Topic: Why did you stop collecting DVDs?

[DViant]

For the past 5 years I've amassed a respectable collection of DVDs ranging from the classics to the current fantasy blockbusters. I’ve lovingly kept them at their best and lent them out to trusted friends. Now though I’ve decided to stop all together. I wont be buying the Star Wars DVD box set nor will I get the Return of the King Extended Edition. I am going cold fish because I know that in 2-4 years time DVDs will be obsolete. Yes, my friends the DVDs we’ve lusted, craved and fantasized will be delegated to the dust bin of yesterday’s technology. It’ll join our old friend the VHS, Betamax and the 8 track. It’ll be a footnote in our ever expanding collection of old and obsolete AV gear.

Movies and TV programs that are coming out now on DVD will also be offered in a new and better format called HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs. I wont bore you with the technical differences between the two nor with the headache of having two formats will be for us the consumer. But I’ll tell you this though Sony won’t make this any easier for us as they just announced that the PS3 will be sporting a Blu-ray Disc ROM (BD-ROM). Simply put come middle of 2005 we’ll all have access to BD players in the form of the PS3. This would push HD displays to the top of mainstream consumer’s wish list worldwide.

So what’ll happen to HD-DVD you may ask? Well if they arrive in the market place early enough they may succeed in pre-empting Sony’s trust. The PS3 is guaranteed to be huge and its success will have a profound impact on what’ll be the de facto standard of the entertainment and technology industry. Also it is yet to be seen whether Microsoft or Nintendo will side with the BD or HD-DVD crowd.

So which side will you be taking?

[cherubrock]

O Hemisphere, mago-OOP daw lahat ng DVDs natin, hehehe.. 

Seriously though, I personally don't see the need to panic because of these new formats. Here are my thoughts:

• VHS enjoyed its popularity, in whole or in part, because of their recording capabilities. DVD-recording is a relatively new item for consumers and the hardware is just starting to come down in price. This means that it slowly becomes more affordable to a growing segment of the market, which is more than eager to have access to this "new" development. When a new format comes out, I doubt if it will be accompanied by any recordable technology (at least for a few more years).
• This might be a little assuming, but the difference between the current DVD format and a higher definition one might only be appreciated on HDTV, or other such high-end equipment. Prices of such hardware have a long way to go before they become a feasible buy for most consumers.
• CDs are not becoming obsolete in spite of the emergence of SACDs, DVD-audio, and similar other formats. Plus, there is a significant difference in price that deters many would-be buyers. My bet is that whatever new format emerges will be backwards-compatible with the current DVD, because this is what is enjoying unprecedented success in the marketplace. I think Sony, for one, has learned its lesson with the DAT, or to a lesser extent, the Minidisc. In any case, I don't think we have to fear that all our collections will suddenly go the way of the dodo.

As for taking sides, I think there should only be one newer format, and unless all the entities involved agree on it, I doubt if I'll go ga-ga over the latest iteration of the dvd. Worst case? If indeed DVD as we know it now becomes obsolete, then it would've been worth it because I've derived countless hours of entertainment and enjoyment from it. Stopping from collecting DVDs? Not in the foreseeable future for me. 

My two cents only 

[barrid]

Same as Rocky's view.  With emphasis on backward compatibility.

Stop buying DVDs. No way. I still have a bunch of Beta, VHS, LD and VCD.  And still playing them once in a while.

[keating]

Dvds are here to stay just like cd's but if a new format comes out I have mixed reactions. Its good news that people don't stop inventing for new technologies to arrive in the market. What bothers me is the obsolete thing....if it will make the dvds dusting in our shelves that would be a problem.

I will stop probably if all of my savings are gone.

[voj]

For the past 5 years I've amassed a respectable collection of DVDs ranging from the classics to the current fantasy blockbusters. I’ve lovingly kept them at their best and lent them out to trusted friends. Now though I’ve decided to stop all together. I wont be buying the Star Wars DVD box set nor will I get the Return of the King Extended Edition. I am going cold fish because I know that in 2-4 years time DVDs will be obsolete. Yes, my friends the DVDs we’ve lusted, craved and fantasized will be delegated to the dust bin of yesterday’s technology. It’ll join our old friend the VHS, Betamax and the 8 track. It’ll be a footnote in our ever expanding collection of old and obsolete AV gear.

Movies and TV programs that are coming out now on DVD will also be offered in a new and better format called HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs. I wont bore you with the technical differences between the two nor with the headache of having two formats will be for us the consumer. But I’ll tell you this though Sony won’t make this any easier for us as they just announced that the PS3 will be sporting a Blu-ray Disc ROM (BD-ROM). Simply put come middle of 2005 we’ll all have access to BD players in the form of the PS3. This would push HD displays to the top of mainstream consumer’s wish list worldwide.

So what’ll happen to HD-DVD you may ask? Well if they arrive in the market place early enough they may succeed in pre-empting Sony’s trust. The PS3 is guaranteed to be huge and its success will have a profound impact on what’ll be the de facto standard of the entertainment and technology industry. Also it is yet to be seen whether Microsoft or Nintendo will side with the BD or HD-DVD crowd.

So which side will you be taking?

If you substitute the words blu-ray /hd where DVDs are, then substitute whatever new technology will come out in the future that supposedly will replace blu ray, then you're back to square one.  In the meantime,  I'd rather enjoy my DVDs  .

DVD has reached critical mass much faster than CDs.  In other words, a lot more people own DVD machines now compared to when the CD replaced the turntable.  It would be hard to make them change.  So my take is whatever new technology, especially one employing the same form factor as the CD, will have to make them backward compatible.  If the specs are to be believed, then a whole DVD content will only occupy a fraction of the new media.  Therefore, I see people in the future buying the "new" dvd not for its HD content but the present content.

