I collect physical media for all the reasons you might expect, but there's one reason that I don't think is obvious: the ritual. When you watch a film on disc, there's the ritual of physically choosing a film and then inserting it in the player, and this has been misrepresented as the inconvenience that streaming solves. I disagree. That ritual sends a signal to your brain that it's movie time, that this is what you're doing now. That's what rituals are for, to put you in a particular mind-state, and it's totally lost with streaming. The inconvenience is important.
Oh yes, you are so right. It is so very very satisfying that ritual. Same with vinyl, tapes & CD's. The new (old) Sony DVD/CD player I recently got from Ebay has a jog button. So satisfying twisting that clockwise or anti clockwise.
@@phillipbanes5484 I can completely understand why you would prefer digital, especially if you're partially disabled. That's probably why my Old Man was ripping stuff to drives too. I do love the fact that you're passionate about your collection & have things stored by genre.
I recently started displaying and cataloging all my physical media. I have been collecting casually for several years but it's been ramping up more in the past couple years. 4k Blu Rays especially. It blows my mind how good of home presentations a movie can have now, and it's not available on any streaming service.
i don't even think it's inconvenience, i like to search on shelf what i want to watch. However, doing that on a streaming website is just boring as hell
That's my thought. I mostly buy physical media, rip them to disc and stream them across my own network.And it's more less because of the tampering that goes on, the tendency of the TV and movies to just disappear for periods of time when they switch between services. Then there's the fact that when I buy a disc, I've more or less got it forever. I just have to keep it backed up and I'm good. Plus, unlike streaming services, I get all the bonus features that were on the original disc and at a higher quality level as network technology improves.
Yeah, and imagine trying to stream 8K content. They're already pushing the TVs. Internet connections are not going to be up to that. I suspect physical media may always have a niche among hi-fi enthusiasts who want the best possible video and audio quality. Question is whether that will be enough to keep it alive. Remember, CDs were superior to the average MP3.
Oh, it's way bigger than vinyl. With the rise of boutique labels, you're no longer buying "just" the films and shows, but you're getting highly collectable works of art that are more often than not extremely rare and special. Physical media no longer belongs in the bargain bin. It's classy now.
I find it easier to decide to watch when i have physical media to choose from rather than the content overload of searching through multiple streaming services to find something to watch. That's why i love physical media and will continue to collect what I'd like to watch again and again.
@@WRNFILM I've been Capturing the video I watch (Reminds me of recording shows in the days of VHS) and recording them to a Hard drive, where I rename it and 1)send it to DaVinci Resolve to edit, or 2) I live with it, 'as is' and save it to an appropriate media folder. I use a traditional Hard Drive for my raw recordings and my media folders are on Solid State Drives. My next step is to either build a NAS or a Server. (Or is NAS a type of server?) Also, in the future I am considering a Video Capture Card (Currently using software to capture/record)
@@EntertainmentKorner Overwolf is a free Video Capture Software (They have several to choose from) and DaVinci Resolve(DVR) has a Free version of video editing software. (Very reputable, and worth considering the paid Studio version) Aside from adding SSD space, I would recommend having at least two monitors.
Streaming services see films and shows as "content" to be consumed and forgotten about, not something that you might want to rewatch again and again. The promise of accessibility and preservation is a lie, but most people don't really care. They just want to watch that one show that's really popular that month.
They also have an incentive for you to not find the stuff you're looking for too quickly as time spent searching is time spent not watching and time spent not watching means that their library stretches further.
Physical media will always be superior to streaming for sound and picture quality + you actually *own* the film and it can't be taken away if the rights relinquish from Netflix or Prime Video.
Name ONE streaming service that even comes CLOSE to matching the bitrate on a 4k disc. You can't. In the future it's inevitable, however the other factors still stand. @poiujnbvcxdswq
@poiujnbvcxdswq Good luck if there is a internet connection issue. Anywhere form the streaming site to your internet connection. Because if there is one issue anywhere along the line you don't have access to your movies. That's the number one selling point of physical media no internet connection needed.
@poiujnbvcxdswqWhat are you going to do when the streaming services remove the titles from their libraries? You think it can't happen? Boy, are you in for a surprise.
@poiujnbvcxdswq I still physical is better for the simple reason that you can easily dump, you can easily stream, and you can easily be incredibly versatile with your content you own. If not for that, it's for the fact that specific services can be buggy, can be intrusive, can sell off your userdata and even just overcharge you if you don't watch everyday when you consider overall price. I collect stuff that i'm sure won't end up getting a rerelease at times, so personally that's enough justification for me.
I went to the movie store this Saturday, the last one left in my city... It was full of people, the owner said selling movies is still their biggest source of income. It is NOT even close to being dead, it's just that retailers gave up
i loaded up on 4k blu rays over the last couple years (i'll always prefer disks (games, movies, music) over digital), but never had a way to watch them until i got my ps5. i watched endgame in 4k, and it's better than streaming, theaters, any of it. i love collecting, and i'm glad 4kbr isn't super hard to find or expensive
@@SamDavies94 nah i definitely would the only thing theaters have over 4K TV's is screen size and as far as sound goes Dolby Atmos or DTS-X on 4K sounds better than 90% of the theaters out here
I replaced my 4 different streaming subscriptions with an AMC membership. I’m in the movies atleast 4 times a month and I purchase physical DVDs or Blu-rays. RUclips premium surprisingly has an amazing catalogue of movies to discover, popular anime series and some nostalgic blockbusters -So this is the only place I stream. This streaming war has gotten way out of hand, I really needed to touch grass again.
Another thing people don't tell you about physical media -- you're more likely to revisit a title when you own it physically. You buy something digitally (or stream it), you watch it once and you'll likely never watch it again. Because the services are constantly pushing you to something else - usually something that they paid a lot money to purchase the rights for (or produced themselves). They don't care about what you actually want to watch.
If you continue making youtube videos with this quality, you're cannel will absolutely blow up! The quality is REALLY high for someome with "just" 272 subs. Incredible vide, you've got this!
I'm hunting down movies I love that are seemingly tied up in licensing and legal issues preventing them from being on streaming and becoming hard to find on physical, such as True Lies, Strange Days, The Basketball Diaries etc.
Streaming didn't completely stop my physical media purchases, but it did slow it down. I have always added great films to my collection, even if they were available on a streaming platform, but the 2010s definitely saw me buying less. However, the last few years, especially since 2020, I've gone the opposite route of everyone else. I started buying tons of BluRay and 4Ks. The addition of adverts to streaming, especially if they price out users of the ad-free versions, I expect to be especially damaging to the concept.
Very similar. If I purchased physical media it would be a Criterion or Arrow release. Something that really made have a disc worth it. But what kicked it into high gear was DUNE. The stream on (then) HBO MAX looked awful. There have been only more benefits of owning discs since then.
I wanted to watch Patton on Netflix one night and they took it down at midnight. I bought it on blu ray soon after and realized streaming wasn’t dependable. It’s an additional source for content but not a replacement for physical media. It’s there for us to watch things we don’t want to buy on physical and that’s it. For the true classics, you better have a physical copy so you can always watch it.
I've recently started doing a digital detox in my life and part of that is starting to acquire movies on physical media again. Naturally like so many others I got rid of all my discs years ago and now I'm regretting it. I've also been buying music that I actually own instead of streaming on Spotify for a lot of the same reasons.
As someone who just turned 53 recently, I went through the rise of Cable, VHS, Blockbuster, DVD, Limewire, Blu-Ray, Netflix, & Streaming. My best advice on films, music, and physical media is this. If you find a movie, television show, album, etc. that you enjoy, get the physical media now while you still can! In the future I predict, streaming services will become tiered. The cheaper options will contain commercials and possibly be limited in content. The more broad content with little to no advertising will be costly. Yes, we’re going back to Cable Television. So get your physical copy of your favorite movie, shows, or music now. Because the final thing I’m predicting is that these media companies will stop producing physical content to force you to pay for streaming services.
