# Rumors of Blu-ray going the way of Beta & laserdisc...?



## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

Anyone heard that some are saying that Blu-ray may end up going the way of Beta and Laserdisc? I wonder if there's any truth in this?

Moviefanatic


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## Mike P. (Apr 6, 2007)

I wonder what would supposedly take its place?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

The only thing that "may" happen is they start using flash memory for storing HD movies however they have some hurdles to work through one of them being cost of the 32mb flash card (more than enough space) being high.
I dont see this happening any time soon though (maybe 5 years or more away) in the mean time BluRay is here to stay. The studios have way to much invested in it to abandon it any time soon.
There may be a possibility of downloading but again there are alot of infrastructure upgrades that must happen if this is to come to pass.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

I suspect in a year or so those 32GB flash cards will be less than 20 bucks, two years probably less than 10 bucks, but that still would not be low enough, so I agree... it will be a while. However, four to five years down the road will be here before we know it.

I certainly have not heard anything on Blu-ray. They are sure releasing a LOT of movies every week, BUT the prices are ridiculous. I am being extremely selective in my BD purchases. I think I own maybe four right now.


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

Everything does eventually. Goes away, that is.

I've never felt that Blu-Ray or it's former competitor would be around as long as DVD was. Technology seems to move fairly quickly.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

The only thing currently threatening BR sales is VOD (downloads/streaming videos) and although that may hurt a certain percentage of sales the average person will still want an actual disc to keep for purchases.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Tommy said:


> The only thing currently threatening BR sales is VOD (downloads/streaming videos) and although that may hurt a certain percentage of sales the average person will still want an actual disc to keep for purchases.


There are far too many people who only have dile up for internet services so a disc is still needed The studios would never stop selling actual BluRay unless there was another media available. Flash media is possible but they are also susceptible to accidental erasure. Also VOD still doesn't have the bandwidth to alow for fully uncompressed HD and the uncompressed audio.


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## XxxBERRYxxX (Sep 13, 2007)

Until the masses can download HD material quickly with lousy internet connections, I don't see it going anywhere for quite awhile.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

I watched my first VOD via Dish Network when we viewed Knowing. While it says its 1080p, it did not look at good as Blu-ray, but maybe it was the movie. I would have to see it on BD to verify. Nonetheless, it broke up and froze on several occasions... over a half dozen times at least. It was my first VOD (at $6.99) and it will be my last.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

I rented Knowing over the weekend and the video quality was very good. I just really did not like the movie.


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## Tommy (Apr 20, 2006)

My only VOD experience has been using OnDemand with the cable, so not sure if that really counts or not... It works as expected and is nice for the occassional rental but doesnt have a high def section. As far as HD & VOD, many are starting to offer so called High Def but there either low resolution and/or compressed to much. Vudu's service is the only one Ive been reading that has the best quality but forces you to download if first (I actually like this idea) which takes up to 4 hours but can be done remotely. However there are to many other dislikes I have with this company to give it a try as of yet.

To clarify my original comment was not to say that VOD would beat out Blu-ray; I only meant that its convienient rentable availability will have an effect on blu-ray sales to a certain degree.


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

tonyvdb said:


> The studios would never stop selling actual BluRay unless there was another media available.


What about simple DVDs? Would/will they get rid of them any time soon, do you think?


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Moviefanatic said:


> What about simple DVDs? Would/will they get rid of them any time soon, do you think?


No, There are millions of people who dont even have the gear to play HD content. let alone a digital display. CDs and DVDs are here to stay for a long time to come. Down loadable movies/music is still lousy quality and alot of people who want the quality still buy CDs and DVDs.


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## ggallaway (May 13, 2008)

I don't think bluray is going anywhere soon. currently most people doing downloadable video don't care about the quality (as much) they just want the convienence of watching now. For example I am using neflix to watch Heroes streaming and movies that I don't really care about quality. However, when I want to watch a blockbuster or have "movie night" with the kids I put the bluray on my Queue


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

I see that Blu-ray has exclusives that the regular DVDs do not have. I find that to be a terrible gimmick. If they weren't so greedy I could see whatever special feature I wanted on DVD, but now it seems I _need_ a Blu-ray player...


