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Planet Earth II Trailer (BBC Documentary)
- Thread starter Jigolo
- Start date
- Status
SolidusDave
Member
Bought a XB1S today, set it up for 4K and HDR - I'm ready, let's do this.
Preordered the UK UHD Blu-ray, though will take an extra week or so longer because I'm importing.
And a mini-PSA:
Price is down to £30! Now it's just £5 more than the standard Blu-ray. At that point you may just buy the UHD version regardless of your setup as it comes with the standard Blu-ray too but you are then future-proofed.
Preordered the UK UHD Blu-ray, though will take an extra week or so longer because I'm importing.
And a mini-PSA:
Price is down to £30! Now it's just £5 more than the standard Blu-ray. At that point you may just buy the UHD version regardless of your setup as it comes with the standard Blu-ray too but you are then future-proofed.
SlipperyFishes
Banned
It's beyond ridiculous that the UHD version is not out here in the UK.
Original Famous Ray
Member
Thanks for the heads up! Watched the episode and it looked great on my Fire TV. I'm sure it'll look spectacular in 4k.
SolidusDave
Member
Sorry if I wasn't clear: I'm importing from the UK.
I think the UK are getting the UHD first worldwide.
I watched first 2 episodes yesterday. It's reference material. Just as Planet Earth sold me on 1080p, this was the 4K showcase I was waiting for. It's simply stunning.
SolidusDave
Member
The review sounds great. Basically the highest quality piece of media available to man lol
Mine will arrive next week -.- but still faster than if i had imported the us version i guess.
Kain-Nosgoth
Member
the only thing that makes me want to buy a 4K TV... unfortunately, i don't really need one, so it will have to wait
NekoFever
Member
UHD Blu-ray isn't region coded so you're fine there.
Not sure about the normal BDs but I can change the region on my player to test if you want.
Dominican Power
Member
That locust horde...
SolidusDave
Member
Yaaay, finally my UHD copy arrived!
Only watched one episode so far as this is my first UHD and HDR content on XB1 so I was mostly testing and comparing to set everything up.
Luckily I already have spent a LOT of time with PS4 games to configure my custom SDR and HDR modes on my TV, so it was mostly fine-tuning for the XB1S / a new HDMI input (btw most important setting is to set the blacks to high for XB1S as otherwise there will be blackcrush).
Like all UHD Blu-rays, PE2 comes with the standard Blu-ray version included.
That allowed me to play the Blu-ray version via PS4 and the UHD version via XB1S and then just switch between the channels back and forth.
Thoughts:
- The higher resolution is probably the smallest noticeable difference. This is similar to games I guess, it's just diminishing returns at this point. Still, I can appreciate that everything just looks a bit sharper and crisp, even so when you get close to the TV. You won't really see more details suddenly but the Blu-ray is noticeably more blurry for stuff like fur etc.
The difference in resolution/sharpness from DVD to BD was definitely more noticeable back then. I should also mention that image quality in PE2 varies even in 4K a bit depending on the scene and lighting, some scenes you know they had their best cameras set up perfectly and that footage just really pops.
- The HDR is sooooo good. Even on my non-OLED with mediocre HDR capabilities. I think I will upgrade my TV sooner this time, maybe in a few years when those peak-brightness models are standard.
Sidenote: My TV has 3 HDR preset modes and the standard/bright ones are pretty good with natural colors, but still required some calibration to disable some smoothing post-processing etc. Also, unlike SDR the warm presets look really bad so I definitely left it at neutral in HDR to get natural looking colors.
Switching back and forth between the UHD and Blu-ray version made the BR look so bland in comparison haha. You simply cannot reach that pop/contrast of HDR without sacrificing image quality and natural look in SDR.
For gaming folks: it's basically on the same level as switching HDR and SDR in FFXV.
- The UHD image gets rid of virtually all artifacts you can detect in the Blu-ray.
Right in the intro the cgi sun will produce some heavy color banding BR but in 4K with the wider color space there is literally no color banding, just a perfect gradient.
