Leary about buying all movies in iTunes

[takeshi74]

All science a side, if the plot and acting are good enough, you pay attention to the film, not the tech specs. If the compression bothers you enough, the plot and acting aren't enough to immerse the viewers and you probably should not waste your time watching the film.

Subjective matter and that should be obvious just from reading this thread if not daily observation in the real world. Each person needs to decide based on his/her own preferences. This is not another one-size-fits-all matter. Never assume your preferences are universal on any topic.

I'll take a good 480p film with a good story, blown up to an 80 foot screen in theater, compared to the latest crap film somewhere else.

Note the "I'll" in your comment? I = you. You have control over your own preferences. That's it. Other people control theirs. Not sure why so many seem to be unable to grasp this and feel the need to dictate preference to others.

For the sake of nothing for than playing devil's advocate - is there really a ton of value in owning movies anymore?

Value is subjective no matter what the topic. Depends on who you ask.

I would say everybody is going to have about a dozen titles that they honestly watch enough to justify a purchase, but there's just so much content out there to watch if not free then very cheaply that I just don't feel the same draw to own that I used to.

Based on what? You can't assume trends from your own preferences. Trends are never defined by a single data point. Again, this is a subjective matter. The words "justification" and "I feel" in your statement are the clues that these are subjective matters. Some people can't justify any movie purchases. Some people justify massive purchases. Many fall somewhere in between. It's not a universal matter and it's not an either-or matter.

 

[Michael CM1]

I have bought a couple of SD movies in the past that were either on sale for $5 or something hard to find. But recently I bought The Hunger Games and American Pie to try out the HD quality and iTunes Extras.

I like the ease of buying them via iTunes, and for those the price was the same as BD. However, realizing the fact that I don't technically own them AND the audio is crap compared to BD made me rethink buying them again.

This is the one area in which Apple bugs the hell out of me. The video quality of the iTunes HD movies is pretty good, but WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU THINK DOLBY DIGITAL IS GOOD ENOUGH? I think that still ties into the "hobby" part of Apple TV. If Apple were serious, we'd at least get a DTS option and have the ability to view iTunes Extras through an Apple TV.

It wouldn't be so bad if Apple had decided to start using BD optical drives instead of REMOVING them from newer lines. So now I've got to find some $80+ external drive instead of Apple realizing that yeah, most of us still use optical discs for movies. Until the discs blend with downloads like iTunes music does, I think that's going to keep going.

 

[SRLMJ23]

To the OP, you can store your movies/TV Shows in the Cloud. Well, it's not really storing them but in iTunes on the homepage there is a "Purchased" link, if you click on that it takes you to ALL of your purchases, there you can download your movies and music whenever, wherever.

I just did a fresh install of OSX Mountain Lion, and when I was ready to setup iTunes I just logged in, went to My Purchases, and downloaded all my music and some of the movies I wanted on my Mac locally. So don't worry about losing them, as long as iCloud is around your movies are stored in the cloud and there is nothing to worry about.

 

[ljonesj]

well for me i am a collector i like anime but not all anime is on itunes plus even the sd rips are huge compared to what i can but and rip myself and save hard drive space plus there are times my internet is down so bye bye watching stuff on my apple tv 2 so i will take the dvd out that has the show i am watching and finish watching that show plus more before my internet is back up and running so there are good and bad to all this

 

[inaka]

Another option is buying blu-rays that include iTunes digital downloads. That way you have the best of both worlds.

Good suggestion, but personally I would buy the blu-rays and then RIP the movie myself. That's truly the best of both words to me because it would apply to all movies (even those without the included iTunes version) and you can toggle the video output settings to even higher than the iTunes option will likely be. Plus, you have a backup of all movies on disc, and it includes all extras, etc.

 

[bearcatrp]

To the OP, you can store your movies/TV Shows in the Cloud. Well, it's not really storing them but in iTunes on the homepage there is a "Purchased" link, if you click on that it takes you to ALL of your purchases, there you can download your movies and music whenever, wherever.

