Originally posted by: Rio Rebel
Everything you said is factually true, but I disagree with the interpretation of those facts. First of all, I get a much better deal buying a DVD than going to a movie, and that's only $15-$20 instead of $25-30. I was just showing some friends last night the difference between Blu-ray and DVD, and one of them said "I guess I just don't see much difference". And that's in a theater room with a 100" screen. (I'm not making the point that BD or HD-DVD isn't noticeably better...I'm saying that for Joe six-pack, the difference isn't that great and certainly not worth paying up to twice as much as a DVD. And Joe six-pack is who has to embrace it, not just those of us who love audio/video.)
Joe six pack has problems justifying an HDTV, let alone a Blu-ray player. And quite honestly, Joe six pack is a complete retard. I wouldn't count on him for anything. He's so dumb it's hard to even market toward him. Take for instance, HD-DVD. I thought HD-DVD was a GREAT name for the format. It has DVD in the name, but also HD which would indicate it is a higher quality movie. I figured Blu-ray is just a name and people wouldn't know what it is. Well unfortunately, the average Joe six pack interpreted that as a high quality DVD which they assumed would play on their DVD player. After finding out it didn't play on their player, they stormed off to the store to return it and felt they were screwed over somehow.
I'm REALLY tired of Joe six pack. I don't count on him for anything. They're morons, and they can follow along if they choose to do so. If they don't, screw 'em. Blu-ray doesn't need them to be successful. Blu-ray is already doing fantastic. And with it being successful, Joe six pack will eventually follow along. They're dumb, and that's what dumb people do, follow.
However, there are people that don't care to pay for ANY improvement other that what they already have. And that's fine. It's their money, they can do whatever they'd like with it. But I'm not stopping technical advancements because a few people refuse to upgrade. A/V must move forward, and you can't count on Joe six pack or people that just don't care about A/V to do that for you. It starts with the enthusiasts, and then it trickles down to Joe. The people that don't care just keep what they have and won't buy anything new. That's how it is.
Also, while it's factually true that you can buy some Blu-rays for $15, it's pretty rare to find one at that price that's less than 3 years old. You never see a new release that cheap. It's this very reason that made me buy HD-DVD. I already had a Blu-ray player, and about a year ago I bought two HD-DVD players for $100 apiece. I have a whole stash of HD movies that I paid $5-10 for, so even though the format is dead, I paid a fraction of what the Blu-rays would have cost.
True, but like you said, renting would be an even better deal than buying a DVD. Hell you can rent the Blu-ray version for I think $1 more than the cost of a DVD rental at Netflix. I'd say that is WELL worth it. But as for buying Blu-rays, like I said, it is cheaper for me to buy the Blu-ray when it first comes out at ~$27. And the best part about it is, I KEEP the movie. At the movie theater, I'm basically RENTING the movie for $20+ (just for tickets) and worse yet, I have to rent it at a certain time and be in a room with a bunch of morons that can't STFU. AWFUL deal if you ask me.
I guess in my mind, Blu-ray can call me when they're ready to price these reasonably. They had better drop prices soon, because a lot of people will go to HD on demand as it gets more readily available. I personally like to own my movies, but not if it costs me 6-10 times as much as renting. After all, how many times will you watch the same movie?
I have 2 HD-DVD players (HD-A35 and HD-A3) and still use them. I also bought quite a few HD-DVDs at great prices, usually around ~10-$15. However, I ALSO got GREAT deals on Blu-ray movies. Band of Brothers for $37, 007 Volume 1 AND 2 for $65, and Rambo set (all three movies) for $17.95. AWESOME deals. You can also get A LOT of Blu-ray movies at the $15 price point. Amazon is where I get most of my movie. Generally the new release movies are around the $25-27 mark, but you can find A LOT of older movies just being released on Blu-ray for $15 normally at Amazon. As a matter of fact, April 7th is going to be an expensive day for me. There are a BUNCH of great movies coming out on that day, new and old on Blu-ray.
Now here's the great thing, besides the price, it comes with the Blu-ray, Digital Copy for iTunes, AND a DVD version. I won't use the DVD, but damn, talk about covering all bases. I wish they'd do this for all Blu-ray movies. 
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