You are 100% correct I recommend people to still purchase physical media that doesn’t require an Internet connection to enjoy because there’s gonna come a day where they’re gonna take that all away and the day that happens is the day that I quit movies TV shows and video games and will just dig out my old-school physical media and plug-in play all day Why the rest of the slave creatures are reliant on computer servers and can sit there and watch loading screens or get halfway through a movie and the service crashes
I agree with everything except the idea that they will stop producing physical media. One studio (Warner Brothers, I think) is now releasing loads of their back catalogue onto blu-ray through a print on demand model. I think that is an awesome idea. Of course, it's only going to be the most basic packaging, and little to no special features, but there's no need for physical storage in a warehouse, just print it and post it when it's ordered. There's also boutique blu-ray companies, Criterion, Arrow, etc. that continue to produce physical media, and for some properties, for the first time. Streaming has been riding on growth for years now, but I don't believe any company has actually made a profit from it, hence the need to increase prices now that they've practically saturated the market. DVDs and Blu-ray are cheap to manufacture, and will likely get higher returns per each movie watched. Physical media is here to stay, but it will just become more niche.
Let me just take a quick moment to appreciate the INCREDIBLE editing you put into this video. These videos will continue to pick up traction over time. Keep up the great work. Cheers!
i mainly just burn my own blu-rays because a pack of bd-r discs is a whole lot cheaper. keep them all in a binder. quality is better. i don't really do 4k. i don't think it makes a difference really.
I just wanted to say I _love_ the production quality of your video - the anecdotal style of telling a story, splitting that story into chapters, and the convincing way you lead us down a path before turning back. I was sure that turn was coming, I mean the title and thumbnail were suggesting it, but they were just vague enough to make me second-guess myself, and as time went on I wondered whether you were in fact all-in on streaming after all and the reveal I was expecting was something else entirely. But then you pointed out how much time was left in the video, and sure enough the turn arrived. That's some real artistry there - intrigue, moody lighting, creative editing and subtle engaging music - I'm very impressed.
I never really got into streaming movies and shows. DVDs and BDs are better quality without wasting your Internet bandwidth. There's maybe one BD I want to buy a year. One BD costs much less then 12 months of many streaming services because movies are scattered across different platforms. When Discovery started removing content that people had bought, it's like, what did you expect? You're having someone else watch your stuff knowing full well they could just throw it out at any time to free up space. The only way to make sure content is available is to buy it on physical media and take care of it yourself. If physical media goes away, it may be that the only way to watch some content is on physical media or piracy. Piracy doesn't help anyone, so keep buying physical media to give publishers a reason to keep making discs. Even if stores stop selling discs on location, you should be able to get them online which is probably where it's going.
I think you nailed it, people will realise streaming is an expensive illusion and the discerning person will keep buying discs but not from the shop in town anymore. Netflix had the market mostly to themselves for a long time but now the pie is cut up into too many slices for any one company to make real profit. I think when people get fed up paying the subscriptions they will turn to illegal streaming a bit like the torrent sites back in the day.
Great video. 100% agree. Also, this video isn't negative, it's real. I'm a recent convert from streaming back to physical media. Unsubbed and deleted all the streaming apps, except for Netflix for now because I want to see the last season of Cobra Kai, but after that bye bye. Bought a 4k UHD player and have been slowly building my collection again and am slowly replacing old DVD's I still have with 4k's, if I can of course. The viewing experience alone is BY FAR superior to streaming. That and the experience of physically shopping for it and finding it and the joy I feel if/when I do find it is just awesome.
I have been a huge fan for physical media for years for all the reasons that are happening now. Spend a monthly fee that keeps going up,and losing movies/shows just because the heads of the service wants a tax write off, or pay a one time fee for a physical disk and own it,have a better viewing experience. I will always come back to physical media.
I buy used and during holiday sales and at this point, I've got so many shows and movies that I'd have to make it a full time job to watch it all any time soon.
I find that really hard to believe that Blu-ray’s, DVDs and even books are considered going out of style. Physical media is the perfect alternative for whenever Wi-Fi is not available. And not to mention the bonus features on Blu-ray’s and DVDs as well, which streaming does NOT have.
Newly minted movie and TV physical media collector here. A lot of great thoughts in the video and comments; another thing I like about a lot of physical media are the special features and commentary tracks which are not typically available on streaming. I'm eager to get more insights and info about movies or shows I love.
Physical media is more than just nostalgia. Streaming was always doomed to become anti consumer - because of the inherent act of taking ownership away from the consumer. Even digital purchases, are not owned by the consumer. If you don’t want to pay for physical media, paying for digital is throwing money away 🏴☠️
I personally never stopped. It's really a kind of a golden age for physical media collectors with so many boutique distributors and 4k discs and restorations. Also, great small scale distributors that focus on restoring films never seen in USA, an example company( like two guys): Deaf Crocodile. Another problem with streaming I face often is trying to watch a show or movie and the quality dips to SD for like 10-15 min for whatever reason.
The problem with streaming is you don’t own them. The thing about physicalized media is you own it. As long as you dont break it you will own it for as long as the disc lasts
There is someplace in between, where you keep a library of movie rips on a removable drive, so as not to be dependent on internet service or a streaming subscription and the whims of those deciding what content to add and drop.
Discs are totems. Physical manifestations of ideas, emotions, even relationships with others. Streaming is too hollow to be fully satisfying. Yeah, in most cases you only care about the content and streaming is more than enough. Same with ebooks over physical books. And streaming music over discs or vinyl. But for those things you truly care about beyond their mere pretty colors and sounds, art must be embodied to be fully savored. That's just how our brains are wired.
I work at a library and it's just so much nicer to check out DVDs at ease, without the hassle of looking around within the plethora of streaming options. If you're a cinephile, it's tough to keep up with great movies unless you have 3+ streaming subscriptions (which is insane and expensive. Criterion alone lacks a lot of great titles as well). You'd be surprised at the amount of obscure/foreign films - as well as classics - you'd find at a library that you otherwise wouldn't find on any streaming platform. It's old school and unreliable in a lot of ways, but worth it if you 're tired of dealing with streaming mishaps.
Couldn’t agree more! I love Criterion and Mubi as streaming resources but they do come with a price tag. Libraries offer so much! I wish more people also knew about Kanopy as an additional free resource. It’s one of the few streamers I advocate for.
Amazing video! Love the pacing and editing! Here’s a few things I started doing. • I bought an iPod classic to move away from an algorithm sending me the same music over and over again, surprisingly you can find a lot of music online for free and iPod’s are mod-able. • Started buying blurays after realizing the movies I purchased on RUclips can’t be downloaded to my pc. • I got rid of all my streaming services because of the all price hikes and overconsumption, I did keep criterion though because they have an amazing film collection. Its it’s funny, the online spaces I am around a lot people are starting to buy physical things again, but in IRL spaces I get called in nostalgic nerd who wants to hold onto the past when in reality I’m just trying to save some money and I’m tired of algorithms telling me what to watch and listen to. It’s kinda hard finding new things when you’re constantly spoonfed specific things based off of your history, it made me feel like I was in the box and I needed to get out.
Thanks for the compliment! I haven’t tried the iPod classic, but I might need to try it now. I complain I have about streaming but always exclude Criterion, Mubi, and Kanopy! I get the feeling that those IRL folks will come around.
Totally agree wholeheartedly. I went back to physical media about a year ago and haven’t looked back. There’s so much PM out there, you’re spoilt for choice.
Free advice from someone old enough to be your grandfather: All the "moving on" is wearing you out. Stop moving. All you need for true happiness in this universe are the complete filmographies of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Humphrey Bogart, Greta Garbo, Robert Mitchum, and Roger Corman. Oh yes, and every MGM musical ever made. All else is unnecessary. Trust me. Let me know how it all works out for you. But make it soon. I'm getting older by the minute.
Hey great video! I had a similar path and experience. Totally agree with those early streaming days as well, I discovered so many films because of Netflix. I started experiencing issues with some titles not playing at all on Vudu or the quality was really poor. Nothing like being in the mood to watch one of your favorite movies but not being able to get through it because of buffering issues. Anyway, I just transitioned back to physical media a couple months ago and it’s been great. I absolutely love all the boutiques like Second Sight, Arrow, Criterion, Vinegar Syndrome, etc., it’s amazing to see the care that they put into their transfers/releases.