I just did a fresh install of OSX Mountain Lion, and when I was ready to setup iTunes I just logged in, went to My Purchases, and downloaded all my music and some of the movies I wanted on my Mac locally. So don't worry about losing them, as long as iCloud is around your movies are stored in the cloud and there is nothing to worry about.

I would suggest reading the other thread on iTunes in this forum. Seems if you don't back up what you purchased from iTunes, and apple doesn't carry it anymore, you loose it.

 

[ipedro]

3. Availability. If I buy a movie on iTunes, my biggest fear is that one day they may pull it away and I cant watch it. Could this happen?

This is being discussed in more detail in this thread:

WARNING: Serious flaw in iTunes in the Cloud

The quick answer: Yes, this could happen. Worse, it already is.

My brother is one of those people who buy a lot of movies on iTunes. Already, about 10 of them (that he can remember) are missing. Having escalated it Tim Cook's office, their answer to him (and to me -- I contacted them again from my own account to confirm that this is in fact the case) is that you must back up all your purchases -- even if you bought them on AppleTV where there is no local storage. If a license holder pulls a movie/song/tv show/app/book from the iTunes store or if they sell/transfer the rights to a new owner, then you can no longer download that content. It's gone forever if you didn't back it up.

View the thread above for an ongoing discussion on the topic.

 

[donrsd]

I have about 150 blurays and have watched maybe 25 of them LOL
As of this week I now have a bluray burner.
Im just going to burn everything I have, sell off the bluray case & discs and keep what Ive burned on discs.
Any new movie that comes out, Ill rent and burn. As far as iTunes digital copies......I have about 110 from blurays. For digital copies, Ill just buy them for $3 or so and have an Apple iCloud copy

Im done storing my blurays on a shelf.

If anyone is interested in buying MINT blurays in bulk, PM me.

 

[spacepower7]

Subjective matter and that should be obvious just from reading this thread if not daily observation in the real world. Each person needs to decide based on his/her own preferences. This is not another one-size-fits-all matter. Never assume your preferences are universal on any topic.


Note the "I'll" in your comment? I = you. You have control over your own preferences. That's it. Other people control theirs. Not sure why so many seem to be unable to grasp this and feel the need to dictate preference to others.


Value is subjective no matter what the topic. Depends on who you ask.


Based on what? You can't assume trends from your own preferences. Trends are never defined by a single data point. Again, this is a subjective matter. The words "justification" and "I feel" in your statement are the clues that these are subjective matters. Some people can't justify any movie purchases. Some people justify massive purchases. Many fall somewhere in between. It's not a universal matter and it's not an either-or matter.

My point was that I saw many "movies" shot on PAL 25 fps 576 miniDv and blown up to 35 mm film at 24fps and presented on a real theater screen. If the plot was good, the viewers were immersed in the storyline rather than counting pixels.

You make arguments for the sake of making arguments, I really don't understand your point? Have you ever made a film or anything else? This is a video tech forum, not Philosophy 101.

 

[mrjinglesusa]

Another option is buying blu-rays that include iTunes digital downloads. That way you have the best of both worlds.

This FTW. This is the ONLY way I buy new movies.

 

[thegluchow]

@ donrsd...
What do you mean you buy your digital copy for $3?

It's a good post. I am a blu-ray fan and have made 'digital copies' to use within the house. I really like the 'digital copies' they offer now with movies as i upload them to iTunes and have them available in the cloud when I go places and travel (wifi is everywhere these days) or download to my device.
Problem I face is with something like the Indiana Jones they released. I'd like the bluray, but no digital copies come with it. iTunes sells it, but this is a movie i would like in bluray and now torn which way to go. The ridiculously irrelevant stresses in life, i know.

 

[tipp]

You will never get high quality video or audio streaming from the net.

I would beg to differ. Have you tried streaming a recent release iTunes movie at 1080p? On my connection and setup, it looks almost indistinguishable from a blu-ray. The video quality is very, very good and the audio is 5.1 digital. If your connection is too slow, just download and stream locally.

