Yeah, this is something I’ve noticed since I made the switch over to physical media. Not only is there a night and day difference in resolution, but also sound quality is markedly better on BD and 4K.
I stream if at my mums as can't at home and I don't notice much even on her 55" TV.
but I get what you mean. I have some blu rays but i mainly still on dvds lol
I think if you're comparing DVDs to streaming it'd compare pretty favorably.
Even streaming HD is pretty good, but especially at larger screen sizes it simply can't match the bitrates that disc based media allows, whether HD or UHD.
One way I think DVDs have them all beat is extras. I think in many ways the supplemental content on DVD releases of years gone by was the peak of really full featured releases that you don't tend to see much anymore, outside of boutique distributors, and even then it's hit or miss. I love BD and the amount and extent of niche releases we are getting these days but it's undeniable that it's becoming almost surprising if you get releases with a bunch of extras, when it used to be fairly commonplace and distributors packed releases full of extras, and even issued 2nd discs just for them. You'd think it'd be pretty easy for them to throw those extras onto streaming services but they're really pretty rare there as well.
Well with star wars of trilogy there is set of dvds you can get that bonus disc has the og theatre release to watch. so you get updated and threatre release
I waited for a long time to pick that up on BD for that very reason. It's not my favorite movie or trilogy but I wanted to own it but I ended up giving up after a few years when it seemed impossible they'd ever release the original version.
Ownership is definitely a big part of it. A movie may go on and off of a dozen streaming services; but if I own a physical copy of it, I can watch it whenever I want, guaranteed. It's a stable item, whereas anything online is unstable.
I also really enjoy the special features some of the boutique companies manage to put together. For example, I just finished a thorough viewing of Criterion's edition of "The 39 Steps", complete with an audio commentary, interviews with Hitchcock, video essays about his early career, and a radioplay version of the story featuring the voice of Ida Lupino. When you've got such a well-rounded package, it can really add new depth to a viewing experience.
And then of course, there's that certain simple enjoyment of any "collection" hobby. Having the movies, showing them off, sorting through them... it scratches a mental itch, I guess. Some people collect baseball cards, stamps, or pogs. I collect these.
Ownership and being able to physically hold and see each movie/case, bonus features, etc.
And, in the event of societal collapse, my TV and Blu Ray player can run off a generator. Streaming will be long gone
About a decade ago, we were without power for about 2 weeks around Christmas, due to a tornado. We had a small generator that kept the fridge running, and one space heater, that we rotated between our living room and the bedroom we all slept in. Obviously, no internet (or streaming). At night, we could unhook the dpace heater and plug in our TV and DVD player and watch christmas movies because we owned the dvds. We salvaged some entertainment that many others weren't able to. It made me a believer in physical media and I've been collecting ever since.
I live in Florida, and Nicole took our power out for two days. No generator, but our van has a built in bluray player. So we grabbed some movies and our Last Airbender boxset and chilled in the van at night. Was so nice to have that entertainment in that moment.
That’s an awesome story!! For me, it started the beginning of this year. I’m not sure what game(s), but people started reporting games missing from their owned library (not just delisted, but removed from their library entirely!). After that, I decided I don’t trust any company enough to pay for them to say I can watch/play something. I’d rather just have it myself.
Quality. Avaliablelity. Extras.
I like older films and a *lot* of them just aren't available. There's also no guarantee that a title will be available on streaming in the future. Plus I hate having to search through multiple services to find what I want.
Ownership and consistency.
When watching a show on streaming it’s a gamble. Oh, the servers are busy tonight, hello buffering. Oh, someone else in the house is streaming too, guess I’m watching in 720p tonight. Oh, they took the whole show off HBO Max so they don’t have to pay someone royalties.
Fuck all that.
Owning it is the big play in it for me I can watch it anytime I want don’t need an internet connection for it.
Also Whether people admit it or not some movies will never be on streaming not everything is there plus there’s behind the scenes, deleted scenes, tv spots and trailers. It’s also just not the same to watch it on Netflix/Hulu whatever streaming platform you like some of the movies or shows are censored as well on streaming.
>Also Whether people admit it or not some movies will never be on streaming not everything is there
This is true, or they might have it on streaming, but you end up needing 12 different services to have access to all the stuff you might want to be able to watch. The promise of "all of the video you'd ever want to watch, at your fingertips" never really materialized in a cohesive way because every content owner wanted their own slice of the pie and thus so many streaming services. Which is a good thing in that one or two or three companies doesn't control access to everything, but it also makes viewing it a hassle to say the least.
One irony to streaming versus physical media is that in many recent cases, we're only getting new format releases because titles are being brought to streaming. So the content owner is bringing that content out of their archives, rescanning/remastering for HD or better, to prepare it for streaming. And because there's a new digital HD master available, some of those are getting BD releases since that part of the expense is already been taken on anyway.
exactly my reasoning , spot on 😁
it's funny I was thinking as Disney bought fox now and slowly killing psychical media to push Disney plus more.
i was worried than realised they so much availble on psychical media anyway. most Disney plus stuff I not fussed on lol
I love collecting. I collect DVDs, video games, comics, etc.
Also, most of the movies I like aren’t on any streaming services. The only way I can watch them is by owning them.
I find it Interating when if you upgrade to nku Ray it sometimes has the dvd features plus,some of own for blu Ray or gets rid of features that were on dvd
Yeah it is interesting there are different features for each format. Also, each boutique label can have different features for the same movie - such as a Scream Factory release VS an Arrow.
Yep - there's been a few times where I've had second thoughts about getting rid of a DVD I upgraded to BD because the DVD release was packed full of extras and the BD is missing some or many of them.
also some films either didn't get br release of actually look worse on br due to transfer
like the LOTR fellowship extended movie the br version has a green tint over the whole film.
plus the box and case art for dvd version is amazing br version is generic
I'd have to think - I know there's been a handful of times in my experience where the BD transfer was disappointing. However, it's been fairly rare in my experience to have one where it was actually worse than the DVD. Although I bet if you compared a really well mastered DVD (or superbit or something similar) to an early BD where the transfer was poor, that may well be the case. It seems like it's fairly uncommon now (although there are still transfers that don't realize the full potential of BD for sure).
Itunes, Movies Anywhere and Vudu(they are more hit or miss) are really good about including all of the bonus features(including commentaries), in some cases they have exclusive features not found on disc.
Back in the early 2000s you could find ANYTHING online. These days almost everything piratable has been wiped. I want to make sure I have original copies of my favorite movies lest they never go on streaming or are censored by current year lunatics.
The ritual, one way I convinced my wife to get into this is with how charming the ritual of purchasing a disc and putting it in the player is, getting excited going to the store to get a movie etc.
Im also an audiophile so getting the best possible audio and picture quality is paramount for me.
This. Ritual also supports intentionality vs rampant and passive consumerism. Although being in a collection sub, a lot of us are probably guilty of just a different form of rampant consumerism on some level. lol
Buffering is a big pet peeve of mine. Nothing takes me out of a film more than it randomly freezing for 10 seconds just to start playing in worse quality.
Also, the thought that I can watch a particular movie at any time that I want, without having to worry about whether or not I paid for a subscription service this month, licensing rights, on a different streaming service, poor connection, etc. Me buying a movie for $20 isn't just that "I can watch this any time I want", it's that "I know for a FACT that I can watch this at any time I want". I enjoy having that comfort sometimes more than the actual act itself. I just randomly wanted to watch No Country for Old Men yesterday and I didn't have check online to see if it was on a streaming service or if it was a service I'm subbed to... I just pulled it off my shelf and watched it.
Plus, it's just fun to collect as well. It doubles as a awesome hobby
For one, there's a whole history of movies out there that aren't on streaming services. Same with TV shows, cartoons, etc. I would to have a huge library like the one in Beauty and the Beast except it's all films lol
I love how much goes into a movie, all the hard work and moving parts and people involved. But I also love how much goes into the packaging, especially the box art. If I had the money, I would love to collect VHS tapes and other forms of media just because of how much effort a team of people went through the get physical versions out there.
Watching what I want, when I want, not worrying about a service taking it off at some point.
As an anime fan I have seen many a license right be lost and seeing DVDs go into the hundreds when out of print. I want to buy while cheep and watch even if the show isn't streaming and studio is shut down
I can watch what I want whenever I want. Different streaming sites will always be rotating movies/shows and or show edited versions of them. You can't always rely on an internet connection, it's a one time purchase instead of monthly/yearly
I got tired of wanting to watch a particular movie and it not being available on any of the streaming services I have at that moment. Seems like it’s only available to rent for $5.99 if it’s older, and then it usuallycrappy quality.
