Does anyone think 4k UHD new releases are a bit of a ripoff?
Discussion
I used to be happy to pay the premium - typically £25 price point - and they came with a Blu Ray copy too which added a bit of perceived value but got my Dune pt2 the other week and it was pretty 'light' on anything other than the basic 4k UHD. Even the box seemed slimmer and lighter than my copy of Dune pt1 (which was because that one DID contain a regular Blu Day copy too). In this particular case, I'm somewhat miffed that despite being completely shot in IMAX you don't get any of the IMAX ratios used. They clearly intend to release these later for some easy double dip $$$s.
Looking at US reviews seems that they still get UHD + BD + Digital copy releases as the norm ... much better value.
I have to say that watching on a LG C3 42" (OLED) , the 4k copies don't look a massive amount better than regular BDs which still look just fantastic. You can sometimes notice extra brightness from HDR in dark scenes which are punctuated with lights - but that's about it. I understand that a lot of the movies from recent times actually are shot and edited in 2k for the cinema which is barely higher resolution than the 1080p of BD anyway and just gets upscaled at the mastering stage for UHD release. I'd probably notice on a bigger screen of course but 42" was a good size for my living room without dominating the place.
Going back and looking at my old DVDs, they look really ropey now on my TV and there is a massive uplift in picture quality on the BD version (when I have both copies), so I can see the value proposition when BD came along to replace DVD. The BD -> 4k uplift is pretty minimal for me and I don't see the point in paying £25 instead of £15 for the new releases (and of course you often find older BDs at really good sale prices).
I would have to say that moving forward I'll probably just break my rule of always trying to buy the most techically advanced format, and standardise on Blu Ray unless the 4k is noted as exceptional and offers something extra.
Any thoughts?
Looking at US reviews seems that they still get UHD + BD + Digital copy releases as the norm ... much better value.
I have to say that watching on a LG C3 42" (OLED) , the 4k copies don't look a massive amount better than regular BDs which still look just fantastic. You can sometimes notice extra brightness from HDR in dark scenes which are punctuated with lights - but that's about it. I understand that a lot of the movies from recent times actually are shot and edited in 2k for the cinema which is barely higher resolution than the 1080p of BD anyway and just gets upscaled at the mastering stage for UHD release. I'd probably notice on a bigger screen of course but 42" was a good size for my living room without dominating the place.
Going back and looking at my old DVDs, they look really ropey now on my TV and there is a massive uplift in picture quality on the BD version (when I have both copies), so I can see the value proposition when BD came along to replace DVD. The BD -> 4k uplift is pretty minimal for me and I don't see the point in paying £25 instead of £15 for the new releases (and of course you often find older BDs at really good sale prices).
I would have to say that moving forward I'll probably just break my rule of always trying to buy the most techically advanced format, and standardise on Blu Ray unless the 4k is noted as exceptional and offers something extra.
Any thoughts?
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