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

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by CV19

I remember having one of these as a young kid, but I only had maybe half a dozen discs for it. I've no idea what happened to it.

It’s amazing how many childhood things just disappear. I think my Mother probably had a clear out! .

I had 3,000 lead soldiers that were beautifully painted. German troops, Japanese, German mountain rescue soldiers, Cavaliers, Roundheads, Blue Coats, Red coats, Union soldiers, confederates, and of course British and U.S WW2 soldiers.

I also had a Eveli Knievel figure on his stunt bike complete with a ramp. It was really well made as well!

[CV19]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

It’s amazing how many childhood things just disappear. I think my Mother probably had a clear out! .

I had 3,000 lead soldiers that were beautifully painted. German troops, Japanese, German mountain rescue soldiers, Cavaliers, Roundheads, Blue Coats, Red coats, Union soldiers, confederates, and of course British and U.S WW2 soldiers.

I also had a Eveli Knievel figure on his stunt bike complete with a ramp. It was really well made as well!

Oh I could start another thread on this one mate.
I remember having a Scalextric, and quite a large Lego set, as well as loads of Matchbox cars. In fact I can't even remember the names of some of the toys I had, but as you say, someone probably chucked them out.......and I don't remember it being me.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by CV19

Oh I could start another thread on this one mate.
I remember having a Scalextric, and quite a large Lego set, as well as loads of Matchbox cars. In fact I can't even remember the names of some of the toys I had, but as you say, someone probably chucked them out.......and I don't remember it being me.

Maybe someone in your family was a stealth toy removal person like my family.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by alchav21

So I searched high and low, what is the biggest display you have? Most here post their set up, could you tell us what you have?

Originally Posted by Vilya

I could, yes.

Here it is, note that it is a 3D display:

[Show spoiler]

So I guess Vilya is out shopping for a real nice UHD TV other than the 3D Display above. Here is a nice Short-Throw Laser DLP by Hisense:

https://www.soundandvision.com/conte...ojector-review

Don't let the price tag throw you, it also has a Sound System. Go For It!

[Vilya]

My TV is the LG60UH8500; It was the only 4K set I could find that supported passive 3D AND had Dolby Vision support. 3D was a critical feature. I have had it one year this month.

A year ago, 4K 3D sets were getting quite scarce and there were few choices to be had. Their rapid disappearance caught me off guard. I bought what my available cash on hand allowed. It was a $1500 set that got discounted by another $150 because the delivery people were slobs. They left dirty finger prints all over the edge of the new screen! A simple call to complain saved me $150, not bad as there was no lasting harm done.

It's not a bad TV for a skinny edge lit panel, but it is not the best by any means. It is a good TV with great features for a reasonable price. I'd give it a solid grade of "B."

You'll never see the words "reasonable price" in a sentence where a state of the art anything was purchased. Maybe next time when the 8K sets come along with glasses-free 3D I will be better prepared to spend more.

[alchav21]

That's a good size UHD TV, and LG is rated up their with some of the best. I'm not a big fan of 3D, I'm more into PQ and good Color Gamut.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by alchav21

That's a good size UHD TV, and LG is rated up their with some of the best. I'm not a big fan of 3D, I'm more into PQ and good Color Gamut.

Your Sony is a higher rated TV with an overall rating of 8.2 compared to my LG getting a 7.6 according to rtings.com.

But your TV lacks Dolby Vision and 3D and the latter was a must for me.

My TV has very poor local dimming and image flicker according to rtings.com, but does pretty well everywhere else.

Both of our TVs get a perfect 10 on 4K native content, 9 out of 10 on 1080p, and 8 out of 10 on 480p.

On color gamut, my TV rates a 7.7 and yours rates 8.0.

Post calibration results on my TV was 9.8 and yours was a 9.2.

Personally, I have not noticed any image flicker, but I have seen the limitations of my set's local dimming, especially in a darkened room where I do most of my viewing. Edge lit LEDs just do not handle local dimming very well.

For what I paid and for what I got, I remain happy. 4K and 3D content look amazing. I am also very surprised how well my DVDs look on this TV, but I give most of the credit for that to my outstanding Oppo 203 4K disc player; I let it do all of the upscaling.

[alchav21]

You did a lot of research, and you are correct LG and Sony are rated high as far as LED's. OLED's are of course better PQ and Color, but more expensive and touchy. I too am happy with my choice, and I was pleasantly surprised with the Android Streaming Apps. I was ready to use my Panasonic Blu-ray Player Streaming Apps, but find the Sony Apps much better. Since I could also access 4K Content, I didn't have to buy the Panasonic 4K Player with Streaming Apps.

[stonesfan129]

I still have my Viewmaster with a couple of Batman reels. Are they worth money?

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by stonesfan129

I still have my Viewmaster with a couple of Batman reels. Are they worth money?

I think Viewmasters are still being made, but the reels you have may, or may not, be worth something. Check ebay for listings; that might give you some idea as to their value.

[The_Donster]

Not to detract the thread anymore than it already is, but what the hell. I was actually talking to someone at Home Depot yesterday about not wanting to throw out my son's stuff during our move. That if something has to go it be his idea. Because I didn't want him to be an adult collector like myself. I guess time will tell what path he chooses for himself.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by alchav21

You did a lot of research, and you are correct LG and Sony are rated high as far as LED's. OLED's are of course better PQ and Color, but more expensive and touchy. I too am happy with my choice, and I was pleasantly surprised with the Android Streaming Apps. I was ready to use my Panasonic Blu-ray Player Streaming Apps, but find the Sony Apps much better. Since I could also access 4K Content, I didn't have to buy the Panasonic 4K Player with Streaming Apps.

