# DVD: I'm sick of your horseshit technology and pussy specifications. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 18, 2003, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721 "2003-12-18T11:00:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/21 "2003-12-18T13:02:16Z")
You’ve missed the entire point of this, **r\_k**. DVD players are as cheap as shit now. They cost less than VCRs. You can buy the things in the fucking supermarket. The promises of the DVD were twofold: 1. better resolution. **delivered as promised**. 2. greater durability. **not delivered in any way shape or form**. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/22 "2003-12-18T13:09:36Z")
> [@](#): > > greater durability. not delivered in any way shape or form. Well, I don’t know what kind of shitty DVDs you get, but mine all play just fine. And you don’t get the hassle of having to rewind the tape; you don’t get fuzzy patches where some moron has left the tape sitting on top of their speakers; you don’t get tape stretch; your freeze frames don’t bounce all over the place. I love DVDs. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/23 "2003-12-18T13:43:44Z")
I have yet to have a DVD unwind in my DVD player, destroying the machinery…on that basis alone, it’s a superior format. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/24 "2003-12-18T13:44:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\*Well, I don’t know what kind of shitty DVDs you get, but mine all play just fine. \*\* I buy DVDs from the places that they sell DVDs in. The DVDs don’t seem to have labels on the front saying “warning: shitty DVD”. If you have some means of detecting them, well that’s just great. Share it with us, if you will. Or are you just saying that you’ve been lucky? > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > **And you don’t get the hassle of having to rewind the tape;** I find that this conveniece is precisely offset by the inconveniece of not being able to fast-forward through the crap at the beginning of the DVD. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\* you don’t get fuzzy patches where some moron has left the tape sitting on top of their speakers; you don’t get tape stretch; \*\* No, you’re right, you don’t get those problems. Instead you get a different set of problems that are just as bad. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > **your freeze frames don’t bounce all over the place.** I have a very good VCR which digitally stores the half-frames, and displays a stable image. No bounce. I also have a couple of rather expensive DVD players. From discussing their performance with other people, I conclude that they work _slightly_ better than the ones you can buy in the supermarket. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\*I love DVDs. \*\* Good for you. ---
**Author:** ![keithnmick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90db22/32.png) [@keithnmick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keithnmick)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/25 "2003-12-18T14:00:12Z")
I kind of agree with this rant. I rented a DVD at Blockbuster on Friday - it looked fine - a few barely perceptible scratches on the surface. It played like shit, jumping chapters constantly and dropping frames left and right. Ruined the movie. The movie was office space - my wife had never seen it. She couldn’t enjoy it (neither could I). I went back the next night, got a refund and got another movie for free. The disc looked to be in far worse shape, but played fine. I have a slightly older, good quality DVD player made by Samsung. If you tell me to buy a better player so it will play dodgy discs, you are also expressing a desire to blow me. Have a nice day 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/26 "2003-12-18T15:37:18Z")
The odd thing is, I’ve seen Apex players that can handle anything you throw at them and expensive Sony and Panasonic players that crap out on the same discs. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/27 "2003-12-18T15:46:30Z")
I had these kinds of problems when I first got my DVD player. I later found out, or rather it hasn’t done anything in a long time, that there was a lot of heat build up around the player. I ended up cutting big holes in the back of my entertainment center and it works fine now. Maybe you’re getting too much heat around your player? I had some really strange problems with mine too. Sometimes it would stop in the middle of a movie and I couldn’t do anything with it, not turn off the power, open the caddie to get the disk out, crap sound and picture. After I cut a bigger hole it has all stopped. ---
**Author:** ![Kiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Kiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiger)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/28 "2003-12-18T15:50:09Z")
I own over 200 DVDs. Number of bad ones I’ve bought = 0 I don’t know what to tell you. I’ve had two Sony players over the years and never had any problems. ---
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/29 "2003-12-18T16:17:59Z")
