Can you guys help me sort out this movie streaming stuff?

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ptatohed

ptatohed

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I can be a little late sometimes to adopt evolving technology (ex. I use a 'dumb' tracfone, our latest model year car is 2005, and - at age 41 - I just got my first refrigerator with a water/ice dispenser.).  And, to that, I have pretty much always been a physical media guy.  CDs not MP3s, DVD/BD not digital/streaming.  However, I think I would like to start getting into streaming movies at home. 

I'm wondering if someone can spell out my movie streaming options in very layman's terms?

In my home theater, I have an Epson Home Cinema 3000 1080p 3D 3LCD Home Theater Projector, a Denon AVRX6300H 11.2 Channel Full 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver, and a Sony BDPS6500 3D 4K Upscaling Blu-ray Player with Wi-Fi.  While, I think my projector, receiver, and BD player can all stream, I will be using my Sony BD player for streaming.

The only thing I have done so far is get my BD player's Wi-Fi connected, created a Vudu account, and streamed a few of the free (with ads) movies vudu offers.  I was impressed at the speed and the video/audio quality. 

My movie streaming wishes:

  • In general:  Best price, selection, and quality?
  • I'd prefer non-subscription based streaming (like vudu) but I could be talked into a subscription if it pencils out (I anticipate renting 4-8 movies per month).
  • If I go non-subscription, I'd prefer no more than $0 to $5, maybe $6/rental.  If I have a subscription, I'd like to keep it at $15-$20/month (not sure how realistic I am being) . 
  • I'd really like to rent 3D movies.  From what I can tell, vudu only sells but does not rent (digital) 3D movies.  Do any providers offer 3D movie streaming rentals? 
  • Video Quality:  I'd like Blu-ray quality (what vudu calls high def - 1080P), not DVD quality (what vudu calls standard def).  [Does Ultra High Def / 4k streaming exist?]
  • Audio Quality:  5.1 and 7.1 channel surround sound (vudu has this).  [Does Dolby Atmos surround sound streaming exist?]
  • At this time I am not interested in purchasing digital movies or storing UV movies to the Cloud. 
  • Anything else I should know about streaming?


So again, in laymen's terms, can someone school me on the pros and cons of the various streaming providers (Vudu, Netflix,  Amazon, Hulu, etc.) and which service might match my needs best?  Thanks!

 
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KnightFox would like to tell you illegal ways to watch them? 

We use Amazon, and although we are prime members, there is also the ability to rent without signing up for a subscription for usually about $3 a rental. The choices are on par with what's available on demand or at Redbox. Good quality, never had issues. I'm thinking if you only need movies, that might be your go to. Hulu is pretty limited for movie selection. 

 
We pay for Netflix and Amazon Prime.  That gives us more than enough access to new and classic TV series, as well as a decent (but not great) selection of included movies.  We got Prime for the free shipping, so for me it the video seems like a good deal.  I thought about getting Hulu, as well, for more TV options but we already spend too much time with the idiot panel.  

 
knight1fox3 said:
I also prefer the moniker, "less than legal". :thumbs:
Click to expand...
I've asked how to do it before but have long forgotten how to do it. I'd be curious to see the options on an international level, but who is watching?

(I still need my US DVD player to watch movies purchased there).

:Chris:

 
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knight1fox3 said:
You say this like it's a problem. It's not a problem when you're the best at it. ;)

I also prefer the moniker, "less than legal". :thumbs:
Click to expand...
Exactly...it's a grey area.

ptatohed said:
I'm all ears.....
Click to expand...
Does any of your stuff have an HDMI port where you can plug in an Amazon Firestick?  If so get one and then search YoutTube for "Kodi".  That's all I'm going to say.

 
If I go non-subscription, I'd prefer no more than $0 to $5, maybe $6/rental.  If I have a subscription, I'd like to keep it at $15-$20/month (not sure how realistic I am being) . 
Click to expand...
So if its $6 a rental why not just redbox it?

I am currently without cable, but Its not like its going to pay my mortgage (the savings)

I am paying around $100 a month for what is considered good internet for a family with 3 high school kids.  I used to pay around $190 for full cable & internet. What I would do is call every year and threaten to cancel my cable if they gave me the latest "deal" which just got old. so now I have $100 a month internet + $12 a month Netflix.  The wife wants to add HBO GO- and when we do that well **** can Netflix for a while (or at least until GOT is over) & then maybe switch back to Netflix and can HBO GO. but my main goal is just to stay under $120 / month.

I like to save money but I just don't plan to deal with trying to go to this site to download some show or steal some movie, I have some patience and can wait for it to come out for a buck on redbox.

 
My responses below:

ptatohed said:
I can be a little late sometimes to adopt evolving technology (ex. I use a 'dumb' tracfone, our latest model year car is 2005, and - at age 41 - I just got my first refrigerator with a water/ice dispenser.).  And, to that, I have pretty much always been a physical media guy.  CDs not MP3s, DVD/BD not digital/streaming.  However, I think I would like to start getting into streaming movies at home. 

I'm wondering if someone can spell out my movie streaming options in very layman's terms?

