Reader Poll: "3D Blu-ray? We'll stick to DVDs, thanks."

PCW: In a recent PC World poll, over 35 per cent of readers claimed they had no interest in Blu-ray whatsoever – and were instead sticking to the DVD format.

With consumers seemingly disinterested in 3D Blu-ray movies and TV networks still dragging their feet, it would seem 3D gaming may be the last bastion of hope for 3D TV. Unfortunately, gamers are amongst the most cynical consumers in the world.

[MariaHelFutura]

You watch your DVDs, I`ll keep my BR.

Maybe these people want to game in SD too.

[ALFAxD_CENTAURO]

Well, eventually the Blu ray is getting more territory.

Same with 3DTV's is getting territory, same case happened with the 1st HDTVs in the Market. Cassette VHS to CD's etc.

[vsr]

Do you like to record your Valuable Family events on HD Bluray or Standard DVD ?????

[Ilikegames76]

people also said that they'll stick to VCD/CD when DVD first came out.

[badz149]

...oh wait! never mind.

[hakis86]

has PC readers - who visit Piratebay, right?

[insomnium]

Excellent comment! Agreed 100%. Bubs up.

[internalbit]

They will have no choice as DVD is eventually phased out like VHS was. They will have to deal with their anger against Bluray and accept it.

[AllroundGamer]

:) i would say those people are also casual gamers with a Wii, so they don't know any better...

[Ares84PS3]

Slowly but surley blu-ray will take over from DVD. I can see it in the stores already.

They can't even argue that blu-ray is that much more expensive when I see blu-ray movies for $10 and under. Especially on amazon.com and at Best Buy.

[MNicholas]

Given the types of people who'd vote for DVD such as those who ...

are without HDTV

don't use disc media much (netflix, etc)

don't know what Blu-Ray is (mostly older folks)

are still whining about HD-DVD losing

hate anything remotely connected with Sony or even Japan

... 65% for Blu-Ray is a pretty huge win for the Blu-Ray association.

[SaiyanFury]

Meh, these layabouts can keep DVD. I buy DVDs when I don't have the extra cash for BDs, then again I don't watch a lot of newer movies anyways. I DO, however, use BDs for archiving purposes in backing up my PC's rather large HDDs. I have 3TB worth of space and DVDs just don't cut it for archiving. I bought my BD burner a month ago for 150 bucks and it was absolutely worth it. I'll stick to gaming in HD thanks.

[MinskyM]

Wow, fanboys still butthurt over Blu-Ray kicking HD-DVD to the trash heap of failed formats.

[ALFAxD_CENTAURO]

No one mention HD DVDs in the article.

HD DVD is buried.

[Masamori Sumimura]

I dont think this is about fanboys.

[Perjoss]

this is N4G...

[NewsForMe]

Are you an idiot? This is a PC site, almost none of them even used HD-DVD. Blu-ray just isn't necessary on PC. It already does 3D and good looking games without it.

[baker_boi]

They not talkin about "games" silly goose.

They talkin about movies. What game you know that's been released on Blu-Ray for PC? None.

But movies on the other hand, ripping those Blu-Rays seems to have a large following on da interwebz.

who knows why somebody wants a 17 gig movie on they HDD though. I can't manage that shit.

[sak500]

Well the sony force is strong here and keep defending useless formats thrown by sony. I bet they would have defended mini disc, UMD, betamax to death had they been born during that time.

BD is only popular on N4G, rest of the world hasn't embraced 3D nor bluray in massive amounts even with ps3 trojoning it 4 years back.

Hardly any PCs are coming with BDs and forget about DIY market. I recently built my new machine and used LG 24X DL DRW from 3 years back, that too i changed cuz my NEC from 3 years back coudn't burn DL discs properly.

My new pc is:

i5 750 2.8GHZ 4 core 8mb L3 cache , auto CPU Up'd by Asus P55D-E Preimum to 3.8Ghz. 4 GB DDR3 1600mhz. I reinstalled Win 7 on 128GB SSD ADATA and have rest of the drives amounting to 750GB. And same Asus VGA 5870 1GB. NOw why the hell would i buy a bd drive for my PC when i can buy any game on DVD or DL via steam or other means.

MY Movie watching is done on O!play which plays anything from 1080P MKV files ripped from BDs. So either i watch it in my bedroom on 100" projector or in living room on 50" 1080p plasma.

I'm content with these and wont even consider ps3 this gen.

[jack_burt0n]

Bluray is HD standard, deal with it.

[Nihilism]

'HD' was never a standard. HD is a term used to describe 720p...a resolution which is below standard, even though it is 'standard' for console gamers.

