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

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I always look at the used movies when I am in a store that sells them. I might find a bargain or a rarity. I keep my options open.

I just don't typically browse used titles online because there it doesn't even occur to me unless I am looking for something that is OOP. In fairness, I have never received a bootleg from ebay; I check the seller reviews pretty closely.

Ironically, the only bootleg I ever got came from a third party seller on Amazon.com for a Korean TV show. I shoulda seen that coming, but one bootleg out of all of my purchases is still a pretty good track record.

Again, I do not worry about the resale value of discs as I do not sell mine. I buy things I plan to keep. Even so, whenever someone reminds me of how little a used disc is worth, I point out that it is still infinitely more than what a used digital code is worth. No option to resell those, is there?

If I did want to defray the cost of my purchases some, I could sell the slipcovers my discs come with. They are not important to me, but people buy them. They, too, have a value unlike a used digital code or the packaging that they come in (when bought from a store).

My 7,324 discs, just the dvds and blus combined, have a resale value, however small it may be. My 96 digitally redeemed titles are completely worthless; I'll never see a dime from them. Thankfully, I am a collector, not an investor, so there is no need to worry in either case.

Yeah, I couldn’t give a crap about resale value. I collect them to watch in the best AV quality. It’s that simple. I am the type of person who can revisit films several times.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by avs commenter

So you think all newish members are tolls? Or this is your way to change the subject again after another poster made you look foolish

tolls? No trolls. Although there should be a toll on posters like you imo.

All newish members? Nope, just you at the moment.

I’m done with you. Already answered you one too many times.

[avs commenter]

No you’re not. You’re too stupid to know when you’ve lost

[avs commenter]

I made this account 7 months ago just to troll you today

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Yeah, I couldn’t give a crap about resale value. I collect them to watch in the best AV quality. It’s that simple. I am the type of person who can revisit films several times.

I am highly amused when I discover that one of my owned titles now commands a high price. Such as this one, still new and in shrinkwrap:

https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-Li...es+1-7+blu-ray

There are several others in my collection that are going for a high price, too. You aren't very likely to see that happen with a digital code.

Even so, I won't sell a one of them. I bought my movies and my TV shows to enjoy them, not to make money off of their resale.

I have my favorites as well that I can rewatch throughout the balance of my lifetime and into the next one, too. I expect the next one will be in a rather warmer climate. I plan to be buried like pharaoh with all of my treasures. Beware pharaoh's curse if any defy my wishes! I love revisiting my favorite movies and one lifetime just ain't enuff.

[avs commenter]

You totally missed my point on the reselling of discs

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by avs commenter

You totally missed my point on the reselling of discs

Moi?

Possibly I did, but I won't be offended if you spell it out for me, assuming I am the person you are referencing.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I am highly amused when I discover that one of my owned titles now commands a high price. Such as this one, still new and in shrinkwrap:

https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-Li...es+1-7+blu-ray

There are several others in my collection that are going for a high price, too. You aren't very likely to see that happen with a digital code.

Even so, I won't sell a one of them. I bought my movies and my TV shows to enjoy them, not to make money off of their resale.

I have my favorites as well that I can rewatch throughout the balance of my lifetime and into the next one, too. I expect the next one will be in a rather warmer climate. I plan to be buried like pharaoh with all of my treasures. Beware pharaoh's curse if any defy my wishes! I love revisiting my favorite movies and one lifetime just ain't enuff.

Too true. Just watched The Elephant Man tonight. Been a couple of years since I last watched it. Seems to get better with every viewing.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Originally Posted by avs commenter

If an Ebay seller has great reviews/satisfaction numbers, I wouldn't be concerned at all

Originally Posted by Vilya

While I am not an expert on such matters, I have read that such things can be faked. How true and how frequent, I dunno.

Odds are when someone has A LOT of feedback, it is not faked.

That said, regardless of how high their positive feedback is, I HIGHLY recommend checking what negative feedback they have had (if any) and see what that feedback specifically says.


