[centurymantra]

I am getting ready to update and upgrade our projector, with a plan to step it up a bit this time with a JVC projector. But…I’m wondering if it is really worth getting a higher-end projector at this point in time. Looking into the future, it is evident that streaming will eventually take over as the only accessible means of watching movies at home, and streaming video simply does not take advantage of that last 10% edge in quality that you are paying for with a nice projector. In reality, we are already at a point where streaming has taken over, but Blu-Rays are still being made and they are accessible. That being said, Netflix will eventually be discontinuing disc rental and video stores simply don’t exist anymore. Blu-rays will likely be manufactured for some time, but eventually one will need to actually purchase discs to watch them. We are huge film buffs and watch hundreds of movies in a year, so this is not a viable option and also have no interest in owning a collection of movies.

Granted, streaming video quality has gotten very good, but still - to take advantage of what a premium projector offers, the high contrast, excellent black levels, etc. – you really need to be viewing a Blu-Ray/4K disc, or step up to something like a Kaleidescape. I’m starting to think that buying anything more than a solid mid-range projector is a waste of money if one is only watching streaming video.

I’d love to hear other’s thoughts on this topic.

 

[Mike Lang]

I'd like to believe as bandwidth increases, streaming quality will increase.

 

[Archibald1]

I'd like to believe as bandwidth increases, streaming quality will increase.

Indeed.

I am getting ready to update and upgrade our projector, with a plan to step it up a bit this time with a JVC projector. But…I’m wondering if it is really worth getting a higher-end projector at this point in time. Looking into the future, it is evident that streaming will eventually take over as the only accessible means of watching movies at home, and streaming video simply does not take advantage of that last 10% edge in quality that you are paying for with a nice projector. In reality, we are already at a point where streaming has taken over, but Blu-Rays are still being made and they are accessible. That being said, Netflix will eventually be discontinuing disc rental and video stores simply don’t exist anymore. Blu-rays will likely be manufactured for some time, but eventually one will need to actually purchase discs to watch them. We are huge film buffs and watch hundreds of movies in a year, so this is not a viable option and also have no interest in owning a collection of movies.

Granted, streaming video quality has gotten very good, but still - to take advantage of what a premium projector offers, the high contrast, excellent black levels, etc. – you really need to be viewing a Blu-Ray/4K disc, or step up to something like a Kaleidescape. I’m starting to think that buying anything more than a solid mid-range projector is a waste of money if one is only watching streaming video.

I’d love to hear other’s thoughts on this topic.

That same argument can be levelled at any display tech. Don't buy your display to the level you think your content will be, buy the best display you can and it will maximise what you throw at it.
All things being equal, internet bandwidth increases, so should the resolution and quality of the content.
However, that does not account for the compression algorithms and other things that a certain provider might put on their streams.
Netflix on my Shield Pro is really very good, with good colours and Dolby Vision/Atmos etc. BUT it still has the occasional regular stutter/hiccup in the video.
That simply does not happen with discs. They play at the full bitrate etc they are put on at.
A disc will always been the premium way to watch, (for many reasons) but streaming is surprisingly good in some cases.

Either way, a good display/projector will maximise what it receives as much as a good TV.
The potential size of the screen simultaneously gives a more immersive image, but will also show up any shortcomings in the signal more readily due to that.

Streaming should only get better so get the best display you can justify regardless.

 

[rwestley]

I am getting ready to update and upgrade our projector, with a plan to step it up a bit this time with a JVC projector. But…I’m wondering if it is really worth getting a higher-end projector at this point in time. Looking into the future, it is evident that streaming will eventually take over as the only accessible means of watching movies at home, and streaming video simply does not take advantage of that last 10% edge in quality that you are paying for with a nice projector. In reality, we are already at a point where streaming has taken over, but Blu-Rays are still being made and they are accessible. That being said, Netflix will eventually be discontinuing disc rental and video stores simply don’t exist anymore. Blu-rays will likely be manufactured for some time, but eventually one will need to actually purchase discs to watch them. We are huge film buffs and watch hundreds of movies in a year, so this is not a viable option and also have no interest in owning a collection of movies.

Granted, streaming video quality has gotten very good, but still - to take advantage of what a premium projector offers, the high contrast, excellent black levels, etc. – you really need to be viewing a Blu-Ray/4K disc, or step up to something like a Kaleidescape. I’m starting to think that buying anything more than a solid mid-range projector is a waste of money if one is only watching streaming video.