@@WRNFILM yeah and while I know physical media will never be what it once was, I’m totally ok with that. The products that these boutiques are putting out, have restored my faith and then some. Especially the limited edition sets, they’re just so damn cool.
You are so right! Streaming has changed. A lot. Netflix became quantity over quality. It’s all about trends and algorithms. Just look at how RUclips works now.. the actual “any person can create content” is dead now. Social Media killed organic dissemination and RUclips just followed as well.
I am doubling down on games and movies. I have realized the important of having what I like and it also feels kind of nice having something in your hand.
Yeah, very true and I was just about to comment this and don’t hear much about this.. because this happened to me in December and now I don’t know what to do. I still think physical media is extremely important and so are backups but I don’t think I’ll collect as much again and will be very cautious in what I want vs need .. 😅
For me, I enjoy the collecting aspect. The packaging, insterts, bonus discs it’s all part of the experience. The steel books have taken my hobby to the next level, I really feel like I own a piece of nostalgia and movie history. It’s been so long now collecting that as someone said it has just become sort of “ritualistic”.
the “they could just remove it” has been a reality since 2006 or so when microsoft removed purchased software from peoples Xbox 360 hard drives. Personally I have always been a real media guy. I have always bought hard copies of movies music and software whenever I could. It is not hard in the case of movies and music to store the contents on a local NAS or something and if your digitized collection get wrecked for some reason, you always have the physical back up to restore it. I also don’t like paying monthly for access to something, just let me buy it if I want it.
I understand that most of the videos about physical media vs streaming focus on the US/Canada and Europe, but the real importance of physical media (apart from preservation), specially DVD, is the rest of the world. While streaming is certainly an option in many developing countries, DVDs are still the most cost-effective way of delivering movies and shows in most parts of the world. They can be borrowed and traded, players and compatible TVs are rather inexpensive, and the DVD catalogue far surpasses that of blu-rays (due to its open licensing). The only thing that's more accessible than DVDs in piracy, which is also considered fair play in many parts of the world that studios and distributors would never care for.
Thank you for the additional context to the conversation. I came at this video as a “personal doc” seeking to highlight my lived experience, fully aware it is informed by both my country of origin and privilege.
I transitioned from my DVD case to media on a media server early 2000's. I never fell for streaming services. I have over 6,500 movies, over 1,600 TV series. I don't get the lure of physical media. If you have a decent collection, you need to devote a room to it, there is dusting, inventorying, etc. If you ever have a fire, flood, etc., you are screwed. If you are comfy in bed, you have to get up eject what you are watching, go into whatever room has your media, find wheat you want to watch, put the old one back, return to your room, put the new one in and crawl back into bed. Nope, not me, I can switch between any movie, TV series, music track, gaming console emulator or even RUclips without leaving my comfy bed. I backup my media server onto 2.5" external drives. I can literally hold my collection in the palm of my hands. I am sorry, I don't see any benefits to physical media or streaming, only negatives compared to media on hard drives.
I not only think that physical media will make a resurgence, I also think there is an outside chance that we might see the resurrection of 3D TVs and 3D media. I have literally thousands of DVDs, BluRays, 4Ks and have no intention of quitting purchasing them.
I'm 58 and still use my dvd collection. With streaming it's becoming an elephant 🐘 in the room.The movie BARBARIAN will not be released on physical media so your left with Bootleg copies to fill the physical media void. It's creating an a marketing option for those hard to find movies or shows. Simply many of these Bootlegs are very good quality and you cannot tell that they are a knock off.Streaming is listed as CONTENT a dirty word the devalue the streaming animal for lack of a better word. At the moment I use all options because I can to always have access to basic movies. So when something or the access option 🤔 is limited .I can play any of my favorites regularly. But that not always possible. The streaming services are at crossroads to where they haven't to many options equal to slim and none in reality. If the consumers get screwed over they will revolt instantly. That could bankrupt these services no matter how big they are .Turn The Virtual Page🤔.
Honestly physical media was always there for me as a kid while streaming exist if you ever want to rewatch with family and audiences it’s better in my opinion
I was right there with you. Sold all of my physical media. I own over 800 movies on ITunes. But you simply cannot find ALL the movies you want on steaming. And maybe you, but not me. I will NOT sacrifice picture quality and sound for being lazy from the ease of streaming. What happens if your streaming gets taken away? What happens if your internet is down? What happens if streaming takes away your purchases? Not to mention, my 4K movies look awesome up on my walls! So yeah, i left, but im back to physical! I’m with both, but i cant just count on streaming 🤙🏻
@@WRNFILM Yeah, I understand haha I just mean that I know that people look into social media content to get either validation or that "dopamine" bump, and maybe its because very recently I've been reading a lot of comments in youtube videos where people do complain about "negativity", but I just hope we don't start conflating criticism, critical thinking and pragmatism - which are things that you so perfectly displayed in your video - with being negative. They are very different things. Anyway, again, great video.
Nicely put together video. It's a hard topic to cover. On one hand some of us want to help the environment so streaming is the way to go and people just happy to watch a film not paying much regard to the quality of its presentation, streaming is ideal for them. Except now they are starting to learn about licensing and how their subscription really works and might be thinking twice. I stopped purchasing from Prime quite quickly for that reason. Then theres us who want to be in control of our collection and for me anyway, to see films in the best format possible. I'm definitely an Advocate for the Physical Media camp as I worked in the industry for 10 years as a QC Technician. On my RUclips channel it allows me to give out a little more information than most other Physical Media channels, regarding the discs that is. So I'm definitely no a streaming person accept to my advantage on try before you buy. Trevor
I tried to make this video as streamlined as possible so I removed a section talking about all the various ways a physical disc can be a value proposition. Adding it to a Plex server is a great one.
The algorithm brought me here. I will comment to boost the algorithm. I’ve begun picking up physical media on the cheap as much as possible. Just picking up those movies and series my wife and I like so as not to have to flip through a bunch of apps to find which one streams it.
I think that physical media is coming back into the conversation because companies are more and more trying to get a subscription model and take away your ability to actually own anything. Netflix may be a huge number of movies, but the day you stop paying, no more access. Game companies also are talking about purchases, not as something you own, but purchases* something that is temporarily yours while we have the license rights and feel it's worth while to host this data. Am i looking forward to buying a $500 4k blueray player to update my old DVD player (I went computer after DVD and skipped bluray) and then going online and to stores to buy movies again? Ugh. no. For now I'm on Plex and I sail the high seas in search of movies and shows. It's a lot of money to lay out, and almost everybody says there is only Panasonic in the player business, Sony is big glitchy, and the others are tiny names with big price tags.
I watched so many movies for the first time through Netflix DVD delivery, then through streaming, but I've always collected the ones I've loved the most. But that transition was insane.
I subscribed to Netflix by mail in the early days, 2001-03, primarily to copy anime DVDs and some others to DVD-Rs, as they were expensive then and I was a student. I bought most of it later officially, but I download a lot now, in 2160p that's not being released on disc at all, or on DVD only. I believe they don't want my money by not releasing it, and those files are like VHS recordings of the older days, not really stealing... 😂
I use all three: physical, streaming, digital purchases. They all have their strengths and drawbacks, and I genuinely think anyone who likes movies should try them all for at least a couple of months. Physical is far from perfect, so are the other options. I essentially see them as tiers now: I just want to watch something? Streaming (or digital rental). I want to collect a little more casually (the way I used to buy bargain discs in stores)? Digital purchase. I LOVE the movie with my whole heart and want it around? Physical.
I'm just an old fart & don't get along with streaming. It's very well produced mediocrity these days, especially Netflix. Plus all that searching to find something meh, at best. I've gone back to my cupboard of DVD's now my Husband has departed this mortal plain. He was a bugger for finding stuff online. Oh God, what is on all those additional hard drives? Great vid, totally understand your nostalgia for 'the good old streaming days'.
