The thing that annoys me about this shift is that half of all releases seem to feature "special" packaging exlusively. "Premium" steelbooks, mediabooks, collectors editions 3+ times as thick as a simpel release in a plastic case. Then they charge anywhere from 35$/€ to 70$/€ for it. It is also limited and soon sold out. Now you have to flip a coin if it will be released in a standard edition 1 year down the road or if the premium release will be the only one ever and now it is 120$/€ on ebay. Then when you have the premium release, it takes up 3x or more space on the shelf. I only want the movie in 4K, maybe different cuts, and the special features. A simple plastic case is fine with me.
I'm in the small club of paranoia about how rough Steelbooks are with removing and storing discs than the standard plastic, easily replaceable cases. And as you said, it bugs me how sometimes they're your only choice unless if a standard version comes out. The regular release in a regular case is special enough for me!
As someone that’s very much into physical media (albeit, right now I focus on vinyl and video games), I’ve heard this very same argument for years. “Video games will all be digital” and “you don’t need a disc drive”…. But there’s a massive, vibrant market of collectors out there and distinct brands like Limited Run Games and iam8bit that focus of special versions of favourite indie games, with some AAA stuff getting the treatment.
Vinyl records have seen a resurgence in recent years just as streaming is at its peak on Apple Music and Spotify. In fact, vinyl is or has been outpacing all other music physical media, and still going strong (thanks TSwift).
I’d love to start collecting 4K physical media again, and I plan to, but I’ve gotta get a better player than a PS5 and invest in a specific library (I’m thinking A24; I see they have Deep Blue Sea rerelease coming!?).
I love that you're getting back into physical media! Just one note - Arrow Video is doing the Deep Blue Sea release - they would be a great place to start collection though! They have a ton of amazing releases.
The thing that annoys me about this shift is that half of all releases seem to feature "special" packaging exlusively. "Premium" steelbooks, mediabooks, collectors editions 3+ times as thick as a simpel release in a plastic case. Then they charge anywhere from 35$/€ to 70$/€ for it. It is also limited and soon sold out. Now you have to flip a coin if it will be released in a standard edition 1 year down the road or if the premium release will be the only one ever and now it is 120$/€ on ebay. Then when you have the premium release, it takes up 3x or more space on the shelf. I only want the movie in 4K, maybe different cuts, and the special features. A simple plastic case is fine with me.
I'm in the small club of paranoia about how rough Steelbooks are with removing and storing discs than the standard plastic, easily replaceable cases. And as you said, it bugs me how sometimes they're your only choice unless if a standard version comes out. The regular release in a regular case is special enough for me!
As someone that’s very much into physical media (albeit, right now I focus on vinyl and video games), I’ve heard this very same argument for years. “Video games will all be digital” and “you don’t need a disc drive”…. But there’s a massive, vibrant market of collectors out there and distinct brands like Limited Run Games and iam8bit that focus of special versions of favourite indie games, with some AAA stuff getting the treatment.
Vinyl records have seen a resurgence in recent years just as streaming is at its peak on Apple Music and Spotify. In fact, vinyl is or has been outpacing all other music physical media, and still going strong (thanks TSwift).
I’d love to start collecting 4K physical media again, and I plan to, but I’ve gotta get a better player than a PS5 and invest in a specific library (I’m thinking A24; I see they have Deep Blue Sea rerelease coming!?).
I love that you're getting back into physical media! Just one note - Arrow Video is doing the Deep Blue Sea release - they would be a great place to start collection though! They have a ton of amazing releases.
You’re right, I did mean Arrow. I’ve got a few in my Amazon cart and haven’t pulled the trigger. CAD prices are unnerving.