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

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by BMox81

I don't think I've ever known someone to be a melodramatic as much as Steedeel is.

Originally Posted by The_Donster

I don't know BMox81, alchav21 seems to be giving Steedeel a run for his money

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Alchav knows the truth deep down, that’s why he is trying to convince himself otherwise.

The thing about my posts is, surely I can only be labelled melodramatic if what I said doesn’t come to pass.

I guess by definition Melodramatic means exaggerate, and I have been known to embellish but that is only to make a point. I have always said Digital HD will replace Disc, and I think this looks obvious now. Steedeel takes off on Tangens, that really don't make sense to a lot of us. Now with MA we can see Digital HD is where First Run Movies are going. Even Red Box sees the writing on the wall where Digital HD is going.

[GuyIncognito]

Why is this thread still a thing? Two and a half years and people don't know the pros and cons of each? Here, sticky this to the first post of this thread

Physical
Pros

• Audio/Video quality is better (maybe not by much, but better)
• No need to pay additional for internet service
• Once you own it, the studio cannot change what you own nor can they revoke your ownership for whatever reason
• You can buy used/secondary market copies for OOP titles
• You can sell your used copies that you no longer want
• You can arrange them on your shelf however you want

Cons

• Takes up space
• Discs can be damaged/lost/stolen
• They have to be delivered or you have to go to a store to get them
• Not as easy to share a collection with others

Digital
Pros

• Most movies are now available on digital before on disc
• Adding a new movie is instant
• Extremely cheap alternative when buying codes from other people or doing d2d
• Extremely convenient when you can use your remote to call upon a collection of thousands
• Access your entire collection wherever you can access the internet (pretty difficult to drag around 1000 blu-ray discs everywhere you go)
• Takes up zero physical space in your home
• Will never be damaged or lost (unless your account is hacked)
• Easily share a collection with friends/family

Cons

• Video/Audio quality is not equal (not horrible, but not equal)
• Once you buy a movie, there is no re-selling it on a secondary market. If a new version comes out, you now have to own both versions
• You must pay for a monthly ISP in order to access (if Internet goes down, your digital collection is inaccessible)
• Studios control what you watch and how you watch it (can't download UHD Vudu movies like you can with HDX for offline viewing)
• Titles can end up scattered across different ecosystems (iTunes, UV, Google, Amazon). Currently no streaming box that plays all four is there?
• Redeeming codes is not as simple as it should be. (Want this title in 4K? Redeem this studio on Vudu, this studio on their own website, this studio on iTunes and let it port through to Vudu to end up with 4K.). With blu-ray disc you know what you get.

There...end of debate

[PCFan]

I've been giving iTunes home sharing another try today since sometimes a movie won't load from the iTunes store, it would say that the movie will be ready to watch in about 1 minute but I waited 2 minutes and it's still loading so I exited the iTunes movies app and entered it again and still same issue and also I don't trust the iTunes store anymore for streaming due to this and other past issues with some of my iTunes purchases that would have not experienced if I downloaded them in the first place. I noticed that the Computers app on the Apple TV (4th Gen) does not mark movies and TV episodes as watched when finished watching in TVOS 11. This can make watching TV episodes a hassle because I tend to forget sometimes which was the last episode I finished watching if it's not the 1st or last episode of a season. Also I get a progress bar in episodes under the icon through home sharing but not for movies. I would have liked a progress bar under the icon for movies as well for home sharing and a fully filled progress bar under the icon for stuff I'm done watching through home sharing, like the way Vudu and Netflix do it. I'm seriously considering going back to physical media. I just can't depend on streaming from online servers for my entertainment and with iTunes home sharing I don't but I had issues with the iTunes app for the PC in the past. I also feel like I don't really own my iTunes or Vudu collection. If I didn't have such a huge iTunes collection (747 movies and 3 TV shows), I would switch back to physical media right away for just my favorite movies that I could see myself watching again, but I'm too far in that makes it hard for me to decide what to do.

