Alright, Here's the Scoop on the Best Buy Superbit Fiasco....

[Lexmark3200]

Headed over there at lunch, and picked up FOR $9.99:

BAD BOYS
BAD BOYS II
THE PATRIOT

They didn't have JOHN CARPENTER'S VAMPIRES anywhere in stock....

Now here's the thing to be aware of: NOT ALL SUPERBITS are $9.99; there was a rack up front with Superbit titles from A to Z and many of them --- including the two SPIDER MAN films --- were 22 bucks. While I already have SPIDER MAN 2 on Superbit, Im not paying 22 bucks to replace my original SPIDER MAN two disc Special Edition JUST to get the DTS track.....

So, it looks like I'll have some great Superbit reviews up for you guys this weekend hopefully----and they'll be interesting because I'll be able to compare the original versions I already own of these titles to see if the DTS tracks were worth upgrading to and if the video was improved, etc.

Now, all I gotta do is sell these original versions somewhere to make SOME money back.....

[L.J.]

I think I did see a spider-man for $22. But what's more important is that I did run across maybe 25 titles that were just $9.99. Last week a purchased SWAT for $9.99 as the label said, but it rang up at the register for $22. They of course gave me the $9.99 price. Maybe all the SB haven't been mark down yet. I'll probably go pick up a couple of more titles this weekend. I watched the SB version of Air Force One last night and all I can say is WOW. It sounded great.

Some other titles I saw for $9.99 were:
Cliff Hanger
Anaconda
Gataca(Hope I spelled it right)

[Lexmark3200]

I think I did see a spider-man for $22. But what's more important is that I did run across maybe 25 titles that were just $9.99. Last week a purchased SWAT for $9.99 as the label said, but it rang up at the register for $22. They of course gave me the $9.99 price. Maybe all the SB haven't been mark down yet. I'll probably go pick up a couple of more titles this weekend. I watched the SB version of Air Force One last night and all I can say is WOW. It sounded great.

Some other titles I saw for $9.99 were:
Cliff Hanger
Anaconda
Gataca(Hope I spelled it right)

Interesting information, LJ......yes, MOST of the titles are $9.99 right now, in what is probably being agreed upon as a clearing out for HD DVD arrival ---- but thats speculation; I wanted everyone aware of the fact that there ARE many titles that are 22 bucks so they need to be careful if they think EVERY title is $9.99.....

Now, what happened to you with SWAT was interesting-----that it was labeled as $9.99 but rang up for $22...perhaps you are right-----all the titles MAY NOT have been marked down yet. At any rate, I was pissed that I couldnt get VAMPIRES....glad to hear about AIR FORCE ONE.....maybe I'll pick that up too.....

Those other $9.99 titles you mentioned are....well....in my opinion only.....not even WORTHY of Superbit treatment.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[Lexmark3200]

Being that this topic was moved from Home Theater, can we get one of these duplicate threads removed from this forum?

Thank you!

[Woochifer]

Before you go calling BB's Superbit price break a "fiasco," did you actually ask somebody what the price is on those Superbit titles? If you do a price check on the Spider-Man Superbits, the system should have them listed at $10, since I bought a copy of Spider-Man 2 for that price.

The BB location that I visited had a couple of copies of Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 tagged at $22, but all of the other copies were labeled at the new $10 price. And those Superbit titles that had shelf tags on display had the $10 price listed as the regular price, not just a sale price.

The person I talked to at the store said that all of the Superbit titles were selling for $10, no matter what the price label says. The recently released Sin City has a $23 price label on it, but if you do a price check, you'd see that BB has it on sale for $17.

[Defshep]

Superbit Spidey 1 & 2 were ten bucks at my BB. I did pick up Underworld ( I know, not everyone's favorite) on SB, as I needed a replacement. DTS is much improved over the DD track, which wasn't the greatest to begin with.

[Lexmark3200]

Excuse me; I know you enjoy picking every one of my posts apart, and here we go again.....it doesn't bother me because I am aware you are doing it.....so let me address each of these "complaints" you have below.....

