im not

due to the added cost of media and upgrading the tv/players i dont think im not that bothered tbh
then again i dont really need a super duper 2000 inch hd ready big jobbie telly and see all the wrinkles etc
nor do i think i need to replace all my existing dvds that im currently replacing my old vhs tapes with

dont you find its a never ending race?
is there really that much difference? specially if you have older tellies?

tbh, still using older / cheaper tvs and decent cheap ish players dvds are a fine (good quality) media to me

same with surround sound etc...tbh i dont watch dvds with all that type of super duper sound in mind...if i fancy it loud i switch on my hifi amp and pres the dvd button :)

am i turning into a luddite?

Well if you are that makes two of us.:thumbsup:

I couldn't give a toss about HD, Blueray and all of that stuff. I've got a small colour TV, no cable no satellite and I'll wait till they turn the analogue signal off before I get digital.

If it was up to me, we wouldn't even have a widescreen tv in our house. I think they are awful. As for blueray, I haven't got a clue what it is. I don't watch telly all that much so don't really care about all the new technology

[QUOTE=melthebell;4033097]im not

QUOTE]

Yes, no, yes...er i mean no, but, yes but, no but, Rachel Down said she did it......

Me neiva.

Couldn't give a toss. I don't even know what blueray is.

Planned obsolescence is what this is all about. It does my head in. I've never understood this complusion to have the latest gadget, upgrade or whatever.

If it was up to me, we wouldn't even have a widescreen tv in our house. I think they are awful. As for blueray, I haven't got a clue what it is. I don't watch telly all that much so don't really care about all the new technology

I agree, Mr S insisted on us getting this hideous wide screen thing which dominates our sitting room. I hate it.:(

im not

due to the added cost of media and upgrading the tv/players i dont think im not that bothered tbh
then again i dont really need a super duper 2000 inch hd ready big jobbie telly and see all the wrinkles etc
nor do i think i need to replace all my existing dvds that im currently replacing my old vhs tapes with

dont you find its a never ending race?
is there really that much difference? specially if you have older tellies?

tbh, still using older / cheaper tvs and decent cheap ish players dvds are a fine (good quality) media to me

same with surround sound etc...tbh i dont watch dvds with all that type of super duper sound in mind...if i fancy it loud i switch on my hifi amp and pres the dvd button :)

am i turning into a luddite?

No, I agree.

I don't even own an iPod but my kids do.:suspect: I hardly watch TV anyway, so really cannot see the point. We must have been one the last people in this country to get a DVD player and even then it was bought for us by a frustrated friend.

im not

due to the added cost of media and upgrading the tv/players i dont think im not that bothered tbh
then again i dont really need a super duper 2000 inch hd ready big jobbie telly and see all the wrinkles etc
nor do i think i need to replace all my existing dvds that im currently replacing my old vhs tapes with

dont you find its a never ending race?
is there really that much difference? specially if you have older tellies?

tbh, still using older / cheaper tvs and decent cheap ish players dvds are a fine (good quality) media to me

same with surround sound etc...tbh i dont watch dvds with all that type of super duper sound in mind...if i fancy it loud i switch on my hifi amp and pres the dvd button :)

am i turning into a luddite?

I'm a huge movie buff, and have always wanted to see films at home in the best presentation that I can afford. I upgraded to widescreen TV set years back, and added a surround system a good while back too.

We were due a TV upgrade anyway this year (the old one was starting to play up a bit) so decided to take the plunge with a fully hi-def TV....after all, I was already getting a PS3 so would be able to make use of it. Before we got the TV Bluray discs played on the PS3 looked great, but not spectacular. On a good HD tv they look amazing. The sound is top notch too (a test of the standard 5:1 settings and then the HD 5:1 sound settings on Spider-Man showed the difference - in standard most of the sound came from the front with the occasional noise behind, whilst in full hd sound the orchestra surrounded me, and the depth of sound was phenomenal).

So, if you are not a film buff, then stick with DVD for the time being until the prices really come down on the equipment.

If you have a standard TV, don't bother with bluray as you won't get any benefit (it would be like watching DVD on an old portable TV).

However if you are like me and want to immerse yourself in a home cinema experience then HD is the way to go.

I will have a Bluray player and discs eventually. But this doesn't stop me continuing to buy dvds. I don't think the Bluray is as much a step up from dvd as dvd was from VHS.

I don't think I'll feel the need to re-buy all my dvds on Bluray format like I did when VHS went out.

Let's face it, dvds are still very good quality and all the newer formats are still films on cds, however you dress them up.

I will have a Bluray player and discs eventually. But this doesn't stop me continuing to buy dvds. I don't think the Bluray is as much a step up from dvd as dvd was from VHS.

I don't think I'll feel the need to re-buy all my dvds on Bluray format like I did when VHS went out.

Let's face it, dvds are still very good quality and all the newer formats are still films on cds, however you dress them up.

