Blu-ray Discs - are the new features really worth the price?

[Prince]

Sounds like a good idea.Will make a few calls.

Thanx man..

 

[chipwelder]

So, how close are the comparative demo's in Look & Listen to the real thing? the difference is huge, but actually it just looks like the same file got sharpened until you get image artefacts and that the saturation and contrast was given a boost - it doesn't look nicer, it actually just gives me eyestrain. Am I alone in this?

[Andrew]

Personally I tend to be a tad dubious of in-store comparisons. They're generally designed to make a particular format look better than another, so I can't say I give them much credibility. I went to a plasma launch about two years back for a certain brand. The other brands' plasmas had been set up so badly, they stood out like sore thumbs.

[windshear]

The extra features are a waste of time, money and effort, Resulting in blue rays that are unecessarily expensive. Nobody uses them , hell who listens to the directors commentary on dvd's. Also makes for players that are over complicated to be profile 2.0 compliant for something the nobody uses. Slows things down to load .... So we have a "pc" running to boot up to make the stuff work .... Silly .

[Andrew]

The extra features are a waste of time, money and effort, Resulting in blue rays that are unecessarily expensive. Nobody uses them , hell who listens to the directors commentary on dvd's. Also makes for players that are over complicated to be profile 2.0 compliant for something the nobody uses. Slows things down to load .... So we have a "pc" running to boot up to make the stuff work .... Silly .

Good point you make about the extra features on current DVDs. Can't say I've looked at them (other than for reviewing purposes) more than five times since I first started watching DVDs. So I'm unlikely to do so on BD either. For me, the only attraction would be a better picture. Not certain my ears would find the high-def audio all that more stimulating than what I hear the the moment...

[AudioEngineer]

Well, I just made a comparison between the BBC Planet Earth DVD series vs. the Blu-ray discs. The difference is HUGE and the blu-ray images just pop out of the screen with obvious increased level of detail - just look at the images of the thousands of birds migrating. On the DVD the birds just look like triangles moving across the screen, whereas on the blu-ray each bird can clearly be distinguished as having the shape of a bird and not being just a little white triangle.

In addition to that the new high definition audio soundtracks (like uncompressed 24-bit/96kHz, DTS-MA, etc.) make a huge difference on a capable surround system - even that alone makes the price of admission worthwhile.

Just my 2c...

[chipwelder]

Then why for the love of all things good and pure do they make demo's so bad, also they seem to compress things badly, like skintones... splotches of amorphous skin often seen... maybe just on the two discs I've seen, maybe just because of 720p? I would really like to know

demo's look like this: first one is almost too much sharpening for higher res, but OK for 600x400 second one is too much even for 600x400.... it's like cd vs. mp3... but not compressed...

[KenMasters]

Then why for the love of all things good and pure do they make demo's so bad, also they seem to compress things badly, like skintones... splotches of amorphous skin often seen...

Sounds more like an issue with the display than the source. HD is clearly superior to SD, no argument. The question though isn't whether it's better but if it's so much better that it warrants an upgrade.

[Andrew]

Sounds more like an issue with the display than the source. HD is clearly superior to SD, no argument. The question though isn't whether it's better but if it's so much better that it warrants an upgrade.

Or the cost of upgrade vs. possibility of next format being out in two years' time! 

[chipwelder]

Possibly the display... a 720p Panny projector... so to get good blueray you have to get 1080p? I wonder if this is all there is to it, a 720p has to compress the 1080p signal to display it and that is the artefacts seen???

[KenMasters]

Possibly the display... a 720p Panny projector... so to get good blueray you have to get 1080p? I wonder if this is all there is to it, a 720p has to compress the 1080p signal to display it and that is the artefacts seen???

No, It's not the resolution that's the issue but the display/projector. Either it wasn't set up correctly or it's just not that good a projector.

[chipwelder]

I guess you are right, the dude should know how... but then again, it is not his main interest.

How much of an impact does the angle at which the lens has to work, and the correction of that have?

[KenMasters]

I guess you are right, the dude should know how... but then again, it is not his main interest.

How much of an impact does the angle at which the lens has to work, and the correction of that have?

That wouldn't be the problem, that should only affect geometry and focus. Projectors in general aren't very good when it comes to picture quality, unless you're willing to spend around R40 000 or more.

If you want to see what a Blu-Ray player is capable of, you should look at a Pioneer Kuro or the coming new range of Panasonic plasmas (the only sets currently available that are superior to CRT - IMO). Personally, I'm going to give it another 2 years or so before I pick up a flat panel. My hope is that by then every manufacturer would have sets on offer of similar quality (and at lower prices).

[xumbug]

This all depends if you have a dedicated H/T or not, Blue Ray is fantastic for movies on a large screen 2m and bigger. You will not get a HDTV that big for the same price. The sound tracks on the blue ray format is better as well, you have to have the correct ancillary equipment to reap the true benefits though. The correct projector on the correct screen will give you as good a picture as the best plasma or LCD at the same distance ratio. I have gone the full BD route and the picture and sound impresses all who watch it, it is a great medium for demonstrating equipment to people. Price to performance ratio is a little high but well worth it when you concider how much better it is than DVD.