Other things noticeable are flickering/noisy shadows on BR while the UHD image in those scenes is crystal clear. I wonder if that's actually an artifact from the codec though (H.264 vs HEVC).
There are 3x 60 min episodes on one 50 GB Blu-ray disc each, with a bit of extras. Each 1080i episode is ca. 12.7 GB big (H.264). Obviously I can't check that for UHD but as the discs are 66 GB UHD BRs I would estimate each 2160p episode to be ca. 20+ GB - and that's without extras, 10 min shorter (the making of part is not available in 4K) and in HEVC codec.
Once my curiosity was satisfied, I could really enjoy watching the episode in the highest quality possible (and FINALLY, maxing out my TV). I'm glad I waited with my first watch for this experience. As it was already said constantly in this thread, the actual content is amazing of course.
Bonus: I really, really like getting the standard Blu-ray included. I'm currently ripping them onto my Plex server for convenience / having a digital copy that is better than streaming versions.
Edit: Oh wow, there are differences in the actual episodes between the Blu-ray and the UHD version!
Seems to only affect the start and end of the episodes, but e.g. in the Cities episode the 4K version starts with Singapore's Gardens by the Bay at night (which looks fantastic) and then goes to the Hong Kong scene. That night scene seems to be completely missing in the 1080p version from what I can tell. Then at the end, the voice-over monologue within the same scene is different. Probably to account for the missing transition into the David Attenborough scenes.
Maybe the UHD is some kind of international edition?
Only watched one episode so far as this is my first UHD and HDR content on XB1 so I was mostly testing and comparing to set everything up.
Luckily I already have spent a LOT of time with PS4 games to configure my custom SDR and HDR modes on my TV, so it was mostly fine-tuning for the XB1S / a new HDMI input (btw most important setting is to set the blacks to high for XB1S as otherwise there will be blackcrush).
Like all UHD Blu-rays, PE2 comes with the standard Blu-ray version included.
That allowed me to play the Blu-ray version via PS4 and the UHD version via XB1S and then just switch between the channels back and forth.
Thoughts:
- The higher resolution is probably the smallest noticeable difference. This is similar to games I guess, it's just diminishing returns at this point. Still, I can appreciate that everything just looks a bit sharper and crisp, even so when you get close to the TV. You won't really see more details suddenly but the Blu-ray is noticeably more blurry for stuff like fur etc.
The difference in resolution/sharpness from DVD to BD was definitely more noticeable back then. I should also mention that image quality in PE2 varies even in 4K a bit depending on the scene and lighting, some scenes you know they had their best cameras set up perfectly and that footage just really pops.
- The HDR is sooooo good. Even on my non-OLED with mediocre HDR capabilities. I think I will upgrade my TV sooner this time, maybe in a few years when those peak-brightness models are standard.
Sidenote: My TV has 3 HDR preset modes and the standard/bright ones are pretty good with natural colors, but still required some calibration to disable some smoothing post-processing etc. Also, unlike SDR the warm presets look really bad so I definitely left it at neutral in HDR to get natural looking colors.
Switching back and forth between the UHD and Blu-ray version made the BR look so bland in comparison haha. You simply cannot reach that pop/contrast of HDR without sacrificing image quality and natural look in SDR.
For gaming folks: it's basically on the same level as switching HDR and SDR in FFXV.
- The UHD image gets rid of virtually all artifacts you can detect in the Blu-ray.
Right in the intro the cgi sun will produce some heavy color banding BR but in 4K with the wider color space there is literally no color banding, just a perfect gradient.
Other things noticeable are flickering/noisy shadows on BR while the UHD image in those scenes is crystal clear. I wonder if that's actually an artifact from the codec though (H.264 vs HEVC).