It just tickles me that the die hard Blu-Ray loyalists are content with gaming in 720p or less, shouldn't you like get a new PC or something...

See the PC screenshot thread in the forums, there is only one 'TrueHD' platform suckers, and Blu-Ray is not required for it.

P.S I have 2 Blu-Ray players...it's not a big deal, they cost less than DVD players did this far into their life yet people seem to think blu-ray player ownership is somehow exclusive. Blu-Ray players: the sports car of the working class.

[baker_boi]

Yeah you said all that bullshit, then you busted your argument by sayin, "I got two Blu-ray playerz!"

The hell you got any Blu-ray players for if your mighty PC is the "trueHD" platform?

Oh! Could it be that you're full of shit? Could it be that movie studios release their movies on physical media first?

Could it be that PC guys rip blu-rays so they can play that 17 gig movie on their PC?

I thought PC's magically generated new movies in 1080p? Well, damn I guess I was wrong.

And also, FYI fuck-boy, HD describes resolutions over 480-520p which folks call SD now.

I don't even wanna say nothin bout yo bullshit ass, "HD is not standard, but is a standard that isn't a standard."

da fuck outta here.

[zag]

HD is 720p

TrueHD is 1080p

TrueHD only comes on blu-ray

[mastiffchild]

My PC is fully "HD" on it'/s 28" display monitor while my two TV's are a 40" LG plasma and (720p)an LCD Panny 42" LCD and guess what? I can't tell the difference with my eyes between any of them. I doubt many people would have a clue between 1080 ands b720 on screens under 50" nor so so why the constant "my res is bigger than yours" BS?

@nihilism-we're allo "working class" unless you don't NEED to work to support yourself and your family. All of us.

[n4gno]

This dumb troll always came with "bububu 720", he don't understand that pc just change resolution of the game (even tetris can be 1080), but resolution is not always = quality/great graphics, it's just resolution ! (for movies, it's the real deal when you have native hd, with bluray, but for games, if graphics are poor, you can push to 1080 or even higher, it will be just as poor, just more defined)

by the way, nobody's talking about game here, and bluray are 1080P, true hd audio, and the best quality available for movies, deal with it.

"BR isn't catching on for two reasons. Decent sized 1080P TVs (where BR looks best) are too expensive for many people and the actual movies are too expensive."

Tv have never been cheaper than big lcd/plasma now ! it's just a stupid argument (like the price : it's exactly the same thing than dvd history, and bluray sell even better)

"3D has two problems as well. Requiring 3D glasses when everyone knows there is tech out there to do 3D without glasses (Why buy one now when you know this gen of TVs will be replaced in 3-5 years). And again price."

another xfantroll non sens, 3D without glasses don't have the same quality, first, and a poor 20" will cost a lot of money in 2011, so it's not the time for that kind of competition.

[IHateYouFanboys]

@zag: "TrueHD is 1080p"

No, "TrueHD" is simply Sonys marketing term for native 1080p, nothing more. It's not a technical term, it's not a well known and long used resolution term - Sony simply made it up to make people think their HD was better than their competitors HD.

There is SD and there is HD. That's it. Theres no "True HD", there's no "Super Mega Ultra HD". just HD.

An aside: I'm well aware that there are some 'inbetween' resolution terms, but I had to simplify it for n4gs audience.

[cmrbe]

Its not for mainstream yet anyways but i will get a 3dTV soon as a Xmas present to myself.

[Newtype]

people who did the pool are either really dumb, or damn poor.

[All_4_One]

Whatever floats their boat, lol.

I still play my old games in SD and watch DVDs and occasionally VHS tapes too too, but man, I love my high definition. I love playing my games in high definition, I love watching my movies in high definition and I love watching my shows and sports in high definition. These people don`t know what the hell their missing out on.

[BYE]

The other 65% like it or at least are on the fence, but PC World still makes the title out of the minority's opion.

Sensational journalism at its best.

[csimpson]

Actually, the largest percentage said they'd stick to DVDs (35%). The second largest percentage said they weren't interested in 3D Blu-ray (31%), for a combined total of 66%.

Sounds like pretty fair reporting to me.

[NewsForMe]

Seriously, stop actually reading the fucking article. Make numbers up like everyone else. Then maybe you would get some agrees.

[gillri]

Blu-ray is awesome, people that dont care about it obviously dont have it

[R_aVe_N]

My collection of bluray is at about 200 movies. I sold all my old dvd's in yard sales there are even websites out there that all you have to do is send in your old dvd and you can get the bluray for $5. I do recommend a stand alone bluray player though no since putting your PS3 through the work load if you don't have to.

