From: "eric walker" <eric.walker@channel1.com>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies
Subject: laservideo cost
Date: 15 Oct 92 23:39:06 EST
Reply-To: "eric walker" <eric.walker@channel1.com>
Distribution: rec
Organization: Channel 1 Communications

ST>USA..? And how much do the disks to it cost, for example T2 or
ST>Aliens...?? Any idea where to order one ?

     CLV, or "extended play," is the least expensive and most common form
     of laserdisc.  A CLV disc is just like a compact disc that lets you
     play movies.  You can play the movie, fast-forward and rewind the
     disc, and many CLV discs have chapter stops (tracks), just like on a
     CD, that allow you to immediately skip to certain parts of the disc.
     You can also program your laserdisc player to repeat any part of
     the disc over and over.  You can't do any special effects like freeze-
     frame with a CLV disc.  Essentially, you can do anything with a CLV
     disc that you can do with a music CD.  The picture and sound quality
     of a CLV disc is still superb - far better than you can get with a
     videotape.  Because CLV is the more "basic" form of laserdisc format,
     a CLV disc can have up to 60 minutes of picture and sound on one side
     of the disc.  As a result, a movie takes up at least two sides of a
     CLV laserdisc - and quite often, it can take up three sides.  (A two-
     disc set, with Side 4 being left blank.)

     CAV, or "standard play," is the "deluxe" edition of a laserdisc.  In
     addition to doing everything a CLV disc can do, a CAV disc lets you
     do all of the special effects and tricks with laserdiscs that you've
     probably seen in demonstrations.  You can freeze-frame with a crystal-
     clear picture (absolutely no static at all), examine the movie one
     single frame at a time, watch the movie in slow motion (as slow as
     1/90th of normal speed) or speeded up (up to three times faster than
     normal), as well as doing a frame-by-frame search: instead of jumping
     to a preset track on the disc, you can immediately jump to any single
     frame on the disc.  It has been said that the quality of a CAV disc is
     even better than a CLV disc, but I haven't been able to tell any
     difference.  Because of the additional information put into a CAV
     disc, one side of a CAV disc can hold up to 30 minutes of space.  So
     a CAV disc takes up twice as much disc space as a CLV disc, and it
     requires twice as many discs.  (The deluxe CAV laserdisc set of the
     movie "Aliens," for instance," takes up SEVEN sides of four
     laserdiscs!)

     As I said, CLV discs are the least expensive form of laserdisc.  When
     not on sale, a CLV disc can cost as little as $25, or as much as $70 -
     it depends on the studio marketing the disc.  CAV discs can cost
     anywhere between $40 to as high as $125!  Different studios are
     selling their laserdiscs at different prices.  By far, the studios
     that offer the best deals on laserdiscs are Ted Turner/MGM and Disney.
     Disney sells all of their movies on CLV disc for $30, which isn't a
     bad price at all - only $5 more than they charge for their videotapes.
     What's more, Disney movies on CAV laserdisc only cost $40, which is
     an excellent price.  (The deluxe CAV laserdisc of "Fantasia," however,
     costs $99 - and even so, that is a more fair price than paying $99
     for a "deluxe" movie on videotape!)  Turner/MGM laserdiscs typically
     sell for between $30 to $40 in CLV, and Turner has been offering a
     few movies on CAV laserdisc for $50.

     On the other hand, the biggest rip-off in the laserdisc market is
     CBS/Fox Video.  Their CLV laserdiscs often cost $50, $60, or more -
     if you want the "Star Wars" trilogy on laserdisc, you'll have to
     pay $70 for EACH movie!

     And if you look for laserdiscs, you will doubtless hear a lot about
     the Criterion Collection.  The Criterion company specializes in
     releasing high-quality movies on high-quality laserdiscs, at VERY
     high prices.  They try to get only the BEST movies, from classics
     like "Seven Samurai" or "Notorious" or "8 1/2" to recent masterpieces
     like "Raging Bull" or "Blade Runner" or "The Fisher King" or
     "Tootsie", and in addition to using the best-quality prints in
     existence, they pack their discs with additional tidbits and
     information, such as interviews with the director, behind-the-
     scenes information, photos, theatrical trailers, and other rarities.
     Every disc owner should splurge and get at least one Criterion disc
     of one of his all-time favourite movies to add to his collection - it
     will be worth it.
---
  SLMR 2.1a  if ((tiny) and (toony)) then allalittle(looney);
--
Channel 1 (R)   Cambridge, MA

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