Breaking in the BluRay Player... by Kwicko

OTHER SCIENCE FICTION SERIES

Breaking in the BluRay Player...

POSTED BY: KWICKO
UPDATED: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 14:51
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Sunday, November 15, 2009 7:19 AM

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

So I got a PlayStation3 a few months ago, and I had yet to rent or buy a BluRay movie to try out that feature of the console. I had decided that I was going to either rent or buy the new Star Trek when it came out on Tuesday, so I was looking forward to that.

But then I remembered - I've got a bit of a tradition going with Serenity. It was the first DVD I watched when I got a home theatre surround system, it was the first DVD I watched when I got my big flat-screen TV, it was the first DVD I watched when I got my upconverting HDMI DVD player... Why on Earth wouldn't it be the first BluRay disk I watched on the PS3?

So off I went, in search of Serenity on sale. Didn't find it for less than $25 anywhere, so I popped into Blockbuster and rented it for $3.49. My PS3 has now lost its BluRay virginity, and I've kept the tradition alive.

Oh, and Serenity looks FANTASTIC on BluRay! The movie AND the ship. :)

And this movie just gets better every time I see it.

So now I'm all ready for Star Trek on Tuesday, and for whatever comes next. And I'll be keeping an eye out for Serenity and Firefly on BluRay at a great price...

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 9:45 AM

CHRISISALL

How big's your TV?

The laughing Chrisisall

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 10:46 AM

DEWRASTLER

I actually got a blu ray player after I bought Serenity on Blu Ray, and you're right, the picture is awesome.

________________________________
People who don't care about anything will never understand the people who do

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 11:13 AM

KWICKO

The TV's a 42" Westinghouse 1080p LCD. At the time I bought it, it was by far the best-looking and biggest I could find for around $1000. Funny, but now it almost seems like a baby - you can pick up 47" or 52" LCDs for a grand or less these days if you do some shopping. Prices are coming down, and this is looking like a really good time to buy.

My best advice if you're looking? Faster refresh rate is better; 120hz or more. Other than that, I say just go and actually LOOK at the TVs in person, side by side. I went to WalMart, looked at everything they had, and none of them impressed. Maybe they have really crappy people doing the setup and color levels on theirs, but none of their TVs looked impressive. Went to Target, and had the same thoughts. Went to BestBuy, and it was really a matter of picking out which ones looked BETTER, because they all looked pretty damned good.

Watch for scenes with LOTS OF ACTION all over the screen, and watch for the picture to get blocky in about 1/4" or 1/2" blocks, where the refresh isn't able to keep pace with the action. (I've noticed that of the hi-def networks, NBC gets the least of this on their broadcast signal, and ABC gets the most; I have no idea why).

But really, you just have to find the one that has the picture you like and the price you like. I paid $699 for mine a couple years ago. It was a clearance. I've seen the same model at Tiger Direct for $599, and 47" models with the same features for $799. I'd buy another in a heartbeat. I *have* seen better pictures, but not at the price.

Also, pay attention to the inputs, and how many there are, and what types. I've got *FOUR* HDMI inputs (vital for 1080p hi-def), a couple component video inputs, and a couple old-style video inputs. Like I've said before, I love this TV.

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 12:48 PM

NCBROWNCOAT

There should be lots of deals around Christmas or just after when stores want to get rid of the 2009 models.

That's when I bought my 2008 model 40" Toshiba last year. I also bought a Sony blu-ray player at the same time(the daughter is a confirmed XBOX -360 gamer) I love it and Firefly and Serenity both are awesome.

Another little item you might want is a Roku player. It's small, wireless and just $99 on Amazon and there is no subscription fee except your Netflix fee.

It plays Netflix streaming video, Amazon UnBox and MLB Baseball on the TV you have it hooked up to. I hope that other services will be added soon

http://fireflyfaninnc.livejournal.com/

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 4:00 PM

CHRISISALL

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
The TV's a 42"

OOOOKAAAY, that is where BD will rock.