I’d love to hear other’s thoughts on this topic.

If you have a good fast internet connection streaming has gotten quite good and will only get better. Go for the JVC you will be very happy with it using 4k streaming. I find that Vudu and Apple provide the best streaming quality. Netflix can also be quite good but I have seen variations. The Nvidia Shield with AI I feel is now the best streaming device for quality and works great with the JVC.

 

[MaxxCatt]

Edit: Deleted since I was off-topic.

 

[willieconway]

I am getting ready to update and upgrade our projector, with a plan to step it up a bit this time with a JVC projector. But…I’m wondering if it is really worth getting a higher-end projector at this point in time. Looking into the future, it is evident that streaming will eventually take over as the only accessible means of watching movies at home, and streaming video simply does not take advantage of that last 10% edge in quality that you are paying for with a nice projector. In reality, we are already at a point where streaming has taken over, but Blu-Rays are still being made and they are accessible. That being said, Netflix will eventually be discontinuing disc rental and video stores simply don’t exist anymore. Blu-rays will likely be manufactured for some time, but eventually one will need to actually purchase discs to watch them. We are huge film buffs and watch hundreds of movies in a year, so this is not a viable option and also have no interest in owning a collection of movies.

Granted, streaming video quality has gotten very good, but still - to take advantage of what a premium projector offers, the high contrast, excellent black levels, etc. – you really need to be viewing a Blu-Ray/4K disc, or step up to something like a Kaleidescape. I’m starting to think that buying anything more than a solid mid-range projector is a waste of money if one is only watching streaming video.

I’d love to hear other’s thoughts on this topic.

I couldn't disagree more. My JVC X790 shines with both streaming and disc content. It's increasingly rare that I can tell the difference between the two. Also, I do come across the occasional bad BD (and even UHD) transfer.

Anyone with a solid, reasonably high-bandwidth internet connection who falls for the "streaming sucks" mantra that's so prevalent amongst dinosaurs is doing themselves a disservice. (Now, with a slow connection streaming may, in fact, suck...)

 

[Paolo Nascimbeni]

I did see a huge difference in the past years between the movie on disk and the streaming but I do not see it anymore.
I have a very high speed connection and streaming quality recently is excellent. I basically stopped buying hardware movies. The new movies / TV shows have an excellent 4K HDR image for me. My wife even says that this HDR now looks better than real life. It is true, at least for the bright scenes ... to give you an example I just realized I was watching some terrible Christmas movies because the Christmas lights make the image look so good in HDR..... My system includes an Apple TV 4K connected with a fiberoptic wire to my Sony VPL-VW715ES.

 

[centurymantra]

I couldn't disagree more. My JVC X790 shines with both streaming and disc content. It's increasingly rare that I can tell the difference between the two. Also, I do come across the occasional bad BD (and even UHD) transfer.

Anyone with a solid, reasonably high-bandwidth internet connection who falls for the "streaming sucks" mantra that's so prevalent amongst dinosaurs is doing themselves a disservice. (Now, with a slow connection streaming may, in fact, suck...)

I am definitely not of the opinion that streaming sucks. In fact, streaming quality has reached a point where it is very good indeed. That being said, black levels are pretty much uniformly splotchy and crushed on all the streams I watch (with high bandwidth and an Apple TV 4K) and the ultimate resolution, motion handling, etc. seem to lag behind the quality of a top-notch Blu-Ray. Streaming quality also varies a good bit between services and sometimes the transfer that is being used for a movie is clearly an older version. On the Criterion Channel, for example, I have noticed that they hold out on offering the most recent Blu Ray remasters and instead run old DVD transfers. They still look very good and the streaming quality of that service is excellent, but still not up to having a Criterion Blu Ray in hand.

 

[centurymantra]

I just conjured up a bad memory of a rare instance in which I paid for a streaming rental on Vudu....the Bond Skyfall movie. Dark scenes were FULL of awful ghost images and dark grey at best. Not quite "unwatchable" but everyone was commenting on how bad it looked. I imagine things have improved since then, but every time I consider paying for a rental, I think about that experience.