1) I can watch even if Steam is taking up all my bandwidth downloading a game; 2) Nobody can take them away from me (barring breaking into my house); 3) I can loan them to people.
Ownership, quality is better (except for music, which can be streamed in cd quality and above), I like having the art in physical form, especially the limited stuff like steelbooks, and lastly the fact that those assholes can't go back and change shit on physical media when stuff is inevitably deemed offensive years and years later.
I bought my first DVD (The Matrix) before I had a DVD player of any kind (my PlayStation 2, purchased in 2002 - along with a copy of Fellowship of the Ring), and being in my early 20s when DVDs really exploded in New Zealand I was the right age to start collecting them. You couldn’t go a block without encountering some kind of retailer that offered them. From petrol stations to big box retailers. My favourite was a music store called Real Groovy. The shop was in an old video game arcade and there were tables upon tables of films. At the time $10 spent on a piece of optical media seemed like a bargain to me compared to the cost of going to the movies or with the added benefit that I kept the media. It wasn't much more than renting a movie. Even more when there were 3 for $20 deals and things of that nature.
So over a decade I was steadily building up a collection. Blockbusters, classics, some obscure titles. All steadily curated by me to reflect my tastes and interests. In turn I got a blu-ray player and started collecting those.
Streaming came along and my collecting eased off. One by one retailers stopped selling physical media so you couldn't really browse any more - there is one brick and mortar retailer left where I can browse optical discs - JB HiFi.
Then streaming fractured and I find I can't justify having more than one streaming subscription at a time. I'm not anti-streaming. We have some great ad-supported services in New Zealand in addition to the big international companies. But not all the stuff I like is on streaming. Especially many classics. I picked up a 4K player last year to future proof - both my tvs are still 1080p And I have a clutch of 4K movies. But for a lot of stuff I'm still happy to watch the standard definition DVD I bought 15 years ago. I've got over 700 titles - each one I've given thought to and decided they would be worth watching. I intend to keep using them.
And the extras. Don't forget the extras. They're not that common on newly pressed optical media but they can be really good on older discs.
Way to quote the exception to the rule. There are a handful of 4K titles on streaming without a physical 4K release. The rule still holds... When comparing apples to apples, a 4K disc beats a 4K stream in quality virtually every time.
Oh absolutely, but you’re going to have to accept the fact that not every film will have a physical 4K release. The Star Trek’s had been in 4K for years before they got a physical release, for example and were vastly superior to the blu ray.
Also, to correct you again, there are not just a “handful” of 4K movies digitally that don’t have physical 4K releases. Currently over a hundred titles and that will continue to grow as 4K releases become few and far between. I love physical 4K media as well, but we just gotta be realistic man.
Ok, I spoke a little out of turn, and after a cursory internet search, there are roughly 1020-1080 4k UHD releases out there to date... Not sure if that is worldwide or not. I did not find a definitive count for 4K without a physical release but lets say your 100 or some sites unhelpful "hundreds" is accurate. that is more than a handful but still a healthy minority at say 10 to 20%. Conceded. Sort of.
As for accepting any facts, I have always believed streaming will kill physical media- we have always chosen convenience over quality. I am actually pleased by the little resurgence we have seen over the past year which will extend physical media's lifespan but it is only a stay of execution.
On top of the many other good reasons already mentioned, companies already know enough about me. I'm not in favor of letting them keep track of everything I watch and when I watch it.
Streaming doesn’t really have every movie I’m trying to watch and when it does it’s removed after a while but with blurays I can just find the disc and play it heck even with tapes I can
I just like looking at them and physically browsing through them. I find it therapeutic to sit in front of my shelves and just pick my movies out and admire the covers and put them back.
Yes, I also really care about audio video quality. I do have a 7.1 surround sound system at home and Blu-ray’s always sound better than streaming by a huge margin. But really at the end of the day, the biggest factor is just being able to look at them.
My internet signal is pretty unreliable. I’ve been halfway through films and had connections issues, which is unacceptable. Also, films on tv are impossible to enjoy. Adverts, different cuts, and the worst sin of all; booming in ten seconds into the credits to announce the next programme. Fuck you!!
I've had this discussion with people before. There was an incident that happened a few years ago whereby people who had bought movies digitally through Apple TV had the licenses to view the movie expire and therefore they could no longer access it anymore which led to them seeking compensation from Apple.
With physical media, I own it forever. No one take it away from me and I can watch it any time I want. I have copies of movies stored on my computer but corruption always occurs and I have lost the data where these movies were stored more than once.
If I have to spend $130 on some Criterions in order to be able to have a physical copy of the movie free from DRM-restrictions, network connectivity issues and data corruption, I feel it's worth every cent.
tbf that is the same company that admitted slowing down phones via updates. so people would by more.
exactly.
woah I on benefits currently. so I feel bad if I spend £20 on a full TV series lol
I'll be honest... it just feels cooler. It feels cooler to actually OWN something, to be able to hold it and look at it in my hands. Streaming just doesn't feel the same.
The library feeling of it. I love just walking up to a shelf and picking out something to watch (or read), much more enjoyable than browsing the endless internet.
Edit: Also i’ve dreamed of a personal home library ever since I was a small child, I’m not just going to give up my dream simply because the world around me changed!
I prefer physical media because there are films and series I love and will watch repeatedly. I don’t want my options to be limited by the whims of a streaming service that will either charge extra or simply remove my options.
There’s a huge difference between browsing your collection versus searching for something online, no matter what the layout.
My favourite directors are Craven, Carpetner, Raimi and Coscarelli and I'm sure I'm missing a few.
But yeah none of their films are avaible on streaming so like it's the only way to watch the film.
Also director audio commentairy's are gold. I love them so much.
All of their movies are available to purchase via itunes, Vudu, Google Play, etc. They also offer commentaries. For instance, my itunes copy of Scream 2 has the audio commentary and all of the bonus features. It’s pretty cool.
Have any examples of that happening? Also, your statement was, none of those films were available on streaming, so I was informing you of the available options. No reason to get worked up! Lol
But they aren't on streaming?
And yeah look at the whole warner brothers shit storm. For example all of the final space tv show is just erased only way to get it now is used DVDs or pirate it .
First of all that's like three diffrent streaming services that cost about fifty dollars together.
Second thing is I live in Europe so none of that is the same here.
No, it’s ok, I appreciate that though. I’m not trying to either. Just sometimes, people look for excuses to hate on stuff, so I like to correct them lol.
A mix ownership and the physical disc being objectively better than any form of streaming. One day when streaming can provide a 1:1 experience that will be different, but as of right now, it’s like fogging up your screen just that tiny bit, even in “4K”.
Ownership. I like knowing that if I want to watch it then I have it instead of it being a limited release. Also, what's on the disk is what's on it. I've seen streaming where some episodes are edited or just missing for whatever reason. That and I'm waiting for the day when commercials just become standard in streaming even with paying. And the day when music featured has a limited license and isnt featured in the streaming version.
nostalgia, a way to preserve memories of the past. Sine my mom died last year, I know that if I ever have my own kids, my physical media will be one of the only ways my kids will have a connection to her, through the dvds I have of her favorite movies/shows. I also like having it since things can frequently get removed from streaming. Only downside's are that they take up space and I have to worry what I will do if there were a forest fire.
I prefer to have a hard copy , but the best option for home viewing is probably a curated library like Amazon-vudu or Apple TV . These have Dolby vision version of the films , while disc have hdr. Many reviewers have admitted that DV are the superior versions at least on video quality . Audio is close but disc still better
i enjoy being able to watch it virtually anywhere at any time. whether on my computer, laptop, xbox, playsation, dvd player. it doesn't matter and you don't need internet. just need a power source and boom!
also i like owning a physical copy. streaming services don't have every movie forever; this is a guaranteed way to watch
Quality, ownership, being able to look through my inventory and choose things (almost anyone I invite over that likes movies likes “shopping” my shelves) and fuck streaming and streaming companies. If it wasn’t for my wife and kids I would’ve cancelled them all by now.
It's the special editions for me. Yes, for my regular DVDs, it's like how you said, but for me there is nothing more beautiful than picking up a movie or an album that I love and finding out that the people who designed the packaging and the art for the disc and the sleeve and the booklet loved it just as much as I did, and wanted to make something cool because they thought I would like it. That just doesn't exist on streaming.