There are 3x 60 min episodes on one 50 GB Blu-ray disc each, with a bit of extras. Each 1080i episode is ca. 12.7 GB big (H.264). Obviously I can't check that for UHD but as the discs are 66 GB UHD BRs I would estimate each 2160p episode to be ca. 20+ GB - and that's without extras, 10 min shorter (the making of part is not available in 4K) and in HEVC codec.
Once my curiosity was satisfied, I could really enjoy watching the episode in the highest quality possible (and FINALLY, maxing out my TV). I'm glad I waited with my first watch for this experience. As it was already said constantly in this thread, the actual content is amazing of course.
Bonus: I really, really like getting the standard Blu-ray included. I'm currently ripping them onto my Plex server for convenience / having a digital copy that is better than streaming versions.
Edit: Oh wow, there are differences in the actual episodes between the Blu-ray and the UHD version!
Seems to only affect the start and end of the episodes, but e.g. in the Cities episode the 4K version starts with Singapore's Gardens by the Bay at night (which looks fantastic) and then goes to the Hong Kong scene. That night scene seems to be completely missing in the 1080p version from what I can tell. Then at the end, the voice-over monologue within the same scene is different. Probably to account for the missing transition into the David Attenborough scenes.
Maybe the UHD is some kind of international edition?
TheSaddestSort
Member
DJ Lushious
Member
My UHD Blu of this shipped yesterday. I am looking forward to watching this, not only because I love the original, but also because I expect the 4k+HDR presentation to be as stunning as watching the original in 1080p all those years ago.
Mine shipped. Arrives tomorrow. Can''t wait. My daughter is like other eight year olds, addicted to TV. She's verboten to watch on schoolnights.... except this. She'll watch ANYTHING if she can get away with it, so I'm basically force feeding her habit with nonstop nature, and in an unusual turn of events, Mrs. Stinkles has expressed mild curiosity for 4K and HDR content, for this specifically. The AVS review is fab, but any gaf=ers watched the disc yet?
I'm on a new Sony XBR set. Wish it was LG OLED but whatcha gonna do?
I'm on a new Sony XBR set. Wish it was LG OLED but whatcha gonna do?
SolidusDave
Member
See some posts back. Finished the first disc by now and it's incredible. I'm taking it slow to savor the episodes.
And rewatches are already planned for friends wanting to come over to watch the show, too haha
Though the footage is not always "impeccable" as AVS suggests. Because of how fantastic many scenes look you can tell when the footage gets a bit blurrier etc. (likely depends on the camera in special situations like being mounted on an eagle or camera-traps or simply for framing/zoom purposes. Lighting conditions are probably also not always perfect so that can impact camera quality as well).
Although as I mentioned before, it removes almost all artifacts you can find in the standard Blu-ray version.
Being able to compare directly with the Blu-ray also helps to get a sense of what to expect from the new format.
I can't stress it often enough, but 4K is not the big deal in the new format and in games - it's HDR. Decent HDR-capable sets are a must, don't buy any 4K TV without it. The 4K "just" makes everything very crisp looking, can't see any pixels even up close. But once you get used to how well-implemented HDR looks like you can't go back. Sometimes there's a HDR handshake issue with the UHD playback on my XB1S and I can tell instantly that the image suddenly looks flat and meh (despite being 4K and still look great if you were only watching the standard BR). No way I would notice that for just the resolution at normal viewing distance and without looking for it.
edit after going through the review: wait, so the US release IS different from the UK release? Instead of packing in the standard blu-ray discs (that contains the episodes and all the bonus material) the US version only includes a third (UHD?) Blu-ray with just the bonus stuff? Is there a difference in quality for the bonus stuff? BBC writes it didn't include it on the UK UHD because that footage was not shot in 4K in the first place.
If so, I would recommend the UK release if you have the choice of either. Mainly so that you can compare, but the standard Blu-ray episodes are also slightly differently cut than the 4K versions, with different footage and/or audio at the start and end (at least that was the case in both episodes that I compared 1 on 1).
