Drake

About 5 years ago I started to add up what I spent going to Dunkin Donuts every morning before work.
A coffee and a muffin/bagel every morning cost me $870.00 for the year !
I stopped that in a hurry ....made coffee at home instead.

big e

The main reason I stopped buying DVDs was money related. In August of 2008, I began going to a 2 year college and had to quit my day job, so I had no money coming in and therefore only bought what I absolutely needed. I would still buy a movie here and there, but it was no where near the spending I had done when I had a job. Over the next two years, I came to the realization that over the course of 8 years, I had acquired lot of stuff in my collection that I really didn't care for, so I started dumping DVDs left right, starting with a bulk of my anime collection. I didn't get jack shit for them, but then again I never expected to get anything from them. I didn't buy the movies as investments; I bought them because I wanted them (at the time).

Another reason I've cut back on buying DVDs is because after not really buying any movies for two years, the thrill of collecting just isn't there anymore. I still have an active interest in seeing new films, but as far as buying most of those movies, I'm just very indifferent to it now. Not to say I will cease buying altogether, I just ordered two DVDs off Amazon last night, but I no longer feel the need to own every single movie I have ever seen and liked.

JimRochester

I have no problem with collecting. People collect all sorts of things. I for one am making less money than I have in my entire 30 year career. Also with so many I ended up not watching it bacame silly to continue to own. I would rather own 20 I love to watch over and over than 200 I may never watch again just because it is part of a set or was a bargain.

Mr. Cinema

I've slowed down as well. I try to only buy my absolute favorites nowadays and wait for them to drop in price. $15 or less for catalogs and $20 or less for new stuff as a general rule. There's only so many hours in the day and Netflix has tons of tv shows via streaming that always keeps me occupied. And all it takes is one look at my dvd collection to quickly remind me that owning everything isn't a good idea. I have plenty of stuff, like everyone else, that was bought years ago and still hasn't been watched. That's a bad, expensive habit.

Cardiac161

Have been more selective in buying Blu-rays now compared to the impulse buying I did with DVDs. Basically amassed a huge DVD collection and realizing the cost of it kind of put me off from collecting. I've basically sold over 90% of the DVDs and considering the older I get, the less stuff I really need, I think Blu-rays will be the last physical video format I'll be buying films for.

Jumpman

With one 2 year old and a new baby on the way, it's just gotten to the point where I can keep up anymore, nor do I want to. It's gotten tiring to do so.

Netflix has helped. But ultimately, I just don't need that many movies anymore. For me, the theater and digital copies off of iTunes have been the biggest help. I still love going to a theater to watch a film and have the whole experience with discovering a film with a good to great audience.

As for digital copies off of iTunes, it allows me to amass a collection without physically owning them...which has weirdly enough, curbed my spending.

As of right now, I have 184 titles on Blu Ray and maybe 95 titles on DVD. Somehow, I have to dwindle that down to 50. It'll be hard, but again, if I'm really jonesing for something, Netflix (for however long they continue to ship discs in the mail) will be my salvation.

I think I've moved on with life and watching films will always be a very, very important aspect of that, but not the collection part.

It's time to get down to the absolute favorite films in my collection. I will add cautiously from here on out.

Coral

I think it's different with CDs than it is with movies. With CDs listening to the average album will take less time than watching the average movie, and you can do other things while you're listening. You can listen to a song from one CD, two more from another CD, etc. Anything goes. Not many people pop in a DVD to watch a scene, then another DVD to watch another scene. Movies normally reguire you to sit and concentrate for the entire length of it. And with CDs you can listen to the same one back-to-back-to-back - many people do, especially with new releases.

I think the average music collector gets more usage out of his/her CDs than does the average movie collector from his/her DVDs.

The guilt factor is definitely higher with DVDs than with CDs in my opinion.

Drake

This is true...but still I have CDs deep in my collection that haven't seen a Cd player in like 10 years.

Coral

Yeah, that'll happen when you have 3,000 of them.

Imagine if you had 3,000 movies instead. If you're dedicated enough to watch 2 movies every day, it would take around 4 years to cycle through your collection once. In the real world, you'd have movies you probably wouldn't have touched in over 20 years.

BuckNaked2k

I don't have even half that number of CDs, but plenty of mine haven't seen a laser in over 10 years either!

keyed

Same here, except I have a 4th criteria;
it has to be either an action film or visually gorgeous. A comedy doesn't get any funnier because it's in HD.