If it's relatively normal, common, explainable, one-off stuff (i.e. an item got damaged during shipping, but within reason the seller did everything that they should including offering a refund, and the buyer was still upset and gave negative feedback), then for things like that, it won't stop me from buying from them.

But if a lot of negative feedback reveals repeated problems that clearly shows repeat issues due to them either not communicating and working properly on issues that come up, not listing items properly, or not selling legit items (i.e. bootlegs), this sort of thing will typically be revealed there.

There are some sellers who deal in high volume and otherwise properly list and ship their items, but when a problem does arise, they do jack shit about it (and let the buyer go through ebay's system to try and get their money back) because percentage-wise, it will be a relatively low amount in the grand scheme of things, giving them an overall high percentage in the upper 90s of positive feedback, but can still add up to hundreds of buyers (or more) being impacted.


A big problem - though this is mostly with brand new, sealed releases (and I think effects DVDs more than Blu-Rays), is bootlegs. Bootlegs have gotten rather sophisticated. These aren't burned discs thrown in a case with low-quality printed artwork from someone's printer on standard settings and a regular piece of paper.

Instead, while it can vary, the packaging looks rather legit. Box sets come in there slip boxes, the discs are pressed, and so on. Where the problem comes in (beyond just the fact that they are bootlegging a legit product in the first place) is the quality. Often times they are copying the data from dual-layer DVDs and compressing them to fit on a single layer disc. They only real way to tell is either by playing it and seeing that the quality is absurdly bad, or to put it in a DVD drive in a computer and check the total amount of data on the disc. If it's under ~4.7GB, it's most likely a bootleg.

Shout Factory has a whole page about this on their site.
https://www.shoutfactory.com/blog/co...leg-media-faq/

With regards to ebay feedback big issue here is that a lot of people don't know what to look out for and don't realize that they received a bootleg. And unless they watch it right away and actually notice a major problem, they will likely leave positive feedback if the items arrives just fine and they can't tell/don't realize it is a bootleg.

In these instances, these seller will have positive feedback in the upper 90s, but if you check their negative feedback, you'll see responses from people who did know what to look out for and got a bootleg.

[img]I am not afraid to buy from ebay, but I try to avoid it when it comes to buying discs. I trust buying from third party sellers on sites such as Amazon more, but they often charge more, too, creating a dilemma.[/quote]

Many of these same problems exist regardless of which site you buy from. The issues that I described above (especially the bootleg one) is rampant on the Amazon Marketplace.

Mind you, if you check feedback (regardless of site) and see that they have a lot of positive feedback and any negatives are within reason, you shouldn't be concerned about buying from either site, and both Amazon and Ebay have ways to report issues should they arise. But that said, comparatively speaking, Amazon's Marketplace is no more "safe" than ebay in this regard. Any extra sense of security you are getting is purely physiological based on your own perception of the two sites.

Still, some people don't like buying used discs sight unseen from online sellers. If you have pawn shops and the like near you, and most of us do, it is safer to buy used discs that you can actually examine beforehand.

The only time I shop for a used disc online is when I am seeking an OOP title; these can command hefty prices, whether they are new or used. I try to avoid being in such a disadvantageous position by closely monitoring this website, but despite my vigilance a title will slip thru my fingers now and again necessitating that I pay a ransom to get said title.

For me it is also mostly OOP titles when I do buy from ebay or the Amazon Marketplace.

I've only done this a couple/few times, but I have bought some otherwise brand new, recently released 4K discs from ebay from someone who bought the combo pack and split it up (usually just the disc in a sleeve, or if they do include the case, any other discs or digital copy isn't included). I mainly did this for a few releases where there was something like a really nice Steelbook that I wanted, but was only sold with the regular Blu-Ray and no 4K option, so I got the Steelbook in store and bought the 4K disc on ebay for less than what it would cost to buy the whole 4K combo pack.

In these instances, after doing my diligence in reviewing their feedback, if all checks out in that regard, I feel pretty safe buying a disc like that since it's generally never used (and that is often specified in the listing), but just split up from a brand new pack.