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Moviefanatic said:


> I see that Blu-ray has exclusives that the regular DVDs do not have. I find that to be a terrible gimmick. If they weren't so greedy I could see whatever special feature I wanted on DVD, but now it seems I _need_ a Blu-ray player...


DVD's can only hold 9gig of information. BluRay can hold 50gig. You simply can not put all the features that are on a BluRay disc on a regular one. This is why, its not a gimmick.


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## thewire (Jun 28, 2007)

The problems with downloading or streaming content is that what is used to playback or stream the content can have differences in playback and we loose our standards, and this is one of the important points to having the Blu-Ray is that is fairly consistent when done correctly. Downloads and streaming content are also prone to corruption, and feature DRM at times that interfere with playback. There is room for improvement on the format yet still but most must realize that to advance in technology we have to agree on what needs to be done, and this is where it gets difficult. It may be a long time before we are even to fully realize the full potential of the format, but already we begin to see independent companies developing newer technologies that do not target what will appeal to the home enthusiast. What we may see if we do get something with more quality instead is an overly sharpened image not capable of being fully resolved on only a select few of displays. That few select of individuals would then be responsible for maintaining the format and keeping it profitable. The technology is there for Blu-Ray, and there is potential for a larger audience.


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

More often than not, I am seeing sales for BDs below $20, and many are reaching $15 on sale. Players are coming down, and I would expect we will see $100 players next year. This, coupled with all new releases coming out on BD as well as DVD, shows complete studio support. I think it is a safe bet it will be here for some time.


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## tcarcio (Jun 27, 2007)

Actually I was just at Walmart and they have a magnavox bd player for 98 bucks. It is a version 1.1 player but if you need an extra player or don't care about extra's it's a good deal.


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

tcarcio said:


> Actually I was just at Walmart and they have a magnavox bd player for 98 bucks. It is a version 1.1 player but if you need an extra player or don't care about extra's it's a good deal.


That is actually great news. I heard the problem with some of these cheap players, is they are difficult to get firmware upgrades for. I am not sure I would buy one, but I think it is a huge step forward to mass adoption.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
Call me an optimist, but I believe that Blu Ray is gaining traction. With Blu Ray players dropping in price while adding features, I think the future is bright. I greatly prefer having physical media rather than having everything stored on a hard drive.

Furthermore, with HDMI 1.4 coming out Q4 with a few AVR's, I really think 3-D is going to take off as well. And due to the file sizes, Studios are getting behind due to the difficulty in pirating/burning such large amounts of data.
Cheers,
JJ


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

What is 1.4 supposed to do for us?


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
It includes a new connector, support for 3D, 4K support, and much more. I could not post the link in this post to the changes. I will post it in my next post.

I really think 3D has a chance of getting strong Studio support due to the massive increase in file size compared to non 3D Blu Ray discs. This making it exceedingly difficult for illegal downloading due to how much space the movie files will take. In fact, according to an article I read in Variety, there are over 40 movies which the studios have in the pipeline in 3D.
Cheers,
JJ


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Here is the link I had tried to include in my prior post: http://www.hdmi.org/press/press_release.aspx?prid=101
Cheers,
JJ


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

tonyvdb said:


> DVD's can only hold 9gig of information. BluRay can hold 50gig. You simply can not put all the features that are on a BluRay disc on a regular one. This is why, its not a gimmick.


But then why do I see these double-disc Blu-rays when I'd think all the extras could be put on one disc instead of having 2? I believe that the Uncut Blu-ray of Friday the 13th had some extra featurettes that could had been put on the DVD but were not (maybe a 2-disker if not one). If Lord of the Rings Return of the King can be on one disc (nearly 3 and a half hours), why couldn't those special features of the other title be put on that disc? The movie and the other featurettes on the Blu-ray surely didn't take up _that_ much room. So, I'm still of the opinion that it's a gimmick.

I think the same goes for the Watchmen DVD. I might be wrong, but I'd think that there could've been more added to the DVD as was on the Blu-ray - a third disc? It's not far fetched; No Country for Old Men had a 3-disc version. But I think that maybe it was a different company. I am not certain about all of this, I'm just thinking out loud here (well, in text anyway).