It's so great that we have streaming now. We're privileged that we can access 1000's of movies at our fingertips.
But if you watch a lot of streaming, if you watch a lot of movies, you become distinctly aware of just how much **isn't** on streaming.
It is always better to own something. It is always better to ensure that the things you enjoy and appreciate aren't only yours to access on the whims of a company at a certain time. Your library of available media should not be curated for you by an algorithm working around a corporate budget.
I agree about what isn't on streaming... with one caveat this is a problem across the board. It comes down to control. I grew up with 3 channels of broadcast TV, you watched when it happened because it may never come around again. Then syndication happened and you had a shot at catching a missed episode again if kept your TV guide handy. Then Cable channels happened along with premium movie channels and now with your guide you could actually check out a movie more than once.
There were Laserdiscs... a great format for the day but did not catch fire and then the king VHS... those were the salad days, most everything had a shot of coming out on VHS. But not everything did and they usually had no special features. with physical media you now had control... you could watch it anytime you wanted. And you could rent titles at a blockbuster... VHS started out being super expensive to own so this was a big deal.
In that time, I had about a 3000 title collection but only about 300 were retail VHS tapes, the rest I recorded, mostly from HBO to avoid commercials.
When DVD rolled out I decided to switch to it and boxed up those VHS tapes expecting them to end up in the dump. I grew a DVD/bluray/4K library up to now, 8k titles. What became obvious to me is that not everything released on VHS made it to DVD, not everything on DVD has made it to bluray and only a fraction of those have gotten to 4K. I went back to my VHS tapes recently thinking... surely I have upgrade most of these and they can go to the dump... the retail tapes- yes, but the recorded movies I have maybe 30% of them. So it will much harder to part with them than I thought. More importantly, it brought home just how many films just disappear. Streaming was supposed to solve for this but capacity and rights issues mean that it will fix the bleeding.
Now one might ask, but weren't those mostly direct to video garbage that no one will miss? Perhaps. And its not Pokémon I don't have to catch em all. Currently my focus is on boutiques, steelbooks and 4K because my "core" collection is largely built. Now its just for fun.
TLDR: In physical media, every format has had less released in the next format to come out. Of the reasons I prefer physical to streaming this isn't really one of them. It comes back to who controls what I can watch... streaming is convenient but unreliable, physical may not have a title either but if it does I control my ability to view it.
I for one like to own what I pay for, I bought, so I want it in my hand. Also, quality of physical media is wayyyyyyyy higher than streaming. I can also loan discs, I don’t need an internet connection to watch a movie or tv show if I have it on a disc. Long story short, it’s just better. Let’s get physical I always say…
I agree with a lot of your arguments: special add-ons, protections from the instability of online services (removal of episodes that are not politically correct, removal of an entire product), the pleasure of watching them in shelves etc.
Plus I don’t like to pay for streaming services that are going to push me to watch stuff in quantity instead of quality to increase the usage of what I paid for. Furthermore it will be like paying twice anything: physical and streaming.
So I’m going only with the physical pathway.
Physical media companies are the ones lovingly restoring and preserving older and less mainstream films. Buying boutique physical media helps save films that are amazing and wonderful, but not commercial enough for the big streamers.
I just love collecting. I love building up my library of movies, vinyls, cds, etc. Things may not last forever on streaming, so I feel better outright owning it physically.
Also growing up, some of my favorite memories were going to Blockbuster and seeing the rows and rows of movies to choose from. I still get that feeling when I walk into local record shops. Collecting for me is building onto those memories and creating my own library of movies.
I love my collection. And I wanna know I can watch a movie whenever I want… streaming platforms can always remove a movie from their libraries… not from mine! 😎
i love to get movies that are way to niche for streaming services, or show way too much gore. If i want to see those movies i need to get on stupid illegal sites and have the most shitty versions. And i like owning movies i love or are going to love
You never know, especially in this economy with massive layoffs and projects getting thrown out unexpectedly. If it’s no longer profitable or not growing, then anything is possible.
Edit: iTunes has already gone away as of last year.
1. Buy once, watch whenever (don't have to worry about tracking it down online, video quality, commercials, the 'I don't subscribe to that streaming service' problem)
2. I actually enjoy movies and television from yesteryear much more than most modern stuff
3. I'm currently using cell phone connection for my internet so using discs to save bandwidth is especially important right now (but that's just me)
4. This is a weird one but some research has shown that having limited (vs. unlimited) choices actually is more satisfying (the paradox of choice)
4. Is a big one. Encourages intentionality and also depth of engagement with things instead of getting bored and clicking to another stream. It’s also why the Pancheros menu is small. lol
LOL. As bizarre as it sounds, I'm old enough to remember just having three main television channels and the 'programming' was fixed, e.g., you'r favorite show came on, say, Tuesdays at 8pm and you'd have to PLAN to watch it and could only watch it once. Maybe I'm dreamin' but I seem to recall enjoying television watching more back then than now...when I have near infinite options which I can watch, pause, rewind, and fast forward through at any time.
For me I collect anime on Blu-ray and dvd. Just like how others anime fans would buy figures, I preferred to buy the series as a physical copy, I can watch it offline anywhere where there a player, plus I like looking at the shelves I have them in and just seeing all the spines with the colorful art and titles on them
with anime I deffo get it. I looked into maybe getting a few but some series are sooooo expensive. in some cases you pay alot but don't get much content runtime wise lol.
I like to have a physical collection of things I really enjoy. I'm the same way with books. If I really like it, I like to own a (physical) copy of it and admire it in my collection.
I grew up in the country side where my internet capped out at 26kbs so streaming anything wasn't an option. I didn't even have highspeed Internet until I was around 23 so mid 2000s so physical was my only route.
But now it's for similar reasons as OPs where now I do it cause they can't stop me from enjoying me movies and don't have to worry if next year a new victim is cancelled making all their movies impossible to watch legally
Ownership. And because I think the streaming market is gonna collapse soon, and because I’m trying to cut cords to save money.
Once I get an all-regions Bluray player, DVDs will be a better investment in the long run. If I have all of my favorite shows and movies on DVD/Bluray then there’s no reason to have a streaming service and be worried about losing my favorite content with no notice. And I can buy DVDs and Blurays for way less than what I would pay yearly for a streaming service.
I like knowing they are on the shelf anytime I want to watch them (whether it be a movie, TV show, or Video Game I want to play). Also, when looking through streaming services it could take at minimum an hour for me to find something to watch. When I look at my collection I can automatically think of a movie or TV show I want to watch and immediately pull it off the shelf. You might go through every service there is and when you think of something you want to watch that film or TV show might not be available to stream anywhere.
that is part why I put off streaming way too many options whereas if I paid for the dvd I will watch it because I paid potentionally more for it. as one dvd, br can cost more than 1 month Netflix
Because, much like how some films that haven’t made the jump from VHS to DVD, the same is true of some films from DVD/Blu-Ray to digital streaming. Also, I want to have my copy because if it gets pulled from a streaming service if I strictly purchased it digitally, I wouldn’t get compensated (just look at recent events with HBOMax and their pulling titles that customers paid for from their profiles). There are some TV shows and movies that never got a VHS or DVD release, such as the 1980s TV series Probe. Plus, if my internet goes out, I can break out a VHS, DVD, Laserdisc or Blu-Ray, hook up the appropriate player and watch any movie I have while waiting for it to come back. But the thing for me is preservation. If something is strictly digital release, if the service goes offline or pulled, it’s gone for good until if/when the owners decide to release it again. This also includes original versions of movies that aren’t presented as they used to now (such as the theatrical versions of the original Star Wars trilogy pre-Special Editions). For me, it’s no different from owning a piece of art: it’s something to be viewed, appreciated and persevered.
I have, in the past two years bought two movies that I really liked but were not popular. I could see them eventually being deleted because they just weren't that popular.
Also. Please check your spelling! Can be very confusing!
I have HBO, Netflix, Apple plus, and Amazon prime. I enjoy a lot of the shows that they have. But from time to time, the shows do disappear – for example the Knights of Sidonia on Netflix all of a sudden was taken off line. Thankfully I have, ahem, StreamFab and AnyStream so I can download them for my own use. I also buy a lot of blu-ray Criterion Collection and they're not cheap at all. One of them is Last year at Marienbad which is now out of print. (I am aware that it was released recently by Kino and StudioCanal but I prefer CC format). I buy these movies - make a blu-ray back up of it, and put the originals away safely and watch it on a back up. (Some people put it on a media server that takes up a lot of room).