[avs commenter]

You don’t see the irony? The same people who say disc is the only way to own a movie forever are scared to pay a few bucks for a used movie online. Should I be wearing gloves when I handle my discs?

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by avs commenter

You don’t see the irony? The same people who say disc is the only way to own a movie forever are scared to pay a few bucks for a used movie online. Should I be wearing gloves when I handle my discs?

I am not afraid, but I am cautious. I have bought used discs online and I will continue to do so when I deem it necessary or to my advantage. As I said, I keep my options open; the same way I try to keep my mind or what remains of it.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I am highly amused when I discover that one of my owned titles now commands a high price. Such as this one, still new and in shrinkwrap:

https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Who-Li...es+1-7+blu-ray

Same here. Some have really taken me by surprise.

Then there's some old video games that still own from years ago that now go for some crazy prices. I have no desire to sell them (I would only do so if I was in a major pinch), but in some instances it kind of scares me having these items given what the value is.

For example, I have Mega Man V for Gameboy, still complete with the box and everything. It was the only Mega Man game that I ever bought for the Gameboy. Complete in box, it has gone for a few hundred dollars. There are some buy it now listings on ebay right now in the $1,000 range, but that's probably sellers WAY over-pushing the supply/demand aspect of it. Still, I did see a complete in box copy (with the box being in MUCH worse condition than mine) at a local second hand store with a price tag between $500 and $600. I'm not sure if any negotiating happened, but someone must have bought it at some point as it wasn't there a few weeks later.

[Vilya]

^I do exactly as you recommend when I purchase anything, new or used, from any online third party seller. I scour any negative reviews looking to see if there is a pattern to the complaints therein. If so, depending on what they are, that throws up a big red flag.

I feel more comfortable with third party transactions at Amazon for a couple of reasons. One is that in many instances these purchases are fulfilled by Amazon and thereby qualify for the two-day Prime shipping benefit. The other reason is that I am very familiar with Amazon's return policies and I know how easy it is to rectify issues with them and their marketplace sellers.

I make it a point to check my purchases closely when they arrive as well. As I said earlier, I only got one bootleg, so far, in all of the many years that I have been buying movies.

I have never had to request a return or a refund with ebay, so I have no first hand experience with how easy or difficult they are to deal with. I have been lucky with ebay, to date, but I also don't use them very often.

I may again soon as there is an OOP title that ebay offers for far less than Amazon does, but it is still a triple digit priced title, in new condition, from either website and about 40% cheaper for used condition. Another dilemma!

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Your post was still a nonsense. I’m not going to name call I’m just going to be straight with you. It was a daft post. I have a 4K projector, I have a surround set up, I have a dedicated room for all my HT equipment. Who are you to say that’s not a proper HT? It 100% IS a HT setup. I have a LG 4K OLED in my living room for the record.

I’m pretty sure Groot also has a projector and several other members on here.

I’m disappointed in you Alchav. For all your controversial posts (and many consider hundreds of mine controversial) this is the first time I have actually thought that you are (in my opinion) trolling here.

I guess I hit another nerve, you guys could call your Movie set-ups anything you want, I have always called mine an Entertainment Center. Did you read the Article, I was just going by John Sciacca definition of a Home Theater. A lot of you guys don't have your equipment set-up, even on your Profiles. Wendell does, and my Nephew in Texas has a HT like John talked about with reclining chairs on an incline, Projector, State of the Art Sound System, and a 120" Screen. I don't agree with everything you say, but you have always been supportive and a true Gentleman. I have been here on this site longer than you have, and calling someone a Troll is not in your character. You don't have to stoop to those levels.

[Vilya]

^ State of the art sound systems cost in the millions of dollars; that's one wealthy nephew you got there! Pretty small screen, though, for someone with a multi-million dollar sound system.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by PCFan

Isn't it common for a person to buy the disc just to watch the movie once then resell their disc after they are done watching it? If they frequently resell their discs after watching them then cluttering is not an issue.

