Digital Downloads

Dan

Stand User
So I've been thinking of getting my Anime this way for some shows/movies and wondered what people's thoughts were.

I don't think I'll be doing it via Sony as they are too expensive. iTunes also seem a bit more pricey than Amazon, so for now they look like my best bet. I tend to watch stuff dubbed so shouldn't be an issue there, although they don't tend to state when it's subbed only either bar Mobile Suit Gundam The Orgin which has seperate entries.

Things that are putting me off are not all content is there, so makes me wonder what'll be there going forward. I don't just want a few titles here and others somewhere else. Although tbh I'd still back some Blu-Ray releases. I'm unsure what the quality of there HD encodes are going to be like and some of it is more expensive than the physical release, although not often.

So as I said early, what are your thoughts? Does anyone use Amazon or ITunes or anywhere else for that matter?
 
I wouldn't download an anime - it's too much hassle and disk space imo. Experiences with ownership of digital music lead me to feel inclined that downloads just aren't worth it anymore, we've moved on from digital ownership to digital access - the ease of streaming just eclipses it totally if your broadband can handle it.
 
I still don't think streaming quality is all that great, certainly compared to BD (we have Netflix at home and even in HD, you can see compression artifacts especially in dark areas of the picture... and that's before I start complaining about its other shortcomings, like the fact you can't force HD and have to endure sh*tty SD until it's buffered because for some inexplicable reason it can't buffer while paused). Then again, I'm not entirely convinced DTO is much better - Most official DTO files seem about a quarter of the size of a BD rip. And on iTunes it's usually more expensive than just buying a physical disc anyway.

Storage space isn't really such a big issue these days - Massive HDDs can be had for peanuts. Personally if I had to choose I'd go DTO, as I'd rather own local copies of my content so I'm prepared when the internet dies.
 
Personally i would not but DTO. If I buy something I prefer having a physical thing simply so it feels like I actually own something.
 
Cheers for the feedback guys. Looks like I'll be putting it on the back burner for now. I was just interested in saving space but nice to hear about the quality issues. That's one thing I don't want, inferior releases. Although I knew it wouldn't be Blu-ray quality I have seen a live action movie that looked really good but it was only one and I hadn't seen any anime.

As for streaming I'm gonna sign up for a free month of Netflix and watch a few shows that I don't wanna take the risk buying. If they keep getting content that interests me I may well sign up. It just looks at the minute like they are putting a lot of subbed only stuff on there which is great as they keep getting more anime but hoping the dubs come when they are released over here. Tokyo ghoul comes to mind :D
 
DTLWYHDC

Download to lose when your hard disk crashes. I'd much rather have the thing on optical media, keep that in a safe box somewhere, after ripping it to a HTPC. If I was going to the whole streaming from HD thing... Which I'm not, as I don't handle my discs with sandpaper. Works out cheaper as the companies don't hold you over a barrel with DRM. How much cheaper would an HD plus a couple months of MVM's DOTW be than paying for downloads?
 
Dan said:
Cheers for the feedback guys. Looks like I'll be putting it on the back burner for now. I was just interested in saving space but nice to hear about the quality issues. That's one thing I don't want, inferior releases. Although I knew it wouldn't be Blu-ray quality I have seen a live action movie that looked really good but it was only one and I hadn't seen any anime.
Just to be clear, I'm not an expert in the mechanics of file compression by any means and there have been instances (scroll down and try not to cry) where the digital download is actually superior quality to the BD.

But when I have BD rips of 90min movies that weigh in at 7-12gb and the same length files from iTunes are around 2-3gb... well you do have to wonder.
 
ayase said:
Dan said:
Cheers for the feedback guys. Looks like I'll be putting it on the back burner for now. I was just interested in saving space but nice to hear about the quality issues. That's one thing I don't want, inferior releases. Although I knew it wouldn't be Blu-ray quality I have seen a live action movie that looked really good but it was only one and I hadn't seen any anime.
Just to be clear, I'm not an expert in the mechanics of file compression by any means and there have been instances (scroll down and try not to cry) where the digital download is actually superior quality to the BD.

But when I have BD rips of 90min movies that weigh in at 7-12gb and the same length files from iTunes are around 2-3gb... well you do have to wonder.


No worries appreciate the feedback though.

Btw that Sword in the Stone stuff is shocking.
 
Disney's scrubbed, blurred, cropped "restorations" are crimes against humanity.

In all seriousness, whoever is responsible for them (and the cropping to widescreen of the Adventures of Tintin and Thunderbirds BDs) ought to be taken out and shot.
 
DTO does nothing for me, personally. It has none of the convenience of streaming, with none of the quality of owning a physical release. I'm sure companies would love to push this as the way forward, but the situation would need to improve drastically to pull me in.
 
As I have gone all digital with gaming (barring limited editions and cool pre-order bonuses), I was tempted to go digital with anime, until I realised that so many places only offer the dub of series' instead of the original Japanese, or dual language options.
 
Joshawott said:
As I have gone all digital with gaming (barring limited editions and cool pre-order bonuses)
Same here. In the case of games, going digital actually combines both benefits (the exact same product as you would get in a retail box, with the speed and convenience of getting the game at the minute of release), rather than being a compromise.
 
ilmaestro said:
Joshawott said:
As I have gone all digital with gaming (barring limited editions and cool pre-order bonuses)
Same here. In the case of games, going digital actually combines both benefits (the exact same product as you would get in a retail box, with the speed and convenience of getting the game at the minute of release), rather than being a compromise.

I agree that going digital has these benefits and it frees up shelf space. But what happens when the servers go down or access to a game is no longer available?I own some digital only console games but only if there were reasonably priced (£5-10). I always source out the physical copy because at least it'll have some resell value later if I decide I need to do so.

As for anime, while it is good that access has been widened on Netflix for example, I think it would be a great loss if everything went digital only. Companies will start charging subscription fees and the customer will have no choice on content and how long it is going be on the server. Ownership over subscription always.
 
Back
Top