"Before you go calling BB's Superbit price break a "fiasco,""

This was a "figure of speech" and a joke....do you know what that is?

"did you actually ask somebody what the price is on those Superbit titles? If you do a price check on the Spider-Man Superbits, the system should have them listed at $10, since I bought a copy of Spider-Man 2 for that price."

REGARDLESS of what YOU paid, THE BEST BUY ON MARYLAND PARKWAY IN LAS VEGAS QUOTED ME $22 on BOTH the Spider Man and Spider Man 2 --- and they were both TAGGED at $21.99 as well.

"The BB location that I visited had a couple of copies of Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 tagged at $22, but all of the other copies were labeled at the new $10 price. And those Superbit titles that had shelf tags on display had the $10 price listed as the regular price, not just a sale price.

The person I talked to at the store said that all of the Superbit titles were selling for $10, no matter what the price label says. The recently released Sin City has a $23 price label on it, but if you do a price check, you'd see that BB has it on sale for $17."


There seems to be a misunderstanding of communication of some kind here; it was told to me by the manager of this location that the Superbit titles ARE NOW $10 as a SALE PRICE until September 3rd or so; and, WITH PRICE CHECKS, THIS PARTICULAR STORE WAS NOT OFFERING ANY SUPERBIT TITLES that were labeled as $22 FOR LESS THAN THAT whatsoever, according to their computers; Spider Man and Spider Man 2 were indeed $22.

[Lexmark3200]

Superbit Spidey 1 & 2 were ten bucks at my BB. I did pick up Underworld ( I know, not everyone's favorite) on SB, as I needed a replacement. DTS is much improved over the DD track, which wasn't the greatest to begin with.

Are you referring to the DTS/Dolby Digital differences on Spider Man 1? Because the Dolby track on that ISN'T too hot.......

[yogo]

Hey Lex, did ya know that on the net using caps on words in sentences is considered SCREAMING?

No offence meant but I was just reading your posts with this in mind and it was pretty funny.

Imagine somebody talking to you screaming every other word. Worthy of Monty Python




Excuse me; I know you enjoy picking every one of my posts apart, and here we go again.....it doesn't bother me because I am aware you are doing it.....so let me address each of these "complaints" you have below.....

"Before you go calling BB's Superbit price break a "fiasco,""

This was a "figure of speech" and a joke....do you know what that is?

"did you actually ask somebody what the price is on those Superbit titles? If you do a price check on the Spider-Man Superbits, the system should have them listed at $10, since I bought a copy of Spider-Man 2 for that price."

REGARDLESS of what YOU paid, THE BEST BUY ON MARYLAND PARKWAY IN LAS VEGAS QUOTED ME $22 on BOTH the Spider Man and Spider Man 2 --- and they were both TAGGED at $21.99 as well.

"The BB location that I visited had a couple of copies of Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 tagged at $22, but all of the other copies were labeled at the new $10 price. And those Superbit titles that had shelf tags on display had the $10 price listed as the regular price, not just a sale price.

The person I talked to at the store said that all of the Superbit titles were selling for $10, no matter what the price label says. The recently released Sin City has a $23 price label on it, but if you do a price check, you'd see that BB has it on sale for $17."


There seems to be a misunderstanding of communication of some kind here; it was told to me by the manager of this location that the Superbit titles ARE NOW $10 as a SALE PRICE until September 3rd or so; and, WITH PRICE CHECKS, THIS PARTICULAR STORE WAS NOT OFFERING ANY SUPERBIT TITLES that were labeled as $22 FOR LESS THAN THAT whatsoever, according to their computers; Spider Man and Spider Man 2 were indeed $22.

[Lexmark3200]

Hey Lex, did ya know that on the net using caps on words in sentences is considered SCREAMING?

No offence meant but I was just reading your posts with this in mind and it was pretty funny.

Imagine somebody talking to you screaming every other word. Worthy of Monty Python

Well, being the official "bringer of beer" to the site, I pose a question back to YOU which I find funny as well....