Asterion kind of made my point. I have a Memorex dvd burner running dvd x gold software to cop dvd’s. Run the copy in the $79 Apex in the bedroom, no problem. Put in the $500 Philips home theater system, nothing. The price of the machine doesn’t mean shit in some cases. Is it possible you’re renting pirated copies? ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/30 "2003-12-18T16:49:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Waverly \* > \*\*It’s just as likely your player… but let’s talk about this statement for a moment. I’m intrigued. Are we talking about Kurds? Canadians? Russian Jews? Is sucking the cock of some minorities preferable to others? What’s the hierarchy? \*\* I’m also curious about this. Why would you include an ethnic slur in a rant about DVD quality? Are your literacy skills so feeble that insulting ethnic minorities is the pinnacle of your abilities? (Not to mention the gender bias of using “pussy” as a derogatory term in the title.) You’ve got more issues than poor DVDs. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/31 "2003-12-18T17:18:51Z")
$139 Samsung DVD player from Best Buy two years ago and I’ve had none of these problems. Geez. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/32 "2003-12-18T18:28:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by asterion \* > The odd thing is, I’ve seen Apex players that can handle anything you throw at them and expensive **Sony** and Panasonic players that crap out on the same discs. (bolding mine) [Damn right](http://www.soundreproduction.com/discussion/home_theater/messages/325.html)! ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/33 "2003-12-18T18:34:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Waverly \* > \*\*It’s just as likely your player… but let’s talk about this statement for a moment. I’m intrigued. Are we talking about Kurds? Canadians? Russian Jews? Is sucking the cock of some minorities preferable to others? What’s the hierarchy? \*\* I think he just forgot to capitalize, he meant “suck Major Ethnic Minority’s cock” ala SpaceBalls’ Major Asshole. ---
**Author:** ![BeerDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9d8465/32.png) [@BeerDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeerDog)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/34 "2003-12-18T18:55:22Z")
I got an Apex DVD player 2 Christmas’s (is that spelled right? I don’t need the apostrope cops after me!) ago. I rent and own tons of disks and have never had a problem with a single one. They rock! Oops! Forgot I was in the pit. They **fucking** rock! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/35 "2003-12-18T19:03:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Christmas’s (is that spelled right? I don’t need the apostrope cops after me!) \Nope. Christmases. Plurals don’t take apostrophes. Not even if the word ends with an “s”, or a vowel, or is the name of a fruit or vegetable.\ ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/36 "2003-12-18T19:05:45Z")
As regards the OP, I have a Pioneer DVD player, it is about 2 -3 years old and plays wonderfully, We rarely rent DVDs but own quite a few and we have not had a problem yet. ---
**Author:** ![BeerDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9d8465/32.png) [@BeerDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeerDog)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/37 "2003-12-18T19:23:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\*\Nope. Christmases. Plurals don’t take apostrophes. Not even if the word ends with an “s”, or a vowel, or is the name of a fruit or vegetable.\ \*\* Ok, thanks officer! 🙂 Looks like my next DVD purchase should be some elementary school English lessons. Which I will then watch on my rocking DVD player! Did I mention it rocks? ---
**Author:** ![Ryle\_Dup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Ryle\_Dup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryle_Dup)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/38 "2003-12-18T19:29:48Z")
Renting from blockbuster and silverscreen some dvds are messed up, about 90% work perfectly. When the DVDs were bought off amazon, didn’t have a single problem. I’d guess my family owns around 30-40 DVDs, none of them have ever had an error. Where the hell are you guys buying your DVDs? ---
**Author:** ![SeekingTruth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@SeekingTruth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeekingTruth)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/39 "2003-12-18T20:03:42Z")
Homebrew, I need clarification here. I thought the Pit was were you went to really rant and vent about something. Why not include vague insults? all he said was minority cock. If he’s logging in from Saudi Arabia/Iran/China this would mean white cock. Get a grip and toughen up the old skin man ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721/40 "2003-12-18T20:21:37Z")
Why not go to a DVD rental place that makes sure their stuff stays in good condition? Some places will impose penalties on renters who return DVDs all banged up, for instance. Have you considered Netflix? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dvd-im-sick-of-your-horseshit-technology-and-pussy-specifications/219721.md?page=3)