I just want to discuss what criteria to decide to BUY a movie? Blu Ray is as close as getting a good copy of sound and picture to the studio master for your home viewing. So I am glad this technology is available now.

I envy those with a large collection of movies. However in the current prices (and economy) it's not always feasible for anyone and I must carefully select what movies to own. Personally I do not enjoy seeing movie twice in the same year. Then I forget what the movie is about as times go by.

However my lifestyle leave me little spare time and I prefer spending 2 hours watching movies I have not watched before, as opposed to re-watching a movie. For the same reason I don't really watch any movies for commentaries. But I would watch a featurette if the movie is interesting.

I am also on Netflix membership so I can view the movies again. Of course there is a cost to it even though not directly noticable.

So what should I be looking for when making a decision to buy/own the copy of a movie. Maybe something with good sound/picture and demo worthy, something guests would like to watch.. maybe action flicks? :)

Also what buying strategy should I use when shopping. For example, I want to have a copy of Dark Knight eventually.. but the price is high right now, I am assuming in a year or two this could drop a few bucks lower.. I understand not all titles follow this pattern. But supply and demand applies?

Thanks

Use Netflix. Buy only special favorites, plus a few for demo purposes.

The decision for me is easy as I didn't load up on DVDs because I have known for years that BD and HD-DVD were coming. So I am not in a re-buying position. I agree that BD is getting pretty close to as good as movies up to now are going to look at home. New shooting technologies may change that for movies in the future though. So I don't think I will have to buy again when the next format comes. So I have given my self a green light to build the library I always wanted. If I want a movie I am getting it. I however very rarely buy day and date. I will almost always wait till the price has dropped at least once.

Because I am such a huge movie fan buying disks means I can drop a lot of cable which saves me some money.

I buy the newer titles in BR and I only double dip on my older DVD if there is a need (old dvd wasn't anamorphic or of a bad quality for example).

1. You can always try before you buy by renting first.
Having a blockbuster or netflix account is one of the ways to try them first to make a decision on a purchase.
Just be warned that newer popular releases are usually hard to get during the first few weeks from online memberships.

I persoanally use blockbuster because even though I only do the online "1@ a time" account, I can walk into a
local blockbuster and return it for a new release blu-ray, which is usually in stock, for only a $1.99 and since the movie
I rented from online is checked in immediately, I usually get my next movie in the queue next day or the following day afterwards.

If it's some I know I will watch more than once, I buy.
If it's something I'm not sure I will watch more than once, then I rent first.

2. I agree with the prices but they are coming down.
Also, if you can hold out on some of the new releases(catalog and new movies), they usually go on sale.
Right now, you can get 25% off all blu-ray's at deepdiscount until 8/2 using the SUPERSALE code.

My average cost for blu-ray titles is about $10 or less thanks to these frequent sales at Best Buy, Frys, Amazon, Inetvideo and deepdiscount.

Just monitor this thread frequently for deals.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=16916116#post16916116

.

Since this topic has come up many times before, I'm going to ask that you take the discussion to an existing thread

Here's one of them

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=974043&highlight=rent


PoorSignal:

Please take a moment before starting a new thread topic and try the search engine. Looking through threads you've started in the short time you've been here, many questions can be answered by reviewing the existing threads on the topic.
Good luck


Best way to search is to use the advance search. Under the search word box is a drop down filter for "title search only". Using that filter will help in narrowing the focus. Use only one or two search words. In this case, "buy" or "rent" would be the best. Also, make sure the highlight the appropriate forum from the list to the right. For this topic, this forum and the Blu ray software forum would be appropriate. Always make sure the reivew the stickies for often discussed topics. The thread that Plasmaman linked for you is a sticky at the top of the BR software forum.