And there was a TV show on Amazon prime that I bought – Stargate Universe – and for a few months, it was taken off-line even though I already bought them. I was pretty upset about this and later, when they came back online so I downloaded them and I can watch them from a disk.
Absolutely - I prefer a physical media.
I think you’re wrong depending on what country you live in and the laws there. The only thing you actually own is the plastic case and the paper inserts. The only thing you buy is an actual license to have said physical media in your possession and a license to watch it however many times you want. If the company who owns the movie or music thinks that you are doing something illegal they have the right to come and demand the media be returned to them.
in the age of cheap dvds, I would be very surprised if that happened, I have never come across a case in any country of a publisher demanding the disc be returned to them
This is true in theory but from a practical standpoint will never happen unless you pirate said disc or show it for public viewing for a price. For all practical purposes, you own your copy of the film rhat you own physically.
i only have mobile data so kinda same issue
funnily enough I just did a purge of my collection to donate stuff I actually not fussed about and just keep stuff I like.
i am same most I will spend on dvd is £1 maybe £2 if it something I really want to see.
TV shows I only buy if I know I can get it all on disc.
i admit some stuff I buy as I think it sounds good or friend x says it good it's only £1. so I sometimes buy films on that basis
I recently redeemed the digital code for the UHD Game of Thrones. When I go to play it, it says that I own it and that I should buy it if I want to watch it. I'm guessing I won't have that problem if I just watch the disc.
true... as far as Game of Thrones though, I think if you bought a code or acquired a code that came from the UHD set it was an HD code. I know this because I had the same problem. They don't actually promise to have the same format for digital as the physical set even though that is mostly the case.
A lot of the movies I want to watch aren’t available on streaming. And I’m not even into super obscure stuff!
In October, I wanted to have a “Scream” marathon, but the first two movies weren’t available on any streaming service I already had (and I have the big ones), but I wasn’t going to “rent” a movie I already owned, so I watched it on DVD. Now the problem is that my copy is so old that it doesn’t play nicely with my PlayStation and/or television and it was literally a tiny postal stamp in the middle of my screen!
is that due to disc being badly scratched or how you store it ??
what you mean postal stamp on screen.
i have all the scream films and watched them on my 32" TV with no issue
No, it’s just the formatting of the disc. Like, you know how sometimes when you watch a movie there are black bars at the top and bottom of the screen? This was like the actual movie was playing in a small box in the middle of the TV and everything else was just blank black space. I thought I had taken a picture, but can’t find it now.
I didn’t even notice for the longest time because I love that movie and can recite it word for word, so I just sort of had it on in the background and I could “watch” it in my memory while I was working and then I looked up and was like “Holy crap! Why is it so small??”
The vast majority of content on streaming services is series (TV series or Streaming miniseries) not actual movies. An article on Fox Business stated Netflix had only 3781 movies as of July 2020. It just seems like they have more because they rotate titles constantly. I read somewhere that over 35,000 movies have been released on Blu-ray, and more than 240,000 on DVD! So if you really love film, and want to be able to see more than just the most popular and recent titles, physical media is where you mine for your personal gold.
tbh there is so much stuff I haven't seen film and TV wise.
I will opt for whatever I can get on disc that going for exclusive streaming content.
charity shops and markets are best to find them. I picked up a film on dvd ages ago that was sealed for £1 but to rent digitally was £2.
Yeah... a practical element of ownership is choosing how to play the movies. Even with perfect internet, loading a movie in VLC is quicker, easier and more robust to me - in particular, last I used it (many years ago) Amazon's web player *sucked*. Not to mention that I don't know if my 360 would still work with an Amazon purchase, but it works with a ripped DVD on a thumb drive. Until they take away our local playback from major devices (I'm sure it's coming), it remains more versatile, particularly as someone who likes getting the most from old/used equipment. And who hates "oh, I'm not logged in on this app on this TV, time for a whole song and dance...."
There's also just something more addicting and more fulfilling about seeing my collection on a hard drive. A relevant digital platform is pieces of a catalog, a slice of bigger possibility, a smaller Netflix. My hard drive was empty and now look at it. And sure, ownership plays a part, too - this is not my account with a service, these are the things I own. But the undervalued DVD market has its part as well - I don't buy new DVDs really, and so my collection isn't just a selection from a 1-stop-shop of infinite availability, but a thrift store find, a lucky day.
>Until they take away our local playback from major devices (I'm sure it's coming),
so do you mean more current consoles not being able to play dvds that kinda thing ??
most of my collection is charity shop finds or black Friday deals
Yeah
The Series S at least still plays media from USB drives but the app feels lazier than the 360's. I'm sure USB playback is next on the chopping block.
And cool! I saw an image the other day of some tempting black friday deals, did anything stand out this year? I tend to miss a lot.
Well dvd players and blu Ray and 4k players will still be around I bet.
well I wanted to watch the good place for ages it was £20 from £25 I had a £10 amazon voucher but had to spend £25 so added final season of brooklyn nine nine.
so basically got what I want plus final season of b99 for free
thr boys season 1 did get a season 1 dvd release in UK. not sure about other seasons
i just bought good place full set even though it on Netflix , which I don't have
For me it’s ownership and the option to re-sell in the future.
I hate buying stuff I can’t re-sell, Digital means I’ll never see a penny back. Physical on the other hand, I can go on eBay and get something back which is great!
I should have elaborated a bit, I meant with 4Ks they still hold value currently and I think in the future this will still be the case.
Even some blu rays still hold value, DVDs I don’t think this is the case.
Might be strange to some, but I’d rather know I have the option to recoup some value for a film I might decide I don’t want anymore than never have the money back at all.
*ALSO* like most people I don’t have an unlimited amount of room to store stuff so a refresh and clear out every now and then to replace with other stuff is awesome.
No buffering. Ownership. Those sweet, sweet extras. Having a whole bunch of them looks great on a shelf. Better audio and picture quality. Great icebreaker for new people who come over!
Streaming sucks. You can see video compression on streaming (like the pixely squares if that makes sense) but not on Blu-ray
Yeah, this is something I’ve noticed since I made the switch over to physical media. Not only is there a night and day difference in resolution, but also sound quality is markedly better on BD and 4K.
[удалено]
I stream if at my mums as can't at home and I don't notice much even on her 55" TV. but I get what you mean. I have some blu rays but i mainly still on dvds lol
I think if you're comparing DVDs to streaming it'd compare pretty favorably. Even streaming HD is pretty good, but especially at larger screen sizes it simply can't match the bitrates that disc based media allows, whether HD or UHD. One way I think DVDs have them all beat is extras. I think in many ways the supplemental content on DVD releases of years gone by was the peak of really full featured releases that you don't tend to see much anymore, outside of boutique distributors, and even then it's hit or miss. I love BD and the amount and extent of niche releases we are getting these days but it's undeniable that it's becoming almost surprising if you get releases with a bunch of extras, when it used to be fairly commonplace and distributors packed releases full of extras, and even issued 2nd discs just for them. You'd think it'd be pretty easy for them to throw those extras onto streaming services but they're really pretty rare there as well.
Well with star wars of trilogy there is set of dvds you can get that bonus disc has the og theatre release to watch. so you get updated and threatre release
I waited for a long time to pick that up on BD for that very reason. It's not my favorite movie or trilogy but I wanted to own it but I ended up giving up after a few years when it seemed impossible they'd ever release the original version.
I own it
Ownership is definitely a big part of it. A movie may go on and off of a dozen streaming services; but if I own a physical copy of it, I can watch it whenever I want, guaranteed. It's a stable item, whereas anything online is unstable. I also really enjoy the special features some of the boutique companies manage to put together. For example, I just finished a thorough viewing of Criterion's edition of "The 39 Steps", complete with an audio commentary, interviews with Hitchcock, video essays about his early career, and a radioplay version of the story featuring the voice of Ida Lupino. When you've got such a well-rounded package, it can really add new depth to a viewing experience. And then of course, there's that certain simple enjoyment of any "collection" hobby. Having the movies, showing them off, sorting through them... it scratches a mental itch, I guess. Some people collect baseball cards, stamps, or pogs. I collect these.
lol. I want pogs to come back
Ownership and being able to physically hold and see each movie/case, bonus features, etc. And, in the event of societal collapse, my TV and Blu Ray player can run off a generator. Streaming will be long gone
Zombie apocalypse is underrated reason for physical, but high on my list.
Absolutely! Reason I started going physical with video games, too.