A little off topic but I find it heart breaking how most music videos for music I like are uploaded to youtube in 1080p or worse. 1080p itself is a fine resolution but the problem is youtubes bitrate for 1080p is horrendous to the point where if the video is anything other than a talking head video with 95% of the frame being unmoving, the image is heavily compromised. With movies you can have the definitive experience of the theatrical release or you can have like a 50GB video file on a bluray disc, but music videos are mostly filmed by pro filmmakers on cinema quality gear, and yet the only place the work is destined to be experienced on is on youtube in 1080p lol. The worst part is, even if it was recorded in 1080p, simply uploading it at 4k would give people a much better experience. I'm starting to see a few music videos by smaller artists I like getting posted in 4k though which is giving me hope.
I’m surprised your DVD binder from only 2009 (what feels like just a few years ago) is so beat up. I have similar DVD binders from 2001-2002 era that I still use to house my Blu-Ray recordable backup archives of various data that I still use to this day. BD-R is great for cold storage, un-DRMed audiobook archives, etc, that kind of thing. I still burn new BD-R discs, stick it in one of those binders and sit it on shelf for 20+ years. Heck that’s what I did for my DVD-R archives from 2001-2002, they survived intact. So those binders will be great for another 20 years at least of cold storage BD-R discs. It’s still probably the best way to maintain your personal archives of data in cold storage over the long term even today.
That case was made of pleather and used throughout college. I could not tell you what manner of alcohol was spilled on it but I have no doubt that hastened its demise.
the so called physical media resurgence is baffling to me. This isn't a case of us throwing out carboard nintendo boxes, viewing it more like packaging on average. People threw their movies in the trash because they thought they were stupid and useless and that Netflix was always going to be the only streaming service that would always have everything they always want to watch. The fact everyone insisted on abandoning physical altogether and now thinks were being cheated by not having, justifies itself. As a lifetime physical media collector, i can say with confidence. Physical media isnt coming back, studios can now sell you a movie digitally and then remove the purchase if they wish to remove it from a service, and theyre not taking that back.
I happily own 2000 + dvd’s ! I buy deluxe versions on 4k but mainly for the extras like hardback book’ scripts ‘ posters etc !!! I will never get rid of them just like my vinyl collection!!! I just think there is a just a type of person who likes physical media !!! I don’t hate people who don’t ! At the end of the day it’s a personal choice!!!
I think to the crux your point the reason physical media may come back, is dissatisfaction With the streamers. i’ve told this to my friends, saying I understand why no one wants to buy it in college, but when you have a home and have your own place, have a few of your favorite titles, not just the movies any piece of media. A book, a piece of music anything.
I collect discs for the A/V quality alone. The best package is the feature film on one high bitrate UHD disc and then a second HD disc with the extras.
I think of streaming like rental. It's a great means of finding new content, and enjoying 'event' programming worth seeing at least once. But physical media is my thing for preserving films and series I'll be going back to. Not relying on some licencing arrangement between companies, or hoping it won't be edited the next time I return to it. It's not healthy to be surrounded by stacks and stacks of discs you're never going to watch again, but there's nothing wrong with having a selection of classics that mean something to you
You stream and don't own jack just like digital games, big tech wants you to own nothing and be happy with it, not to mention the fact that they edit what can be watched, screw that if it I'm spending my hard earned money on something I want something to show for it.....
I watched your video, but I'm still not sure "what no one will say about physical media". I didn't hear anything that I haven't already heard people say countless times.
I do the same thing with music. I noticed stuff taken down from Spotify. So I still have my CDs and backed them up on a hard drive. There was a Japanese group called Billie Idle that when they disbanded, all their music got wiped off the internet, except for a few music videos on youtube.
Your text overlay of “I own a digital copy“ is a dream they allow one to have. The term they should be using is lease. They can, per the ToS remove “your” copy and one does not have any legal standing.
I have never used streaming. Well not paid streaming any way free RUclips with ads yes. Why did I never try streaming? Because my internet was crap. RUclips buffers at 720p and some time at 480p. Yes, my internet is still crap.
I still buy physical media and rip them in ISO files the ones I want to keep the menus and bonus content. The rest are made into MO4 or MKV files. Once I have a big enough storage I’ll keep everything in both formats ISO for back up and the other formats for my local server
I still have one of those from the 90’s. It’s not that beat up 😂but not great either. I actually made a video last night about video games rentals back in the late 80’s (in Spanish language tho) but I touched the importance of saving our physical games and movies and how they have (in some cases) a story behind them that takes you back to those years collecting movies or games. Great video!! I’ll be checking out more of your stuff 👏🏽👏🏽
I dont see the need for it to be phyiscal vs streaming. I stick with streaming to watch movies and pick up what i like. I save tons of space and money, buy cool editions that are pricier, and curate my collection. Solely focusing on physical means you miss out of some great films either becauss streaming exclusive, not available on physucal or released by a boutique label meaning its gonna be pricy and i cant justify blind buying a bluray for $20.
i love to have discs and no optical drive where to read them the simplicity of not needing to burn discs and figth with optical drives made netflix prosper in no time, i dont miss it much tbh, only when i dont have internet i miss that, and not much tbh
I collect physical media for all the reasons you might expect, but there's one reason that I don't think is obvious: the ritual. When you watch a film on disc, there's the ritual of physically choosing a film and then inserting it in the player, and this has been misrepresented as the inconvenience that streaming solves. I disagree. That ritual sends a signal to your brain that it's movie time, that this is what you're doing now. That's what rituals are for, to put you in a particular mind-state, and it's totally lost with streaming. The inconvenience is important.
Oh yes, you are so right. It is so very very satisfying that ritual. Same with vinyl, tapes & CD's. The new (old) Sony DVD/CD player I recently got from Ebay has a jog button. So satisfying twisting that clockwise or anti clockwise.
@phillipbanes5484 don’t worry! My new 4K discs are staying in their hard cases. Only my DVDs from the 00s are housed in a case.
@@phillipbanes5484 I can completely understand why you would prefer digital, especially if you're partially disabled. That's probably why my Old Man was ripping stuff to drives too. I do love the fact that you're passionate about your collection & have things stored by genre.
I recently started displaying and cataloging all my physical media. I have been collecting casually for several years but it's been ramping up more in the past couple years. 4k Blu Rays especially. It blows my mind how good of home presentations a movie can have now, and it's not available on any streaming service.
i don't even think it's inconvenience, i like to search on shelf what i want to watch.
However, doing that on a streaming website is just boring as hell
It's not nostalgia. People want their movies, making sure they have access to them, and the movies are not tampered with.
That's my thought. I mostly buy physical media, rip them to disc and stream them across my own network.And it's more less because of the tampering that goes on, the tendency of the TV and movies to just disappear for periods of time when they switch between services. Then there's the fact that when I buy a disc, I've more or less got it forever. I just have to keep it backed up and I'm good.
Plus, unlike streaming services, I get all the bonus features that were on the original disc and at a higher quality level as network technology improves.
It’s nostalgia to me.
4K Bluray on an Oled just smashes streaming right now. Maybe one day. But for now, it's peak.
It’s so good. I have LG C1 and love it.
Or DVD on an CRT. Oled may burn, but my 19 years old CRT is still alive.
What? VHS is dead?
Yeah, and imagine trying to stream 8K content. They're already pushing the TVs. Internet connections are not going to be up to that. I suspect physical media may always have a niche among hi-fi enthusiasts who want the best possible video and audio quality. Question is whether that will be enough to keep it alive. Remember, CDs were superior to the average MP3.
@@Monoxddddd DVD looks fantastic on a CRT but boy does it look horrendous on anything else.
I'm lucky enough to still have a real live video store just down the street from me where I can rent discs. It's an amazing feeling.
Very lucky!
I'd go every day!
What??? I didn't even knew those still excisted.
@@mr_movieguru l have one near me too. Best Video in Hamden CT.
@@Ron2600_ in The Netherlands they are all gone.
I feel like physical media might get a resurgence in the way vinyl has
Totally agree!
Right on!!!”
Absolutely!
Oh, it's way bigger than vinyl. With the rise of boutique labels, you're no longer buying "just" the films and shows, but you're getting highly collectable
works of art that are more often than not extremely rare and special. Physical media no longer belongs in the bargain bin. It's classy now.