In my home theater, I have an Epson Home Cinema 3000 1080p 3D 3LCD Home Theater Projector, a Denon AVRX6300H 11.2 Channel Full 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver (not bad, trying to run with the audiophiles I see), and a Sony BDPS6500 3D 4K Upscaling Blu-ray Player with Wi-Fi (I'll let this one slide based on your AVR selection).  While, I think my projector, receiver, and BD player can all stream, I will be using my Sony BD player for streaming.

The only thing I have done so far is get my BD player's Wi-Fi connected, created a Vudu account, and streamed a few of the free (with ads) movies vudu offers.  I was impressed at the speed and the video/audio quality. 

My movie streaming wishes:

  • In general:  Best price, selection, and quality? (Generally the norm here is a combination of Netflix and Hulu. But it really depends on what you plan to watch. More movies or more TV shows? Redbox is another good alternative for movies but I've never used that service as I don't watch things that aren't already online. In addition, now there are certain providers that are offering individual streaming packages for only those things you prefer to watch. Like HBO Go [though over-priced IMO] CBS On Demand.)
  • I'd prefer non-subscription based streaming (like vudu) but I could be talked into a subscription if it pencils out (I anticipate renting 4-8 movies per month). (I'm a fan of VuDu. When you buy a physical copy of a movie, either DVD or BD, they typically come with a "digital copy". What's great about VuDu is that you can add those digital copies to your personal library. So you can basically watch them where ever/when ever you want so long as you have a decent Internet connection. Definitely saves the burden of having to cart disks and/or a removable drive with you while traveling.)
  • If I go non-subscription, I'd prefer no more than $0 to $5, maybe $6/rental.  If I have a subscription, I'd like to keep it at $15-$20/month (not sure how realistic I am being). (This is definitely realistic)
  • I'd really like to rent 3D movies.  From what I can tell, vudu only sells but does not rent (digital) 3D movies.  Do any providers offer 3D movie streaming rentals? (Amazon Prime might be a good alternative for this. But also note, once you make the jump to 3D content, your bandwidth will also make a noticeable jump. It will be prudent to have the proper networking infrastructure in place otherwise you will experience lag. IMO, Amazon has pretty good rental pricing.)
  • Video Quality:  I'd like Blu-ray quality (what vudu calls high def - 1080P), not DVD quality (what vudu calls standard def).  [Does Ultra High Def / 4k streaming exist?] (As far as I know, most of the 1080p streaming content is pretty close to that of disc 1080p content [Internet connection dependent]. Most of the more popular streaming services now "auto-adjust" the video quality based on sustainable bandwidth. And some let you make manual adjustments as you see fit. Presently YouTube is the only service I know of that presently has the capability to stream 4K content. It will likely start trickling into some of the other services but is going to require a good amount of network through-put. So for the common user, if they don't have the proper networking technologies employed, they'll likely see very choppy performance and will probably just revert to something lower quality. At the end of the day, sustained network throughput and good video processing will be top priorities.)
  • Audio Quality:  5.1 and 7.1 channel surround sound (vudu has this).  [Does Dolby Atmos surround sound streaming exist?] (I believe Dolby ATMOS is now being employed with various streaming services, but the content that uses it just isn't that prevalent right now.)
  • At this time I am not interested in purchasing digital movies or storing UV movies to the Cloud. (See comment above with regard to archiving digital movies using VuDu.) 
  • Anything else I should know about streaming? (Yes, never CROSS the streams.)
So again, in laymen's terms, can someone school me on the pros and cons of the various streaming providers (Vudu, Netflix,  Amazon, Hulu, etc.) and which service might match my needs best?  Thanks!
Click to expand...

 
A couple of follow-ups points:

- I have had no problem at all streaming in 1080p hi def on either Amazon or Netflix, even up here in the great white north where the internet is supposedly "crappy" compared to the lower 48.  

- Forget Dolby Atmos, or even 7.1 for that matter.  I played the chase-the-latest-surround-format for many years, and ultimately decided that I could absolutely not hear or appreciate the difference.  I am currently running a 5.1 system and it is just fine.  Instead of spending your money on more speakers, buy full-sized front mains and a subwoofer that will truly take you down to 20 Hz and rumble your couch.  Those two things made a much bigger difference to me than the surround configuration.  I left the cheap Advent surround speakers in place that came with my house, and was surprised to find out my system sounds the same as it did when I used my more expensive surrounds.  So my takeaway is the surround speakers still don't make all that much difference. 

 
Dleg said:
- Forget Dolby Atmos, or even 7.1 for that matter.  
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This made me LOL. Because it's basically true. I definitely noticed an increase in quality when Dolby TrueHD and MasterHD came to the table. For my $$, that sounds phenomenal on my system. That's not to say that Atmos doesn't sound good, but it's not a discernible difference to me. So I have no reason to upgrade due to that reason alone.

 
Dleg said:
A couple of follow-ups points:

- I have had no problem at all streaming in 1080p hi def on either Amazon or Netflix, even up here in the great white north where the internet is supposedly "crappy" compared to the lower 48.  
Click to expand...


Somehow I doubt your internet is "crappy."  I live in the lower 48 and the best I can get is 1.5 Mbps DSL, or use a cell hot spot (which would be tremendously pricey to stream HD).  I can sustain an Amazon stream, but it's decided less than SD, let alone HD.

 

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