I believe form factor will be the deciding factor.  If the DVD format came out with the same form factor as the laserdisc, the laserdisc will still be around today.  The convenience of the 5 1/4 factor clinched the switch (along with other factors, of course, lest I invite a slew of detractors-  please take note that I am just making a simplified, albeit stretched justification of the importance of the new form factor.

If you remember a scene in Superman when he was reviewing the the history of his planet in the crystal cave.  Superman was inserting a crystal tube in a contraption.  It is still a recorded message in a different form factor.

I'm using a DVD mega-changer which houses my Friends and XFiles DVDs along with other titles I enjoy watching over and over.  I'd like to see a form factor similarly to lego wherein you buy the movie, put it in your player and it becomes a permanent part of your collection always on hand when you want to watch it,  then you build your collection by just putting them together ala lego style, the software of your player taking care of the menu selection of all your archives.

Maybe I'm watching to much x-files 


voj

[viper]

After reading through the posts in this topic, I have just one question:

Was the subject appropriate?
 

When I saw the topic, I was hoping to see responses as to why one stopped collecting but what I saw were (informative) discourses on new technologies that might replace DVDs. Maybe a change in the subject heading is needed?

[barrid]

My first thought about this thread is. This should fall under the DVD-Buster thread. Since it also talked about that. I was just waiting for the Mod to analyze and may be merge this into the appropiate thread.

Anyway, I read an article about some developers planning to use a memory type storage for movie. Which excite me a bit ,since ,there'll be no moving part when playing back and probably smaller in size. Nine [9.6]Gb memory? I wonder, how big will it be in dimension?

[cherubrock]

I also figured that this thread might be merged into the dvd-buster sticky, but then again, DViant was explaining why he stopped collecting, which he attributed to said dvd-busters. Tayo naman, we gave our views on why we won't stop collecting, even in the advent of the newer technologies that will inevitably surface.

To merge or not to merge? Change title perhaps? I guess it's the mods' call 

OT: Sir Barrid, too late na when I got your PM. I'll try to check if I get the chance to go back 

[Mo®pHeOu$]

 

Mahirap na atang tumigil lalo na if you got hook-up already.  Medyo matagalan pa siguro bago palitan yung format na to.  Like VHS, kahit napalitan na, you can always find a VHS copy of new movies eventhough meron ding DVD release.  It's a matter of affordability kasi.  If you're budget won't permit you to buy those "new" formats because of their pricing, might as well settle for a DVD copy which is more affordable to you di ba? 

[diver]

... It's a matter of affordability kasi.  If you're budget won't permit you to buy those "new" formats because of their pricing, might as well settle for a DVD copy which is more affordable to you di ba? 

I agree 101% Sir Morph    Eh kami nga ng husband ko, up to now we still buy vcd copies of those movies that we "medyo" like lang kasi if dvd bibilihin mo ... hindi siya masusulit for the price that you spend on them.  I can just imagine kung gaano ka mahal those hi-tech stuff na lalabas in the future.  For now, super happy na kami sa dvd ... but sabi nga ni cherubrock ... huwag daw magsalita ng tapos 

[Mo®pHeOu$]

 

KAmi ganyan din diver!  A VCD copy for those movies worth watching pero if we really like the movie, then DVD copy! 

[av_phile1]

Well, I agree with the posters above, I had the impression this thread is about ending the simple collecting madness I once had.  So maybe a retitling of the thread is in order.

But just to answer the question directly, I've not stopped the collection hobby entirely.  It just crawled to about 2 DVDs a month, when it used to be about a dozen.   More to do with finances, as I diverted more of them on CD and DVD-A purchases that I enjoy more than movies.  I noticed that most of my CDs/DVD-As/DTS-CDs  have a lot of  replay value,  OTH, my DVDs are just sitting on the shelf.  After viewing once, that's it.  Between listening to music and watching movies, I really find my leisure times too brief.  I think one poster said it right when he said there's just too little time in one's lifespan to enjoy all the music and the movies he'll ever want.  One has to prioritize on which gives the most pleasures, right?

[kimpOy]

i did stopped collecting...
because i have expenses up to my neck, with 2 babies now, baka lumubog na ako,
but with the recent sale at Astro, bumalik ulit ang passion...

about blue-ray/ HD-DVD... imho baka maging LD yan.

[nerveblocker]

I will live in a day to day basis.  If there isn't anything solid seen around I will still stick to the present format.  The purpose of DVDs are for entertainment and nothing else.  If a new format comes out, then I will just buy the upcoming movies in that format and not buying old titles in a new format specially if you have the DVD already. 

Once in a while, I still watch some LDs in my HT and the enjoyment is still there. 

Ciao!

[ann07]

It's what makes me entertained, why stop? I think the invention of DVDs had brought movie viewing to its max and what more to ask for when u have it in your own HT place.   It will always be a part of my life even if there is new ones in the near future.  It will always remain a collection and an endless viewing.

[cineaste]

Ultimately, it is economics which will dictate whether a product becomes obsolete or not.  After all, in this capitalist world, the production and consumption of goods is dictated by currency and market economics. 

Will my beloved DVDs become obsolete in 2005?  Well, it will depend on my personal taste and buying power and those of the other Pinoys here who collect movies.

[turbospaceman23]

If you love to watch and own movies, buy DVDs na. You never know when you're going to go anyway. Baka next year la ka na sa mundo na to, useless then lahat ng paghihintay. At least mamamtay tayo nakangiti hehe.