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Moviefanatic said:


> But then why do I see these double-disc Blu-rays when I'd think all the extras could be put on one disc instead of having 2? I believe that the Uncut Blu-ray of Friday the 13th had some extra featurettes that could had been put on the DVD but were not (maybe a 2-disker if not one). If Lord of the Rings Return of the King can be on one disc (nearly 3 and a half hours), why couldn't those special features of the other title be put on that disc? The movie and the other featurettes on the Blu-ray surely didn't take up _that_ much room. So, I'm still of the opinion that it's a gimmick.


DVD video is compressed to fit the disc. 3.5 hours of a movie will fit on one DVD but is compressed and you loose quality. You will also notice that there is a second disc with all the extras in the LOR series. Wait until you see the BluRay version the quality will be dramatically better as there in no compression and is in true HD. Some of the extras are not in HD however because non of it is compressed you will still usually see a difference even in that material.

There were some "superbit" master DVDs that were released like Panic room (2Hrs) that did have very good playback quality however if you have compared that to the BluRay release there is still a difference.


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## number 5 (Sep 9, 2009)

Jungle Jack said:


> Hello,
> It includes a new connector, support for 3D, 4K support, and much more. I could not post the link in this post to the changes. I will post it in my next post.
> 
> I really think 3D has a chance of getting strong Studio support due to the massive increase in file size compared to non 3D Blu Ray discs. This making it exceedingly difficult for illegal downloading due to how much space the movie files will take. In fact, according to an article I read in Variety, there are over 40 movies which the studios have in the pipeline in 3D.
> ...


I apologize for replying to such an old post, but I have to say that I sincerely hope that 3D goes absolutely nowhere near mainstream video. It is a very unpleasant format that completely ruins the visual and spacial aspects of a movie and leaves headaches in its wake. I have yet to see anything in 3D that didn't just look confusing and gimmicky. There is no art in 3D. IMO.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
While I agree you with that most past efforts with 3D have mirrored your experience. That being said, there have been some major advancements currently being made. James Cameron and his Avatar project has seen a major investment and advancement in the technology. The preliminary reports of the Sneak Preview of Cameron's film have been quite positive.

My primary rationale for Studio support is the technical obstacles faced by illegal downloaders primarily due to the much larger file sizes of 3D films. Not too different than the Record Companies initially supporting SACD/DVD-A due to the difficulties for people copying the media bit for bit. In fact, SACD has remained unbroken while of course DVD was hacked with people now having their DVD libraries on iPods.
Probably why Blu Ray has seen such a major push while DVD sales have been sinking.
Cheers,
JJ


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

tcarcio said:


> Actually I was just at Walmart and they have a magnavox bd player for 98 bucks. It is a version 1.1 player but if you need an extra player or don't care about extra's it's a good deal.


I wouldn't be too sure about that.



GregBe said:


> That is actually great news. I heard the problem with some of these cheap players, is they are difficult to get firmware upgrades for.


I'm becoming leery when it comes to cheap costing electronics, because they never last very long. My last HTIB only lasted about a month, the one before lasted 6 months. I know, I know, HTIB are never good to go with, but that's my budget for you.

What exactly is firmware, and how do you upgrade something like that? I also don't like electronics you have to upgrade because I never have enough money to pay for an upgrade.


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

Jungle Jack said:


> DVD libraries on iPods.


What, what, what, what? _WHAT?!_ DVD libraries on iPods? I'm not that familiar with these iPods, but the ones I've seen have such tiny screens... Wait, I guess they can hook up to DVD players, am I right? If so, nevermind.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

There are now programs available which let you rip DVD's and apply enough compression to where you can convert them to files which are small enough and compatible with iPods.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Moviefanatic said:


> What, what, what, what? _WHAT?!_ DVD libraries on iPods? I'm not that familiar with these iPods, but the ones I've seen have such tiny screens... Wait, I guess they can hook up to DVD players, am I right? If so, nevermind.


You wouldn't want to play those movies back on a large display as the video has been compressed so much that it would look horrible on anything larger than an iPod.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Actually, I have found that lots of the video on iPods looks better than VHS or Beta ever did. I just depends on what you expect to use it for. I would not recommend it as a substitute for a higher resolution source, but it can be surprisingly good. I have had several clients use iPods to display on larger sets and for older, lower resolution video, it really was surprising.


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

tonyvdb said:


> You wouldn't want to play those movies back on a large display as the video has been compressed so much that it would look horrible on anything larger than an iPod.


If we're talking them small as a silver dollar screen, why bother?