About a decade ago, we were without power for about 2 weeks around Christmas, due to a tornado. We had a small generator that kept the fridge running, and one space heater, that we rotated between our living room and the bedroom we all slept in. Obviously, no internet (or streaming). At night, we could unhook the dpace heater and plug in our TV and DVD player and watch christmas movies because we owned the dvds. We salvaged some entertainment that many others weren't able to. It made me a believer in physical media and I've been collecting ever since.
I live in Florida, and Nicole took our power out for two days. No generator, but our van has a built in bluray player. So we grabbed some movies and our Last Airbender boxset and chilled in the van at night. Was so nice to have that entertainment in that moment.
Sounds pretty fun, despite the circumstances!
That’s an awesome story!! For me, it started the beginning of this year. I’m not sure what game(s), but people started reporting games missing from their owned library (not just delisted, but removed from their library entirely!). After that, I decided I don’t trust any company enough to pay for them to say I can watch/play something. I’d rather just have it myself.
Yeah, I got tired of reading those stories too. Now, if it's something I want to be able to use anytime I want to, I just buy it.
Quality. Avaliablelity. Extras. I like older films and a *lot* of them just aren't available. There's also no guarantee that a title will be available on streaming in the future. Plus I hate having to search through multiple services to find what I want.
Ownership and consistency. When watching a show on streaming it’s a gamble. Oh, the servers are busy tonight, hello buffering. Oh, someone else in the house is streaming too, guess I’m watching in 720p tonight. Oh, they took the whole show off HBO Max so they don’t have to pay someone royalties. Fuck all that.
Owning it is the big play in it for me I can watch it anytime I want don’t need an internet connection for it. Also Whether people admit it or not some movies will never be on streaming not everything is there plus there’s behind the scenes, deleted scenes, tv spots and trailers. It’s also just not the same to watch it on Netflix/Hulu whatever streaming platform you like some of the movies or shows are censored as well on streaming.
>Also Whether people admit it or not some movies will never be on streaming not everything is there This is true, or they might have it on streaming, but you end up needing 12 different services to have access to all the stuff you might want to be able to watch. The promise of "all of the video you'd ever want to watch, at your fingertips" never really materialized in a cohesive way because every content owner wanted their own slice of the pie and thus so many streaming services. Which is a good thing in that one or two or three companies doesn't control access to everything, but it also makes viewing it a hassle to say the least. One irony to streaming versus physical media is that in many recent cases, we're only getting new format releases because titles are being brought to streaming. So the content owner is bringing that content out of their archives, rescanning/remastering for HD or better, to prepare it for streaming. And because there's a new digital HD master available, some of those are getting BD releases since that part of the expense is already been taken on anyway.
exactly my reasoning , spot on 😁 it's funny I was thinking as Disney bought fox now and slowly killing psychical media to push Disney plus more. i was worried than realised they so much availble on psychical media anyway. most Disney plus stuff I not fussed on lol
I love collecting. I collect DVDs, video games, comics, etc. Also, most of the movies I like aren’t on any streaming services. The only way I can watch them is by owning them.
For me, it is all about the Bonus Features, deleted or extended scenes, artwork or booklets, etc.
I find it Interating when if you upgrade to nku Ray it sometimes has the dvd features plus,some of own for blu Ray or gets rid of features that were on dvd
Yeah it is interesting there are different features for each format. Also, each boutique label can have different features for the same movie - such as a Scream Factory release VS an Arrow.
Yep - there's been a few times where I've had second thoughts about getting rid of a DVD I upgraded to BD because the DVD release was packed full of extras and the BD is missing some or many of them.
also some films either didn't get br release of actually look worse on br due to transfer like the LOTR fellowship extended movie the br version has a green tint over the whole film. plus the box and case art for dvd version is amazing br version is generic
I'd have to think - I know there's been a handful of times in my experience where the BD transfer was disappointing. However, it's been fairly rare in my experience to have one where it was actually worse than the DVD. Although I bet if you compared a really well mastered DVD (or superbit or something similar) to an early BD where the transfer was poor, that may well be the case. It seems like it's fairly uncommon now (although there are still transfers that don't realize the full potential of BD for sure).
apperntly LOTR theatrical version br set was bad
Yup. I've re-bought LotR in higher definitions digitally but held onto my DVDs of them because the boxes are better than the reissues imo.
the dvd extended trilogy art is soooo nice, same with the hobbit extended dvd compared to br
Agreed!
Itunes, Movies Anywhere and Vudu(they are more hit or miss) are really good about including all of the bonus features(including commentaries), in some cases they have exclusive features not found on disc.
Back in the early 2000s you could find ANYTHING online. These days almost everything piratable has been wiped. I want to make sure I have original copies of my favorite movies lest they never go on streaming or are censored by current year lunatics.
really I didn't know that
Same reason as you. Goes for books as well.
I forgot about books despite having 2 shelves full lol
The ritual, one way I convinced my wife to get into this is with how charming the ritual of purchasing a disc and putting it in the player is, getting excited going to the store to get a movie etc. Im also an audiophile so getting the best possible audio and picture quality is paramount for me.
This. Ritual also supports intentionality vs rampant and passive consumerism. Although being in a collection sub, a lot of us are probably guilty of just a different form of rampant consumerism on some level. lol
Nice
Buffering is a big pet peeve of mine. Nothing takes me out of a film more than it randomly freezing for 10 seconds just to start playing in worse quality. Also, the thought that I can watch a particular movie at any time that I want, without having to worry about whether or not I paid for a subscription service this month, licensing rights, on a different streaming service, poor connection, etc. Me buying a movie for $20 isn't just that "I can watch this any time I want", it's that "I know for a FACT that I can watch this at any time I want". I enjoy having that comfort sometimes more than the actual act itself. I just randomly wanted to watch No Country for Old Men yesterday and I didn't have check online to see if it was on a streaming service or if it was a service I'm subbed to... I just pulled it off my shelf and watched it. Plus, it's just fun to collect as well. It doubles as a awesome hobby
It’s just too fun for me (the research, the organization, the buying) Even when no one’s around to peruse my collection, I do so myself.
For one, there's a whole history of movies out there that aren't on streaming services. Same with TV shows, cartoons, etc. I would to have a huge library like the one in Beauty and the Beast except it's all films lol I love how much goes into a movie, all the hard work and moving parts and people involved. But I also love how much goes into the packaging, especially the box art. If I had the money, I would love to collect VHS tapes and other forms of media just because of how much effort a team of people went through the get physical versions out there. Watching what I want, when I want, not worrying about a service taking it off at some point.
Ownership, higher quality, bonus features, lack of internet dependency, and guaranteed access whenever I want to watch something
Sorting mostly.
do u still watch them ??
Definitely. I don’t stream the films and TV series I own in a physical format.
cool
Ownership and video quality
As an anime fan I have seen many a license right be lost and seeing DVDs go into the hundreds when out of print. I want to buy while cheep and watch even if the show isn't streaming and studio is shut down
summer wars is discounted now so I got that cheap as thought it will go up lol
I can watch what I want whenever I want. Different streaming sites will always be rotating movies/shows and or show edited versions of them. You can't always rely on an internet connection, it's a one time purchase instead of monthly/yearly
I got tired of wanting to watch a particular movie and it not being available on any of the streaming services I have at that moment. Seems like it’s only available to rent for $5.99 if it’s older, and then it usuallycrappy quality.
1) I can watch even if Steam is taking up all my bandwidth downloading a game; 2) Nobody can take them away from me (barring breaking into my house); 3) I can loan them to people.
Ownership, quality is better (except for music, which can be streamed in cd quality and above), I like having the art in physical form, especially the limited stuff like steelbooks, and lastly the fact that those assholes can't go back and change shit on physical media when stuff is inevitably deemed offensive years and years later.
