"Scratches on a DVD are as fatal as scratches on a CD. My laserdisc player
does just what it says, reads the disc by laser. Resolution is just a little
less than DVD, still almost twice that of VHS."
This is true in terms of measurements, but to the eye VHS is much worse. VHS
not only lacks sharpness, it lacks texture. Human faces, in particular, are
often just featureless areas of pink or brown.
VHS is, IMNSHO, the very worst "successful" consumer product of all time.
"I still watch the occasional laserdisc, some are more than 10 years old.
There are no perceptible production problems. There was an old dead format
might have been called "disc-o-vision" by RCA that used a needle to read the
discs. Format was dead before you could plug the player in."
DiscoVision was the term MCA used for their LV releases.
I had a few out-of-shrinkwrap defectives (which were replaced), but none of
my LVs has deteriorated since then. If anyone has a copy of "Grizzly
Mountain," I'd like to buy it.
The RCA system was actually fairly successful. It does not use a stylus to
read the disks -- the stylus only guides the pickup, which is capacitive.
By the way, the CED release of "Rocky and Bullwinkle" is the only home-video
version with the complete "Wossamotta U." adventure. The Disney release is
about 10horter.
"You can't resume where you left off if you have more than one player."
Wha...? When I shut off the power to my Sony, it automatically remembers
where I left off. What does having more than one player have to do with it?
"It [DVD] sure was out then [1991]... at the Audio Shop on back street.
About $3500."
I'd really like to know what it was you saw. Pioneer made at least one LV
player that retailed for $3500 (the LD-S2) and was available in 1991. That
must have been it. More information would be appreciated.
"So far, the only movies where the production quality was high enough to
really make me want to see them on DVD is "[2001: A] Space Odessey [sic]"
and the "Star Trek" movies."
I'm not being sarcastic when I say either your taste in movies is very, very
limited, and/or you don't have a good TV. Many films show superb image
quality on DVD. Some recent movies made on the newest Kodak and Fuji film
stock (such as "Wag the Dog" and "Black Adder: Back and Forth") will have
your jaw dragging on the floor.
Of course, not all the great DVDs are from films made in the last ten years.
The recent reissue of "Citizen Kane" is an absolute revelation. For years
we've been seeing transfers from dark, muddy, not-very-sharp prints. The new
one is from an interpositive, and it's unbelievable.
Ditto for "Casablanca." The LV wasn't exactly chopped liver, but if you
haven't seen the DVD, you haven't seen the film.
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