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## Andysu (May 8, 2008)

Sonnie said:


> I suspect in a year or so those 32GB flash cards will be less than 20 bucks, two years probably less than 10 bucks, but that still would not be low enough, so I agree... it will be a while. However, four to five years down the road will be here before we know it.
> 
> I certainly have not heard anything on Blu-ray. They are sure releasing a LOT of movies every week, BUT the prices are ridiculous. I am being extremely selective in my BD purchases. I think I own maybe four right now.


You mentioned the prices? Aren’t they somewhere lower than D-VHS where their prices were almost the same as regular single laserdisc?

Four and five and so you shall be cautious.







The more things change the more they stay the same
Same film same extras plus a few extra features that will not improve my lifestyle LOL.

I have over one thousand films on DVD and that number is nothing when compared to some 6 or 7 million film titles worldwide. I’m not about to get into this format for the sakes of minor difference in picture quality and this silly 7.1 when they are hardly producing any titles like SDDS8!

This is Sony format yes!? Then why don’t they start producing some of the very few SDDS8 titles reconfigure the outputs to support true five-screen discrete then I might start to show some interest.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

With respect to the original question, what format will NOT end up like all of the others, replaced by something with either better performance or more consumer appeal, or both?


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
Invariably all formats will be obsolete at some point. However, sales of Blu Ray's have been rising while DVD sales have been falling.

This is a combination of lower priced discs and players and the studios getting behind the format. I really think True-HD and DTS-MA offer a meaningful upgrade in SQ.
Cheers,
JJ


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Formats never really die, look at laser disc or Batamax even though both are not common and players are scarce both are doing well. Laser disc is still popular in the over seas market and ED Bata is still used in the professional industry albeit a different level of quality. VHS is still a popular format amongst parents with children and look at records, that format has a large following and sales are still strong. People still use cassette tapes in automobiles and I bet there are still a few 8track players in use:bigsmile:


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
I agree with you that they do not die. Many people are still enjoying Laserdisc's for that matter. I suppose what I meant by obsolete is the lack of new releases for whichever format. Oddly enough, I was reading somewhere, that an independent studio is releasing something on HD-DVD currently. I will try to find the link.
JJ


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

tonyvdb said:


> VHS is still a popular format amongst parents with children and look at records, that format has a large following and sales are still strong.


Very true. I just donated the last of my VHS kid tapes to the local children's hospital. The movies they had on tape sure helped my son when he was there for surgery a few years ago. :T


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## AZ Theatre (Apr 4, 2009)

Been hemming and hawing on whether or not to get a blue ray player. My original thought was since it cost so much, when the first came out, as well as the PS3, I might as well get the PS3 with the built in blue ray player. That way I could also play some pretty good graphical games.

Still gonna wait, even though the PS3 just announced a price drop.


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## Jon Liu (May 21, 2007)

AZ Theatre, The PS3 drop, also smaller size, as well as the ability to now bitstream audio (may or may not be important to you) are great reasons to buy one now.

Price of media is coming down and it's quite often that you can find sales to get decent prices on even new movies.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
In addition to the above, the PS3 Slim consumes over 50% less energy while watching a Blu Ray movie than the original PS3. The PS3 60gb consumed 172 Watts while viewing a BRD while the PS3 Slim brings this number down to 80 Watts. For comparisons sake, the Samsung BD-P3600 consumes around 22 Watts while watching a Blu Ray.
Cheers,
JJ


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

Moviefanatic said:


> What exactly is firmware, and how do you upgrade something like that? I also don't like electronics you have to upgrade because I never have enough money to pay for an upgrade.


It actually doesn't cost you anything. Basically, since BD is such a new format, sometimes some of the newer release disc might have a glitch when playing on a previous generation player. There are two ways (at least with my Panasonic BD player) to upgrade firmware. One is with an internet connection, and the second (which is the way I do it), is to go to the manufacturers website, and burn the downloaded upgrade to a cd. Just pop the cd into the BD player and follow their instructions, and you have new firmware.

Not too complicated, but for the average consumer that can't play a disc, it might be frustrating.


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

Andysu said:


> I have over one thousand films on DVD and that number is nothing when compared to some 6 or 7 million film titles worldwide. I’m not about to get into this format for the sakes of minor difference in picture quality and this silly 7.1 when they are hardly producing any titles like SDDS8!


