mike
Is it worth investing in more blu-ray dvds when hard-drive based digital players are launching in the market? Things like Apple TV, DVR, and Roku are in early phases with a few problems, but there cited as the future of movies. Things can change obviously if their current drawbacks (rentals only and internet bandwith issues) aren't improved in the future. How many people are converting from dvds over to these devices?
Answer
It really comes down to what quality level consumers want and to what degree the physical ownership model (i.e. disks) still applies. The "MP3 generation" value convenience over quality and to some yet unknown degree this may also prove to be true for video.
HDTV programming, HD Video on Demand movies and HD download movies are all sufficiently high quality vs Blu-ray for many people (analogous to MP3 vs CD/SACD). Furthermore for many people who prefer the physical disk model the quality of DVD on a good player is all they need/want.
Blu-ray is the best video and audio quality available to consumers, but to fully benefit requires expensive equipment and the willingness to pay a premium price for disks ... something a large proportion of the population are not able or willing to do.
Combine that with an increasing range of "good enough" quality HD alternatives and the result is that Blu-ray will probably never achieve the same 'universal' penetration of the home market that DVD did. At the moment it is still only accounts for about 10-15% of DVD's market, and for many reasons may never achieve more than 30-40% of the home video market..
The bottom line is that Blu-ray is, and will remain, a premium priced alternative to DVD and for an increasing array of slightly lower quality HD alternatives. Blu-ray isn't likely to disappear, or be replaced by something better for years, so whether to buy or not is really a personal choice based on your circumstances and preferences.
It really comes down to what quality level consumers want and to what degree the physical ownership model (i.e. disks) still applies. The "MP3 generation" value convenience over quality and to some yet unknown degree this may also prove to be true for video.
HDTV programming, HD Video on Demand movies and HD download movies are all sufficiently high quality vs Blu-ray for many people (analogous to MP3 vs CD/SACD). Furthermore for many people who prefer the physical disk model the quality of DVD on a good player is all they need/want.
Blu-ray is the best video and audio quality available to consumers, but to fully benefit requires expensive equipment and the willingness to pay a premium price for disks ... something a large proportion of the population are not able or willing to do.
Combine that with an increasing range of "good enough" quality HD alternatives and the result is that Blu-ray will probably never achieve the same 'universal' penetration of the home market that DVD did. At the moment it is still only accounts for about 10-15% of DVD's market, and for many reasons may never achieve more than 30-40% of the home video market..
The bottom line is that Blu-ray is, and will remain, a premium priced alternative to DVD and for an increasing array of slightly lower quality HD alternatives. Blu-ray isn't likely to disappear, or be replaced by something better for years, so whether to buy or not is really a personal choice based on your circumstances and preferences.
Which is better to stream netflix to my old Bravia (thru my Sony home theater) - Roku or Sony Blu Ray+WiFi?
Dr Apk
Would like to use this with my Sony Home theater system for the best sound quality. The latest Sony Blu Ray DVD player has Wi-Fi streaming - any drawback to using this vs Roku ?
Answer
Sound quality should be identical, the stream is digital in either case.
I have a Sony Blu-ray that works great and I can recommend it. The Sony will stream music or video from your computer if DLNA server is enabled (see 1st link) the Roku cannot.
The Roku offers lots more streams than the Sony, but if Sony offers all you want it is not a real selling point. The Roku may be better in the long run since (I think) they are more likely to upgrade the software to add new streaming providers three years and more from now (they supported the Soundbridge for a very long time). The Roku can (soon?) be controlled from your PC (see 2nd link) the Sony cannot.
If you are planning on streaming music with the TV off, I recommend you verify that the Home Theater won't shutdown with HDMI input. My Sony AV receiver will not decode HDMI audio with the TV off so optical is necessary to stream music with TV off or you may have to use the analog outputs at lower quality. You can test your HT if you have an HDMI source. This should not be a problem with the Roku XDS since it has an optical output that will keep the HT playing with the TV off at high quality. The Sony has optical output so it is not an issue..
Sound quality should be identical, the stream is digital in either case.
I have a Sony Blu-ray that works great and I can recommend it. The Sony will stream music or video from your computer if DLNA server is enabled (see 1st link) the Roku cannot.
The Roku offers lots more streams than the Sony, but if Sony offers all you want it is not a real selling point. The Roku may be better in the long run since (I think) they are more likely to upgrade the software to add new streaming providers three years and more from now (they supported the Soundbridge for a very long time). The Roku can (soon?) be controlled from your PC (see 2nd link) the Sony cannot.
If you are planning on streaming music with the TV off, I recommend you verify that the Home Theater won't shutdown with HDMI input. My Sony AV receiver will not decode HDMI audio with the TV off so optical is necessary to stream music with TV off or you may have to use the analog outputs at lower quality. You can test your HT if you have an HDMI source. This should not be a problem with the Roku XDS since it has an optical output that will keep the HT playing with the TV off at high quality. The Sony has optical output so it is not an issue..
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Title Post: Future of Blu-Ray dvds?
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Author: Yukie
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Rating: 100% based on 998 ratings. 5 user reviews.
Author: Yukie
Thanks For Coming To My Blog
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