The move to Blu-Ray.

Being a bit of a techie, I find myself always trying to stay on the cutting edge. So it seems strange to me that until just recently, I haven't even thought about the upgrade to Blu-Ray.

I've had a 1080p capable TV for at least a year now. I have HD programming, and I use it as an alternate display for my monitor. But why haven't I thought about Blu-Ray? The thought of replacing my DVD collection is certainly something I've been dreading. But I think the biggest reason is that until just recently, Blu-Ray players have been a bit out of my price range.hpwever, with the recent PS3 price drop, and players all around dropping in price, the everyday consumer has a much greater chance of picking one up. But what exactly inspired me to write up this blog post?

My parents(of all people) just picked up a Samsung Blu-Ray player from our local Wal-Mart for about $220. They decided on this particular model because it came with a bevy of additional features. Not only can it play your standard fare of Blu-Ray flicks, but you can synch it up with your Netflix or Blockbuster instant watch queues, Pandora internet radio stations, and you can even browse and watch Youtube videos.

Now I've been using the Netflix instant watch feature on my 360 for some time now, and it's definitely something I can't go without. The Pandora function is almost a system seller on its own though, IMO. Those of you reading this who don't know what Pandora is(I suspect that's a small percentage, but you never know), I suggest you head over to www.pandora.com and check it out. The people behind Pandora have broken down the bands and songs you love into key elements such as "complex acoustical harmonies", "minor key tonality", etc and it uses those to recommend and play other bands and songs with similar elements that it thinks you might like. You can give these songs a thumbs up or down to help fine tune the station, and after a bit tweaking, you end up with a station that plays tons of music you love. Having all that easily accessible on your home stereo setup is a fantastic idea. But I'm straying off topic.

So they picked up this new Blu-Ray player, and a single movie to give the system its new test run. The re-mastered edition of Blade Runner. Now I knew the re-mastered edition had been cut specifically for a Blu-Ray release, but honestly, I didn't think that it would be a great movie to test the visual improvements that Blu-Ray has to offer. I mean, the movie was made in '82. Far before HD cameras and the like were used for filming. I figured something along the lines of 300 would be a much better test.

Holy fuck was I wrong.

This movie looks fucking incredible. I was absolutely blown away. The visual quality is so good, the only thing that reminds you it was made in the '80's is the old computer systems they use. 10 minutes into the movie I had decided that I need to make the move to Blu-Ray.

Now after seeing a couple of Blu-Ray flicks, I can tell you that the quality isn't always so stunning. However, even the so-so movies make the transition more than worth it. My only debate now is: pick up the rad Samsung player my parents did, or drop the extra $100 for the new slim PS3? With God of War 3 on the horizon? I might just go with the PS3.