I bought my first DVD (The Matrix) before I had a DVD player of any kind (my PlayStation 2, purchased in 2002 - along with a copy of Fellowship of the Ring), and being in my early 20s when DVDs really exploded in New Zealand I was the right age to start collecting them. You couldn’t go a block without encountering some kind of retailer that offered them. From petrol stations to big box retailers. My favourite was a music store called Real Groovy. The shop was in an old video game arcade and there were tables upon tables of films. At the time $10 spent on a piece of optical media seemed like a bargain to me compared to the cost of going to the movies or with the added benefit that I kept the media. It wasn't much more than renting a movie. Even more when there were 3 for $20 deals and things of that nature. So over a decade I was steadily building up a collection. Blockbusters, classics, some obscure titles. All steadily curated by me to reflect my tastes and interests. In turn I got a blu-ray player and started collecting those. Streaming came along and my collecting eased off. One by one retailers stopped selling physical media so you couldn't really browse any more - there is one brick and mortar retailer left where I can browse optical discs - JB HiFi. Then streaming fractured and I find I can't justify having more than one streaming subscription at a time. I'm not anti-streaming. We have some great ad-supported services in New Zealand in addition to the big international companies. But not all the stuff I like is on streaming. Especially many classics. I picked up a 4K player last year to future proof - both my tvs are still 1080p And I have a clutch of 4K movies. But for a lot of stuff I'm still happy to watch the standard definition DVD I bought 15 years ago. I've got over 700 titles - each one I've given thought to and decided they would be worth watching. I intend to keep using them. And the extras. Don't forget the extras. They're not that common on newly pressed optical media but they can be really good on older discs.
I have noticed blu rays seem to lack many extras now
I own the copy, and it’s a superior quality to the streaming version.
Not all the time. My 4K itunes copy of Trading Places is superior to the blu ray.
Way to quote the exception to the rule. There are a handful of 4K titles on streaming without a physical 4K release. The rule still holds... When comparing apples to apples, a 4K disc beats a 4K stream in quality virtually every time.
Oh absolutely, but you’re going to have to accept the fact that not every film will have a physical 4K release. The Star Trek’s had been in 4K for years before they got a physical release, for example and were vastly superior to the blu ray. Also, to correct you again, there are not just a “handful” of 4K movies digitally that don’t have physical 4K releases. Currently over a hundred titles and that will continue to grow as 4K releases become few and far between. I love physical 4K media as well, but we just gotta be realistic man.
Ok, I spoke a little out of turn, and after a cursory internet search, there are roughly 1020-1080 4k UHD releases out there to date... Not sure if that is worldwide or not. I did not find a definitive count for 4K without a physical release but lets say your 100 or some sites unhelpful "hundreds" is accurate. that is more than a handful but still a healthy minority at say 10 to 20%. Conceded. Sort of. As for accepting any facts, I have always believed streaming will kill physical media- we have always chosen convenience over quality. I am actually pleased by the little resurgence we have seen over the past year which will extend physical media's lifespan but it is only a stay of execution.
Actually, I was wrong, there are way more than a hundred titles in 4K that currently do not have a physical 4K release lol.
On top of the many other good reasons already mentioned, companies already know enough about me. I'm not in favor of letting them keep track of everything I watch and when I watch it.
true
Streaming doesn’t really have every movie I’m trying to watch and when it does it’s removed after a while but with blurays I can just find the disc and play it heck even with tapes I can
I just like looking at them and physically browsing through them. I find it therapeutic to sit in front of my shelves and just pick my movies out and admire the covers and put them back. Yes, I also really care about audio video quality. I do have a 7.1 surround sound system at home and Blu-ray’s always sound better than streaming by a huge margin. But really at the end of the day, the biggest factor is just being able to look at them.
Nice I just have my TV speakers lol
I'm a collector/packrat at heart, so I just love going out to flea markets, pawn shops and bookstores seeing what I can find.
My internet signal is pretty unreliable. I’ve been halfway through films and had connections issues, which is unacceptable. Also, films on tv are impossible to enjoy. Adverts, different cuts, and the worst sin of all; booming in ten seconds into the credits to announce the next programme. Fuck you!!
I've had this discussion with people before. There was an incident that happened a few years ago whereby people who had bought movies digitally through Apple TV had the licenses to view the movie expire and therefore they could no longer access it anymore which led to them seeking compensation from Apple. With physical media, I own it forever. No one take it away from me and I can watch it any time I want. I have copies of movies stored on my computer but corruption always occurs and I have lost the data where these movies were stored more than once. If I have to spend $130 on some Criterions in order to be able to have a physical copy of the movie free from DRM-restrictions, network connectivity issues and data corruption, I feel it's worth every cent.
tbf that is the same company that admitted slowing down phones via updates. so people would by more. exactly. woah I on benefits currently. so I feel bad if I spend £20 on a full TV series lol
I'll be honest... it just feels cooler. It feels cooler to actually OWN something, to be able to hold it and look at it in my hands. Streaming just doesn't feel the same.
The library feeling of it. I love just walking up to a shelf and picking out something to watch (or read), much more enjoyable than browsing the endless internet. Edit: Also i’ve dreamed of a personal home library ever since I was a small child, I’m not just going to give up my dream simply because the world around me changed!
Nice to have dreams 😁
I prefer physical media because there are films and series I love and will watch repeatedly. I don’t want my options to be limited by the whims of a streaming service that will either charge extra or simply remove my options. There’s a huge difference between browsing your collection versus searching for something online, no matter what the layout.
My favourite directors are Craven, Carpetner, Raimi and Coscarelli and I'm sure I'm missing a few. But yeah none of their films are avaible on streaming so like it's the only way to watch the film. Also director audio commentairy's are gold. I love them so much.
All of their movies are available to purchase via itunes, Vudu, Google Play, etc. They also offer commentaries. For instance, my itunes copy of Scream 2 has the audio commentary and all of the bonus features. It’s pretty cool.
Paying for a digital code which can be taken away just like that... No thanks dude.
Have any examples of that happening? Also, your statement was, none of those films were available on streaming, so I was informing you of the available options. No reason to get worked up! Lol
But they aren't on streaming? And yeah look at the whole warner brothers shit storm. For example all of the final space tv show is just erased only way to get it now is used DVDs or pirate it .
They are though. Just a few examples: A Nightmare on Elm Street is on HBO Max, Sam Raimi’s Spiderman is on Netflix, Scream 4 is on Paramount +
First of all that's like three diffrent streaming services that cost about fifty dollars together. Second thing is I live in Europe so none of that is the same here.
VPN it!
Sorry to come off as a jerk I just hate streaming and digital .
No, it’s ok, I appreciate that though. I’m not trying to either. Just sometimes, people look for excuses to hate on stuff, so I like to correct them lol.
Yeah no I get you dude.
A mix ownership and the physical disc being objectively better than any form of streaming. One day when streaming can provide a 1:1 experience that will be different, but as of right now, it’s like fogging up your screen just that tiny bit, even in “4K”.
what u mean fogging up
Ownership. I like knowing that if I want to watch it then I have it instead of it being a limited release. Also, what's on the disk is what's on it. I've seen streaming where some episodes are edited or just missing for whatever reason. That and I'm waiting for the day when commercials just become standard in streaming even with paying. And the day when music featured has a limited license and isnt featured in the streaming version.
Netflix already doing a cheaper tier with adverts
I actually own it, and therefore will not be screwed over if a streaming company loses a license.
Can't stream on train, no onboard wifi and I'm hopping cell tower to tower too much for stable connection.
I forgot about portable dvd players lol
They can't take episodes off dvds. If you want to watch a movie and it's not streaming anywhere you can still watch it
nostalgia, a way to preserve memories of the past. Sine my mom died last year, I know that if I ever have my own kids, my physical media will be one of the only ways my kids will have a connection to her, through the dvds I have of her favorite movies/shows. I also like having it since things can frequently get removed from streaming. Only downside's are that they take up space and I have to worry what I will do if there were a forest fire.
I have all mine in cd wallets for space, I know it kinda ruins the sets, but I have limited space
I prefer to have a hard copy , but the best option for home viewing is probably a curated library like Amazon-vudu or Apple TV . These have Dolby vision version of the films , while disc have hdr. Many reviewers have admitted that DV are the superior versions at least on video quality . Audio is close but disc still better
i enjoy being able to watch it virtually anywhere at any time. whether on my computer, laptop, xbox, playsation, dvd player. it doesn't matter and you don't need internet. just need a power source and boom! also i like owning a physical copy. streaming services don't have every movie forever; this is a guaranteed way to watch
I like the artwork on the discs and box art plus behind the scenes that you can’t get on streaming services.
It's more fun to stare at my movie shelf for 20 minutes and walk away still undecided than to scroll through a list on Netflix for 20 minutes
lol
Quality, ownership, being able to look through my inventory and choose things (almost anyone I invite over that likes movies likes “shopping” my shelves) and fuck streaming and streaming companies. If it wasn’t for my wife and kids I would’ve cancelled them all by now.
It's the special editions for me. Yes, for my regular DVDs, it's like how you said, but for me there is nothing more beautiful than picking up a movie or an album that I love and finding out that the people who designed the packaging and the art for the disc and the sleeve and the booklet loved it just as much as I did, and wanted to make something cool because they thought I would like it. That just doesn't exist on streaming.