[monkeyfox]

Whether we like it or not 3D is here to stay. Once glasses-less TVs start to hit their stride 3D will begin mass market penetration (oo-er)

[R_aVe_N]

I would agree with you there. I actually really enjoy going to the movies and watching 3D movies. I plan on buying them on bluray as well. My 3D setup is just waiting for them to start dropping.

[big_silky]

i know it's a shocking concept but there are alot of people out there who don't give a shit about any of this nonsense. most people are smart with their money and don't piss it away on every gizmo that comes down the line. most just got hdtv, why would they go buy a 3D tv when "ultra" hd is right around the corner? nobody cares about friggin movies that much except for status whores who need the newest thing. it's not "jealously" or they "just don't have it yet", they just have better things to do with their lives than worry about whether their tvs are displaying a nut hair as clearly as it could.

to paraphrase jurassic park, just because companies can make this shit, doesn't mean they should. they're literally just throwing every brainfart onto the market at this point.

[Garrus_Vakarian]

3D is a gimmick that I will definitely not be falling for. It'll have to be forced upon me for me to even think about buying anything will 3D capabilities. It's unnecessary to the max.

Also, well said. Bubble up for you.

[kerrak]

It is easy to undestand that 3d is not for everybody.
Old people have difficult times accepting changes and i have a great respect for them.
But what i fail to understand is why a lot of people in these forums is so quick to qualify 3d as a gimmick.
Can you tell me if colour, hd, stereo, big screens is a gimmick?
Every day, every review on this site is more about framerate, screentearing, resolution, polygons,lightning, colour depth and yet 3d is just a gimmick.
mmmmm i wonder why.

[Dark_king]

Hows it a gimmick? adding depth to games is anything but a gimmick.And big_silky really ultra hd around the corner?You really believe that?The nearest projected date is 2016,thats quite a far off corner to be waiting for.An just think of the price 10-15k would be cheap,with most people thinking 3DHDTV is to expensive.It will be 2020 before they even get semi-affordable at just 2 or 3k.

[madjedi]

@ garrus Guess what else was unnecessary atm the time but is now standard color tvs, it's an option genius not a prerequisite that all future movies will be in 3d -_-.

" I don't need HD to enjoy a game or movie. Though I don't buy many movies anyway" And congratulations you just nullified any valid points you made, discussing br being a high definition format or 3d in general.

Resolutions higher than 480p also were unnecessary, but it's standard now, next time word your post smarter.

@big And what the hell is the point of buying a ultra hdtv, running at 4k+ resolution whn the content ie movie and games are still in 1080p at best, duh.

And you count yourself as one of those smart people no doubt big, truly intelligent./s

Thats why i enjoy new technologies be tried and tested out, if the world was run by people like you, we would still have b&w tv sets if that.

[kerrak]

It was not long ago when having a cellular phone was "for status whores who need the newest thing". The same for overpriced laptops.
About ultra-hd: it will fail miserably. It won't reach mass market. Same as SACD failed in the audio segment.
Try watching 1080p films on a 60'' set at 6 feet. Tell me how many pixels can you see. Not much really. Do i need to explain more?
Of course there will be fantastic things to see on ultrahd: theaters, sports bars, concerts and other applications that need big/giant screens. But not at your average household, sorry.

[Garrus_Vakarian]

I don't need HD to enjoy a game or movie. Though I don't buy many movies anyway. For the games, graphics aren't everything to me.

Lol @ the people above who are implying that non-blueray owners hate it. Nice thinking there.

[bennyace]

People don't seem to realise that not everybody is 15-20 years old. And have other priorities than watching movies on Blu-Ray. I've been working in retail sales for electronic equipement for the last 10 years (Lcd, Plasma, home theater, etc...). And cutomers are not really interested in Blu-Ray or 3D Blu-Ray.

Yeah most people like to see it but don't want to buy it since they don't spend much time in front of their tv's. When you have a family and the kids go to bed you just want to relax. You don't always feel like watching a movie (Blu-Ray or not) So, for most people a dvd does the job. And movie watching is far from the top on their priority list!

I'm sure I'll probably get a lot of disagrees. But coming from people who don't know what it's like to have a family and the obligations that come with it or don't have other things to do with their time than playing video games or watching movies I can understand.

[kerrak]

bennyace, i think your position working in electronics doesn't automatically give you the right picture.
You should know that most important buyer segment for bluray isn't 15-20 yo. Just check available titles, pricing, product placement, visit sites like blu-ray.com and use your own judgement.
And tell me, who is the download-only market for?
btw, i am 41, i have a family and when the kids go to bed i play videogames or watch blurays with my wife (not every day lol).

