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

[Krizzle1]

I'd love to know what is everyone using for their movies...Blurays? or iTunes/VUDU/Amazon/Google?

Ive only recently started to buy digital movies (strictly iTunes for me), before I used to download online (using frowned upon methods) but wonder if I should buy physical copies of movies too?

I know there are pros n cons of digital movies, like:
Pros
- Almost immediate viewing (no piracy warnings, etc)
- Stream to all devices (phones/tablets)
- No need to take literally hours to rip a physical bluray to play on phones/tablets
- You could rent movies and play them immediately
- No need to wait for shipping/delivery
- You can get 'extras' with certain iTunes purchases now too (so not only limited to physical media)

Cons
- iTunes is sometimes more pricey than owning a physical bluray
- There's a worry about internet connection dropping (for whatever reason)
- Some people still have bandwidth caps
- You can't sell your digital movie collection
- The content could 'disappear' from iCloud (or online)

I know there's more but I wanna hear from you guys...

So to sum up:
Do you have/use digital movies or physical copies...or both?
Which services do you use if you use digital?
Why do you use physical or a specific digital format?

[Blu-ray Neo]

I'm a physical media kinda guy. I will NEVER embrace digital because I virtually have no control over it.

To each their own I guess.

[Blu-Benny]

I'm a physical media guy as well.

Redeemed my dc for john wick the other day and it never loaded into my account. Took 3 days before it was resolved.

I'd be livid if something like that happened with movie I had to buy!!!

[huskerbear]

I have lots of discs but today its 95% digital for new purchases. There was a transition period getting use to digital but I find its the best way for me. I purchase only UV so I can keep my movies in one place.

[rammsteinfan]

I used to be 100% media guy. I recently found that I was watching more cloud based than media so I ended up converting my entire collection except for a handful of select movies and tend to get more UV based content than anything else.

[BlakkMajik3000]

My signature pretty much sums up where I'm at.

However, I do like to keep physical copies of my favorites. Any movies I like that aren't UV or DMA enabled, I will also buy those, rip, encode, and throw on my Plex media server.

[satam55]

Isn't it odd to ask this question in the "Digital Movies" subforum?

[Krizzle1]

Originally Posted by satam55

Isn't it odd to ask this question in the "Digital Movies" subforum?

It is a little but i dunno maybe some users like to have a physical copy of their 'must-own' movies and have their main collection digitally.

I thought it'd get more coverage here :/

[squatting hen]

For me, it's whatever is cheaper. Right now, with codes and D2D, UV is cheaper. I will say that I prefer digital. If the cost was the same I would rather have digital.

[x3ntaur]

I have been getting physical media for many years from VHS>DVD and lately Blu ray. However, I have found they do take up room when you build up a collection and I usually watch them once or even some haven't even touched
More lately, I have been using digital media as it seems to be growing and more stable although there are still problems. The only issues I have with using digital is you need connection for streaming, not all titles available and that companies could change T&Cs or whatever and made your digital copies useless.

[Cranston37]

If we're talking about a new release I buy the Blu with UV code so I can get both...

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Physical media 4ever!

[mike568]

I buy the physical copies at Best Buy and redeem the digital copy. Once I redeem the code I put the blu-ray in a box to save on storage. I prefer Vudu but will use iTunes for the extras. I will not purchase movies with real money on any streaming service due to the possibility of it going away.

[atlantajoseph]

I own and use both. There are a wide variety of reasons:

1. There is a cheap digital copy of a popular movie available that I never would have purchased if I were sticking strictly to physical. I have had decent success with this recently, with HDX titles $5 or cheaper either purchased on sale at VUDU or through secondary UV retailers.

2. Disc-to-digital upgrades of DVDs to HDX quality. I had lots of DVDs gathering dust that I was able upgrade on the cheap... the HDX quality is generally a good deal better than the DVD would have been, so in those instances I was thankful for my unwatched pile

3. Disc-to-digital of BDs that I want more quick and convenient access to watch. A great example would my Hitchcock titles, which have stellar HDX versions. I like the convenience of being able to just watch a title without waiting for load times and navigating through several menus. This does, of course, vary depending on the title. If I have a BD copy of a film I've never watched before, I will always watch the BD first.

Some titles I pretty much alway watch on BD. These include all my Criterions. I have a very limited amount of those on HDX, but I consider the BD to always be the option of choice.

So, yeah, it's not a cut and dried thing. I do think that digital is very much underappreciated at this stage in the game, however.

[theater dreamer]

I buy the movies I want on Blu Ray first. Once I own the Blu Ray, it's mine forever. Period. There is no question.

However, once I've bought it on Blu Ray, I add it to Vudu, too. If it doesn't come with an Ultraviolet copy, most of them are available disc to digital on Vudu. At $1 per transfer (when doing 10 or more at home, which I always do), it's like paying just a little more tax on the disc, so it's completely worth it.

I'd say a good third of the movies I buy now come with Ultraviolet copies. And overall, about 80-85% of the movies I buy are available on Vudu through Ultraviolet. So, I really don't have to make a decision.

The ones that aren't available digitally, like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, etc...I'll be buying the Viva Elite cases so I can throw them in my backpack to take with me. If I end up in the hospital with a broken leg, or something, I'll have my laptop and LG external Blu Ray burner, so I can play wherever I go.

[Jake2104]

Im sorta stuck on this this, I like Blu-Ray quality so I purchased blu rays for a while, but got real expensive real fast, then I found codes on this site and started purchasing iTunes codes. I have ripped my blu-ray and ripped the DRM from my iTunes purchases and have everything in kodi which is nice. But every time I buy a new title I am drawn between saving $$$ or getting better quality. I know... first world problems

I don't really have problems with my online videos going away because I remove the DRM and stick the file on my NAS, I mean its always nice to be able to redownload if something goes wrong like HDD failure (which has happened to me in the past), but its not the end of the world since I don't rely on it

[Steedeel]

Let me think.........Digital or Blu-ray.

[Evil]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Let me think.........Digital or Blu-ray.

[huskerbear]

Originally Posted by Evil

Hey, will that thing play movies? I want one of those!

[BlakkMajik3000]

I see two common points among those that prefer physical media, and they are completely valid.

1. BD Quality is better. This is true, but not 100% of the time, especially for older movies. Sometimes the digital version will use a better or newer master than the BD.

2. My digital collection could disappear. Hollywood has done a horrible job of coming into the digital age, and I'd be lying if I said I trusted any studio/network. However, I do see initiatives like UV and DMA as moving in the right direction, so I support both.