Sadly some DVDs don't look that good even when upscaled on a hi-def TV. There are some that still look terrific (all those people who wondered why the LOTR Extended Editions took up so many discs will be pleased to know that they still look stunning as they packed a lot of info onto those DVDs)

I've not begun rebuilding my collection yet, but have decided that I will only buy new titles on blu-ray from henceforth. The only film I have on both formats at present is Starship Troopers (bought in a 3 for £20). I have compared the two and really though the DVD version looked kinda 'fuzzy' around the edges.

No, it isn't as much a step up as DVD was to VHS, but it still is a step up. The most notable differences are (as mentioned in my previous post) in the sound. So much more info stored on the disc so more depth and clarity to the sound. Sweeney Todd is beautiful on Bluray :)

Yes I am bothered about it and have both formats.

It all depends what your hobby is really. As a major movie fan I want to see my favourite films in glorious HD with amazing surround sound. Also as I despise going to the cinema these days due to people talking, snacks and mobile phones - it's the best way to get 'almost' cinema like quality at home.

You can pick up a HD-DVD player now for as little as £30 on E-Bay, or if you have an X-Box 360 the add on drive is going for as little as £15. When you add in the fact that the player also upscales normal DVDs beautifully it's the way to go if you need a new DVD player, and have a hi-def telly, but don't want to pay a fortune for Blu-Ray.

Plus as the format is now obsolete, you can pick up the films really cheaply (£2-5 each, not the whopping £15-£25 you pay for Blu-Ray)

I defy anyone not to watch David Attenborough's 'Planet Earth' in true HD and not be blown away by it compared to normal telly.

At the end of the day leave those of us who are bothered to enjoy the new technology, and if you're not then don't!

I have it.

I love it.

I can play both formats at once (HD DVD and Blu Ray) so I get the pick of the films (and prices!).

People who claim they can't see the difference between HD and SD (Standard definition) have most probably never seen HD and are just grumbling because they're being "forced" to change. Balls. When DVDs were introduced people grumbled just as much that "there's nothing wrong with video"...

There was nothing wrong with video, as long as you like terrible, noisy pictures and lack of definition, the possibility of your VCR chewing the tape and the wonderful knowledge that every time you watch your favourite film, it knackers it that little bit more...

I own several hundred DVDs and have no intention of replacing them all on Blu Ray. This is mostly because a lot of them will never be released in this format, but new films - like Iron Man, The Dark Knight, Harry Potter, Star Wars - ones that truly take advantage of digital-digital transfer and kickass sound, they're the ones I'll get.

Although Cloverfield and Diary of the Dead are two examples of recent films that don't really Blu Ray all that well, as they're supposed to have been shot on camcorders and so all the HD fun will look a bit odd...

I was dissappointed when HD-DVD "failed", but I hate Sony anyway so this whole Blu Ray nonsense just further fueled my hate! :rant:

If it was up to me, we wouldn't even have a widescreen tv in our house. I think they are awful. As for blueray, I haven't got a clue what it is. I don't watch telly all that much so don't really care about all the new technology

if it was up to me i wouldnt have a telly at all. oh, it is up to me, that must be why i dont have to give one houseroom :thumbsup:

I was dissappointed when HD-DVD "failed", but I hate Sony anyway so this whole Blu Ray nonsense just further fueled my hate! :rant:

sometimes you need to let go of all that hate:)

anyway...........i will get a blue ray player next year when i upgrade my tv samsung do a great home cinema one with all the speakers only problem is that its 1 thousand lets hope it drops down in price next year:)

I was dissappointed when HD-DVD "failed", but I hate Sony anyway so this whole Blu Ray nonsense just further fueled my hate! :rant:

You're a very bitter person. Hate is going to eventually consume you and you'll end up one of those who just snaps and kills twenty people in a shopping mall. :rolleyes:

I'm confused - I thought Blue Ray was the dodgy geezer who sells adult videos out of a suitcase by Castle Market.

You're a very bitter person. Hate is going to eventually consume you and you'll end up one of those who just snaps and kills twenty people in a shopping mall. :rolleyes:

:hihi::hihi::hihi:

I'm still trying to work out what blueray is! It's getting a bit crazy now. I don't want to be constantly upgrading just to be able to watch the television. But will there come a time when DVDs are no longer available and you have to have blueray to buy new movies coming out? No doubt it would coincide with the start of the next big thing so it'll all start all over again *sigh*

I was dissappointed when HD-DVD "failed", but I hate Sony anyway so this whole Blu Ray nonsense just further fueled my hate! :rant:

You have serious problems!

I have an HD-DVD player and just got a PS3 so I'm all for hi-def especially as I love films :)

To be honest if you have a small screen it's unnecessary but the extra details starts to show a bigger sizes and it looks great! You can still get crap hi-def discs though, depends how much effort the studio is prepared to put in.

You can still get crap hi-def discs though, depends how much effort the studio is prepared to put in.

Indeed. As when DVD was in the early days a lot of studios are rushing to release half-baked discs just to get some sales. Apparantly the Robocop transfer is terrible, as is the Independence Day transfer. Also too many 'vanilla' discs at the moment.

But will there come a time when DVDs are no longer available and you have to have blueray to buy new movies coming out? No doubt it would coincide with the start of the next big thing so it'll all start all over again *sigh*

No I don't think that time will come, and certainly not anytime soon.