I find it easier to decide to watch when i have physical media to choose from rather than the content overload of searching through multiple streaming services to find something to watch. That's why i love physical media and will continue to collect what I'd like to watch again and again.
i combine both worlds, buy physical media, rip it to a media sever, then stream it to any device i want.
It’s such a valuable addition to the physical media conversation. Adding to a server is such a good benefit of purchasing a physical copy.
I would do that too but storage and servers can cost quite a bit. Especially when a 4k disc is 100GB.
yeh i stick to bluray atm and i have 25GB storage atm @@EntertainmentKorner
@@WRNFILM I've been Capturing the video I watch (Reminds me of recording shows in the days of VHS) and recording them to a Hard drive, where I rename it and 1)send it to DaVinci Resolve to edit, or 2) I live with it, 'as is' and save it to an appropriate media folder. I use a traditional Hard Drive for my raw recordings and my media folders are on Solid State Drives.
My next step is to either build a NAS or a Server. (Or is NAS a type of server?)
Also, in the future I am considering a Video Capture Card (Currently using software to capture/record)
@@EntertainmentKorner Overwolf is a free Video Capture Software (They have several to choose from) and DaVinci Resolve(DVR) has a Free version of video editing software. (Very reputable, and worth considering the paid Studio version)
Aside from adding SSD space, I would recommend having at least two monitors.
Streaming services see films and shows as "content" to be consumed and forgotten about, not something that you might want to rewatch again and again. The promise of accessibility and preservation is a lie, but most people don't really care. They just want to watch that one show that's really popular that month.
They also have an incentive for you to not find the stuff you're looking for too quickly as time spent searching is time spent not watching and time spent not watching means that their library stretches further.
Physical media will always be superior to streaming for sound and picture quality + you actually *own* the film and it can't be taken away if the rights relinquish from Netflix or Prime Video.
@poiujnbvcxdswq youre forgetting that not everyone owns a gigabit connection
Name ONE streaming service that even comes CLOSE to matching the bitrate on a 4k disc. You can't. In the future it's inevitable, however the other factors still stand. @poiujnbvcxdswq
@poiujnbvcxdswq Good luck if there is a internet connection issue. Anywhere form the streaming site to your internet connection. Because if there is one issue anywhere along the line you don't have access to your movies. That's the number one selling point of physical media no internet connection needed.
@poiujnbvcxdswqWhat are you going to do when the streaming services remove the titles from their libraries? You think it can't happen? Boy, are you in for a surprise.
@poiujnbvcxdswq I still physical is better for the simple reason that you can easily dump, you can easily stream, and you can easily be incredibly versatile with your content you own.
If not for that, it's for the fact that specific services can be buggy, can be intrusive, can sell off your userdata and even just overcharge you if you don't watch everyday when you consider overall price.
I collect stuff that i'm sure won't end up getting a rerelease at times, so personally that's enough justification for me.
I went to the movie store this Saturday, the last one left in my city... It was full of people, the owner said selling movies is still their biggest source of income.
It is NOT even close to being dead, it's just that retailers gave up
I'm thankful that there are others like me who prefer physical media over streaming.
I also live in Indianapolis and I still collect Blu Rays and 4K Ultra HD discs. I recommend everyone watch this entire video. I’m also a RUclipsr.
Hell yeah!
i loaded up on 4k blu rays over the last couple years (i'll always prefer disks (games, movies, music) over digital), but never had a way to watch them until i got my ps5. i watched endgame in 4k, and it's better than streaming, theaters, any of it. i love collecting, and i'm glad 4kbr isn't super hard to find or expensive
PS5 has definitely helped more folks get into 4K which is awesome
4K blu rays look and sound amazing, I wouldn't say they're better than Theatres (in terms of picture or sound quality though).
@@SamDavies94 nah i definitely would the only thing theaters have over 4K TV's is screen size and as far as sound goes Dolby Atmos or DTS-X on 4K sounds better than 90% of the theaters out here
You need to prepare eventually it might get more expensive
I replaced my 4 different streaming subscriptions with an AMC membership.
I’m in the movies atleast 4 times a month and I purchase physical DVDs or Blu-rays.
RUclips premium surprisingly has an amazing catalogue of movies to discover, popular anime series and some nostalgic blockbusters -So this is the only place I stream.
This streaming war has gotten way out of hand, I really needed to touch grass again.
Another thing people don't tell you about physical media -- you're more likely to revisit a title when you own it physically. You buy something digitally (or stream it), you watch it once and you'll likely never watch it again. Because the services are constantly pushing you to something else - usually something that they paid a lot money to purchase the rights for (or produced themselves). They don't care about what you actually want to watch.
Any movie you don’t want tampered with, you have to own on physical media. History is being written over.
If you continue making youtube videos with this quality, you're cannel will absolutely blow up! The quality is REALLY high for someome with "just" 272 subs.
Incredible vide, you've got this!
Thanks!
I'm hunting down movies I love that are seemingly tied up in licensing and legal issues preventing them from being on streaming and becoming hard to find on physical, such as True Lies, Strange Days, The Basketball Diaries etc.
Hell yeah!
When I come across these discussions, I'm always puzzled by the protestations of unavailability when eBay is loaded with copies.
True Lies is about to be released on 4K and BluRay for the first time.
True Lies is available on 4k UHD disk now
Basketball Diaries Blu Ray is available on Walmart and Ebay
March 12th 4K releases: True lies 4k UHD, Aliens 4k UHD, The Abyss 4k UHD. Pre-orders are now available.
Streaming didn't completely stop my physical media purchases, but it did slow it down. I have always added great films to my collection, even if they were available on a streaming platform, but the 2010s definitely saw me buying less.
However, the last few years, especially since 2020, I've gone the opposite route of everyone else. I started buying tons of BluRay and 4Ks.
The addition of adverts to streaming, especially if they price out users of the ad-free versions, I expect to be especially damaging to the concept.
Very similar. If I purchased physical media it would be a Criterion or Arrow release. Something that really made have a disc worth it.
But what kicked it into high gear was DUNE. The stream on (then) HBO MAX looked awful. There have been only more benefits of owning discs since then.
I wanted to watch Patton on Netflix one night and they took it down at midnight. I bought it on blu ray soon after and realized streaming wasn’t dependable. It’s an additional source for content but not a replacement for physical media. It’s there for us to watch things we don’t want to buy on physical and that’s it. For the true classics, you better have a physical copy so you can always watch it.
I've recently started doing a digital detox in my life and part of that is starting to acquire movies on physical media again. Naturally like so many others I got rid of all my discs years ago and now I'm regretting it. I've also been buying music that I actually own instead of streaming on Spotify for a lot of the same reasons.
As someone who just turned 53 recently, I went through the rise of Cable, VHS, Blockbuster, DVD, Limewire, Blu-Ray, Netflix, & Streaming. My best advice on films, music, and physical media is this. If you find a movie, television show, album, etc. that you enjoy, get the physical media now while you still can! In the future I predict, streaming services will become tiered. The cheaper options will contain commercials and possibly be limited in content. The more broad content with little to no advertising will be costly. Yes, we’re going back to Cable Television. So get your physical copy of your favorite movie, shows, or music now. Because the final thing I’m predicting is that these media companies will stop producing physical content to force you to pay for streaming services.
You are 100% correct I recommend people to still purchase physical media that doesn’t require an Internet connection to enjoy because there’s gonna come a day where they’re gonna take that all away and the day that happens is the day that I quit movies TV shows and video games and will just dig out my old-school physical media and plug-in play all day Why the rest of the slave creatures are reliant on computer servers and can sit there and watch loading screens or get halfway through a movie and the service crashes
I agree with everything except the idea that they will stop producing physical media. One studio (Warner Brothers, I think) is now releasing loads of their back catalogue onto blu-ray through a print on demand model. I think that is an awesome idea. Of course, it's only going to be the most basic packaging, and little to no special features, but there's no need for physical storage in a warehouse, just print it and post it when it's ordered.
There's also boutique blu-ray companies, Criterion, Arrow, etc. that continue to produce physical media, and for some properties, for the first time.