I think we've reached the point where the convenience outweighs the minuscule loss in quality from blu-ray. I would bet 95% of the population can't tell the difference at this point.

 

[rlu929s]

You can and should backup all movies purchased through iTunes. If you buy them on ATV you just have to go to purchases on iTunes and set them to download. Then they show up in your home share.

As to the guy doing $3 digital copies. He's meaning he rents movies (discs) and rips them....which is illegal, but to each their own.

I personally am starting to buy more off iTunes. I will buy a Bluray with the copy, but honestly that is usually a SD version and I'd rather just buy it off iTunes in HD.

You have to decide what type of person you are. I want simple and simple is having all my movies at my fingertips and not have to clutter up shelf space with discs

 

[HarbingerX]

Personally, I consume all my movies digitally and am very happy with the quality I can get off of iTunes. Movies made from ripping and converting with Handbrake are good, but don't seem to stream quite as well as the apple content, with some micro-stutter sometime in complex/fast-moving scenes.

And obviously, I have a backup solution for my entire iTunes collection.

Here's my take on it, I think I'm more 'general consumer' than moviephile.

1) Streaming is very convenient.
2) I rent mostly. Who has time to watch a movie a second time when there are other great movies out there?
3) The selection improves all the time.
4) The quality will improve - and movies that I've purchased will automatically be upgraded.
5) DRM is doomed. It may take 10 more years, but the studios will be forced down the same road as the music labels.

 

[Irishman]

Not to pick on you but to bring up a ranting of my own. you=any reader

When's the last time you had your hearing checked? Did it include frequency as well as spatial perception?

Have you ever had a scientific visual acuity test? I have, and while I did much above average, I wasn't gifted.

I understand video compression since I have been dealing with it on Avid and Media100 systems since the 1990's, and FCP since 1.0

All science a side, if the plot and acting are good enough, you pay attention to the film, not the tech specs. If the compression bothers you enough, the plot and acting aren't enough to immerse the viewers and you probably should not waste your time watching the film.

I'll take a good 480p film with a good story, blown up to an 80 foot screen in theater, compared to the latest crap film somewhere else.

Rant over

Yes, but for some of us - myself included - Home Theater is a hobby we enjoy. This centers around both the video and audio experiences. Having heard the difference between DD and Dolby True HD soundtracks, I appreciate and value the improved presence, widened soundstage, and great dynamics of lossless film soundtracks. Similarly, having seen the difference between heavily compressed HD cable/satellite and streaming HD compared to Blu-Ray, I prefer Blu-Ray. But I also understand that not every movie needs the Blu-Ray treatment. Romantic comedies that my wife and her friends love? Not so much. But Transformers? Gladiator? Star Wars? It's night and day. Concerts like Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds at Radio City? Oh yeah.

And I enjoy it.

 

[tipp]

You can and should backup all movies purchased through iTunes. If you buy them on ATV you just have to go to purchases on iTunes and set them to download. Then they show up in your home share.

As to the guy doing $3 digital copies. He's meaning he rents movies (discs) and rips them....which is illegal, but to each their own.

I personally am starting to buy more off iTunes. I will buy a Bluray with the copy, but honestly that is usually a SD version and I'd rather just buy it off iTunes in HD.

You have to decide what type of person you are. I want simple and simple is having all my movies at my fingertips and not have to clutter up shelf space with discs

Um... I don't see where he said he rips rentals to keep them. He just said that if you don't watch a movie enough times, you might as well just rent them instead of purchasing in order to save money. Like he said, it's a simple formula - number of times watched in lifetime x rental price < purchase price.

For a $4 HD rental that costs $20 to purchase, you'd have to watch it 6 times over your life for it to make sense to purchase it outright. Now for certain classics or kids movies, that does make sense, but buying any movie you're only going to watch 2 or 3 more times seems like a waste. There are also sales to think of though, like the recent sale on the Godfather movies. These were all recently available for $10 each in HD and the rentals are $4, so if your family is going to watch those classics 3 times in the future, then it's definitely worth it to buy.