[bennyace]

kerrak, I'm 40 and I do the same when my son goes to bed. Video games or movies. But what I meant by the 15-20 yo. Is that I think the majority of people here on this site are younger than you and me. And don't always understand why electronics is not the top priority of people our age (which is the biggest segment for Blu-Ray buyers, like you said) who have families, kids, wife etc...

Of course I can understand that there are electronics enthusiasts our age like you and me ( I guess that's why we post comments on a videogame site! lol), but most everyday people aren't and for them a dvd does the job. I think that's why the percentage of people interested in Blu-Ray isn't higher. I'm not saying nobody is interested in it, just not everybody and for different reason.

A lot of people here associate Blu-Ray with the PS3. And every article against the Blu-Ray format is seen as being against the PS3.

As for the 3D tv's. We carry LG, Panasonic and Samsung. They're ok but the 3D effect is not nearly as impresive on a 58 inch compared to a theater screen. The customers like it but not to the point of investing money in it. Some do but it's really a minority. Im not saying I know everything but being with everyday customers gives me a better picture of the reasons they're not that interested in those things.

By the way, thank for being open for conversation and giving arguments for you opinion. It's a big difference from I'm used to read here!. LOL

[SkylineR]

I'm all for Blu-ray but not 3D Blu-ray as yet. No content to speak of, but it's still very early on.

[123360]

65% give it the thumbs up,thats a bad thing?.as for 3d it looks great on my sony bravia.can,t wait for the big hitters to come out

[gersh]

When it comes to gaming I like to game in HD but when it comes to movies I like watching DVDs. Blu Ray movies are just too expensive.

[Silly Mammo]

Not really. At most, new releases are $4-5 more than the DVD counterparts. Less, if you know how to shop for bargains. Got Toy Story 3 for $14.99, Iron Man 2 for $15.99, etc.

Also, there are tons of catalog movies that go for between $9.99-$12.99. Sure DVDs are cheap right now. They are being phased out. BR prices are pretty much in line with how DVDs were during the same point in their life cycle, if not cheaper.

[A Cupcake for Gabe]

Most of the time I'll get a bluray new at $15. It'll come with blurry movie, special features, DVD, digital copy, etc. It's a very good deal. Soon BR will include a 3D copy as well.

[BillOreilly]

I usually just upscale dvds to hd

[00000000000000000001]

I really don't see that big of a difference with BluRay, so why would I waste a ton of money selling my DVD collection and replace them with BluRay?

[Dark_king]

Try playing them on a HDTV thats hooked up properly.That or go have a eye exam the difference is night and day at just 720P.

[maxcer]

i don't see a point either. you'll just be wasting money trying to upgrade that collection in another 7 years with something else. keep your dvds. get a few blu-ray's that showcase HD. and enjoy

[Pwee]

Blu Ray all the way.

3D not so much yet, due to the TV's still being expensive.

But DVD's are long GONE!!!!!!!!!

[Woffen]

My tv is currently a 28' fatscreen so playing stuff in hd quality is not very important to me and definitely not 3D so why would I get blueray? Now, if I had a better tv then sure.. but there are better things to spend money.

As for the computer, my dvd drive is just fine. Nothing Ive bought so far has been on blueray or required blueray and with digital downloads from places like steam, its not really important.

Dvd is dead some say? Im thinking it will be alive and kicking for yet another couple of years.

[badkolo]

i love blueray but it still isnt a houehold name, it has not penetrated likedvd did in the same amount of time, im not saying it isnt selling, it is, but all these years after its release dvd is still the bigger section is stores and blueray just isnt as big as it should be, maybe its the price of movies since there is a 10 buck difference between dvd and blueray, yes you can find blueray movie deal but overall there is a 10 buck difference.

3d is also great but as great as it is its not selling as well as hoped and it will take another 2 to 3 years for it to be adopted by more then a few million people.

If they take to long to be truly adopted there is a chance a new thing comes out and kills off blueray or 3d with glasses, in this tech world 2 years can be huge when it comes to new fads etc...

at this moment the content for 3d is extremly limited.

[Jdoki]

This article from 2009 seems to contradict your first paragraph.
http://hd.engadget.com/2009...

Granted the article is from the Blu-Ray association conference, so maybe the numbers are massaged a little.

However when you consider that DVD was competing against VHS when launched and offered a big improvement in quality on the same TV's as people played VHS, but Blu-Ray is competing with DVD AND the rise of Digital Download services AND requires an HD TV for best results I think the adoption rate is hugely impressive.