[flyry]

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

Why is this thread still a thing? Two and a half years and people don't know the pros and cons of each? Here, sticky this to the first post of this thread

Physical
Pros

• No need to pay additional for internet service
  
  
  
  Cons
  
• You must pay for a monthly ISP in order to access
  

Can we stop with this? We are all going to pay for internet until the day we die regardless. Except that one poster who posts from the library with no phone/pc.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by PCFan

I've been giving iTunes home sharing another try today since sometimes a movie won't load from the iTunes store, it would say that the movie will be ready to watch in about 1 minute but I waited 2 minutes and it's still loading so I exited the iTunes movies app and entered it again and still same issue and also I don't trust the iTunes store anymore for streaming due to this and other past issues with some of my iTunes purchases that would have not experienced if I downloaded them in the first place......................... If I didn't have such a huge iTunes collection (747 movies and 3 TV shows), I would switch back to physical media right away for just my favorite movies that I could see myself watching again, but I'm too far in that makes it hard for me to decide what to do.

I have said this before, your first mistake with a name like PCFan is being an Apple Lover. So maybe you should leave The Dark Side, and come to The Light. Now with MA I see most of the problems are with iTunes and Apple people. So don't blame Digital HD, but if you think Physical is your answer then go back to it. Disc is dying and Obsolete, but will be around for people that don't have the Bandwidth or set up for Digital HD!

[The_Donster]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I guess by definition Melodramatic means exaggerate, and I have been known to embellish but that is only to make a point. I have always said Digital HD will replace Disc, and I think this looks obvious now. Steedeel takes off on Tangens, that really don't make sense to a lot of us. Now with MA we can see Digital HD is where First Run Movies are going. Even Red Box sees the writing on the wall where Digital HD is going.

You are two sides of the same coin speaking in absolutes. Studios have found a new way to maximize their profit through digital, but that doesn't mean physical media is going anywhere either. The sky is not falling Chicken Littles'

[The_Donster]

Originally Posted by PCFan

I've been giving iTunes home sharing another try today since sometimes a movie won't load from the iTunes store, it would say that the movie will be ready to watch in about 1 minute but I waited 2 minutes and it's still loading so I exited the iTunes movies app and entered it again and still same issue and also I don't trust the iTunes store anymore for streaming due to this and other past issues with some of my iTunes purchases that would have not experienced if I downloaded them in the first place. I noticed that the Computers app on the Apple TV (4th Gen) does not mark movies and TV episodes as watched when finished watching in TVOS 11. This can make watching TV episodes a hassle because I tend to forget sometimes which was the last episode I finished watching if it's not the 1st or last episode of a season. Also I get a progress bar in episodes under the icon through home sharing but not for movies. I would have liked a progress bar under the icon for movies as well for home sharing and a fully filled progress bar under the icon for stuff I'm done watching through home sharing, like the way Vudu and Netflix do it. I'm seriously considering going back to physical media. I just can't depend on streaming from online servers for my entertainment and with iTunes home sharing I don't but I had issues with the iTunes app for the PC in the past. I also feel like I don't really own my iTunes or Vudu collection. If I didn't have such a huge iTunes collection (747 movies and 3 TV shows), I would switch back to physical media right away for just my favorite movies that I could see myself watching again, but I'm too far in that makes it hard for me to decide what to do.

Dude, I am so sorry that you had a problem with your iTunes porting over, but that's no reason to pick and choose. You have 747 movies, how many of those meet the MA criteria? I mean, that's a lot of movies. Give them some time to port over. I've got 91 movies on iTunes now and I'm having a issue with 1 of them. I honestly can't remember out of those 91 what ported over to iTunes, but I know what ported over to the rest from them because of how I redeemed them. Still, that doesn't mean that I've given up on MA, iTunes or anyone else. I'll just continue to speak with Apple until that movie pops back into library.

Originally Posted by flyry

Can we stop with this? We are all going to pay for internet until the day we die regardless. Except that one poster who posts from the library with no phone/pc.

Exactly, as I tell every Xfinity rep who approaches me in Walmart and Best Buy or wherever else, "If I had my way, I'd cut the cable and go down to strictly streaming, but you guys have me by the short hairs. Because you offer the best internet in our area."

[veritas]

Originally Posted by flyry

Can we stop with this? We are all going to pay for internet until the day we die regardless. Except that one poster who posts from the library with no phone/pc.

I don't know about everybody else but at least 50% of my relatives houses are in places where streaming would be impossible. You could do email and look at low data pages like forums or the news but streaming is out of the question unless you payed many hundreds of dollars a month (probably thousands). they also have data limits that make the cell carriers look generous.

we are not talking about places in the middle of nowhere either its just internet quality sucks once you leave major cities.