I used to think the same thing. I don't have 7.1 either, and don't much care about it, but the video quality is much more than a minor difference. I am at the point, where I find it difficult to watch a DVD, and tend to pop in my Blu-rays instead. Disclaimer, I have a 100" projector, and sit about 10' away, so any differences are magnified, but I often hear the same thing from people with much more normal sized tvs.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
Agreed. I have never really ever considered going towards a 7.1 setup. Now with Audyssey DSX advocating 9.1, it is getting crazy. It is hard enough to properly place 6 speakers. 10 to 11 speakers would take me years to set up properly. If I even could.
Cheers,
JJ


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Yamaha has had 11 channels for a while now...better get a few cases of beer to get that to work right.:coocoo:


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

GregBe said:


> It actually doesn't cost you anything. Basically, since BD is such a new format, sometimes some of the newer release disc might have a glitch when playing on a previous generation player. There are two ways (at least with my Panasonic BD player) to upgrade firmware. One is with an internet connection, and the second (which is the way I do it), is to go to the manufacturers website, and burn the downloaded upgrade to a cd. Just pop the cd into the BD player and follow their instructions, and you have new firmware.


And here's where the problems start: my computer doesn't have a burner, it's sooo old.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
At least with Pioneer, you can call Customer Service and they will mail you a copy of the newest firmware free of charge. I was even able to sweet talk the CSR into sending it 2nd day air.

I would guess most manufacturers will provide you a copy as well. Just point out that your computer is not up to date and or you are unable to do it. Just be nice to them and they will most likely mail it to you free of charge.
Cheers,
JJ


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## Moviefanatic (Jul 5, 2009)

Thanks for the info, JJ!


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

My pleasure. The PS3 really might be the perfect Blu Ray player for you. Constantly updated over ethernet. Quick loading times, one of the quickest out there. And constantly upgraded free of charge.
And you get an awesome gaming system as well.
Cheers,
JJ


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## GregBe (Apr 20, 2006)

Jungle Jack said:


> Hello,
> At least with Pioneer, you can call Customer Service and they will mail you a copy of the newest firmware free of charge.


Good point I forgot that one. Panasonic does that as well.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Jungle Jack said:


> My pleasure. The PS3 really might be the perfect Blu Ray player for you. Constantly updated over ethernet. Quick loading times, one of the quickest out there. And constantly upgraded free of charge.


If you a bit environmentally conscious though (as you pointed out in an earlyer post) the PS3 is a seriously power hungry unit 170watts is ridiculous. Most Bluray players draw 20-40watts.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
I am indeed conscious of the environment and my electric bill too. However, the New PS3 Slim consumes way less energy and that is what I am recommending to him as it is now the only one available. At least I think it is the only one now offered. I should have said PS3 Slim which uses way less energy. Half as much energy in fact.
While the Slim consumes more energy than a standalone deck, the Slim is not the hog the original was.
Here is a link comparing the Slim to the original: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10318727-1.html
Cheers,
JJ


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## Jon Liu (May 21, 2007)

To those 'number-crunchers' it's worth mentioning that the slim PS3 is clocking in a few seconds longer for blu-ray start up compared to the original PS3's, varying from like 2-10 seconds longer in a lot of cases. Not sure why this is, but something worth mentioning, like I said.

Doesn't matter to me since I don't use my slim PS3 for blu-ray playback anyway. On the flip side, reports are showing that the gameplay start up is faster on the slim, so there's the trade off, I guess.


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## Andysu (May 8, 2008)

tonyvdb said:


> Formats never really die, look at laser disc or Batamax even though both are not common and players are scarce both are doing well. Laser disc is still popular in the over seas market and ED Bata is still used in the professional industry albeit a different level of quality. VHS is still a popular format amongst parents with children and look at records, that format has a large following and sales are still strong. People still use cassette tapes in automobiles and I bet there are still a few 8track players in use:bigsmile:


Is it not possible to get the playback of 8track and record an SDDS8 onto it for 7.1 playback :bigsmile:wow that would be cool thou. Something about magnetic sound that sounds smooth.


