Is 4K worth buying over blu ray?

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Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
All these new formats are coming out and it's hard to keep up. At least VHS stayed on the market longer compared to DVD, blu ray, and now 4k.

I am wondering if 4k movies are worth buying especially since a lot of my favorite movies don't even have a 4k release. Some of my favorite movies like For A Few Dollars More, The Truman Show, Malcolm X, 12 Angry Men, etc, do not have 4k releases at all.

I read that Batman: The Animated Series, which I love is just getting a blu ray release this year, but no 4k release. I tried looking for Predator on 4k and no 4k.

So I am wondering if buying a 4k TV and disk player is even worth it, since hardly any of my favorite movies or TV shows have a 4k release.

What do you think?



Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
Sorry I’m not really answering the question just adding my own comments. I’m thinking the same thing. I’m using a 10 year old tv and was thinking of upgrading to an oled. 4K although doesn’t have a great amount of content atm seems to be gaining traction. So are you future proofing yourself for years to come?

In terms of the difference visually. Well....the lg oleds I’ve been looking at simply look stunning, especially compared to my 10 plus year TV. It’s a luxury though, not a necessity but if you need a new tv, actually need one then I’d say 4K is the way to go. If not...well can you afford it? Are you just spending money on things that aren’t necessary and that don’t really have a great amount of content and maybe don’t look all that different compared to your set. But..:I’d suggest going into a physical store and looking at the product on. If you love it. Lives too short and you’re obviously a movie buff so...enjoy.



On a 42-inch TV certain Blu-rays already look too detailed, to the point of almost looking worse. So I figure it has to do almost entirely with the size of the screen and the distance you'll be viewing it from.



I would say nah. Not enough titles yet. If you are not a pixel peeper, 1080 hd is the ticket. Wait until more films arrive and the price drops and/or the new tech surfaces, which it will!



A system of cells interlinked
One of my coworkers got a 4k TV recently. I have heard quite a few complaints about it already. Anything from issues with some films being in Dolby Vision, some being in some other tech, to experiencing strange issues with the backgrounds in some shots in films and shows that create an odd effect that is very distracting. He also complains of oddity with the color palette in many cases, which has him fiddling around with his color settings and calibration constantly to no avail. Lastly, when watching stuff on the 4K display that isn;t 4k content, it gets upscaled, which he says also causes some distractions in the quality.

Here's the thing: Unless you have the cash to get one of the really high end displays, and this goes for OLED @1080 as well, just don't do it. There will be too many odd problems and distractions that will have you tinkering around with your system ad nauseam.

I've said it before, and I will say it again. Either you watch 1080 on a plasma TV (the superior older tech, by far, but is not able to do 4k, so kiss it goodbye), or you step into a higher end OLED, which are excellent displays and are fairly future-proof, but will cost you an arm and a leg.

I am biased. I dislike older LED displays strongly, as they just do not look good, IMO. Soap opera effect, ghosting, blotchy areas on the screens... I am a plasma guy through and through. I plan on getting another 3-5 years out of my plasma at least (I have had it for 8 years), at which point I hope to get into an OLED for a decent price. OLED are pretty sweet, I must say.
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Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
Okay thanks, but thought you could just turn off the soap opera effect, can't you?



You should be able to turn off the soap opera effect, which, IMO, is a complete disgrace. It duplicates frames for films. Films are 24fps usually...so instead we get, what, 60, or soemthing? Absurd.

It'll make a 1972 film look like it was shot on a sony handicam. Disgusting! Hate that option. I always turn it off on anyone's tv, doesn't matter who it is. As soon as they hit the bathroom - I find the remote and go to work. I'm a tv ninja and I fight for truth and justice.



What's a soap opera effect? I've never heard ot it until now.

BTW I love my 10 year old 42 inch plasma 720p tv. Most of the really old movies I watch aren't in HD anyway, so I wouldn't need a 4K capable TV. Besides does life come in 4K? I don't think the real world looks that sharp...4K is like an artificially over sharpened photo, fake looking IMO.



Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
What's a soap opera effect? I've never heard ot it until now.

BTW I love my 10 year old 42 inch plasma 720p tv. Most of the really old movies I watch aren't in HD anyway, so I wouldn't need a 4K capable TV. Besides does life come in 4K? I don't think the real world looks that sharp...4K is like an artificially over sharpened photo, fake looking IMO.
720p? You should be banned from this forum.



Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
720p? You should be banned from this forum.
If you watching a movie that is not HD, then a 1080 TV or 4K won't make it look any better.
Was just joking. I still watch free to air tv lol. Most of the content is HD.



Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
So really let me get this right. I still have a 10 year old 1080 tv. I was and still prob will get an oled 4K but.....say I wanted to pop in a blue ray...lol...say a classic like apocalypse now. Does it actually look better or worse? Yoda I think you said worse.



The People's Republic of Clogher
So really let me get this right. I still have a 10 year old 1080 tv. I was and still prob will get an oled 4K but.....say I wanted to pop in a blue ray...lol...say a classic like apocalypse now. Does it actually look better or worse? Yoda I think you said worse.
Apocalypse Now on Blu Ray looks fantastic at 1080p. With a 4k (2160p) set, it'll be upscaled - The set will add pixels of what it thinks should be there to make the picture fit the screen. As with all resolutions on TV (and player), some upscale better than others. Reading as many reviews as you can before buying is essential.

I'm pretty fastidious when it comes to buying older films on Blu Ray and the only real stinker I have is Friedkin's daft remaster of The French Connection, which I bought out of a morbid fascination as to how one man could muck up colour so much.

The other tip is to turn off all post-processing to avoid any 'soap opera' look. If the TV has a Game Mode, use it for everything - It turns everything off by default. Then go for the warmest colour temperature you can. If you're used to the bluish tinged Normal or Cool tones, things might look a bit weird for a day or two.

After that you'll never go back.
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Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
Ok sorry I have another question. Say I was playing a DVD player on a 4K tv...would there be any upscaling? Or is upscaling the combo of the tv and the 4K player plus the 4K disc? Hope that makes sense.



The People's Republic of Clogher
Ok sorry I have another question. Say I was playing a DVD player on a 4K tv...would there be any upscaling? Or is upscaling the combo of the tv and the 4K player plus the 4K disc? Hope that makes sense.
It'll be upscaled. If there wasn't any, you'd be watching a tiny picture with massive black bars around it.



Movie Forums Squirrel Jumper
Well how come I cannot find any 4K releases of movies then? For example, I wanted to buy The Road Warrior on 4K which is a very popular movie and I cannot find a 4K release. That's just one example. Where are all the 4K releases???

I mean I saw E.T. in a 4K release on the shelf, but is there anything other than E.T. released in 4K?



Hellloooo Cindy - Scary Movie (2000)
Well how come I cannot find any 4K releases of movies then? For example, I wanted to buy The Road Warrior on 4K which is a very popular movie and I cannot find a 4K release. That's just one example. Where are all the 4K releases???

I mean I saw E.T. in a 4K release on the shelf, but is there anything other than E.T. released in 4K?
Prob give it a few years.