Streaming has been riding on growth for years now, but I don't believe any company has actually made a profit from it, hence the need to increase prices now that they've practically saturated the market. DVDs and Blu-ray are cheap to manufacture, and will likely get higher returns per each movie watched.
Physical media is here to stay, but it will just become more niche.
cancelled all streaming services few months ago. going back to DVD, VHS, CDs, cassette and bit torrents.
Wow! Haven’t watched a VHS in a long time haha
Let me just take a quick moment to appreciate the INCREDIBLE editing you put into this video. These videos will continue to pick up traction over time. Keep up the great work. Cheers!
Thanks so much!
i mainly just burn my own blu-rays because a pack of bd-r discs is a whole lot cheaper. keep them all in a binder. quality is better. i don't really do 4k. i don't think it makes a difference really.
The quality of this video is pure gold. Long live physical media
Thanks!
I just wanted to say I _love_ the production quality of your video - the anecdotal style of telling a story, splitting that story into chapters, and the convincing way you lead us down a path before turning back. I was sure that turn was coming, I mean the title and thumbnail were suggesting it, but they were just vague enough to make me second-guess myself, and as time went on I wondered whether you were in fact all-in on streaming after all and the reveal I was expecting was something else entirely.
But then you pointed out how much time was left in the video, and sure enough the turn arrived. That's some real artistry there - intrigue, moody lighting, creative editing and subtle engaging music - I'm very impressed.
Thanks so much for your kind comment!
I never really got into streaming movies and shows. DVDs and BDs are better quality without wasting your Internet bandwidth. There's maybe one BD I want to buy a year. One BD costs much less then 12 months of many streaming services because movies are scattered across different platforms. When Discovery started removing content that people had bought, it's like, what did you expect? You're having someone else watch your stuff knowing full well they could just throw it out at any time to free up space. The only way to make sure content is available is to buy it on physical media and take care of it yourself. If physical media goes away, it may be that the only way to watch some content is on physical media or piracy. Piracy doesn't help anyone, so keep buying physical media to give publishers a reason to keep making discs. Even if stores stop selling discs on location, you should be able to get them online which is probably where it's going.
I think you nailed it, people will realise streaming is an expensive illusion and the discerning person will keep buying discs but not from the shop in town anymore. Netflix had the market mostly to themselves for a long time but now the pie is cut up into too many slices for any one company to make real profit. I think when people get fed up paying the subscriptions they will turn to illegal streaming a bit like the torrent sites back in the day.
Great video. 100% agree. Also, this video isn't negative, it's real. I'm a recent convert from streaming back to physical media. Unsubbed and deleted all the streaming apps, except for Netflix for now because I want to see the last season of Cobra Kai, but after that bye bye. Bought a 4k UHD player and have been slowly building my collection again and am slowly replacing old DVD's I still have with 4k's, if I can of course. The viewing experience alone is BY FAR superior to streaming. That and the experience of physically shopping for it and finding it and the joy I feel if/when I do find it is just awesome.
I have been a huge fan for physical media for years for all the reasons that are happening now. Spend a monthly fee that keeps going up,and losing movies/shows just because the heads of the service wants a tax write off, or pay a one time fee for a physical disk and own it,have a better viewing experience. I will always come back to physical media.
I buy used and during holiday sales and at this point, I've got so many shows and movies that I'd have to make it a full time job to watch it all any time soon.
I find that really hard to believe that Blu-ray’s, DVDs and even books are considered going out of style. Physical media is the perfect alternative for whenever Wi-Fi is not available. And not to mention the bonus features on Blu-ray’s and DVDs as well, which streaming does NOT have.
Newly minted movie and TV physical media collector here. A lot of great thoughts in the video and comments; another thing I like about a lot of physical media are the special features and commentary tracks which are not typically available on streaming. I'm eager to get more insights and info about movies or shows I love.
Physical media is more than just nostalgia. Streaming was always doomed to become anti consumer - because of the inherent act of taking ownership away from the consumer. Even digital purchases, are not owned by the consumer. If you don’t want to pay for physical media, paying for digital is throwing money away 🏴☠️
I personally never stopped. It's really a kind of a golden age for physical media collectors with so many boutique distributors and 4k discs and restorations. Also, great small scale distributors that focus on restoring films never seen in USA, an example company( like two guys): Deaf Crocodile. Another problem with streaming I face often is trying to watch a show or movie and the quality dips to SD for like 10-15 min for whatever reason.
Wow. Your video is well made and i definitely see your channel growing. Two thumbs way up 👍👍
Thank you so much 😁
The problem with streaming is you don’t own them. The thing about physicalized media is you own it. As long as you dont break it you will own it for as long as the disc lasts
There is someplace in between, where you keep a library of movie rips on a removable drive, so as not to be dependent on internet service or a streaming subscription and the whims of those deciding what content to add and drop.
100%! A Plex (or services like it) server are a great option.
Discs are totems. Physical manifestations of ideas, emotions, even relationships with others. Streaming is too hollow to be fully satisfying. Yeah, in most cases you only care about the content and streaming is more than enough. Same with ebooks over physical books. And streaming music over discs or vinyl. But for those things you truly care about beyond their mere pretty colors and sounds, art must be embodied to be fully savored. That's just how our brains are wired.
I work at a library and it's just so much nicer to check out DVDs at ease, without the hassle of looking around within the plethora of streaming options. If you're a cinephile, it's tough to keep up with great movies unless you have 3+ streaming subscriptions (which is insane and expensive. Criterion alone lacks a lot of great titles as well). You'd be surprised at the amount of obscure/foreign films - as well as classics - you'd find at a library that you otherwise wouldn't find on any streaming platform. It's old school and unreliable in a lot of ways, but worth it if you 're tired of dealing with streaming mishaps.
Couldn’t agree more! I love Criterion and Mubi as streaming resources but they do come with a price tag. Libraries offer so much! I wish more people also knew about Kanopy as an additional free resource. It’s one of the few streamers I advocate for.
Amazing video! Love the pacing and editing! Here’s a few things I started doing.
• I bought an iPod classic to move away from an algorithm sending me the same music over and over again, surprisingly you can find a lot of music online for free and iPod’s are mod-able.
• Started buying blurays after realizing the movies I purchased on RUclips can’t be downloaded to my pc.
• I got rid of all my streaming services because of the all price hikes and overconsumption, I did keep criterion though because they have an amazing film collection.
Its it’s funny, the online spaces I am around a lot people are starting to buy physical things again, but in IRL spaces I get called in nostalgic nerd who wants to hold onto the past when in reality I’m just trying to save some money and I’m tired of algorithms telling me what to watch and listen to. It’s kinda hard finding new things when you’re constantly spoonfed specific things based off of your history, it made me feel like I was in the box and I needed to get out.
Thanks for the compliment! I haven’t tried the iPod classic, but I might need to try it now.
I complain I have about streaming but always exclude Criterion, Mubi, and Kanopy!
I get the feeling that those IRL folks will come around.
Totally agree wholeheartedly. I went back to physical media about a year ago and haven’t looked back. There’s so much PM out there, you’re spoilt for choice.
We truly are 🤙🏼
Free advice from someone old enough to be your grandfather: All the "moving on" is wearing you out. Stop moving. All you need for true happiness in this universe are the complete filmographies of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Humphrey Bogart, Greta Garbo, Robert Mitchum, and Roger Corman. Oh yes, and every MGM musical ever made. All else is unnecessary. Trust me. Let me know how it all works out for you. But make it soon. I'm getting older by the minute.
Hey great video! I had a similar path and experience. Totally agree with those early streaming days as well, I discovered so many films because of Netflix. I started experiencing issues with some titles not playing at all on Vudu or the quality was really poor. Nothing like being in the mood to watch one of your favorite movies but not being able to get through it because of buffering issues.
Anyway, I just transitioned back to physical media a couple months ago and it’s been great. I absolutely love all the boutiques like Second Sight, Arrow, Criterion, Vinegar Syndrome, etc., it’s amazing to see the care that they put into their transfers/releases.
100%. Criterion has been an amazing resource. Looking forward to digging more into other boutique brands.