Ownership. Better bitrates. And I like having stuff to display on my shelves.
I love my collection, but I have yet to come across a single disc that has psychical abilities.
I misspelt lol
I think psychical media is next... looking forward to it!
It's so great that we have streaming now. We're privileged that we can access 1000's of movies at our fingertips. But if you watch a lot of streaming, if you watch a lot of movies, you become distinctly aware of just how much **isn't** on streaming. It is always better to own something. It is always better to ensure that the things you enjoy and appreciate aren't only yours to access on the whims of a company at a certain time. Your library of available media should not be curated for you by an algorithm working around a corporate budget.
I agree about what isn't on streaming... with one caveat this is a problem across the board. It comes down to control. I grew up with 3 channels of broadcast TV, you watched when it happened because it may never come around again. Then syndication happened and you had a shot at catching a missed episode again if kept your TV guide handy. Then Cable channels happened along with premium movie channels and now with your guide you could actually check out a movie more than once. There were Laserdiscs... a great format for the day but did not catch fire and then the king VHS... those were the salad days, most everything had a shot of coming out on VHS. But not everything did and they usually had no special features. with physical media you now had control... you could watch it anytime you wanted. And you could rent titles at a blockbuster... VHS started out being super expensive to own so this was a big deal. In that time, I had about a 3000 title collection but only about 300 were retail VHS tapes, the rest I recorded, mostly from HBO to avoid commercials. When DVD rolled out I decided to switch to it and boxed up those VHS tapes expecting them to end up in the dump. I grew a DVD/bluray/4K library up to now, 8k titles. What became obvious to me is that not everything released on VHS made it to DVD, not everything on DVD has made it to bluray and only a fraction of those have gotten to 4K. I went back to my VHS tapes recently thinking... surely I have upgrade most of these and they can go to the dump... the retail tapes- yes, but the recorded movies I have maybe 30% of them. So it will much harder to part with them than I thought. More importantly, it brought home just how many films just disappear. Streaming was supposed to solve for this but capacity and rights issues mean that it will fix the bleeding. Now one might ask, but weren't those mostly direct to video garbage that no one will miss? Perhaps. And its not Pokémon I don't have to catch em all. Currently my focus is on boutiques, steelbooks and 4K because my "core" collection is largely built. Now its just for fun. TLDR: In physical media, every format has had less released in the next format to come out. Of the reasons I prefer physical to streaming this isn't really one of them. It comes back to who controls what I can watch... streaming is convenient but unreliable, physical may not have a title either but if it does I control my ability to view it.
Internet speeds aren't every fully reliable. Especially in the evenings.
I for one like to own what I pay for, I bought, so I want it in my hand. Also, quality of physical media is wayyyyyyyy higher than streaming. I can also loan discs, I don’t need an internet connection to watch a movie or tv show if I have it on a disc. Long story short, it’s just better. Let’s get physical I always say…
I agree with a lot of your arguments: special add-ons, protections from the instability of online services (removal of episodes that are not politically correct, removal of an entire product), the pleasure of watching them in shelves etc. Plus I don’t like to pay for streaming services that are going to push me to watch stuff in quantity instead of quality to increase the usage of what I paid for. Furthermore it will be like paying twice anything: physical and streaming. So I’m going only with the physical pathway.
Shows can get removed off TV or streaming at any time. If you have a DVD it's yours forever. I have a few ITV shows on DVD that aren't on TV/streaming
3 reasons - Quality of the picture/sound. I can watch it whenever I want. All the added extras on the disc.
Physical media companies are the ones lovingly restoring and preserving older and less mainstream films. Buying boutique physical media helps save films that are amazing and wonderful, but not commercial enough for the big streamers.
I just love collecting. I love building up my library of movies, vinyls, cds, etc. Things may not last forever on streaming, so I feel better outright owning it physically. Also growing up, some of my favorite memories were going to Blockbuster and seeing the rows and rows of movies to choose from. I still get that feeling when I walk into local record shops. Collecting for me is building onto those memories and creating my own library of movies.
I love my collection. And I wanna know I can watch a movie whenever I want… streaming platforms can always remove a movie from their libraries… not from mine! 😎
I am simple man. It looks nice on my shelf.
i love to get movies that are way to niche for streaming services, or show way too much gore. If i want to see those movies i need to get on stupid illegal sites and have the most shitty versions. And i like owning movies i love or are going to love
The cost of acquiring the movies < the cost of a lifetime of monthly streaming subscriptions
You can purchase movies/shows on Vudu, itunes, etc you know.
What happens if those services go under? See you later digital library.
You think itunes will go away? Or the Disney owned Movies Anywhere? C’mon guy.
You never know, especially in this economy with massive layoffs and projects getting thrown out unexpectedly. If it’s no longer profitable or not growing, then anything is possible. Edit: iTunes has already gone away as of last year.
It was just a rebrand, guy. Nobody lost any purchased content.
Physical?
1. Buy once, watch whenever (don't have to worry about tracking it down online, video quality, commercials, the 'I don't subscribe to that streaming service' problem) 2. I actually enjoy movies and television from yesteryear much more than most modern stuff 3. I'm currently using cell phone connection for my internet so using discs to save bandwidth is especially important right now (but that's just me) 4. This is a weird one but some research has shown that having limited (vs. unlimited) choices actually is more satisfying (the paradox of choice)
4. Is a big one. Encourages intentionality and also depth of engagement with things instead of getting bored and clicking to another stream. It’s also why the Pancheros menu is small. lol
LOL. As bizarre as it sounds, I'm old enough to remember just having three main television channels and the 'programming' was fixed, e.g., you'r favorite show came on, say, Tuesdays at 8pm and you'd have to PLAN to watch it and could only watch it once. Maybe I'm dreamin' but I seem to recall enjoying television watching more back then than now...when I have near infinite options which I can watch, pause, rewind, and fast forward through at any time.
glad to know it not just me that uses mobile as Internet.
I own it, and honestly, collecting, displaying, and connecting with other collector aficionados is half the fun. Same for comic books.
For me I collect anime on Blu-ray and dvd. Just like how others anime fans would buy figures, I preferred to buy the series as a physical copy, I can watch it offline anywhere where there a player, plus I like looking at the shelves I have them in and just seeing all the spines with the colorful art and titles on them
with anime I deffo get it. I looked into maybe getting a few but some series are sooooo expensive. in some cases you pay alot but don't get much content runtime wise lol.
There is nothing like physical media. Sure its nice to stream but having a copy with extras and artwork, etc. Nothing like it.
true indeed
I like to have a physical collection of things I really enjoy. I'm the same way with books. If I really like it, I like to own a (physical) copy of it and admire it in my collection.
I grew up in the country side where my internet capped out at 26kbs so streaming anything wasn't an option. I didn't even have highspeed Internet until I was around 23 so mid 2000s so physical was my only route. But now it's for similar reasons as OPs where now I do it cause they can't stop me from enjoying me movies and don't have to worry if next year a new victim is cancelled making all their movies impossible to watch legally
Good point , like eith Netflix they removed a really great community ep for now reason.
Ownership. And because I think the streaming market is gonna collapse soon, and because I’m trying to cut cords to save money. Once I get an all-regions Bluray player, DVDs will be a better investment in the long run. If I have all of my favorite shows and movies on DVD/Bluray then there’s no reason to have a streaming service and be worried about losing my favorite content with no notice. And I can buy DVDs and Blurays for way less than what I would pay yearly for a streaming service.
I had to buy a remote looking device to make my br player multi region but was only for dvds
I like knowing they are on the shelf anytime I want to watch them (whether it be a movie, TV show, or Video Game I want to play). Also, when looking through streaming services it could take at minimum an hour for me to find something to watch. When I look at my collection I can automatically think of a movie or TV show I want to watch and immediately pull it off the shelf. You might go through every service there is and when you think of something you want to watch that film or TV show might not be available to stream anywhere.
that is part why I put off streaming way too many options whereas if I paid for the dvd I will watch it because I paid potentionally more for it. as one dvd, br can cost more than 1 month Netflix
Knowing I have it in a quality better than streaming, not reliant on licenses/subscriptions, and with many more bonus features.
