DVD, Blu Ray DVDs, and iTunes with Apple TV

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You cannot obtain a physical disk from the itms downloads, other than as ata disks for back up purposes.

dciallella wrote:
well that makes things more interesting. If you load the DVD into the computer, and play it through iTunes, can you play it onto the TV through Apple TV then?

no. it can only play content that is in your itunes library.

dciallella wrote:
Anyway have a Pro vs *** for Apple TV vs. Blu Ray then?

there is currently no apple device that support bluray.

blu-ray - 1080p HD, physical media, extra content on some discs
appletv - 720p HD, digital media, on-demand rental and purchase

dciallella wrote:
iTunes has *HD Movies* available, is that there version of Blu Ray and besides the picture display 1080p v 720 p -- what's the difference between the two visually?

HD does not mean 1080p.or blu-ray.
HD can be 720p, 1080i and 1080p (as well as some other lower resolutions).

blu-ray is simply the type of disc that HD movies are sold on.

1080p is currently only available on blu-ray.
even broadcast TV is 720p or 1080i.

also resolution is not everything. the bitrate also plays a part.
a low bitrate 1080p file can look worse than a high bitrate 720p file.

dciallella wrote:
Thank you very much Chenks, do you own Apple TV? If so, do you find it very easy to get used to not having physical discs?

i own 2. i haven't bought a DVD in years, and have never bough a blu-ray.
i don't even have a DVD player in the house and i only have a blu-ray player due to having a PS3 (although i have only ever played 1 blu-ray disc).

dciallella wrote:
Why own 2 if it links to multiple computers? separate houses?

i have more than 1 TV.

I have 3 about the house, I think Winston has 5 or more.

The beauty of the system is that once the iTunes libary is set up with the media, it's very easy to replicate what you can wach in room 1 with another AppleTv in room2 etc etc with only minimal new settings in iTunes, works in a modular fashion if you like to expand what itunes has available.

AC

The best quality video/audio you'll get currently will be 1080p from BluRay.

Good 1080p will be far better than AppleTV's 720p, however it all depends on teh source material, how well it was mastered/encoded for Blu Ray or iTunes.

I really can't see much point amassing load of Blu Rays myself as the future is clearly going to be on demand video over the internet for most people, though I think DVD will last for some time, especially for people who have no interest in Blu Ray. When Blu Ray players cost peanuts though people may have to change if DVDs are phased out or they can't get decent internet.

Ultimately there are many factors affecting 'HD' quality, and the actual 720p, 1080i/1080p labels can be wothless if quality is poor.

There has been some outcry in UK about BBC HD service- I bought a HD satellite receiver last year to watch this but it was only available a couple of hours a day so I unplugged it. I've recently plugged it in again as they're adding iplayer to the devices, but the HD quality doesn't seem that good anymore - they've been using new encoders for their video which have significantly lowered bitrate and according to many users this has reduced quality quite a lot - BBC currently deny this though.

AC

I also have more than 1 TV. I love having no disks. I don't use a DVD player and am not planning on buying a Blu Ray. When I want our videos in the minivan for the kids, I load up an iPod Touch and connect it to the DVD inputs. If I had Blu Ray, I couldn't do that. Even if I buy an HD movie, I get a copy for the iPod as well as part of the price.