Were you aware that at times, CAPITALIZING WORDS does not have to equate to screaming when on the Net, but rather EMPHASIZING a point or thought --- INSTEAD OF --- now get ready for this and read carefully --- italicizing or bolding those words? I assure you my words were not being screamed via my mind....lol....rather trying to be emphasized.....

Thank you for the internet lesson, though. I've only been writing online DVD reviews for years now.

[newtrix1]

Thanks for the tip on the sale, btw. I don't have any superbit DVD's, so I'm curious to see what they're all about. My local BB (Wilmington, DE) had an end cap display with all the superbit titles collected in one location (nice). All the sticker prices, were around $22, but I order mine online (with store pickup) and payed the $9.99 sale price. I suppose if I purchesd it at the store the discount would have been applied at the register.

[Woochifer]

Excuse me; I know you enjoy picking every one of my posts apart, and here we go again.....it doesn't bother me because I am aware you are doing it.....so let me address each of these "complaints" you have below.....

Picking apart? I'm simply pointing out that your assertion that the Superbit pricing did not apply to all titles was not the case at the BB store that I visited (and where I know one of the employees). That was the main point of your post, wasn't it?

Good to know that you're aware of what I'm doing -- i.e. telling you that what you observed at your local BB store differed from what I observed during my shopping trip. Would hate to see you getting all paranoid when someone points out that your observations don't necessarily apply to everybody else.


This was a "figure of speech" and a joke....do you know what that is?

I know what jokes are, too bad you weren't telling one in this case.


REGARDLESS of what YOU paid, THE BEST BUY ON MARYLAND PARKWAY IN LAS VEGAS QUOTED ME $22 on BOTH the Spider Man and Spider Man 2 --- and they were both TAGGED at $21.99 as well.

Well, it just sucks for you that the staff at your local Best Buy is so incompetent or wants to rip you off. Next time you're there, tell them to look up the price on the Best Buy website -- it's selling for $10 there. And if they won't give you the web price, then you could just order it online for in-store pickup. Problem/"fiasco" solved.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=6475566&type=product&id=39444


There seems to be a misunderstanding of communication of some kind here; it was told to me by the manager of this location that the Superbit titles ARE NOW $10 as a SALE PRICE until September 3rd or so; and, WITH PRICE CHECKS, THIS PARTICULAR STORE WAS NOT OFFERING ANY SUPERBIT TITLES that were labeled as $22 FOR LESS THAN THAT whatsoever, according to their computers; Spider Man and Spider Man 2 were indeed $22.

Like I said, the shelf tags at the store I visited indicated that the regular price was $10. All of the Superbit DVDs on that store's shelves (except for a few Spider-Man copies) have been relabeled at the $10 price, which is not something that they typically do for a temporary rollback. If the price reverts to $22 after Sept. 3, then your information's correct. If it does not, then that store location's passing along more bad information to you.

[dean_martin]

Thanks for the headsup on this sale. I went to BB just before closing. There was a rack with Superbit titles with no signs and only a couple of dvds marked 9.99. The vast majority were marked with the reg. prices. I asked if the sale was still on and a salesperson told me yes, but the sale ended tonight (Sat.). Who knows?

My wife and I had just seen Rebel Without a Cause at the theater (after seeing A Streetcar Named Desire last weekend) so we were in a classic film mood. We picked up Lawrence of Arabia (on 2 discs) and From Here To Eternity for 9.99 each. Good stuff at good prices. Of course there were a couple of other titles I would have picked up if I had been by myself like Snatch and Leon: The Professional and still others if I had been with my sons like the Spidey flicks.

[Lexmark3200]

"Picking apart?"

What are you talking about.....

"I'm simply pointing out that your assertion that the Superbit pricing did not apply to all titles was not the case at the BB store that I visited (and where I know one of the employees). That was the main point of your post, wasn't it?"

