Hey guys...
So I had a bit of a dilemma and disappointment the other day...I knew I wanted to order the digital package of Star Wars films, because I rarely purchase movies and I haven't owned copies of them since the VHS package came out in the mid-90s. I am an Amazon guy...that's where I rent most of my movies, and I make hundreds of purchases there a year. I'm also pretty into my Amazon Fire TV and Kindle Fire tablet.
So I went to order the films on Amazon and I noticed that it only said "HD", with no indication what their idea of HD was. I didn't see any resolution information in the description. So I spent the next 30 min chatting with them, only to get frustrated when they told me they "have no way to know what the resolution of the star wars films would be". If I have one big issue with Amazon, it's that they don't seem to ever have any front line reps with even basic understanding of technical issues and specs. So I gave up and sent them an email. Several hours later they responded and stated that the films were in 720p. I sort of figured that was the case, since Vudu and iTunes are both prominently advertising 1080p.
Even though I use Amazon the most, my favorite streaming service is VUDU. But the Vudu app isn't on the Amazon Fire, the Kindle, or my AppleTV...so that left me in a pickle. I really wanted to buy them on Vudu, but if I didn't have the flexibility to watch them on my main HT rig AND also stream them to my devices, I wasn't sure it was worth it.
But then something happened....
I finally took a few minutes to understand what the heck this "Ultraviolet" thing is that Vudu always seems to be promoting. When I bought my PS4, they offered a free movie when you added the vudu app and signed up for an Ultraviolet account. I did that for the free movie, but really had no idea what it was. Well as it turns out, it's AWESOME!!! And it made my decision to purchase the films on Vudu an absolute no-brainer.
For those who don't know, Ultraviolet is a cloud locker that is run by the movie studios. When you buy movies on a service like Vudu, your films also are added to your Ultraviolet account. And any other apps- Cinema Now, Flixster, M-Go, etc - that are associated with the Ultraviolet cloud allow you to link to to your main locker in the cloud. It's very simple to set up , and very simple to link your other accounts to the Ultraviolet cloud. So now, if something ever happens to Vudu, my movies are still protected in the cloud and I can watch them on other applications.
And the end result? Last night I fired up Star Wars: A New Hope on Vudu just to watch the first 10 min and see how it looked. Gentlemen, I was STUNNED at this image quality. R2-D2 on the Star Destroyer at the start of the film looked like an entirely different droid! (So to speak...lol) He had battle damage and dirt that I'd never seen before. The picture was bright, beautiful, and just overwhelming me with details. It looked as though Lucas shot it yesterday, almost like I was being transported back to 1977 and getting to see it filmed live.
Anyway, sorry to be so long winded, but I know probably some of you are going to buy this digital package, so wanted to pass along my $.02. I wish I could say that Amazon was a great way to go, but in this case I really think you're doing yourself a disservice but not going with Vudu. You won't regret it!
PS: I know there are those who take issue with all the different releases of the films, so please don't muck up this thread with all sorts of whining and complaining...I'd really like to keep the discussion on topic. Thanks!