@@WRNFILM yeah and while I know physical media will never be what it once was, I’m totally ok with that. The products that these boutiques are putting out, have restored my faith and then some. Especially the limited edition sets, they’re just so damn cool.
You are so right! Streaming has changed. A lot.
Netflix became quantity over quality. It’s all about trends and algorithms. Just look at how RUclips works now.. the actual “any person can create content” is dead now. Social Media killed organic dissemination and RUclips just followed as well.
Well said
"Netflix became quality over quality" - Did you mean quantity over quality?
@@ApolloT-vp5dn Yes, corrected. Thank you for mentioning it.
@@Daniel__Nobre Haha!! I wasn't trying to be that annoying person on the internet who corrects everyone's grammar.
Just wanted to make sure 😀
@@ApolloT-vp5dn No worries. Makes sense. Glad you did :)
I am doubling down on games and movies. I have realized the important of having what I like and it also feels kind of nice having something in your hand.
Absolutely 🤙🏼
The one flaw of Physical media, is a House fire so its better to keep all your stuff in some Vault to protect them or a protective case
Yeah, very true and I was just about to comment this and don’t hear much about this.. because this happened to me in December and now I don’t know what to do. I still think physical media is extremely important and so are backups but I don’t think I’ll collect as much again and will be very cautious in what I want vs need .. 😅
For me, I enjoy the collecting aspect. The packaging, insterts, bonus discs it’s all part of the experience. The steel books have taken my hobby to the next level, I really feel like I own a piece of nostalgia and movie history. It’s been so long now collecting that as someone said it has just become sort of “ritualistic”.
Well said!
the “they could just remove it” has been a reality since 2006 or so when microsoft removed purchased software from peoples Xbox 360 hard drives. Personally I have always been a real media guy. I have always bought hard copies of movies music and software whenever I could. It is not hard in the case of movies and music to store the contents on a local NAS or something and if your digitized collection get wrecked for some reason, you always have the physical back up to restore it. I also don’t like paying monthly for access to something, just let me buy it if I want it.
I understand that most of the videos about physical media vs streaming focus on the US/Canada and Europe, but the real importance of physical media (apart from preservation), specially DVD, is the rest of the world. While streaming is certainly an option in many developing countries, DVDs are still the most cost-effective way of delivering movies and shows in most parts of the world. They can be borrowed and traded, players and compatible TVs are rather inexpensive, and the DVD catalogue far surpasses that of blu-rays (due to its open licensing). The only thing that's more accessible than DVDs in piracy, which is also considered fair play in many parts of the world that studios and distributors would never care for.
Thank you for the additional context to the conversation. I came at this video as a “personal doc” seeking to highlight my lived experience, fully aware it is informed by both my country of origin and privilege.
I transitioned from my DVD case to media on a media server early 2000's. I never fell for streaming services. I have over 6,500 movies, over 1,600 TV series. I don't get the lure of physical media. If you have a decent collection, you need to devote a room to it, there is dusting, inventorying, etc. If you ever have a fire, flood, etc., you are screwed. If you are comfy in bed, you have to get up eject what you are watching, go into whatever room has your media, find wheat you want to watch, put the old one back, return to your room, put the new one in and crawl back into bed. Nope, not me, I can switch between any movie, TV series, music track, gaming console emulator or even RUclips without leaving my comfy bed. I backup my media server onto 2.5" external drives. I can literally hold my collection in the palm of my hands. I am sorry, I don't see any benefits to physical media or streaming, only negatives compared to media on hard drives.
I not only think that physical media will make a resurgence, I also think there is an outside chance that we might see the resurrection of 3D TVs and 3D media. I have literally thousands of DVDs, BluRays, 4Ks and have no intention of quitting purchasing them.
I'm 58 and still use my dvd collection. With streaming it's becoming an elephant 🐘 in the room.The movie BARBARIAN will not be released on physical media so your left with Bootleg copies to fill the physical media void. It's creating an a marketing option for those hard to find movies or shows. Simply many of these Bootlegs are very good quality and you cannot tell that they are a knock off.Streaming is listed as CONTENT a dirty word the devalue the streaming animal for lack of a better word. At the moment I use all options because I can to always have access to basic movies. So when something or the access option 🤔 is limited .I can play any of my favorites regularly. But that not always possible.
The streaming services are at crossroads to where they haven't to many options equal to slim and none in reality. If the consumers get screwed over they will revolt instantly. That could bankrupt these services no matter how big they are .Turn The Virtual Page🤔.
Me too
I do both streaming and physical media. The reason I started collecting is because with physical media, you can't have that taken away from you.
Honestly physical media was always there for me as a kid while streaming exist if you ever want to rewatch with family and audiences it’s better in my opinion
I was right there with you. Sold all of my physical media. I own over 800 movies on ITunes. But you simply cannot find ALL the movies you want on steaming. And maybe you, but not me. I will NOT sacrifice picture quality and sound for being lazy from the ease of streaming. What happens if your streaming gets taken away? What happens if your internet is down? What happens if streaming takes away your purchases? Not to mention, my 4K movies look awesome up on my walls! So yeah, i left, but im back to physical! I’m with both, but i cant just count on streaming 🤙🏻
We shouldn’t keep saying that being critical and pragmatic equals being negative. I really liked the video. Thank you for sharing!
Absolutely!! Just wanna be positive about the current state of media…even if it’s tough haha
@@WRNFILM Yeah, I understand haha I just mean that I know that people look into social media content to get either validation or that "dopamine" bump, and maybe its because very recently I've been reading a lot of comments in youtube videos where people do complain about "negativity", but I just hope we don't start conflating criticism, critical thinking and pragmatism - which are things that you so perfectly displayed in your video - with being negative. They are very different things.
Anyway, again, great video.
Nicely put together video. It's a hard topic to cover. On one hand some of us want to help the environment so streaming is the way to go and people just happy to watch a film not paying much regard to the quality of its presentation, streaming is ideal for them. Except now they are starting to learn about licensing and how their subscription really works and might be thinking twice.
I stopped purchasing from Prime quite quickly for that reason.
Then theres us who want to be in control of our collection and for me anyway, to see films in the best format possible.
I'm definitely an Advocate for the Physical Media camp as I worked in the industry for 10 years as a QC Technician. On my RUclips channel it allows me to give out a little more information than most other Physical Media channels, regarding the discs that is.
So I'm definitely no a streaming person accept to my advantage on try before you buy.
Trevor
Absolutely a hard topic. I could probably make a 2nd and 3rd video with all the talking points I left on editing room floor.
Love everything you said here. This hit perfect. You cut to the core of me.
Great video! Also love the intentional typo in 'Steaming age' (5:41)
I make a digital backup of every movie I buy (granted I am bit behind after the holidays). I should eventually get a plex server going
I tried to make this video as streamlined as possible so I removed a section talking about all the various ways a physical disc can be a value proposition. Adding it to a Plex server is a great one.
Physical media 100% , im over 1800 moviesbin my collection. Only Blu-ray and 4k
The algorithm brought me here. I will comment to boost the algorithm. I’ve begun picking up physical media on the cheap as much as possible. Just picking up those movies and series my wife and I like so as not to have to flip through a bunch of apps to find which one streams it.
just didn't have the net speeds 26/2700 dvd and blu rays in my collection of Couse i stream as swell
I think that physical media is coming back into the conversation because companies are more and more trying to get a subscription model and take away your ability to actually own anything.
Netflix may be a huge number of movies, but the day you stop paying, no more access. Game companies also are talking about purchases, not as something you own, but purchases* something that is temporarily yours while we have the license rights and feel it's worth while to host this data. Am i looking forward to buying a $500 4k blueray player to update my old DVD player (I went computer after DVD and skipped bluray) and then going online and to stores to buy movies again? Ugh. no. For now I'm on Plex and I sail the high seas in search of movies and shows. It's a lot of money to lay out, and almost everybody says there is only Panasonic in the player business, Sony is big glitchy, and the others are tiny names with big price tags.
The Panasonic is on my radar. My Sony X700 has (thankfully) not been buggy.
Really good points! As a physical guy, I like the counterpoints you brought up.
