Blu-ray Appreciation Thread
I admit it. I'm a newbie to the Blu-ray medium. I don't own a PS3 nor did I own an HDTV until one week ago. But after picking up a new Samsung 40" HDTV and matching Samsung BDP-1600 BD Player, I'm finally sold. Blu-ray is for real.
Years ago, I thought watching the Special Editions of the Star Wars Trilogy on VHS was mind-blowing until I bought a DVD player and Terminator 2's Ultimate Edition. Nearly a decade and a half later, popping in Transformers and Wall-E on Blu-ray is the next logical step. It's much better than I thought it would be.
I'm really digging the lossless audio that most Blu-rays include, and I think its clarity is more than negligible. The hospital explosion in The Dark Knight, for instance, produced a roar I've never heard from my speakers, and I don't even have a surround setup or gigantic subwoofer. Truly nuts.
Picture quality is unparalleled. I finally understand what all the people I used to call "HD snobs" rave about. Digital source films are doubly impressive - Wall-E was almost made to be watched in 1080P. It's for that reason that I want to purchase every Pixar Blu-ray title out there (especially the direct-from-master Bugs' Life BD). These films look even more beautiful in HD.
I own one film produced before the turn of the century on Blu-ray, 2001: A Space Oddysey (which I found for $10 at a local FYE), and I was not expecting it to look as crisp and as detailed as a Wall-E, Dark Knight or Transformers. Yes, the print shows its age but its clarity and audio quality are mindblowing. It's a film that relies on sensory elements including great sets, groundbreaking optical effects and a bombastic classical score, and the transfer and lossless audio track does not disappoint. I completely forgot the film released in 1968 and that's saying a lot.
You can obviously tell I'm blown away as a first-time Blu-ray and HDTV owner, BUT I have many qualms about the new medium. First, I think the new features of Blu-Ray discs are increasing at a faster pace than the hardware out there can support them. The "Maximum Movie Mode" on the new Watchmen Blu-Ray Disc I ordered from Deep Discount doesn't yet work on my player, something I hope is fixed in the hardware's next firmware update. Next, it seems Blu-Ray itself is strictly an audiophile/videophile based medium at the moment and some companies seem to think that they can skip special features in order to provide the best audio and picture quality. While I agree with having optimal picture and audio quality, I think Blu-rays should offer more bang for the buck. More feature-heavy sets should be released from studios other than Pixar. And the loading times are very disappointing compared to DVD but that shouldn't be a problem once new firmware and hardware releases.
In closing, Blu-ray is an amazing medium but it's not quite at the point DVD was. In the next few years, I expect the medium to advance by leaps and bounds as the entertainment industry continues to favor high definition as the new standard.
Years ago, I thought watching the Special Editions of the Star Wars Trilogy on VHS was mind-blowing until I bought a DVD player and Terminator 2's Ultimate Edition. Nearly a decade and a half later, popping in Transformers and Wall-E on Blu-ray is the next logical step. It's much better than I thought it would be.
I'm really digging the lossless audio that most Blu-rays include, and I think its clarity is more than negligible. The hospital explosion in The Dark Knight, for instance, produced a roar I've never heard from my speakers, and I don't even have a surround setup or gigantic subwoofer. Truly nuts.
Picture quality is unparalleled. I finally understand what all the people I used to call "HD snobs" rave about. Digital source films are doubly impressive - Wall-E was almost made to be watched in 1080P. It's for that reason that I want to purchase every Pixar Blu-ray title out there (especially the direct-from-master Bugs' Life BD). These films look even more beautiful in HD.
I own one film produced before the turn of the century on Blu-ray, 2001: A Space Oddysey (which I found for $10 at a local FYE), and I was not expecting it to look as crisp and as detailed as a Wall-E, Dark Knight or Transformers. Yes, the print shows its age but its clarity and audio quality are mindblowing. It's a film that relies on sensory elements including great sets, groundbreaking optical effects and a bombastic classical score, and the transfer and lossless audio track does not disappoint. I completely forgot the film released in 1968 and that's saying a lot.
You can obviously tell I'm blown away as a first-time Blu-ray and HDTV owner, BUT I have many qualms about the new medium. First, I think the new features of Blu-Ray discs are increasing at a faster pace than the hardware out there can support them. The "Maximum Movie Mode" on the new Watchmen Blu-Ray Disc I ordered from Deep Discount doesn't yet work on my player, something I hope is fixed in the hardware's next firmware update. Next, it seems Blu-Ray itself is strictly an audiophile/videophile based medium at the moment and some companies seem to think that they can skip special features in order to provide the best audio and picture quality. While I agree with having optimal picture and audio quality, I think Blu-rays should offer more bang for the buck. More feature-heavy sets should be released from studios other than Pixar. And the loading times are very disappointing compared to DVD but that shouldn't be a problem once new firmware and hardware releases.
In closing, Blu-ray is an amazing medium but it's not quite at the point DVD was. In the next few years, I expect the medium to advance by leaps and bounds as the entertainment industry continues to favor high definition as the new standard.
It's a pretty low end setup, just a home theater in a box from Onkyo. But it's really still very good and the detailed audio is incredible. Movies like I Am Legend really make active use of the surrounds and you really feel like you're in the middle of the movie. It's very immersive and you get sucked into it.
Comment