Originally Posted by Wendell R. Breland

Why do that when there is Netflix By Mail or Redbox. Been renting media for over > 35 years, for titles that I like, I purchase. I've had a field in my database for long time labeled as PFRV (Potential For Repeat Viewing), got the idea from the Lasers Edge month flyers.

I use to do this with Blu-ray, make a Back-up Copy then sell the original. I liked watching my Back-ups more than the original, no Junk to go through. Discs lost their value, and I would not make my money back. Then Digital Codes came in, and I started the process again. UHD Discs had a good resell value, but nobody wanted to pay near market value. Codes for Recent Release Movies have gone up in price, especially for 4K Movies. So you have to shop for the best prices.

[The_Donster]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Looks nice and welcome back.

Thanks. It is good to be back, if not to have a distraction. Something I’m finding is whether it is cable, physical or digital I’ve got too many options. By the time I finally nail down what I want to watch I’m too tired to watch it. The past few days are the most I’ve stayed awake since getting the new job. So I usually end up watching something I’ve seen a million times. Which is why I like to keep my options open and not be a snob with my viewing.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by The_Donster

Thanks. It is good to be back, if not to have a distraction. Something I’m finding is whether it is cable, physical or digital I’ve got too many options. By the time I finally nail down what I want to watch I’m too tired to watch it. The past few days are the most I’ve stayed awake since getting the new job. So I usually end up watching something I’ve seen a million times. Which is why I like to keep my options open and not be a snob with my viewing.

I hope things settle down for you soon. Juggling careers and family can make finding the free time to just sit back and watch a movie a rare luxury.

I have too many options myself and even with no demands upon my time I feel like I am falling further behind in just watching what I already own. Now that I dabble a little with Vudu, I have a whole new set of viewing options on top of my disc library. As far as "problems" go, this is a pretty awesome one to have.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by alchav21

I use to do this with Blu-ray, make a Back-up Copy then sell the original. I liked watching my Back-ups more than the original, no Junk to go through. Discs lost their value, and I would not make my money back. Then Digital Codes came in, and I started the process again. UHD Discs had a good resell value, but nobody wanted to pay near market value. Codes for Recent Release Movies have gone up in price, especially for 4K Movies. So you have to shop for the best prices.

Why would you expect to make your money back on a newly purchased item when you resell it used? Used merchandise does not command the same price as new, no matter how slightly it was used. If that was your plan, it was a silly one from the get go.

Why would you buy 4K discs at all when you can't even play them and when you also have no intentions of buying a 4K disc player? You have said many times that you swore off buying discs years ago, so exactly what 4K discs would you have to resell if you are not buying any in the first place? Without any to sell, how would you know what they sell for used? Why would you expect to get "market value" for a used item that you don't even own? Do you often check the prices of items when you don't even have any to sell? And have no interest in buying? It sure sounds like you are contradicting yourself...again.

[alchav21]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Why would you expect to make your money back on a newly purchased item when you resell it used? Used merchandise does not command the same price as new, no matter how slightly it was used. If that was your plan, it was a silly one from the get go.

Why would you buy 4K discs at all when you can't even play them and when you also have no intentions of buying a 4K disc player? You have said many times that you swore off buying discs years ago, so exactly what 4K discs would you have to resell if you are not buying any in the first place? Without any to sell, how would you know what they sell for used? Still expecting to get new prices for used discs? Do you often check the prices of items that you don't even have any of to sell? And have no interest in buying? It sure sounds like you are contradicting yourself...again.

Discs use to hold their price, not anymore even with 4K. You have a short memory, I'd buy them for the Digital Copy. The Copy redeems in the Format bought, so Blu-ray in HD and UHD in 4K Code. The market for Disc is gone, I use to be able to sell Recent Releases for a few bucks less than new. Even UHD 4K Discs don't resell for 50% of the original market price. I sell on eBay and check the going price there, and depending on what I paid. I sell Buy it Now or Best Offer, and depending on the action I come down to a certain level. No Free Shipping, around $2.85.