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## Andysu (May 8, 2008)

I don’t like PS3! maybe its just set-up poorly in hurry? I was playing around with it around a friends a few days ago while watching a few Star Wars films on his main Sony DVD player “Empire” and “New Hope” on the PS3. The image looked ghastly gross on the Samsung 42” LCD over the Sony DVD player. But still the LCD lagging image and milked washed out colours was sickening to look at. 

Yeah its sharp image but it’s the rubbish TV shows and off few DVD that look gross on it! CRT rules at least it looks a bit normal! Maybe it’s the dodgy backlighting on the LCD?


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

I have calibrated a number of systems where clients used the PS3 and never found anything about its picture performance that was remarkable, certainly not what you describe. It sounds like you don't like the display or the discs. If it is really the PS3 there is likely a problem with the unit.

I do think that the menu system on the PS3 and the new Sony displays is cumbersome and overly complicated, but as a player it seems to perform quite well.


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## Andysu (May 8, 2008)

lcaillo said:


> I have calibrated a number of systems where clients used the PS3 and never found anything about its picture performance that was remarkable, certainly not what you describe. It sounds like you don't like the display or the discs. If it is really the PS3 there is likely a problem with the unit.
> 
> I do think that the menu system on the PS3 and the new Sony displays is cumbersome and overly complicated, but as a player it seems to perform quite well.


I wonder if he went though the manual step by step page to page as I’m guessing it might be several pages long?


Well it’s mostly used for gaming and I’m not into gaming anymore. Its playback for gaming looks okay. Its when its used as regular DVD player it just looks awful!

I can’t even bare to watch the LCD it shows more artefacts like noise within the picture even on the Sony DVD player but not as much as the PS3 it was edgy or the sides looked like they where (stepping) very rough.

I think he has an HDMI lead attached from PS3 to Samsung LCD which is getting onto 3 years old for the model. Must be one of these generation models that looked bad.

I think he has RBG on the LCD and S-Video and wanted to try something to improve on the image but he’s a fussy guy, after-all I connected the leads up but at the time I wasn’t caring about how it looked, it I thought it was going to be miraculous. I was wrong.

I’ll be popping over tomorrow I might try and force him to allow me to attach an S-video as I’ve seen (rainbow colours) within complex patens, you know what mean.

He sold his old Panasonic 32” widescreen CRT to me for £50.00 and that looks miles better than the LCD only 10 inches in difference. Maybe a Plasma would make better sense of the DVD viewing as well as for gaming.

Why can’t a manufacture make something that is universal without any artefacts! Sigh.

Anyway is there an online read pdf file manual for this PS3 so I can get familiar with its visual output side?

Also wouldn’t it have one of these up scale converters to make DVD look like SuperDVD!? I might buy one of those new DVD players there so cheap now.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Sounds like he needs to turn off all of the image enhancement on his display. Excessive contrast and color intensity can make problems in inferior sources look much worse. Careful calibration makes them less offensive.

You can't make improvements in detail by upconverting. You can make less scan lines, but the best you can do is not add artifacts.


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## Jungle Jack (Jul 28, 2009)

Hello,
Andy, you experience with the PS3 on DVD might not be too far off as DVD playback is definitely not its strong suit. In fact, it measures rather poorly as a DVD Player. However, if using an AVR with good video processing, you can get around this. I have never even loaded a DVD in my launch model PS3. 

As a Blu Ray player, it is more or less indistinguishable from other BDP's. However, you are pretty much guaranteed playback of all Blu Ray discs. The same cannot be said of all standalone BDP's.
Cheers,
JJ


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## recruit (May 9, 2009)

Its nice to see that with the new slim PS3 they have added bitstream rather than just the LPCM transfer to processor....

Ref to BD going the same way as LD or Betamax, HDD is getting more popular and also steaming via network thanks to higher speeds from broadband, BD is a good medium and one I think will be here to stay for quite some time offering great PQ and SQ...Laserdisc were and still are used by quite a few people with consumers in Japan especially...


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## Vader (Jul 8, 2006)

Moviefanatic said:


> Anyone heard that some are saying that Blu-ray may end up going the way of Beta and Laserdisc? I wonder if there's any truth in this?
> 
> Moviefanatic


We should be so lucky that Blu-ray would go the way of LaserDisc. It was the undisputed king of PQ and AQ at the time, and it reigned among HT enthusiasts for over 20 years (it may never have made it to the "mainstream", but I don't consider that a bad thing).


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