Streaming Vs DVD's

 

One thing that has come about with advances in global communications technology and that is the way we watch movies and television show. I personally think streaming is a good service as I can put on a TV show and let it play through as I sleep as long as there is show or a movie that I want to watch. But streaming is not the all be all in supreme technology, because technology does fail every so often. What I am trying to say is that with all the current news about Best Buy doing away with all their DVD Services, Netflix stopping their DVD by mail service, the one this that these corporations do see or understand is what happens if the streaming channel goes down, the internet in you are goes down or the movie you have your heart set on to watch isn’t on any of the streaming channels, then you stuck not watching anything because somehow it’s not available.

As a person that has been around and seen technology change in every medium, I love advancing technology, but getting rid of one form or another has always been a bad idea. Take when cassettes tapes or CD’s became the main stream records went the way of the techno dodo, but hey look years ago you started to see turntable returning to retail stores online and brick & mortar, then records starting to sell like hot cakes, because going to a nightclub or a rave, you want that authentic music sound, not something that is on Spotify or ITunes. DJ’s love having the record in the hand and changing from one spinner to another, its more real than anything you can get off the streaming system.

DJ Chill who is a DJ for a nightclub in the SeaTac area that I met years ago was asked a few questions about using records and not using a pre-set streaming system. ‘Streaming services are unreliable and most performance environments have terrible Wi-Fi’,

That is what I have been telling people for years when streaming took hold, its great but it should not be completely relied upon. DJ Chill went on and added more to his comment.

DJ Chill ‘Having more music than you can possibly listen to degrades your listening experience, promotes a disposable culture, and lowers your understanding of your music, thereby making you a less talented DJ and performer.’

He makes a great point right there, it does, anyone with a Spotify, iTunes or another streaming system can become a DJ, that doesn’t make you a good DJ, it makes you a lazy DJ and an unprofessional one and no one would take you serious. This also goes along the lines with the other part of the entertainment industry the movies and television. Hollywood loves to adapt to technology even if it’s very slowly. Take the actors strike; they are striking to get a better deal from the studios for streaming their movies.

As I mentioned I love streaming, it’s a greats service, but as a person that watch some of the most extreme  odd movies or lots of foreign films leaves me to a disadvantage because even though I subscribe to 15 screaming channels, still have full cable not everything is always on these services. I like my DVD collection, because there are quite a few movies or TV shows that are not on streaming or may never be on streaming. Some of those reasons may be that they are older films/TV shows or just not on the radar of the streaming people and they may not know about that movie or the TV show only lasted 8 episodes total. The studio still saw fit to put them on a DVD and sell it.

Which brings me to another good point, you own the DVDs, but you do not own the ones that you are streaming, you pay a monthly or a yearly fee for something you will never own personally. Take Amazon prime, if you purchase a programme on prime and you let your prime lapse and not renew it, you lose what you have purchase on the prime video, and cannot get it back. You would have to go and buy it again and add it to your new prime video if you tend to renew it later. That doesn’t happen if you own a DVD, its yours until you decide to get rid of it, and can watch it whenever and not have to see if it is playing somewhere on one of the streaming channels. 

Another good reason to still buy and get DVD’s if you go camping and your internet reception sin not available or sucks and takes for ever to buffer a movie. You can always plug in a portable DVD player to your generator or car plug and watch a movie, especially if it’s raining and you can’t really do anything outside.  With constant content purges on many streaming channels, serious fans will always want backup of copies of their movies because who knows what could get pulled next? There are a slew of films made for HBO Max and Disney Plus that are essentially lost media now because they don’t have a DVD or Blu-ray copy out there, as well as the mega-budget streaming series Willow even though it had one season, it was still good and needs a Blu-ray release. If these shows got physical releases, they would exist in some fashion, with the current unavailability driving fans to pirate sites.

