When will standard DVD go extinct?

[sterling shoote]

DVD became extinct when I purchased My Panasonic BD80, which was purchased on the promise by Blu-Ray promoters to enhance my viewing pleasure with a better picture. Since the Panasonic up-scales my collection of DVD's, that material looks better too, so good in fact that I don't really see (pun) a need to purchase BD material as long as the same is out there on DVD at a cheaper price. Maybe BD has better sound than DVD; but, not better as in a comparison of DVD to VHS.

Here's what's going to happen. Production of DVDs will cease, or they will be packaged as they sometimes are now with a Blu-Ray disc. Everybody will pay more, until volume, competition and greed begin to bend for the consumer.

One more thing to remember, technology is about products which are perceived to offer performance, convenience, or something of which the consumer is willing to part with money to get right now, you know, life-style.

 

[Pyrrho]

DVD became extinct when I purchased My Panasonic BD80, which was purchased on the promise by Blu-Ray promoters to enhance my viewing pleasure with a better picture. Since the Panasonic up-scales my collection of DVD's, that material looks better too, so good in fact that I don't really see (pun) a need to purchase BD material as long as the same is out there on DVD at a cheaper price. Maybe BD has better sound than DVD; but, not better as in a comparison of DVD to VHS.

Here's what's going to happen. Production of DVDs will cease, or they will be packaged as they sometimes are now with a Blu-Ray disc. Everybody will pay more, until volume, competition and greed begin to bend for the consumer.

One more thing to remember, technology is about products which are perceived to offer performance, convenience, or something of which the consumer is willing to part with money to get right now, you know, life-style.

How much of a difference one sees between DVDs and BDs is a function of several things, the most important one generally being how close one is to the screen relative to its size. Many people sit so far away from a relatively small screen that they cannot possibly see all of the information on a BD, and consequently it matters far less to them than it might otherwise. Here is a link to an online calculator for determining the distance one should be from one's set to be able to see all of the detail if one has 20/20 vision:

http://www.digital-digest.com/articles/viewing_distance.php

Here are some links to some relevant articles:

http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/features/2006/02/maxing-out-resolution

http://carltonbale.com/1080p-does-matter

http://www.practical-home-theater-guide.com/Tv-viewing-distance.html

In my case, I have a 768p 42" set that I sit about 8 feet from. If my vision were 20/20, that would be about perfect for material at the maximum resolution of my TV. I can clearly see the difference between BD and DVD, and have stopped buying DVDs.

If one sits at about 8 feet from one's TV, if one has a 1080p set and one has 20/20 vision (most people do not, and so they should sit closer if they want to see all of the detail, unless their vision is corrected to 20/20), one would need a TV of approximately 62" to be able to see all of the detail of a well mastered BD; anything smaller, and one will be too far away to be able to see all of the detail that is there. Judging from posts I have read online, most people have smaller TVs and sit further away, thus meaning that they are not seeing all the detail that they have paid to have.

 

[digicidal]

How much of a difference one sees between DVDs and BDs is a function of several things, the most important one generally being how close one is to the screen relative to its size. Many people sit so far away from a relatively small screen that they cannot possibly see all of the information on a BD, and consequently it matters far less to them than it might otherwise.

That is true, however - it is not a boolean determination. For example, I have a 52" 1080p TV that I watch from about 12' away. Can I see all of the detail of a BD? No. Can I see a significant difference between DVD & BD? Hell, yes! Now, if I watch my TV from the kitchen - difference is gone.

The reason that I will always buy BD (if available) isn't because I will see the difference with every TV - although every TV in my house is an HDTV. Most of mine are 27"-32" sets (although they are viewed from less than 6' away in those cases). The real reason (for me) is simple future-proofing. If I later have the privilege of having a setup like Jostenmeat's, then I'm covered. Also since I rip everything to my media server - and occasionally watch movies on my PC - then I really can see it all (since I'm viewing it from about 1.3' away).

However, that being the case for myself - I don't see my parents ever getting BDs. Even though they have two HDTVs - they have a very limited taste in movies... and still have and use a fairly large collection of VHS tapes that they can only justify replacing when they break. This is something that my wife and I cannot even conceive of - as watching anything on VHS makes both of us break out in hives.

I definitely agree with the comment that audioholics are not representative of the masses - even in video. The average person just doesn't care that much, and is just as happy with the picture from a DVD as they are with the sound from their clock radio or BOSE system.