I also have some relatives who cut the cord for internet and rely only on their phone for internet. When your only method of streaming is a small phone with like a 2 gb limit again digital is out of the question.

[djluis2k6]

I recently traded in a stack of Blu-Rays the other day at an FYE because I have converted them to 4K UHD. But today, I've been thinking about switching completely digital.

I've gotten the digital copies redeemed in iTunes, but I've also purchased the HD versions of movies I own on Blu-Ray in iTunes as well. Though I still have about $1,000 worth to purchase in my iTunes Wish List. I just wait until they go on sale, which happens very often in iTunes. So I've already got an extensive iTunes HD Movie/TV Show collection. I could easily trade-in all my existing Blu-Rays and probably get enough store credit at FYE to buy enough iTunes gift cards to buy my entire wish list of movies and TV shows and be completely caught up.

I've seen everyones pros and cons, and I'm still conflicted. I love having the idea of being completely digital, and I rarely grab a physical disc to play it now. I just use my Apple TV. And I would hate to wait too long to make a final decision and FYE be closed and have no place else to trade in my movies.

So right now, I'm still not sure. I'm still buying physical, but also collect digital, specifically in iTunes. And iTunes offering 4K without any additional charge is a huge bonus with Sony choosing to sell them separately for about $29 each.

[PCFan]

Originally Posted by The_Donster

Dude, I am so sorry that you had a problem with your iTunes porting over, but that's no reason to pick and choose. You have 747 movies, how many of those meet the MA criteria? I mean, that's a lot of movies. Give them some time to port over. I've got 91 movies on iTunes now and I'm having a issue with 1 of them. I honestly can't remember out of those 91 what ported over to iTunes, but I know what ported over to the rest from them because of how I redeemed them. Still, that doesn't mean that I've given up on MA, iTunes or anyone else. I'll just continue to speak with Apple until that movie pops back into library.

I didn't say the reason I was considering going back to physical media is because of porting issues although I did have a few porting issues with iTunes, such as Problem Child porting over as SD to iTunes but I owned it in HDX in Vudu.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

[*]Will never be damaged or lost (unless your account is hacked)

Or unless a service goes under, some titles get tied up in legal red tape, or a plethora of other similar possibilities that could render some or all of one's digital collection unusable.

[randian]

Originally Posted by djluis2k6

I recently traded in a stack of Blu-Rays the other day at an FYE because I have converted them to 4K UHD. But today, I've been thinking about switching completely digital.

What are they offering? $1/disc?

[The_Donster]

Originally Posted by PCFan

I didn't say the reason I was considering going back to physical media is because of porting issues although I did have a few porting issues with iTunes, such as Problem Child porting over as SD to iTunes but I owned it in HDX in Vudu.

I'm not coming down on you. I'm just saying life is about choices

[djluis2k6]

Originally Posted by randian

What are they offering? $1/disc?

I didn't really pay attention, but I took in around 20-30 discs and got a little over $50 in-store credit.

[veritas]

Originally Posted by Dynamo of Eternia

Or unless a service goes under, some titles get tied up in legal red tape, or a plethora of other similar possibilities that could render some or all of one's digital collection unusable.

Pretty much I for example have 3 movies that show up in my purchase history on iTunes but not in my purchased section and iTunes cant fix it and fox wont fix it (all 3 are fox titles). I might get those movies back but it really shows just how secure your digital movies are as you have multiple corporations that would rather make money then do the right thing. Digital movies arent safe these companies could start charging you or could close down or could glitch away your entire collection and you have basically no protection because you on paper only have a short term rental license they extend if they feel like it.

I think physical vs digital really comes down to do you prefer ownership or rental. physical = ownership while digital =rental (rental for 2 years minimum then they can screw you if they want according to terms of service).

[flyry]

Originally Posted by veritas

I don't know about everybody else but at least 50% of my relatives houses are in places where streaming would be impossible. You could do email and look at low data pages like forums or the news but streaming is out of the question unless you payed many hundreds of dollars a month (probably thousands). they also have data limits that make the cell carriers look generous.

we are not talking about places in the middle of nowhere either its just internet quality sucks once you leave major cities.

