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This is where the streaming revolution comes in. Smart TVs and streaming devices give access to apps such as Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus and more, meaning people can watch millions of hours of movies and TV shows, in up to 4K, for set monthly fees, which ends up being significantly cheaper, and tidier, than buying hundreds of Blu-rays.
So it begs the question: why would people bother with physical media such as 4K Blu-ray anymore? As someone with experience in AV retail and now a tester of TVs, I knew there was a quality difference so I decided to check it out for myself and the results were surprising.
For these tests, I used the Panasonic UB154, a budget 4K Blu-ray player and the Panasonic DP-UB820, a mid-range 4K Blu-ray player connected to the Panasonic MZ1500, a mid-range OLED TV, which was set to Filmmaker or Cinema picture mode, and watched the same movies on both Blu-ray and streaming.
Beginning with John Wick 4, I immediately ran into some trouble. Advertised as 4K on Prime Video, I could not get it to stream anything higher than HD (after some research I discovered I was not alone) so I opted for HD quality vs standard Blu-ray.
Moving on to Godzilla vs Kong, again in 1080p HD on Netflix vs standard Blu-ray, and it was the same story. The Netflix version looked better than I expected, carrying a lot of the vivid, colorful punch on the neon signs in Tokyo that was on the Blu-ray version but again the Blu-ray version showed deeper black levels and more refined details and textures. I was still, however, impressed with how good the streaming version looked.
Finally, I managed to test a 4K Blu-ray vs a 4K stream in the fantastic re-master of Alien, which was on Disney Plus. In both versions, black levels and contrast were superb, capturing the eerie, doom-laden nature of the movie well. Textures were again sharp on both versions. Although there was that little bit more perceived definition in the 4K Blu-ray. Skin tones, for example, looked accurate on both, but more so on the 4K Blu-ray. It is worth noting that the Disney Plus version was in HDR10, whereas the Blu-ray version was in HDR10+, which gave the Blu-ray the perception of a clearer picture.
Whether it was the UB820 or UB154, Blu-ray did indeed have better picture quality overall thanks to 4K upscaling and performance, but the comparison between them and streaming was closer than anticipated.
After being surprised by picture quality comparisons, sound was the next logical test. Running the Panasonic MZ1500 through a Sonos Beam (Gen 2) soundbar, one of the best soundbars at a mid-range price, I tested the same movies again. This time, the difference made itself known.
For Godzilla vs Kong, the story was the same. The roars and shrieks from Kong and Godzilla sliced through the room with more heft when played through the Blu-ray compared to streaming. The crunching blows and shattering of buildings during their climatic fight scene had more direction through the room and just more power altogether. This not to say the Netflix sound was bad, just that the Blu-ray did it better.
When I put both Blu-ray and streaming in as close to the same conditions as possible, I was pleasantly surprised by just how close the picture quality battle was. Both had excellent details and colors that would make any viewer happy, although for the real movie lover, Blu-ray had the upper hand thanks to better contrast levels, despite streaming offered a suitable alternative.
James is the TV Hardware Staff Writer at TechRadar. Before joining the team, he worked at a major UK based AV retailer selling TV and audio equipment, where he was either telling customers the difference between OLED and QLED or being wowed by watching a PS5 run on the LG 65G2. When not writing about the latest TV tech, James can be found gaming, reading, watching rugby or coming up with another idea for a novel. "}), " -0-11/js/authorBio.js"); } else console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); James DavidsonSocial Links NavigationTV Hardware Staff Writer, Home Entertainment James is the TV Hardware Staff Writer at TechRadar. Before joining the team, he worked at a major UK based AV retailer selling TV and audio equipment, where he was either telling customers the difference between OLED and QLED or being wowed by watching a PS5 run on the LG 65G2. When not writing about the latest TV tech, James can be found gaming, reading, watching rugby or coming up with another idea for a novel.
Not happy at all about Netflix DVD going away. I've been using it since my freshman year of college (so...2005? Shit, I feel old) and despite using it very regularly (and shifting between 1 to 3 DVDs at a time), I've still got 400 movies in my queue. Dammit.