[thehitman]

Blu-Ray has 3D enabled if you want to use it or not every blu-ray player is capable whether you want to buy a TV to use it is another story. Also they should probably make sure the ppl they poled at least have an HD TV if they are still behind on the times ofc they wont have a reason to use blu-ray they stuck in SD.

[maxcer]

yup you need a 3d bluray player, 3d tv, and a 3d AVreceiver(if you want decent 5.1/7.1)

[ThatsGaming]

I think people are missing the point.

BR isn't catching on for two reasons. Decent sized 1080P TVs (where BR looks best) are too expensive for many people and the actual movies are too expensive.

3D has two problems as well. Requiring 3D glasses when everyone knows there is tech out there to do 3D without glasses (Why buy one now when you know this gen of TVs will be replaced in 3-5 years). And again price.

When those consumer issues are addressed I have no doubt HD movies and 3D TVs will succeed. Until then 3D and BR are for Sony enthusiasts.

[fan_of_gaming]

cause nobody buys a bluray player made by someone other than Sony right? I was sure Panasonic, Sharp, Samsung, etc all made bluray players too, silly me

[Silly Mammo]

Wow! Those were great talking points...in 2008!

[madjedi]

@thats gaming So toy story 3 for $19.99 on br is far too expensive, oh whatever tool.

And 40 inch 1080p tv have been about $600+ for a samsung or sony tv, so do you ever look at actual prices before you pull comments out of your ass.

"Until then 3D and BR are for Sony enthusiasts" Actually it's movie enthusiasts not sony enthusiasts.

Ah the 20 inch glassless tv from toshiba that costs 2k, yeah great alternative.

[OGharryjoysticks]

still bitter over the HD-DVD fiasco.

[ktchong]

Do you know what is the first component I think is unnecessary and skip out on?

A blu-ray drive. I'm sticking to a DVD-RW drive.

[Jdoki]

If you're gonna watch movies then why skip out on Blu-Ray? (Unless you plan on only streaming or pirating). Blu-ray drives are pretty cheap now.

It's kinda funny how many PC fanboys (not suggesting you are one) bang on and on about how they have the best gaming rigs because of stuff like higher resolution, better textures, audio etc - and yet dismiss Blu-Ray which provides the highest consumer resolution and audio for movies!...

[mrbattle420]

well I love my br movies but they are a little pricey ,and pc owners dont need br because hard drives are cheap now days,so they could save anyting ,but for me br movies are awsome (example my small pixar collection)

[Clarence]

Yeah that's what they said about blu-ray

[djfullshred]

What's made Blu Ray slow to take over DVD is the price jump of 10 dollars per movie. I don't buy DVD's anymore, but I buy fewer Blu Rays than I used to buy DVDs, because they are 30 dollars on average instead of 20 dollars.

I can't go back to old tech, that's for sure. But let's get real on movie prices. Why pay 30 dollars or more for a movie? Not many movies can you watch multiple times, so I am starting to have less desire to collect movies if it is going to cost me a small fortune to do so.

[oghost85]

please...

[kingPoS]

In most cases tv's that say 1080p have 16x9 ratio, while older monitors are usually at 16x10 an can display resolution's of 1920x1200 and higher. Bluray technically could support resolution's beyond 1080p.

But then It might end like VCD or SVCD was for the CD format

[Haseo106]

Well, I guess those 35% of voters are Xbox360 Fanboys. Don't hate the players, hate the game. Microsoft chose the HD-DVDs, Sony chose Blu-ray. And now, it turns out that the reign of HD-DVDs is coming to an end. These are few examples:

Final Fantasy XII:
3 HD-DVDs for Xbox360 : 1 Blu-ray Disc for PS3

Lords of Shadow:
2 HD-DVDs for Xbox360 : 1 Blu-ray Disc for PS3

Xbox360 will never get great games like Uncharted series, God Of War series, Metal Gear Solid 4............
Stick with your DVDs, and you will have to quit playing Video Games!

[IHateYouFanboys]

giant lols are being had right now at your expense.

no games have EVER been released on HD-DVD for the 360. none. zilch.

HD-DVD never 'reigned', and Microsoft never fully adopted it because they knew their chosen path was digital distribution. sure, they SUPPORTED HD-DVD by releasing the add-on - but if they were 'backing' it they wouldve incorporated it into 360s. they didnt, cause they didnt care. people seem to forget that Microsoft arent against Blu-Ray - they made the main Blu-Ray video codec for crying out loud.