 

[willieconway]

I agree on the varying quality of titles. For example, Amazon Prime has a huge selection but many of the more obscure titles seem to be - literally - VHS rips. Overall though streaming has gotten to the point where I don't really care if I'm streaming or playing a disc. The collector in me cares a lot but that's a different story.

Criterion is pretty infamous for their poor compression and I'd actually use them as an example of often less than stellar BD transfers.

 

[DunMunro]

The best 4K BD transfers are superior to streaming and will be for sometime to come. The 4K BDs of Lawrence of Arabia and 2001 are a couple of examples. The other factor is the fragmentation of streaming services, and thus the rising costs of subscribing to them.

 

[MaxxCatt]

and thus the rising costs of subscribing to them.

That's why owning the physical media or a digital equivalent is better, especially if you happen to be offline for various reasons.

 

[psyduck103]

I just went and played John Wick at 8 mega bits (standard Netflix starvation bit rate) then I played my Disc at 42.3 it was like day and night. About the only good thing that could be said for the streaming version was you could probably still follow the plot.

 

[willieconway]

I just went and played John Wick at 8 mega bits (standard Netflix starvation bit rate) then I played my Disc at 42.3 it was like day and night. About the only good thing that could be said for the streaming version was you could probably still follow the plot.

My uncle smoked a pack a day and he lived to be 98 years old.

 

[psyduck103]

My uncle smoked a pack a day and he lived to be 98 years old.

My aunt Ollie with the chicken farm smoked Lucky Strikes until the day she assumed room temperature and clocked out at 101.

 

[sdg4vfx]

Regardless of currently quality discrepancies between streaming and disc image quality, streaming image quality will continue to improve as channels increasingly take advantage of increasing bandwidth. (The improvement over the last 3-4 years has been substantial.)
Also bandwidth isn't the only variable. Image decoder software/hardware continues to improve and become more affordable. (As an example - in the past the image quality differences between Blu-ray decks was often quite noticeable, but that quality gap is narrowing fast.)

FWIW ... Between streaming and disc I notice audio quality more than image quality at the moment. But I'm not worried and assume streaming audio quality will also catch up over time.

 

[ProjectionHead]

I’m a bit late to the party as my sentiments on this have already been shared by others.
Despite any limitations streaming may have now or in the future, you will still get the advantage of a premium projector vs a budget model.
I also wouldn’t assume physical media is going away as there is still a lot of the country (here in the good old USA) that doesn’t have phenomenal internet and will continue to consume discs.

 

[durack]

I am getting ready to update and upgrade our projector, with a plan to step it up a bit this time with a JVC projector. But…I’m wondering if it is really worth getting a higher-end projector at this point in time. Looking into the future, it is evident that streaming will eventually take over as the only accessible means of watching movies at home, and streaming video simply does not take advantage of that last 10% edge in quality that you are paying for with a nice projector. In reality, we are already at a point where streaming has taken over, but Blu-Rays are still being made and they are accessible. That being said, Netflix will eventually be discontinuing disc rental and video stores simply don’t exist anymore. Blu-rays will likely be manufactured for some time, but eventually one will need to actually purchase discs to watch them. We are huge film buffs and watch hundreds of movies in a year, so this is not a viable option and also have no interest in owning a collection of movies.

Granted, streaming video quality has gotten very good, but still - to take advantage of what a premium projector offers, the high contrast, excellent black levels, etc. – you really need to be viewing a Blu-Ray/4K disc, or step up to something like a Kaleidescape. I’m starting to think that buying anything more than a solid mid-range projector is a waste of money if one is only watching streaming video.

I’d love to hear other’s thoughts on this topic.

It all depends on your definitions of "higher end projector" and "solid mid range projector".

For some JVC DLA-NX5 is a "solid mid range projector" for some it is a "low end JVC model".

 

[Suntan]

IDK what you are upgrading from, but improvements in things like black level, contrast level, etc. etc. is noticeable even with streamed content.

 

[chesterdad]

In my case, in somewhat Rural California(although along Highway 101-A main highway), our internet options SUCK! I am at the upper tier($80/month), and I am at 10mbs for the whole house, typically down around 5. Unless congress or the state demands it, none of the big providers will invest in my area. Quite a shock after moving down from Silicon Valley. Would I see the benefit of a JVC at these bandwidths? I kind of doubt it!