OLED is worth the extra expense. LG’s OLEDS are great, I just replaced my aging Panny plasma with one.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

OLED is worth the extra expense. LG’s OLEDS are great, I just replaced my aging Panny plasma with one.

So which model do you have Steedeel?

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by alchav21

so which model do you have steedeel?

65b7v.

It’s not top of the range but I want new 4K projector as well and no way could I afford top dollar for both. It’s bloody good though lol.

[The_Donster]

Well, it looks like another thread popped up recently. I'm surprised the moderators didn't merge it with this one

[Vilya]

You keep talking about hypothetical internet performance that is not a reality. Until it is real, it is irrelevant. If we don't have it, we don't care.

Apple's 4K TV achieved a bitrate average close to 30 mbps for its 4k streaming; most streaming providers offer about half of that.

Sony Ultra has not equaled, nor has it exceed, blu-ray performance when compared with a 1080p stream. Comparing their 4K streams to a blu-ray disc is not a fair comparison. Sony's 4K streams do not even equal that of Apple's 4K TV and they do not equal a 4K UHD disc. Sony Ultra is one of the worst rated providers in existence and for multiple reasons: high cost, selection limited to Sony titles, and the requirement that you own select Sony TVs are among those reasons. And their bitrate average is in the high teens; they equal some streaming providers, but they exceed no one and nothing on comparable disc.

Streaming has come very close to matching a blu-ray disc, but it has not equaled it. The differences in the audio alone demonstrate that fact. Analyzing dark scenes also reveal the limitations of streaming. I have found that most blu-rays average closer to a bitrate of 25 mbps, not 20.

4K streaming is even further from equaling the performance of a 4K UHD disc; the streaming bitrate is one fourth to one third that of a typical 4K disc. Dark scenes and background detail also show anomalies. And the difference in audio still remains.

Streaming may get to a point where it can match disc performance, but it has not yet. If ISPs offer more bandwidth it will come with an increased cost; a cost that will only continue to rise.

With a disc, I am not dependent on the internet, overtaxed servers, or unreliable ISPs to view my movies. Once I own the disc, I have no more ongoing expenses to access my content. I do not need to dream of a day when ISPs can equal the performance of what is now 11 year-old blu-ray disc technology.

By the time streaming providers, if ever, can actually match a 4K UHD disc, physical media owners will likely be enjoying 8K content. It will be a damn long time before ISPs and streaming providers can support 8K; in many areas they barely can provide a 1080p stream even in the year 2018. Physical media has always offered more in terms of quality than streaming. Physical media is always the first to reach new frontiers while streaming is always playing a game of catch-up.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by The_Donster

Well, it looks like another thread popped up recently. I'm surprised the moderators didn't merge it with this one

And guess who is already over there saying that streaming equals disc, praising the poorly rated Sony Ultra, and predicting that ISPs will someday offer heaven itself? Our infamous anchovy21 has found another home to repeat his greatest misses.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

OLED is worth the extra expense. LG’s OLEDS are great, I just replaced my aging Panny plasma with one.

I was afraid to buy a first generation OLED TV, which I would have had to do to get one that supported 3D. I am wary of any TV technology in its first year of existence.

The early 4K TVs are a great example of why I wait. The first 4K TVs did not even support HDR. First year models are just too risky.

I still have concerns about OLED TV longevity. OLED displays are infamous for fading, or dimming, as they age. This phenomena has been observed on smartphones already, will it also affect OLED TVs?

I was also worried about image retention on OLEDs, but it is my understanding that newer models have improved on that issue. I also understand that it required extreme measures to produce burn-in images on OLEDs.

OLEDs are nit starved compared to LED displays; they can not match the brightness of a LED. Maybe that has improved with newer models, also, but it remains a concern.

The ones I have seen look great, but the great expense and my existing trepidation stated above prevent me from considering them until my worries are dispelled.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

65b7v.

It’s not top of the range but I want new 4K projector as well and no way could I afford top dollar for both. It’s bloody good though lol.

Nice one Steedeel, and who said Home Theater is Dead!

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I was afraid to buy a first generation OLED TV, which I would have had to do to get one that supported 3D. I am wary of any TV technology in its first year of existence.

The early 4K TVs are a great example of why I wait. The first 4K TVs did not even support HDR. First year models are just too risky.

I still have concerns about OLED TV longevity. OLED displays are infamous for fading, or dimming, as they age. This phenomena has been observed on smartphones already, will it also affect OLED TVs?

I was also worried about image retention on OLEDs, but it is my understanding that newer models have improved on that issue. I also understand that it required extreme measures to produce burn-in images on OLEDs.

OLEDs are nit starved compared to LED displays; they can not match the brightness of a LED. Maybe that has improved with newer models, also, but it remains a concern.

The ones I have seen look great, but the great expense and my existing trepidation stated above prevent me from considering them until my worries are dispelled.

It has Dolby vision so that was a consideration. I will get a really high quality projector so it’s not the be all and end all.