes up here is calibration. I think thats BS. I have never EVER been disappointed with an out of the box picture for a HDTV for blu ray. Sure I turn the brightness up or the contrast down. But basically I can tell the difference between DVD and blu in a nano second without calibration.