Choppasmith
Member
Question for those UHD owners. I thought I read over on Blu-ray.com that the UHD Blu-ray comes with both 4k AND standard 1080p discs that can be used in non 4k players and drives. Is this true? I'd gladly purchase if true so I can watch in 1080p now but have something in 4k when I eventually upgrade my setup.
Only the bonus content comes on a Blu Ray; the episodes themselves are only on UHD.
SolidusDave
Member
The UK version DOES come with both the 4K and 1080p versions of the episodes (check the label for "4 discs").
The US version does not (3 discs). Don't know about any other releases.
victreeb3l
Member
Got this over the weekend. Only watched Islands but man its absolutely incredible.
Havent properly calibrated my 4K TV yet but some of the overhead shots look a little low res compared to the close ups. The colors and detail are incredible for close shots but it doesnt feel as sharp from some of the wide landscape shots. I'm watching on an LG 49UH6030 and Xbox One S.
Also, does anyone know what OST track is playing in the menu? Its like a 30 second sound clip but its absolutely beautiful.
Havent properly calibrated my 4K TV yet but some of the overhead shots look a little low res compared to the close ups. The colors and detail are incredible for close shots but it doesnt feel as sharp from some of the wide landscape shots. I'm watching on an LG 49UH6030 and Xbox One S.
Also, does anyone know what OST track is playing in the menu? Its like a 30 second sound clip but its absolutely beautiful.
Colonel Nasty
Member
There's definitely non 4K shots. I noticed a lot in the snow leopard section.
victreeb3l
Member
Yeah thats what it feels like, but I heard it was all shot on 4K? In Islands, the aerial shots of Madagascar and the last island with the penguins were noticeably blurrier than everything else. Its weird.
victreeb3l
Member
Finished Mountains today.
The Snow Leopard section got me super emotional. BBC and Hans Zimmer playing with our hearts man. These creatures are seriously majestic.
The eagle section had me gasping. The descent was some of the most thrilling footage I've ever seen.
The Snow Leopard section got me super emotional. BBC and Hans Zimmer playing with our hearts man. These creatures are seriously majestic.
The eagle section had me gasping. The descent was some of the most thrilling footage I've ever seen.
DevilPower
Member
Don't know where else to ask this question but I have two choices to buy Planet Earth Blu-ray and can't decide which one is better...
A little help form anyone on which version I should buy...?
Planet Earth: The Collection
Planet Earth- Special Edition
A little help form anyone on which version I should buy...?
Planet Earth: The Collection
Planet Earth- Special Edition
boredandlazy
Member
If your TV supports 50Hz the Special Edition is the best way to watch the first series. It is presented in it's original frame rate of 25fps and also comes with behind the scenes extras etc. However 'the collection' contains both series 1 and 2, however it contains the original release of the first series which is slowed down to 24fps.
DevilPower
Member
So the only difference between the two (apart from extras, behind the scenes etc.) is 1FPS?
I plan on watching it on my PS4. Would 25 FPS be a problem on it...?
Yeah a few non-4K shots for sure. But man when it is 4K it is ridiculous how good it looks. I noticed recently when I went to the the store, they have cheapened the slipcovers in NA. I bought mine release day and it was an almost matte slipcover, thicker and had raised ridges for the globe and Planet Earth II. Now the new slipcovers are very glossy with everything smooth. Wonder why they would do that.
Matrix XII
Member
Can't wait!! Still watch Planet earth 1 to this day!
victreeb3l
Member
I never really cared for Jaguars before because they kept getting overshadowed by other big cats. I thought they were neat (especially Panthers) but they never stuck out to me.
"Jungles" really got me to respect these beasts. That was some magnificent hunting.
Yup. The eagle close ups in Mountains felt like I was looking at them in real life. I cant describe how incredible those shots looked. You could see every little detail.
"Jungles" really got me to respect these beasts. That was some magnificent hunting.
Yup. The eagle close ups in Mountains felt like I was looking at them in real life. I cant describe how incredible those shots looked. You could see every little detail.
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