Last gasps of a dying format

[wraggster]

via pspfanboy (http://www.pspfanboy.com/2007/03/27/last-gasps-of-a-dying-format/)

Sony handled the UMD as a movie format terribly and so it's no surprise that movie studios and retail stores have backed out of supporting it. Seeing recent exceptions like Borat or Casino Royale got me thinking: When will the last UMD movie be released? A trip to Sony Style lists Stomp the Yard as their last UMD available for pre-order with a release date of May 15th. Amazon had a few other UMDs listed to come out after Stomp the Yard, but the release date was listed as being in the year 2025, so it's very likely that these UMDs have been canceled. In any case it's painfully obvious, this is the last year we'll see new UMD releases. Is anyone that reads this site still buying UMD movies new, or do you just buy them if they're on clearance?

I actually like the UMD Format very much, perfect for movies on the go

[Cokemusic]

Is anyone that reads this site still buying UMD movies new, or do you just buy them if they're on clearance?[/B]

What about the option of never ever purchasing a umd movie , worthless can't play it on anything else.

The only UMD Movie i've ever had was the spider man one I got for free.

[nyrtrublue]

the only prayer of the umd format working for movies was if they sold a umd player similar to blue ray disks that work in ps3 but no it was doomed from day one

[wolfpack]

i have a portable dvd player, so umd's are useless to me, ive never bought one but i did get one for christmas.

[VFerg]

It was a really good idea but everyone listed the problems... Cost to much, format wasnt compatable with anything else, firmware updates sometimes, and flooding the market with to many movies. They should have only released a movie on UMD if it was an extremely popular one instead of trying to sell the majority of whatever came out. I also only had spiderman because it came with it but I really loved the idea and probably would have purchased them if it was not for the same reasons I listed above. I normally just converted my own movies and put them on my mem stick to watch them. It's pretty sad seeing a format die!

[Elven6]

I think it has some life left in it, I mean they still release movies on VHS, the last movie relased was Borat.

[SSaxdude]

UMD movies were worthless from the start. Why pay more for a movie with no features that can only be played on my PSP? And it's not like ripping your DVDs to mp4 is hard at all.

[pibs]

Plus not to mention the UMD movies waste a bunch of battery life on the psp.

[Buddy4point0]

umd is a waist of money, just rip dvds and put them on your memory card

[baracki96]

Never owned a UMD movie and neverwill. I just get the dvd and, well, you know where I'm going with that. I just can't justify spending oodles of cash on a movie that I can only play on my psp ( although I've heard they have been doing amazing things with USBSS)....

[Nicko01]

i bought hellboy for $10 used. They are alright. They are great quality, but i dont think i will buy any more.

[Basil Zero]

sony should of diregarded the movie format on a UMD

and should of focused on the gaming aspects

why else would they let people put videos on psp...come on, common sense lol

[El Payo]

I never bought any - the only UMD movie I have is Spiderman 2 which was part of the bundle. I woud MUCH prefer that Sony & partners sell DVDs/Blu_ray/HD-DVDs with iPod/PSP/PMP compatible smaller versions of the films that can be transferred to a memory stick. I don't need multiple copies of a movie.

[mungrin]

UMD movies were worthless from the start. Why pay more for a movie with no features that can only be played on my PSP? And it's not like ripping your DVDs to mp4 is hard at all.

And im sure your ripped movies look crappy compared to a UMD movie.

UMD movies are wortless but have excellent picture quality.Sony needs to release a program that lets us easily convert a DVD to PsP with the SAME quality as a UMD movie.

And as far as the process of ripping a DVD then converting it to MP4,its not fun at all.

[mungrin]

.I woud MUCH prefer that Sony & partners sell DVDs/Blu_ray/HD-DVDs with iPod/PSP/PMP compatible smaller versions of the films that can be transferred to a memory stick..

Thats an excellent idea,ive never even thought of that.

[Buddy4point0]

Quote:
Originally Posted by El Payo View Post
.I woud MUCH prefer that Sony & partners sell DVDs/Blu_ray/HD-DVDs with iPod/PSP/PMP compatible smaller versions of the films that can be transferred to a memory stick..
nice

[wiredforpower]

I dont like UMDs I just put movies on my PSP and watch it through the memory stick.

[mungrin]

I dont like UMDs I just put movies on my PSP and watch it through the memory stick.

yeah but they look like crap compared to a UMD movie.Its like watching a bootleg

[Joe100517]

haha I only have Spider-Man 2 and I never even actually watched it on my psp....

[Cap'n 1time]

When they start selling them for $5, then they will be really popular. Till then forget it. Id rather watch a DVD with all the extras and pay the same price.

[Emeriastone]

For movies, I think the UMD is successful because of the storage space and that you don't have to worry about load times and such, its portable for sure, but it was too expensive initially, and the lacking of ability to share with others on a large display television has caused the UMD movie format to DIE.

[Basil Zero]

ya what killed it was:

1. Lack of multiple media players for it(only psp)

2. High Costs and without extras like DVDs.

[Stone Temple Pilots]

I actually like the UMD movies. They come in crystal-clear quality and I don't have to put it on my memory stick. I only have a 1GB so I only keep my music and PSone games on it (I have to switch 'em frequently through my PC). So for people like me with limited storage space, I find UMDs are fairly good. Now if Sony could release a cord that can connect your PSP to a big TV to watch movies or play games, then I think UMDs would go through the roof.

[tsimehC]

I actually like the UMD movies...

The problem is not enough people do.

[Broadus]

I wouldn't buy a UMD movie if it was... free.

[valar]

whatever anyone says i like umd movies.i own about 7 of them including metropolis which is my favourite.when i see a good movie i'll buy it.just for my collection.

[drock82]

i think umds are worthless just get a 4 gig card and u can put a good amount of movies probably like 4 or 5:o

[jerrt]

i liked the ease of umd movies, but i never bought any because they didn't match my economic value point. the price is what killed it, in my opinion. for 5-7 dollars wouldn't you think of buying a movie just to have the best quality without all the encoding headaches. [don't get me wrong it isn't that big of a deal, but i'd rather have my memory card for games, than movies]

[Dickhead]

I always think that the umd psp storage box/packaging is just too big for mobile means.

[krazykarl]

When they start selling them for $5, then they will be really popular. Till then forget it. Id rather watch a DVD with all the extras and pay the same price.
I couldn't have said it better myself. $5-$10 would be an ideal price. For now, I'd rather save my money and rent the DVD and rip it to my memory stick.


I actually like the UMD movies. They come in crystal-clear quality and I don't have to put it on my memory stick. I only have a 1GB so I only keep my music and PSone games on it (I have to switch 'em frequently through my PC). So for people like me with limited storage space, I find UMDs are fairly good. Now if Sony could release a cord that can connect your PSP to a big TV to watch movies or play games, then I think UMDs would go through the roof.

Having some kind of cable that would connect my PSP to a TV would be awesome. I know it wouldn't be best quality, but PSP is much more portable than a DVD player.

[mmedina]

Agree.

Although many movies are now priced around 980 yen here in Japan (which is still a high price), the problems are the initial high price without getting any extra (Paprika will cost around 4,000 yen, around 34-36 USD) and the fact that you can only play them on the PSP.

But, at least here in Japan, business trips are very common and many busy people prefer to pay the price just to see a good movie while flying over the country and, as mentioned before, without worrying about ripping a DVD (perhaps they don't have the time or knowledge to do it).

Personally, I don't have any UMD movie. I've been tempted to buy some (Matrix or FFVII AC), but then again, I think about it and prefer to spend my money in something else (and of course I can rip a DVD :) )