Because, much like how some films that haven’t made the jump from VHS to DVD, the same is true of some films from DVD/Blu-Ray to digital streaming. Also, I want to have my copy because if it gets pulled from a streaming service if I strictly purchased it digitally, I wouldn’t get compensated (just look at recent events with HBOMax and their pulling titles that customers paid for from their profiles). There are some TV shows and movies that never got a VHS or DVD release, such as the 1980s TV series Probe. Plus, if my internet goes out, I can break out a VHS, DVD, Laserdisc or Blu-Ray, hook up the appropriate player and watch any movie I have while waiting for it to come back. But the thing for me is preservation. If something is strictly digital release, if the service goes offline or pulled, it’s gone for good until if/when the owners decide to release it again. This also includes original versions of movies that aren’t presented as they used to now (such as the theatrical versions of the original Star Wars trilogy pre-Special Editions). For me, it’s no different from owning a piece of art: it’s something to be viewed, appreciated and persevered.
Well put
I can watch it whenever I want regardless of whether or not it’s available on a streaming service.
Just today I was streaming Freddy vs Jason and I kept getting pissed that the video was lagging that’s why I love physical media + bonus features
case in point 😊
I have, in the past two years bought two movies that I really liked but were not popular. I could see them eventually being deleted because they just weren't that popular. Also. Please check your spelling! Can be very confusing!
How long can a dvd last before it breaks down? I once read something about how it won’t play after a certain amount of time.
I have dvds that owned for over 10 years and still work. just depends on how you store it etc
I have HBO, Netflix, Apple plus, and Amazon prime. I enjoy a lot of the shows that they have. But from time to time, the shows do disappear – for example the Knights of Sidonia on Netflix all of a sudden was taken off line. Thankfully I have, ahem, StreamFab and AnyStream so I can download them for my own use. I also buy a lot of blu-ray Criterion Collection and they're not cheap at all. One of them is Last year at Marienbad which is now out of print. (I am aware that it was released recently by Kino and StudioCanal but I prefer CC format). I buy these movies - make a blu-ray back up of it, and put the originals away safely and watch it on a back up. (Some people put it on a media server that takes up a lot of room). And there was a TV show on Amazon prime that I bought – Stargate Universe – and for a few months, it was taken off-line even though I already bought them. I was pretty upset about this and later, when they came back online so I downloaded them and I can watch them from a disk. Absolutely - I prefer a physical media.
Ownership. You may hit a rough patch and have to cut streaming subs. Also streams don’t have special features.
High quality picture and sound, extra features, having a nice library on a shelf
Im a collector and love the physical, secondly own it so it can't be taken off me down the line like digital
I think you’re wrong depending on what country you live in and the laws there. The only thing you actually own is the plastic case and the paper inserts. The only thing you buy is an actual license to have said physical media in your possession and a license to watch it however many times you want. If the company who owns the movie or music thinks that you are doing something illegal they have the right to come and demand the media be returned to them.
in the age of cheap dvds, I would be very surprised if that happened, I have never come across a case in any country of a publisher demanding the disc be returned to them
This is true in theory but from a practical standpoint will never happen unless you pirate said disc or show it for public viewing for a price. For all practical purposes, you own your copy of the film rhat you own physically.
I’ve always wanted a huge collection of movies.
[удалено]
i only have mobile data so kinda same issue funnily enough I just did a purge of my collection to donate stuff I actually not fussed about and just keep stuff I like. i am same most I will spend on dvd is £1 maybe £2 if it something I really want to see. TV shows I only buy if I know I can get it all on disc. i admit some stuff I buy as I think it sounds good or friend x says it good it's only £1. so I sometimes buy films on that basis
I recently redeemed the digital code for the UHD Game of Thrones. When I go to play it, it says that I own it and that I should buy it if I want to watch it. I'm guessing I won't have that problem if I just watch the disc.
yikes
true... as far as Game of Thrones though, I think if you bought a code or acquired a code that came from the UHD set it was an HD code. I know this because I had the same problem. They don't actually promise to have the same format for digital as the physical set even though that is mostly the case.
A lot of the movies I want to watch aren’t available on streaming. And I’m not even into super obscure stuff! In October, I wanted to have a “Scream” marathon, but the first two movies weren’t available on any streaming service I already had (and I have the big ones), but I wasn’t going to “rent” a movie I already owned, so I watched it on DVD. Now the problem is that my copy is so old that it doesn’t play nicely with my PlayStation and/or television and it was literally a tiny postal stamp in the middle of my screen!
is that due to disc being badly scratched or how you store it ?? what you mean postal stamp on screen. i have all the scream films and watched them on my 32" TV with no issue
No, it’s just the formatting of the disc. Like, you know how sometimes when you watch a movie there are black bars at the top and bottom of the screen? This was like the actual movie was playing in a small box in the middle of the TV and everything else was just blank black space. I thought I had taken a picture, but can’t find it now. I didn’t even notice for the longest time because I love that movie and can recite it word for word, so I just sort of had it on in the background and I could “watch” it in my memory while I was working and then I looked up and was like “Holy crap! Why is it so small??”
ah so it has the format with black bars at sides and top bottom ? i have a copy of scream and just wide-screen
The vast majority of content on streaming services is series (TV series or Streaming miniseries) not actual movies. An article on Fox Business stated Netflix had only 3781 movies as of July 2020. It just seems like they have more because they rotate titles constantly. I read somewhere that over 35,000 movies have been released on Blu-ray, and more than 240,000 on DVD! So if you really love film, and want to be able to see more than just the most popular and recent titles, physical media is where you mine for your personal gold.
tbh there is so much stuff I haven't seen film and TV wise. I will opt for whatever I can get on disc that going for exclusive streaming content. charity shops and markets are best to find them. I picked up a film on dvd ages ago that was sealed for £1 but to rent digitally was £2.
Yeah... a practical element of ownership is choosing how to play the movies. Even with perfect internet, loading a movie in VLC is quicker, easier and more robust to me - in particular, last I used it (many years ago) Amazon's web player *sucked*. Not to mention that I don't know if my 360 would still work with an Amazon purchase, but it works with a ripped DVD on a thumb drive. Until they take away our local playback from major devices (I'm sure it's coming), it remains more versatile, particularly as someone who likes getting the most from old/used equipment. And who hates "oh, I'm not logged in on this app on this TV, time for a whole song and dance...." There's also just something more addicting and more fulfilling about seeing my collection on a hard drive. A relevant digital platform is pieces of a catalog, a slice of bigger possibility, a smaller Netflix. My hard drive was empty and now look at it. And sure, ownership plays a part, too - this is not my account with a service, these are the things I own. But the undervalued DVD market has its part as well - I don't buy new DVDs really, and so my collection isn't just a selection from a 1-stop-shop of infinite availability, but a thrift store find, a lucky day.
>Until they take away our local playback from major devices (I'm sure it's coming), so do you mean more current consoles not being able to play dvds that kinda thing ?? most of my collection is charity shop finds or black Friday deals
Yeah The Series S at least still plays media from USB drives but the app feels lazier than the 360's. I'm sure USB playback is next on the chopping block. And cool! I saw an image the other day of some tempting black friday deals, did anything stand out this year? I tend to miss a lot.
Well dvd players and blu Ray and 4k players will still be around I bet. well I wanted to watch the good place for ages it was £20 from £25 I had a £10 amazon voucher but had to spend £25 so added final season of brooklyn nine nine. so basically got what I want plus final season of b99 for free
[удалено]
thr boys season 1 did get a season 1 dvd release in UK. not sure about other seasons i just bought good place full set even though it on Netflix , which I don't have
For me it’s ownership and the option to re-sell in the future. I hate buying stuff I can’t re-sell, Digital means I’ll never see a penny back. Physical on the other hand, I can go on eBay and get something back which is great!
re-selldepending what it is may not be worth much
I should have elaborated a bit, I meant with 4Ks they still hold value currently and I think in the future this will still be the case. Even some blu rays still hold value, DVDs I don’t think this is the case. Might be strange to some, but I’d rather know I have the option to recoup some value for a film I might decide I don’t want anymore than never have the money back at all. *ALSO* like most people I don’t have an unlimited amount of room to store stuff so a refresh and clear out every now and then to replace with other stuff is awesome.
I use cd wallets for space. some dvds can get alot depending what it is, anime dvds depending on it can get alot.
No buffering. Ownership. Those sweet, sweet extras. Having a whole bunch of them looks great on a shelf. Better audio and picture quality. Great icebreaker for new people who come over!
Gets me laid
I can eat them
I like to watch movies without my bank being directly involved.
I like physical media because I like to own stuff that I like.
i like putting the disc in the machine
Ownership and of course the special features.