Are the days of DVDs numbered?
The humble DVD, or Digital Versatile Disc, has been around with us for some time. Most people have a DVD player or, at the very least, have a variety of devices that can play DVDs. Both computers and home gaming consoles alike can typically play DVDs. Likewise, we’ve collected a large number of films, TV shows and other watchable DVDs along the way.
Yet, like everything before it, including the VHS and Betamax, is the DVD going out of fashion? Is the DVD still going strong, or is time to start selling DVDs for something else?
Other Media Storage
The big problem with DVDs is the fact that, at the end of the day, they are just another format for storing media on. Whilst they did prove more useful than VHS, thanks to better rewinding, forwarding and general loading of data and information, it was only a matter of time until they were replaced with something better.
These days, the modern replacement is Blu-ray. Whilst HD DVD was around for a while, Blu-ray won over for a number of reasons. First of all, it can store high quality footage, including HD, easily. This instantly gives better quality than a DVD could ever manage. On a similar note, it also holds more data. So, not only can it provide better quality (which works better with modern TVs, such as HD TV), it can hold more on a single disc. This is better for manufacturers and you, as it saves swapping over discs or having to handle multiple-disc collections.
Of course, even Blu-ray, as will be discussed shortly, has its own threats. There’s always constant rumours and news regarding internal development of even better devices, that outperform Blu-ray in the same way that the latter outperforms the DVD. It may already seem that the DVD is too many generations behind to provide any strong use.
Less Uses
Likewise, there’s also an arguable decline in the uses and need for physical storage discs such as DVDs; this even, to an extent, includes Bluray. This is partially due to the fact that we’re starting to stream more videos and files. Film-streaming services are common place in today’s world. Your typical technology for watching DVDs, such as computers, consoles and the TV itself, often now come with video streaming. Why go to the hassle of buying a DVD at the shops, coming back and watching it, when you can simply stream it without leaving the home?
It’s often cheaper, and does away with a lot of the physical trouble and efforts. The downside, of course, is that one can argue a lesser need for the physical storage disc. Whilst it still serves other uses, the actual release of TV shows and films now has stronger, growing competition directly from the internet itself.
In summary then, it’s true that the DVD is on its last legs. Whilst some might benefit from the cheaper pickings, it’s likely that we will see less and less of the DVD in the up-coming years. Perhaps it’s time you shifted to Blu-ray, streaming or another option altogether?