I also have some relatives who cut the cord for internet and rely only on their phone for internet. When your only method of streaming is a small phone with like a 2 gb limit again digital is out of the question.

That's not the discussion though. People try to use having to have internet as a knock against digital as if the internet is not a way of life for everyone now.

We will always pay for internet if nothing else. Cable may die eventually, but we will still have the net.

[Vilya]

Of course I have internet service and I plan to continue doing so. It is generally fine for the majority of things that I do online like pay bills, shopping, reading news, and email. It is way too unstable here to enjoy streaming in high definition for the duration of even a short movie. I can't even keep a Skype video call connected. Service goes out here for hours at a time multiple times a month.

If I even get to complete the streamed movie, it will range in quality from high to standard definition and then it will look like a watercolor painting caught in the rain before it pauses to buffer some more heralding an imminent disconnect. Trying to stream a 10 minute 4K YouTube video successfully requires a pact with Satan. Not at all how I like to watch movies.

My ISP has pretty stingy data caps, too. Even if I could stream in 4K reliably, it would blast through my data cap.

The internet is a way life, but while some of you are living in a golden age of gigabit service many of us are stuck in the Stone Age where 12Mbps DSL plans are touted as "high speed."

[veritas]

Originally Posted by flyry

That's not the discussion though. People try to use having to have internet as a knock against digital as if the internet is not a way of life for everyone now.

We will always pay for internet if nothing else. Cable may die eventually, but we will still have the net.

People use it as a knock against digital because digital, netflix, gaming and youtube do literally equate to more money per month. you pay for speed with the internet and you pay for data both of which you only need because of a few high data usage activitys. on the extreme side if you wanted to go fully digital and watch lots of 4k movies you have to pay Comcast an extra 50 bucks a month just for your extra data usage.

People will always pay for the internet but digital has a habit of making people pay more for internet in general. Its like arguing that you cant say having a lawn makes you buy water because your house would already buy water anyway. The thing is that lawn makes your water bill higher and the same goes for digital.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Of course I have internet service and I plan to continue doing so. It is generally fine for the majority of things that I do online like pay bills, shopping, reading news, and email. It is way too unstable here to enjoy streaming in high definition for the duration of even a short movie. I can't even keep a Skype video call connected. Service goes out here for hours at a time multiple times a month.

If I even get to complete the streamed movie, it will range in quality from high to standard definition and then it will look like a watercolor painting caught in the rain before it pauses to buffer some more heralding an imminent disconnect. Trying to stream a 10 minute 4K YouTube video successfully requires a pact with Satan. Not at all how I like to watch movies.

My ISP has pretty stingy data caps, too. Even if I could stream in 4K reliably, it would blast through my data cap.

The internet is a way life, but while some of you are living in a golden age of gigabit service many of us are stuck in the Stone Age where 12Mbps DSL plans are touted as "high speed."

Good point and very true. In my area you either need to stump up for fibre or be stuck on 2.5-3 Mbps. Probably amongst the worst speeds in the UK for non rural areas. I get fibre and don’t have a problem now but boy it was awful before that.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by djluis2k6

I recently traded in a stack of Blu-Rays the other day at an FYE because I have converted them to 4K UHD. But today, I've been thinking about switching completely digital.

I've gotten the digital copies redeemed in iTunes, but I've also purchased the HD versions of movies I own on Blu-Ray in iTunes as well. Though I still have about $1,000 worth to purchase in my iTunes Wish List. I just wait until they go on sale, which happens very often in iTunes. So I've already got an extensive iTunes HD Movie/TV Show collection. I could easily trade-in all my existing Blu-Rays and probably get enough store credit at FYE to buy enough iTunes gift cards to buy my entire wish list of movies and TV shows and be completely caught up.

I've seen everyones pros and cons, and I'm still conflicted. I love having the idea of being completely digital, and I rarely grab a physical disc to play it now. I just use my Apple TV. And I would hate to wait too long to make a final decision and FYE be closed and have no place else to trade in my movies.

So right now, I'm still not sure. I'm still buying physical, but also collect digital, specifically in iTunes. And iTunes offering 4K without any additional charge is a huge bonus with Sony choosing to sell them separately for about $29 each.

Just bear in mind that Digital HD is probably not the future. Subscription with exclusives for different companies absolutely is. I’m sticking its 4K and regular Blu-ray for the best possible quality.