The movie industry can follow in the lines of the music industry which is the one thing that the music business has done to promote Vinyl and CDs is releasing exclusive tracks that aren’t available to stream, making them collector’s items. The one sure-fire way to get people to buy the Blu-rays is to release alternate cuts of the movie that are ONLY available on disc, such as director’s cut or unrated version of the film. With directors and studios making so many watered-down movies that are coming out, why not shoot some spicy footage and ONLY bundle them with the physical copies rather than making them available on sites like iTunes or other streaming platforms? Perhaps it’s time we all start buying Blu-rays again, with smaller labels like The Criterion Collection, Arrow, Shout Factory or other small independent film companies (that may usually get screwed over payment by streaming services) deserving our support more than ever and our money more than a streaming service that may charge you 18 dollars and not have the movies you want to see at the moment.

If you watch movies at home these days, you most likely watched them on Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime, or another streaming service. Those are all great choices and millions of people subscribe. However, if you’re a serious movie buff, or if you’re creating a home theatre experience, there is something better: A DVD. Yep, those silver discs are the best in-home movie experience.  Streaming is convenient but there’s a huge trade-off in quality. With a basic Netflix subscription, movies you watch are in 480p, not high definition.

For perspective:

• A movie in 480p standard definition has a resolution of 720×480, which means there are 720 pixels horizontally and 480 pixels vertically
• Standard HD has a resolution of 1280 pixels horizontally and 480 vertically
• Full HD has 1920 pixels horizontally and 1080 vertically
• 4K and UHD (ultra-high definition) is 3840 pixels horizontally and 2160 vertically

You won’t notice as much of a change on smaller TVs, but if your television is 50″ or larger, the difference is remarkable. You’ll pay more for HD titles ($15.50/mo) and for 4k and Ultra HD titles ($20 a month.) Although their libraries are growing, not every movie is available in 4K or UHD. Movie buffs, listen up. DVDs may be better than streaming for the best movie watching experience, as Jamey Tucker explains. Cost isn’t the only factor though. If your smart TV or streaming device is connected over WiFi, your internet speed is likely not fast enough for full HD.

Blu-Ray DVDs, on the other hand, are all in full HD. BluRay players are under $100 now and you can even find 4K/Ultra HD DVD players for around $200. No internet is required. DVD players also have up to 7.1 surround sound for an even better home theatre experience. Netflix and other streaming services may offer 5.1 surround sound, but even that is compressed which means it’s good enough for bandwidth but the audio quality is nowhere near what you’ll hear from a DVD player and surround sound system.  Where do you find DVDs? There were Red Box rental kiosks everywhere with a limited selection of Blu-Ray discs for a couple of bucks before they went bankrupt, but Walmart still has their discount bins and Selections shelves, Amazon is nowadays the best bet, but is some towns there may still be video rentals stores, such as Silver platters in Seattle/Northgate Area and Bend, Oregon The last Blockbuster in the Universe.

Netflix also had a DVD rental program that delivered to your home that has been done away with over a year ago no. Which is sad because they had DVDs that were not streaming which is the problem sometimes,. The DVD plans were and Netflix should bring them back as it helps the customer and is better for the service.

• $10/month for unlimited rental and one DVD out at-a-time
• $15/mo for unlimited rentals and 2 DVDs out at-a-time
• $20/mo for unlimited rentals and 3 DVDs out at-a-time

Another advantage DVD have over streaming is that movies aren’t staying in theatres as long now as they did a decade ago, so you’ll find the most recent titles on DVD and rentals sources in your area. While Netflix streaming and the other services occasionally get the most recent releases, there are not many to choose from and the movie you’re wanting to see may not be on a streaming service you subscribe to.  Finally, a big reason is psychological. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve flipped through Netflix or Amazon for over an hour trying to find something to watch. There are too many choices.

Getting DVD is like an investment. You feel compelled to watch it right away. If you are old enough to remember browsing the aisles at Blockbuster or another movie rental store, you probably remember how you couldn’t wait to get home to watch. I’ve found myself browsing through a streaming service and saying “I want to see that” but never getting back to it. If you’re a casual movie viewer and you don’t necessarily have to watch in HD, you’re fine with the audio coming out of the TV and you don’t mind watching a movie that’s a few years old, streaming is probably fine. However, if you’re a real movie buff this is one of those rare times that old tech is better than new tech.