Sony managed to win the High Definition war against Toshiba by basically managing to sign up more major film studios.
Sony have won that battle, but Sony is far from winning the wider battle of getting the mass market to adopt Blu Ray.
Depite Sony's senior management being very bullish by predicting the dominace of Blu Ray in just a few short years, the market tells a very different story.

Blu Ray is good for the movie fan who reguarly might want to expend £20 + on a single movie to get superior picture and sound.
However the average Joe that makes up the mass market just isn't that bothered about Blu Ray.
The problem with Blu Ray is that it doesn't give too many obvious advantages that the average Joe can make use of.
The mass market isn't so concerened with ultimate picture quality, If it were, then the mass market would already be buying the very best visual equipment(Pre Blu Ray), but that just isn't the case, the mass market will steer towards the budget products.
Convenience and value for money is always king in the mass market.

It's interesting to see how certain film studios have tried to push Blu Ray,when advertising certain films they did at one stage(Shortly after Sony won over Toshiba) use the tag line:

" Out on Blu Ray and DVD Monday"

By subtley placing the word "Blu Ray" first before "DVD," suggesting that Blu Ray is the bigger more important market,and suggesting.....you can also by it on DVD if you still are using that old format.
The truth is though, Blu Ray sales are a tiny fraction of DVD sales.

Several weeks later, this type of obvious marketing of Blu Ray is less often seen and you're more likely to hear:

"Out on DVD and Blu Ray Monday" or even just "Out on DVD Monday"

It is quite obvious that Blu Ray hasn't ,and won't grip the mass market as Sony first projected or hoped.
For one thing, if the mass market wanted High definition,then High Definition subscription TV would be much more popular now, but I'll bet if you asked Sky to release figures they probably make up a very small percentage over standard definition subscriptions.
The current economic world downturn also compounds Sony's Blu Ray woes, as only a few will put buying a new improved home entertainment centre as high on their list of purchasing priorities right now.

Sony certainly want Blu Ray to make DVD obselete obviously to line their own pockets,but luckily for the consumer that doesn't look likely to happen, because the DVD market is too big even for the film studios to tamper with.

So don't worry the DVD is certainly safe, and Blu Ray looks at best to become a niche market product.

Samsung now do a "budget" player for £150 which is, when you think about it, a lot less than DVD players were ten years ago!

It's actually not a bad player, and is firmware upgradeable via the net. My only niggle with Blu Ray is that there are no (affordable, even by my standards!) multi region players out there.

Still, I run HD from my HTPC anyway, so I just need AnyDVD HD and a drive capable of playing both formats (check and check) and I'm well away.

Blu Ray will, for the foreseeable future be a niche market, but as more TVs are replaced with HD sets (conceivable as it's nigh on impossible to get anything else) and new technologies such as On Demand become more popular, it should start getting bigger.

It's not like it'll just be abandoned, anyway, so people had better just get used to it!

Samsung now do a "budget" player for £150 which is, when you think about it, a lot less than DVD players were ten years ago!

Blu Ray will, for the foreseeable future be a niche market, but as more TVs are replaced with HD sets (conceivable as it's nigh on impossible to get anything else) and new technologies such as On Demand become more popular, it should start getting bigger.

It's not like it'll just be abandoned, anyway, so people had better just get used to it!

The difference about Blu Ray is that even if there is a budget player, most of the mass market will still need to buy a HD ready tv,and pay twice as much for their discs, so budget players by themselves won't exactly get the mass market involved.
Since its main selling point is its picture quality, then you would expect that people who are interested in BluRay, are those seeking the best picture quality, which unless, these budget players gives equal picture quality to the more expensive players, it kinda defeats the object of getting Blu Ray in the first place.

It is true that almost every new tv sold is HD ready, but It still means that the vast majority of main tvs in the UK households are still of the cathode ray tube variety.
Many of theses crt tv, partcuarly if they are only a few years old won't come to the end of their general life for many years, and that is usually when most households invest in a new tv.
I bought a Mitsubishi TV way back in 1987, and its been back and forth between 4 diffrent homes and 3 different users within my family, transported 250 miles, has never gone wrong and is still working and giving an excellent picture, in fact it gives a much clearer picture than my newish £700 LCD TV when watching tv.;)
Again this is another case of convenience winning over picture quality.
The cathode ray tube still gives a better picture than even the most expensive lcd or pasma tvs for tv pictures, but the slim line size of the lcd and plasma has won out.:suspect:

Samsung now do a "budget" player for £150

Now that you mention Samsung, they seem to think Blu Ray will be obselete in 5 years!;)
http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=23400

Also too many 'vanilla' discs at the moment.

i definitely wouldnt go as far as to eat them :help: :loopy:

I don't know the difference between blu-ray and HD DVD, we have a perfectly good TV that works just fine so i'm not exactly rushing out to upgrade. When I have to replace my current set up I will then, until then i'm not interested

i definitely wouldnt go as far as to eat them :help: :loopy:

That was a pun not even worthy of a groan :p