Planet Earth (US Edition) - High-Def Digest review

[jed]

Peter's review of 'Planet Earth (US Edition)' is up. Featuring the re-edited version of the series that aired in the US, this one ends up being quite different from the best-selling BBC high-def version in several key ways

Full review here:
http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/984/planetearth_us.html

[Stingray1967]

My system is 1080P. Who in the world is still making 1080i equipment these days?

[MrE]

Originally Posted by Stingray1967

My system is 1080P. Who in the world is still making 1080i equipment these days?

It was shot using 1080i equipment so what do you expect???

[Stingray1967]

Originally Posted by MrENGLISH

It was shot using 1080i equipment so what do you expect???

I expect them to de-interlace it and remaster it in 1080P like everyone else.

[Ashamed Pegasus]

Well if the BBC version is 1080p why the hell is this one 1080i?... I thought the only addition was the Weaver commentary...

[Herby]

Thank you very much for the review. I was waiting for this one.
I am sad to hear that they removed the 50 minutes from the Discovery version as they also did on the show. I would have figured they would have added it to the HD version. I am also sad to hear that the encoding used on these versions did not create the HD video quality of the BBC version. I am not worried though because I know for sure that my guests and me do not have the discerning eyes the reviewers have. Hell, it has to look better than watching it on Discovery HD.
On the other hand, I am glad to hear that they added the 4 vignettes to the US version. I loved the behind-the-scenes shorts they had at the end of the shows. They help you appreciate the documentary even more, by showing you the hardships the filmmakers went through and the awesome equipment they used. I know everybody always wonders to themselves when they are watching these types of shows,"How did they do that?". Well these vignettes help to answer some of those situations.

I am glad I waited to get Planet Earth on BD. I am definately getting the Discovery (US) version of Planet Earth, because the behind-the-scenes look makes a huge difference, even if it is only 35 minutes. Maybe in the future, when the price drops, I will get the BBC version, too. The filmmakers deserve it.

[LiK]

i'm disappointed with the specs and the edits. Weaver's narration was really good but all the changes from the BBC release (including inferior video) is forcing me to ignore this version. i have the BBC BD and it's gorgeous...