I'll miss my Netflix DVDs coming in the mail. While we stream regularly, we also get DVDs for those movies/series that we can't stream (HBO Max, Disney+, etc). We also like to watch classic movies once in a while and Netflix DVDs was our choice. RIP Netflix DVDs
I think a lot of film buffs like to use DVDs, Blu-rays, and 4K discs to supplement whatever streaming services they may be subscribed to. No one service has everything, subscribing to lots of services is expensive, and constantly juggling subscriptions is a pain in the butt. With discs you can just keep the streaming services you use most frequently, and then use discs to fill in the holes.
I know, I know, this is America, the land of the $. If you live in a low population area, ie rural, the cable companies ain't gonna bother with you - not enough $$. So, you pay more for less with satellite. That's why Netflix DVD's are, soon to be were, such a boon. I think i watched every movie from Argentina starring Ricardo Darin. And, Picard. And...so many more. Weekend evening - good movie - snacks ...
Back in the day, I was able to get all a but a very few of Roger Ebert's Greatest Films of All Time on DVD through Netflix. It was an amazing "course" on the history of film and film techniques, in addition to enjoyable viewing. Good luck on finding even a handful of those on Netflix streaming where you find "movies" not "films."
I think that says something interesting about streaming versus checking out a DVD. I it seems to me that there are two ways to watch media content: browsing until you find something you like, versus going in search of a specific movie/show. Streaming works very well for the former, but it can be a nightmare for the latter(as finding out whether a specific movie/show is even available, let alone on what streaming service and for how long, is difficult). But if all you want to do is browse until you find something you would enjoy watching right now, streaming is very convenient. Even the worst streaming service probably has one or two things available you would not mind watching tonight.
So if you are someone whose primary way of consuming contact is browsing, you probably wonder what all the fuss about the loss of the Netflix DVD service is all about. But if you are someone who generally plans your media viewing in advance (in the old days you actually used TV Guide to figure out what you would be watching each evening) not being able to locate the specific content you want to watch is very problematic.
This is separate from concerns about the general decrease in the amount of film and television content which will remain available, and the starving of the public domain due to excessive copyright length. I am mostly concerned about Netflix shutting down its DVD service because of this, and because the reality is that a lot of people living in rural areas do not have the bandwidth to be able to stream anything. But even without the Netflix DVD service, I know there is already so much quality content out there that I cannot possibly stream all of it no matter how hard I try.
Because I have an old television with only two HDMI slots I am using my Blu-ray player to stream, and I only have been streaming Netflix (although I could also stream Amazon Prime if I wished to). Netflix getting rid of its DVD by mail service is prompting me to rethink cutting the cord and putting a Roku in that second HDMI slot. Then I could subscribe to PBS Passport, Kanopy, the Criterion Channel, and maybe MUBI, Curiosity, and Max (if they keep the Turner Classic Movies content available) in addition to Netflix and Amazon Prime. I could also sign up for the rent by mail service that Scarecrow Video offers. Together, that would give me far more fresh turkey every day than I could possibly eat!
In the early days of Netflix streaming they had a bunch of really low budget indie films. Some looking like they were shot on SD tape. I kinda liked those movies and was glad that Netflix gave them a chance. I suppose it was like the early days of cable TV when the goal was to just get anything on the air to sell ads against.
The last two episodes of Picard were the best Star Trek we've seen I think since either "In the Pale Moonlight" or "First Contact". I know it probably won't happen, but Jean-Luc...I mean Patrick Stewart...deserves an emmy nomination for his work this season. Just absolutely masterful
I absolutely got my money's worth out of the Netflix DVD subscription (back in the day.) I had the 3 disc at a time plan. I would get a disc, watch it that night, mail it back the next day - upon which I would receive a new one. Lather, rinse, repeat. I was pretty much watching one a day. It's how I caught up on all the classic movies and shows I had always wanted to watch. The selection was just so much better. They had EVERYTHING on DVD. Streaming selection was very limited. Now, pretty much anything you ever wanted to see is on streaming - SOMEWHERE. A lot of those old shows I watched on DVD are popping up now on the Roku channel for free.
Speaking of DVD's, isn't it true that Blockbuster passed on the opportunity to continue their deal when DVD's were new, so the studios changed their pricing model to make them around $20 instead of the $90 they were charging for VHS? I only owned a handful of commercial VHS tapes (had a ton I recorded off TV though) because of the price. When DVD's came out, I bought EVERYTHING. And now I'm looking at my shelves of DVD's and wondering whether or not to keep them.
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