I'm looking forward to the day that HD is treated as the normal baseline and not some special upgrade that costs twice as much as SD. I think the magic price zone for movies is $10-$15 in HD, and with technology and convenience only getting better, I expect most purchases to shift to digital download sometime in the near future.

 

[arbogast777]

3 quick points to throw in here:

1) Buying blu-rays with a digital copy SEEMS like a good buy but not (to me) when the digital copy is SD. To make that even more of a pain you never know if it's SD or HD until you buy

2) If we are moving into a tablet/cloud based computing world, you would have no way to download/backup purchased movies

3) I really wish iTunes could somehow connect with Ultraviolet like Vudu does. That way if you ever want to get out of the Apple ecosystem, you can easily take your collection with you

 

[JoeShades]

3 quick points to throw in here:

1) Buying blu-rays with a digital copy SEEMS like a good buy but not (to me) when the digital copy is SD. To make that even more of a pain you never know if it's SD or HD until you buy

2) If we are moving into a tablet/cloud based computing world, you would have no way to download/backup purchased movies

3) I really wish iTunes could somehow connect with Ultraviolet like Vudu does. That way if you ever want to get out of the Apple ecosystem, you can easily take your collection with you

desktop computers are not going anywhere anytime soon, do you really think there is not going to be a way to download files anytime soon? if you do you need to stop reading the PC is dead headlines, it is nonsense, they may not be as popular but those along with laptops are going to be here for a long time

 

[Hammie]

You can and should backup all movies purchased through iTunes. If you buy them on ATV you just have to go to purchases on iTunes and set them to download. Then they show up in your home share.

As to the guy doing $3 digital copies. He's meaning he rents movies (discs) and rips them....which is illegal, but to each their own.

I personally am starting to buy more off iTunes. I will buy a Bluray with the copy, but honestly that is usually a SD version and I'd rather just buy it off iTunes in HD.

You have to decide what type of person you are. I want simple and simple is having all my movies at my fingertips and not have to clutter up shelf space with discs

Um... I don't see where he said he rips rentals to keep them. He just said that if you don't watch a movie enough times, you might as well just rent them instead of purchasing in order to save money. Like he said, it's a simple formula - number of times watched in lifetime x rental price < purchase price.

For a $4 HD rental that costs $20 to purchase, you'd have to watch it 6 times over your life for it to make sense to purchase it outright. Now for certain classics or kids movies, that does make sense, but buying any movie you're only going to watch 2 or 3 more times seems like a waste. There are also sales to think of though, like the recent sale on the Godfather movies. These were all recently available for $10 each in HD and the rentals are $4, so if your family is going to watch those classics 3 times in the future, then it's definitely worth it to buy.

I'm looking forward to the day that HD is treated as the normal baseline and not some special upgrade that costs twice as much as SD. I think the magic price zone for movies is $10-$15 in HD, and with technology and convenience only getting better, I expect most purchases to shift to digital download sometime in the near future.

As far as the $3 digital copies goes, there are some people who are not interested in the digital copies that get them with their blu-ray and sell them. I have bought a couple from people in the past this way. Cheaper than buying from iTunes, but legal just the same, IMO.

Obviously, you can rent and rip, but there are also legal ways to get the digital copies.

As I read through this thread, I think some of my views have changed. Not all movies may benefit from my $XXXXX priced home theater, especially one that my wife and kids would prefer. In those instances, I may consider renting or buying through iTunes. Others, where the audio would get just be jaw-dropping awesome (The Avengers) or where 3D may want to be utilized or maybe just not available on iTunes, then a purchase of the blu-ray or DVD would be chosen.

I feel that we can live in a society where both avenues can live together in a cohesive manner. There are those who prefer the physical media and those who don't. However, there are also those who feel both options together are the best of both worlds.

I think the one thing we can agree on is that we love watching movies and however we do it puts us all on a common ground.

