Are the huge combo packs really necessary?

[TheDreamMaster]

I'm not talking about the special edition versions of movies with free stuff included, I'm talking all these Blu-ray/DVD combo packs we have been getting. Before I had a BR player, I admit I bought the combos for just incase I got a BR soon. But now that I have one, what is the point? The standard BR usually has the same features as the combo BR, right? Now don't get me wrong, I'm not as naive to think there aren't uses for the extra discs. I have a portable DVD player and an Ipod to put either the DVD in or the digital copy on to take with me. But with the economy in such downturn, not as many can afford to have these extras (and I admit, mine were gifts). Not to mention I happened to see BR-3D combos packs which included a BR-3D, BR, DVD, and Digital copy. What's the point? To sum it up, are these combo packs really necessary?

 

[HighFivingMF]

I guess they have a point, which is why they sell... But I still only buy DVDs. Haha.

 

[C. Lee]

At the moment, I have trouble affording the standard DVD that are lower priced.....I don't have a blueray player and don't plan on getting one anytime soon....so for me they aren't necessary.

 

[danoyse]

I only do it for certain movies, like Toy Story and Harry Potter. I'll keep the blu-ray and give the DVD copy to my sister so she doesn't have to buy it, which saves them some money. I have an ipad from work, and I commute from NJ to NY every day, so I like having the digital copies for the bus, although I've only used the digital copies for certain movies, I don't upload them all. Right now I have Star Trek, Up and Back to the Future on my ipad.

I'll only do the combo pack if I know I'll actually make use of the extras. Otherwise I'll go for the cheaper set, since those combo packs are expensive.

 

[KenK]

At the moment, I have trouble affording the standard DVD that are lower priced.....I don't have a blueray player and don't plan on getting one anytime soon....so for me they aren't necessary.

Blu-ray players are dirt cheap now, though. And you can buy brand new blu-ray movies on Amazon for the same price as DVDs you'd buy in the store, now. Are some practically new blu-ray movies out for like 15 bucks, now. I just bought Kick-Ass for 12.99 on blu-ray.

The DVD world you live in right now is a lie, my brother!! A vicious lie!!

 

[Sam Fisher]

Yes! Go back to laserdisc!!!!

 

[KenK]

Yes! Go back to laserdisc!!!!

LOL!!!! Shut yer ****e mouth!!!

 

[redhawk23]

Blu-ray players are dirt cheap now, though. And you can buy brand new blu-ray movies on Amazon for the same price as DVDs you'd buy in the store, now. Are some practically new blu-ray movies out for like 15 bucks, now. I just bought Kick-Ass for 12.99 on blu-ray.

The DVD world you live in right now is a lie, my brother!! A vicious lie!!

Blu-rays may be dropping in cost but if you don't have a good tv they serve no further purpose than dvds already do, and regardless its not the same jump in quality people experienced when they traded in their warn out vhs tapes for discs for the first time.

 

[Octoberist]

My only problem with Blu-Ray is this: not everyone has it. So if your friend wants you to bring over some movies and he/she doesn't have a blu-ray player, then you're screwed.

Or you can't led your movies out as much as DVDs.

 

[Prison Mike]

I bought the Iron Man 2 blu-ray/DVD combo pack and it's been working great for me so far. I can watch the DVD on the big screen TV in the living room and watch the blu-ray on my laptop (the only blu-ray player I have right now is my computer). Once I get a stand alone blu-ray player or maybe a ps3, I'll stop with the DVDs.

 

[Rac]

They seem pretty pointless, but I don't know. I don't have a Blu-ray player yet. I wanna one that is region free for BDs and DVDs.

 

[C. Lee]

Blu-ray players are dirt cheap now, though. And you can buy brand new blu-ray movies on Amazon for the same price as DVDs you'd buy in the store, now. Are some practically new blu-ray movies out for like 15 bucks, now. I just bought Kick-Ass for 12.99 on blu-ray.

The DVD world you live in right now is a lie, my brother!! A vicious lie!!

Did you notice the part of my post that you quoted that says At the moment, I have trouble affording the standard DVD that are lower priced.....in case you didn't quite understand, let me elaborate....at the current time, which goes back at least a year, and for the forseeable future (for at least another year) I am in a severe financial situation that has made things so difficult that I can not even now afford the luxuary of buying one regularly priced standard movie on DVD....much less afford to go buy a new player of any kind (be it blue ray or standard) or the blueray discs that (yes, I know some are now lowere priced than they used to be) are generally $10+ more than the standard DVDs that I can not afford.

 

[dude stannis]

Combo packs are great. We've only got one Blu Ray player. Upstairs is a DVD player and and our Portables only play DVD's. That way I can watch a film anywhere at home, and only one friend of mine has Blu Ray, the rest still have DVD. So I can still lend them.

 

[The ?ion]

The entire point behind the combo pack is to lure in customers who have not switched yet. You usually spend about $5 more and you get a Blu Ray and the DVD. If you haven't switched yet, you can still enjoy the movie, but you are future proofing your collection for when you eventually obtain an HDTV and a Blu Ray player. It has worked out well for me. I have been able to loan out Avatar and Sherlock Holmes thanks to the fact that I have the combo pack for each of those. Additionally, when I visit my dad, my only entertainment device (other than televsion and cable) is my laptop. While my laptop is great for gaming, it lacks a Blu Ray drive. So if want to watch, oh say, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, I would have to watch my DVD copy that came with the Blu Ray (okay, not entirely true since it also came with the digital copy, but digital copies never have bonus features or chapter skip etc).

 

[ALP]

The combo packs are pointless for me. I always just go with the normal blu-ray if it's available b/c with the DVD it usually costs more and all the tvs in my house are now HD. Now that I have a bunch of money, I definitely don't just that I've found some good deals. As for the digital release, sometimes it is handy but I keep very few digital films on my computer. Only have 2 on my ipod...it simply takes up too much space. One movie on an ipod is equal to about 500 songs if not more.

 

[The ?ion]

Well, clearly, the product is not marketed for people in your category.

 

[bullets]

I like how sometimes they have a choice. Sometime I dont want to pay the extra five bucks but that dvd does come in handy sometimes , especially with kids movies.
The only thing I really dont use is the digital copy .

 

[steintym]

I only purchase the combo packs and it works out great for us. We have a Blu Ray player with our main TV, but the rest of the house has regular DVD players. Plus, we borrow out our movies quite a bit to the family and no one else has upgraded to Blu Ray yet.

 

[Ipodman]

It's like if you order a soda, and they charge you extra for a soda and a cup of plain water

 

[The ?ion]

I like how sometimes they have a choice. Sometime I dont want to pay the extra five bucks but that dvd does come in handy sometimes , especially with kids movies.
The only thing I really dont use is the digital copy .

Yeah, I can relate to that. I just bought the 25th Anniversary edition of Back to the Future (DVD, not Blu Ray. Wasn't worth $20 extra in my opinion). It comes with a digital copy of all three films. I just haven't bothered to obtain it. I suppose it is nice for those moments where I don't want to drag discs and cases along with me to my dad's house or to my friend's house. But those moments are rare. I suppose the notion is that it detours people from using DVD rippers to make their own copies. Digital copies are always DRM locked though, which makes them almost useless (you are bound to a specific media player...usually iTunes, sometimes Windows Media Player).