Otherwise, I just netflix it.

JohnnyDaBull

The most I've had at once was around 200 items. I sold off around 50 or so due to needing money, and then water damaged all of my dvd movies, that also caused me to sell about 40 of my wrestling/dvr dvds...So now I only buy movies on blu ray, and Tv shows I REALLY want on dvd.

Artman

I have a collector mentality as well, but I tend to think of movies/music differently than sports cards, action figures, etc since they are something you use to enjoy, rather than just looking at them.

Trevor

Exactly. While I would never criticize collectors, being one, I understand the arguments of those who don't understand the mentality of collecting stamps you'll never mail, coins you'll never spend, or anything else without a practical purpose. I purposely chose a collectible with a very practical purpose, watching film. I never buy a DVD I don't plan to watch, and I am a personal Blockbuster for my family and friends.

orangerunner

I think the thing that is difficult to swallow when collecting DVDs is how worthless they become after a few years. The DVD you bought for $24.95 is now worth $1 at a garage sale.

Not only are they worth nothing monetarily-speaking, they become worthless to yourself as technology moves on. I'm sure many Blu-ray owners who once cherished their DVD collection now find it hard to watch a DVD without a critical eye for every spot of grain or minor pixelation.

Other collectables such as stamps, coins, vintage cars, toys etc. generally hold their value or increase. Even if they don't, they still have value in that they haven't been replaced by something "better". A Wayne Gretzky rookie card may not be worth the $500 you paid for it but it doesn't cause you to like it any less. It's still the one and only rookie card.

JimRochester

Amen Brother. Also the collectors of books or CD's can flip through the book while in the can, or take some CD's in the car. Although they can also get to the point of impossible to fully enjoy, other media is easier to catch in small doses.

Giles

mmmm, I don't have a job.... that seems like a suitable answer to the question

Drexl

Yeah, but I don't think people collect DVDs in the same way as they collect stamps, coins, etc. DVDs are made to be used, not just sit on a shelf. Except for a few rare titles, I doubt that most people were expecting it to be an "investment." Even for titles with collectors' packaging, the appeal seems to be how good it will look in your home, not how much you might be able to sell it for later.

And as far as not being able to use DVDs on the go, tell that to people who have made digital copies (and not just the titles that come with legitimate DCs) and watch them in their cars, on the phone, whatever. Personally I feel they aren't worth watching that way, but others seem to love it.

JoeyOhhhh

This past year I went through my DVDs as I've been jumping into Blu Ray. Of the 600 DVDs I had at the time, I only truly would consider upgrading 100 of them.

I cut down alot because some movies I bought but never watched. Also seeing how I would spend X amount on a release only to see it nosedive in price within a year has put me off to buying releases like I used to. Also realized some titles were watched once, and probably weren't worth owning in the first place.

My biggest reason is no longer working for Best Buy. Being in the company of frivolous spenders makes it feel completely normal to buy tons of DVDs.

orangerunner

Yeah, DVDs are meant to be used but when a collector reaches 500 or more titles, they generally just sit on the shelf and look cool - much like coins, stamps etc. but without the investment part.

Not that there's anything wrong with that ... just be prepared for the "loss, re-purchase, loss, re-purchase" cycle.

Trevor

Totally disagree with this part of your argument.

There is absolutely no need for film lovers/collectors to ever upgrade from DVD. My DVDs will play fine for decades. Many of us buy our films for the story, and while HD is nice, it is not at all necessary.

TomOpus

So? I'm a movie collector not an investor.

orangerunner

That's a bold statement, especially in the HD Forum! I don't have a need to upgrade personally and there's some that may make the same statement regarding Laserdisc and VHS. It's all in the eye of the beholder, as they say.

When someone states they're happy with DVD, it's generally met with scoffs, disbelief and several blunt recommendations for a trip to an optometrist.

It is fair to say that many will continue with the cycle of discontent to achieve the best looking and sounding format available. All the power to them.

Eddie W

For me, it was the startling realization the most new movies suck horribly. Remakes, superheros, test marketed tweaks, by the numbers Rom-coms, lazy CGI..... there are maybe 6 or 7 really good studio movies released in a year. I simply have no need to buy every piece of pablum that gets released like I used to.

And really movies like The Bounty Hunter, etc work much better as a nothing-else-in-my-queue rental than if were sitting there fuming that I wasted $20 on it.

SterlingBen

Unemployed