 

[lokiju]

Another option is buying blu-rays that include iTunes digital downloads. That way you have the best of both worlds.

On the topic of this (and I agree with this option, as it's what I do as well) if you have a DVD or Blu-ray that has a digital copy but you "missed" the window to redeem it, just email the company.

I didn't start redeeming my digital copies until iTunes started adding them to your iTunes account also for re-download on other devices that shared the same ID and I had a bunch of blu-ray movies that had passed their expiration data for redemption of the digital copy.

Almost every single one of them that expired and I emailed about ended up sending me a new code to still redeem the digital copy.

Even Warner Brothers for The Dark Knight initially replied with a "sorry but you missed the window" but then 2 months later emailed back again saying "OK you can now redeem your copy still and here's the code", which was a big unexpected surprise for me.

I seriously wish they'd do a iTunes Match for movies though. Validate with the physical disc and then get your digital copy added to your iTunes account. I would do this for the hundreds of DVD's and Blu-ray disc I have in a heart beat.

I think it'd be a cold day in hell before the movie studios would allow it but I would love having that plus just like with the iTunes Match for music, have the ability to download an unencrypted copy for my own archival and usage on other devices.

IMO, iTunes Match is well worth the yearly cost for the music side.

 

[arbogast777]

desktop computers are not going anywhere anytime soon, do you really think there is not going to be a way to download files anytime soon? if you do you need to stop reading the PC is dead headlines, it is nonsense, they may not be as popular but those along with laptops are going to be here for a long time

Understood. I'm not making an argument for or against PC's being dead. I'm really just trying to say backing up on optical media as Apple suggests is going to get harder and harder in the "post PC world." Even me, with an expensive MacBook Air, does not own a drive that physical media can be put into. It's much easier for me to just buy Ultraviolet that I worry about less with regards to backing up. One less step, one less piece of equipment.

 

[JoeShades]

it would be great if the entire "CLOUD" experience was simplified and easy but the media companies are not going to make it that way. because of either paranoia about piracy or just incompetence

 

[JeepGuy]

I would beg to differ. Have you tried streaming a recent release iTunes movie at 1080p? On my connection and setup, it looks almost indistinguishable from a blu-ray. The video quality is very, very good and the audio is 5.1 digital. If your connection is too slow, just download and stream locally.

I think we've reached the point where the convenience outweighs the minuscule loss in quality from blu-ray. I would bet 95% of the population can't tell the difference at this point.

I don't know what you are watching on, but I can definitely tell the difference. I'm watching on a 65" Panasonic Plasma, but I guess if you are watching on a small screen it may not be as noticeable.

http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/blu-ray_remains_noticeably_better_than_1080p_itunes/

 

[26139]

Yes sir

I don't know what you are watching on, but I can definitely tell the difference. I'm watching on a 65" Panasonic Plasma, but I guess if you are watching on a small screen it may not be as noticeable.

http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/blu-ray_remains_noticeably_better_than_1080p_itunes/

For most people with 40" or less screens, the difference isn't noticeable.

But with LED or any big plasma, I totally agree with you. I can always tell, and that's why I've completely avoid blu-ray so I'm not pissed all the time about it.

It's a mental trick I'm playing on myself, but it works.

 

[Cinephi1e]

In my opinion we are all moving to a fragmented system of how we obtain our media, particularly movies. There was a time when it was almost exclusively through DVD's (with VHS and others a tiny fraction). Now it is DVD's, Blu-ray's, Netflix, iTunes, not to mention competitors like Amazon Instant and others. I think it is possible that we will never return to a largely unified system as existed during the DVD era. If you look at my habits, sometimes I buy DVD's and Blu-ray's and at other times I buy it from iTunes when they are on sale (I was very happy to score the Godfather collection recently!).

The reason for this is that no one system is overwhelmingly better than the others as in the DVD (or VHS) era. When you take into account everyone's personal preferences (e.g. audio-video quality over convenience) and when you see a blu-ray on sale at the grocery store check line, it ends up with many of us obtaining our movies in multiple formats.