Quote:
around $1000.

Okay, I'm out of here, dollar-wise.

Quote:
But really, you just have to find the one that has the picture you like and the price you like. I paid $699 for mine a couple years ago. It was a clearance.

My $289 26" 720p LCD will rock me fine for now, but thanks for the tutorial. As my vision needs correctin' in future, my TV size will increase, I conjure.

Before I die, I will see Serenity on a 2 meter plasma screen with ridiculous surround sound, augmented by 3D-upconvert!

The laughing Chrisisall

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 8:26 PM

CALHOUN

I recently upgraded from a 32" LCD to a 50" plasma. Wifey bought me a PS3 last christmas and not too long after that we bought an Onkyo A/V reciever with 7.1 DTS MA and Dolby True HD audio.. This is the culmination of years and years of wishing I had something decent in home theatre.

I am STOKED!

Serenity was also my first Blu Ray on this setup, Riddick and Star Trek are also often watched, all excellent blu ray experiences.

as an aside my PS3 is used mainly as a media centre where I stream from my PC. I have 4TB of hard drive space and am in the process of storing all my many DVDs on these drives. No more popping disks in and out for me. sheesh.. lazy or what.

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Sunday, November 15, 2009 9:29 PM

BIGRICHARD

if you're into it, the Pixar films look absolutely AMAZING on blu-ray. Wall-E being my favourite.

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Monday, November 16, 2009 8:40 AM

KWICKO

Quote:
My $289 26" 720p LCD will rock me fine for now, but thanks for the tutorial. As my vision needs correctin' in future, my TV size will increase, I conjure.
Before I die, I will see Serenity on a 2 meter plasma screen with ridiculous surround sound, augmented by 3D-upconvert!

Yup, you're fine for now - but I think MOST of what you envision for the future is probably closer than you think. Sony says they're almost done with 3D hi-def TV that they'll be bringing to market, probably next year. For consumers. At a "reasonable" price.

Maybe I'm old enough to be jaded on the promises of 3D, but I'm still young enough to get excited about the possibilities!

BTW, if you check around and watch dealnews.com, you'll come across factory refurbs of 47" or 50" plasmas for $600 or so. I'm rather shocked and amazed at some of the prices I see, especially on refurbs.

My MacBook is a refurb, and it's been going strong for over two years without issues. If done right, refurbs are better than off-the-shelf models, because they've been EXTENSIVELY gone through, and tested beyond the norms to make sure any issues are well and truly fixed. Just sayin', Refurb doesn't automatically equate to "rental car". ;)

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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Monday, November 16, 2009 8:42 AM

KWICKO

Quote:
Originally posted by Calhoun:
I recently upgraded from a 32" LCD to a 50" plasma. Wifey bought me a PS3 last christmas and not too long after that we bought an Onkyo A/V reciever with 7.1 DTS MA and Dolby True HD audio.. This is the culmination of years and years of wishing I had something decent in home theatre.

I am STOKED!

Serenity was also my first Blu Ray on this setup, Riddick and Star Trek are also often watched, all excellent blu ray experiences.

as an aside my PS3 is used mainly as a media centre where I stream from my PC. I have 4TB of hard drive space and am in the process of storing all my many DVDs on these drives. No more popping disks in and out for me. sheesh.. lazy or what.

Okay, now I'm jealous! :)

I want to run some sort of media center, whether through a dedicated PC/Mac, or whatever it takes, with terabytes of removable/external hard drives. They're getting so cheap, it's actually becoming reasonable to just save your stuff on hard drive in hi-def, compared to buying BluRay seasons on disk.

Mike

Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde

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Tuesday, November 17, 2009 2:51 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

I heard a radio ad today (Dallas, TX station) for a Samsung 50" Plasma on sale for $688. The store is StarPower, somewhere in the D/FW metroplex, but I'm not sure if it is local only or part of a nationwide chain. I live 100 miles south of Dallas, and our only options are Best Buy, Walmart, and a couple of local only retailers.

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