Anyone else got BLU-RAY yet?

[Sheridan Passell]

I finally got my first player, albeit a laptop drive. I've quickly realised you have to research each disc before you buy it. The Dark Knight looks superb, especially the stuff shot with IMAX cameras - stunning. But discs like Street Kings (under-rated movie) look barely any different to dvd.

Anyone else got a player yet? What do you think? And if you haven't yet, when do you think you will?

[Tyler Lovemark]

My parents have one, and I watched the first Narnia flick on it.  I honestly could not tell the difference.  I have trouble shelling out over ten bucks for a DVD, I don't think I'll be letting go of $40 for one anytime soon.

[Sheridan Passell]

What sort of TV do your parents have? The bigger the TV, the more you notice the difference (although mine is on a laptop). But then a lot of blu-ray discs are a bit crap too which confuses things.

Where Blu-Ray (usually) makes a startling difference is in depth of field. Cityscapes etc. I've heard the Blu-Ray of The Shining is incredible for this reason, because Kubrick frames everything in it with miles of space behind the actor.

[T.ROSS]

I want to get a PS3, those have Blu-Rays

[Tyler Lovemark]

I'm not sure of the brand or anything, but the TV is pretty big (like 40+ inch).  It's pretty new, they just got it like a few months ago.  I'm hoping it's just that the movie itself wasn't much of a good Bluray transfer.  It looked exactly like a DVD quality movie.

[Sheridan Passell]

Sure, even though I own it, I'm still not converted. And I'm not really recommending to anyone. Here in the UK our version of netflix offers blu-rays to rent for the same price as normal dvds, so I'm renting blu-ray and it certainly adds a bit of spice to things. I'm not buying disks.

[dalmatianjaws]

I'm still waiting for the technology to settle. I'm not restocking my collection yet, since I think everythings going completely digital within my lifetime.

A lot of flicks are put into 1080p on Blue Ray but were not filmed for such a thing (older flicks) and end up looking like shit. Or so I'm told.

I know it's a better technology, but it's not a large enough jump in overall quality (like VHS to DVD) to justify the large price at this time. I've only observed store displays however, and havn't spent any real time with is.

[Stephen]

I have a PS3. You need to have an HDtv. To get up to 1080p you need HDMI cables. I noticed a difference on the blu-rays that I bought on a big tv with Full HD. I have a 65" with 1080p. But some blu-rays are just not worth it. I recommend movies that you really liked to get on blu-ray or stuff with special effects. Dvds are still a really good thing to have. I wouldn't spring out to buy one. I recommend getting Iron Man and The Dark Knight on Blu-Ray though. Blu-Ray players are getting cheaper though and you also can find cheap Blu-Rays. I found some for really cheap and buying used is ok because the discs can take on quite a bit and still play.

[Sheridan Passell]

65" TV? That's nuts.

[dalmatianjaws]

There's a new 150 incher out there. SNL's comment was "just in time for nobody to afford it."

[AristotleP]

I've had my PS3 since launch, I got a free Casino Royale copy from Sony when I registered it online. I'm looking to buy a player soon as I want to get There Will Be Blood and a few others

[Sheridan Passell]

I've still never seen a blu-ray played through a ps3, what's it like - can you really tell the difference from a dvd?

[AristotleP]

It's great quality actually

There was a comparison ages ago that showed that the quality was slightly better than one of the Samsung BR players that cost an arm and a leg at the time.

[AristotleP]

Yeah and the quality is significantly better than DVD, though you'll need a HD setup to get the most out of it.