I'm still going to keep expanding my collection. :-)
Right there with ya!
I watched so many movies for the first time through Netflix DVD delivery, then through streaming, but I've always collected the ones I've loved the most.
But that transition was insane.
Absolutely insane.
I subscribed to Netflix by mail in the early days, 2001-03, primarily to copy anime DVDs and some others to DVD-Rs, as they were expensive then and I was a student. I bought most of it later officially, but I download a lot now, in 2160p that's not being released on disc at all, or on DVD only. I believe they don't want my money by not releasing it, and those files are like VHS recordings of the older days, not really stealing... 😂
Me too
Fantastic video. I am a huge advocate of physical media, and love to see videos like this spreading the word.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I use all three: physical, streaming, digital purchases. They all have their strengths and drawbacks, and I genuinely think anyone who likes movies should try them all for at least a couple of months. Physical is far from perfect, so are the other options. I essentially see them as tiers now: I just want to watch something? Streaming (or digital rental). I want to collect a little more casually (the way I used to buy bargain discs in stores)? Digital purchase. I LOVE the movie with my whole heart and want it around? Physical.
I'm just an old fart & don't get along with streaming. It's very well produced mediocrity these days, especially Netflix. Plus all that searching to find something meh, at best. I've gone back to my cupboard of DVD's now my Husband has departed this mortal plain. He was a bugger for finding stuff online. Oh God, what is on all those additional hard drives? Great vid, totally understand your nostalgia for 'the good old streaming days'.
Not sure if this was on purpose, but really got Johnny Harris vibes from this.
Not on purpose. I hadn’t heard of him till your comment, but 100% see it 🤙🏼
I still have a blue ray 6 player at i still called dvds to this day because i onley such Disney +
The digital age is for the digital slave creatures. I am physical media for life.
The Internet destroyed everything it should’ve never became a thing
A little off topic but I find it heart breaking how most music videos for music I like are uploaded to youtube in 1080p or worse. 1080p itself is a fine resolution but the problem is youtubes bitrate for 1080p is horrendous to the point where if the video is anything other than a talking head video with 95% of the frame being unmoving, the image is heavily compromised.
With movies you can have the definitive experience of the theatrical release or you can have like a 50GB video file on a bluray disc, but music videos are mostly filmed by pro filmmakers on cinema quality gear, and yet the only place the work is destined to be experienced on is on youtube in 1080p lol.
The worst part is, even if it was recorded in 1080p, simply uploading it at 4k would give people a much better experience.
I'm starting to see a few music videos by smaller artists I like getting posted in 4k though which is giving me hope.
I’m surprised your DVD binder from only 2009 (what feels like just a few years ago) is so beat up. I have similar DVD binders from 2001-2002 era that I still use to house my Blu-Ray recordable backup archives of various data that I still use to this day. BD-R is great for cold storage, un-DRMed audiobook archives, etc, that kind of thing. I still burn new BD-R discs, stick it in one of those binders and sit it on shelf for 20+ years. Heck that’s what I did for my DVD-R archives from 2001-2002, they survived intact. So those binders will be great for another 20 years at least of cold storage BD-R discs. It’s still probably the best way to maintain your personal archives of data in cold storage over the long term even today.
That case was made of pleather and used throughout college. I could not tell you what manner of alcohol was spilled on it but I have no doubt that hastened its demise.
i love the acesssibility of streaming but 1080p blu rays look better than 4k streaming half the time
couldn't agree more
the so called physical media resurgence is baffling to me. This isn't a case of us throwing out carboard nintendo boxes, viewing it more like packaging on average. People threw their movies in the trash because they thought they were stupid and useless and that Netflix was always going to be the only streaming service that would always have everything they always want to watch. The fact everyone insisted on abandoning physical altogether and now thinks were being cheated by not having, justifies itself. As a lifetime physical media collector, i can say with confidence. Physical media isnt coming back, studios can now sell you a movie digitally and then remove the purchase if they wish to remove it from a service, and theyre not taking that back.
I happily own 2000 + dvd’s ! I buy deluxe versions on 4k but mainly for the extras like hardback book’ scripts ‘ posters etc !!! I will never get rid of them just like my vinyl collection!!! I just think there is a just a type of person who likes physical media !!! I don’t hate people who don’t ! At the end of the day it’s a personal choice!!!
I think to the crux your point the reason physical media may come back, is dissatisfaction With the streamers. i’ve told this to my friends, saying I understand why no one wants to buy it in college, but when you have a home and have your own place, have a few of your favorite titles, not just the movies any piece of media. A book, a piece of music anything.
I collect discs for the A/V quality alone.
The best package is the feature film on one high bitrate UHD disc and then a second HD disc with the extras.
NGL 4k blue ray I think would have taken off more if the players were not so obnoxiously expensive for so long... They never hit market saturation.
Totally agree. Streaming just ate that entire piece of the market.
I think of streaming like rental. It's a great means of finding new content, and enjoying 'event' programming worth seeing at least once.
But physical media is my thing for preserving films and series I'll be going back to. Not relying on some licencing arrangement between companies, or hoping it won't be edited the next time I return to it.
It's not healthy to be surrounded by stacks and stacks of discs you're never going to watch again, but there's nothing wrong with having a selection of classics that mean something to you
Who gets rid of the cases their media comes in, I dont get it
Why you putting your discs in a binde? Don't you want to keep them in good condition?
Only my old discs that have lived in a binder since 2009. New discs are safe in their case.
@@WRNFILM okay! Phew
...why is it so messed up though?!
HA! It made out of pleather from 2009 and started falling apart. The poor case went through a lot.
4:13 Had to like the video for that wordplay
I really loved the video and agree with you on so much. It’d be great to have a chat with you someday! Cheers
Thanks so much! I’d love to chat anytime haha.
You stream and don't own jack just like digital games, big tech wants you to own nothing and be happy with it, not to mention the fact that they edit what can be watched, screw that if it I'm spending my hard earned money on something I want something to show for it.....
I watched your video, but I'm still not sure "what no one will say about physical media". I didn't hear anything that I haven't already heard people say countless times.
I do the same thing with music. I noticed stuff taken down from Spotify. So I still have my CDs and backed them up on a hard drive. There was a Japanese group called Billie Idle that when they disbanded, all their music got wiped off the internet, except for a few music videos on youtube.
i got one and dont just get rid of it sure streaming is there but what if god forbid no more internet
Great video definitely something interesting for you I never used streaming til 2017
Your text overlay of “I own a digital copy“ is a dream they allow one to have. The term they should be using is lease. They can, per the ToS remove “your” copy and one does not have any legal standing.
I think I still have a cd/dvd holder from like the year 2000 in my garage lol. I sold my dvd collection in 2017 that was a dumb move.
Ugh! I was so close to that too. Well definitely not to late to start rebuilding that collection 🤙🏼
I have never used streaming. Well not paid streaming any way free RUclips with ads yes.
Why did I never try streaming? Because my internet was crap. RUclips buffers at 720p and some time at 480p.
Yes, my internet is still crap.
I still buy physical media and rip them in ISO files the ones I want to keep the menus and bonus content. The rest are made into MO4 or MKV files.
Once I have a big enough storage I’ll keep everything in both formats ISO for back up and the other formats for my local server
I still have one of those from the 90’s. It’s not that beat up 😂but not great either. I actually made a video last night about video games rentals back in the late 80’s (in Spanish language tho) but I touched the importance of saving our physical games and movies and how they have (in some cases) a story behind them that takes you back to those years collecting movies or games. Great video!! I’ll be checking out more of your stuff 👏🏽👏🏽
I dont see the need for it to be phyiscal vs streaming. I stick with streaming to watch movies and pick up what i like. I save tons of space and money, buy cool editions that are pricier, and curate my collection.
Solely focusing on physical means you miss out of some great films either becauss streaming exclusive, not available on physucal or released by a boutique label meaning its gonna be pricy and i cant justify blind buying a bluray for $20.
i love to have discs and no optical drive where to read them
the simplicity of not needing to burn discs and figth with optical drives made netflix prosper in no time, i dont miss it much tbh, only when i dont have internet i miss that, and not much tbh