No, and your statement above makes no sense to me; what do you mean YOU were pointing out the fact that MY assertion was etc etc etc.....how could I KNOW what YOUR assertion was BEFORE I made a post?

"Good to know that you're aware of what I'm doing -- i.e. telling you that what you observed at your local BB store differed from what I observed during my shopping trip. Would hate to see you getting all paranoid when someone points out that your observations don't necessarily apply to everybody else."

Paranoid? I WAS THE ONE that pointed out the fact that MY store had a completely different reply to my inquiries regarding this sale; the initial response of mine, buddy, was to your "mocking" of my tagline of "fiasco" which you obviously dont understand, based on this nonsense below.......

"I know what jokes are, too bad you weren't telling one in this case."

It is PAINFULLY clear you dont know what jokes are because I was in fact using fiasco as a joke and a "figure of speech" for the sake of this thread-----regardless of what you THINK I was not doing, I WAS in fact going for a humorous approach with that statement.

"Well, it just sucks for you that the staff at your local Best Buy is so incompetent or wants to rip you off."

Yeah, right. More of your attempts to prove that you're always right and no one in here knows what they're talking about or has somehow garnered more knowledge than you....so sad.......yeah, they were PURPOSELY trying to rip me off when I walked in.....you are SO right....lol....LMFAO......

"Next time you're there, tell them to look up the price on the Best Buy website -- it's selling for $10 there. And if they won't give you the web price, then you could just order it online for in-store pickup. Problem/"fiasco" solved."

Again, you just dont get, are willing to accept or have the education level high enough to understand what I meant by fiasco, and, of course, you are doing it purposely for flaming purposes; but its all good, my friend. I TOLD YOU what the MANAGER of this store TOLD ME about THEIR pricing policy. Case solved for THIS STORE on Marlyland Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada.....call Chris White, manager for the store, if you want to argue this further with him.

"Like I said, the shelf tags at the store I visited indicated that the regular price was $10. All of the Superbit DVDs on that store's shelves (except for a few Spider-Man copies) have been relabeled at the $10 price, which is not something that they typically do for a temporary rollback. If the price reverts to $22 after Sept. 3, then your information's correct. If it does not, then that store location's passing along more bad information to you."

I was told....and I will say this again clearly.....that the DVDs that were MARKED 22 bucks WERE 22 bucks AT THIS PARTICULAR STORE. This included Spider Man and Spider Man 2, along with many others I noticed.

End of story.

[Lexmark3200]

Thanks for the tip on the sale, btw. I don't have any superbit DVD's, so I'm curious to see what they're all about. My local BB (Wilmington, DE) had an end cap display with all the superbit titles collected in one location (nice). All the sticker prices, were around $22, but I order mine online (with store pickup) and payed the $9.99 sale price. I suppose if I purchesd it at the store the discount would have been applied at the register.

Hey Newtrix,

Glad I could be of help.....I am beginning to think, however, originally being one of the first public advocates of Superbit titles amongst the groups of home theater enthusiasts I either socialized with or wrote reviews with, after buying BAD BOYS II and THE PATRIOT Superbit that this may be some kind of slight scam on Sony/Columbia's part.....from what my ears and eyes revealed to me, the PATRIOT's DTS mix on the Superbit version (I'm working on a review for that) sounded almost identical to the Dolby Digital soundtrack on the original two disc Special Edition version, and the video quality didnt seem to be much improved. Same results with BAD BOYS II Superbit.

[Lexmark3200]

Thanks for the headsup on this sale. I went to BB just before closing. There was a rack with Superbit titles with no signs and only a couple of dvds marked 9.99. The vast majority were marked with the reg. prices. I asked if the sale was still on and a salesperson told me yes, but the sale ended tonight (Sat.). Who knows?

My wife and I had just seen Rebel Without a Cause at the theater (after seeing A Streetcar Named Desire last weekend) so we were in a classic film mood. We picked up Lawrence of Arabia (on 2 discs) and From Here To Eternity for 9.99 each. Good stuff at good prices. Of course there were a couple of other titles I would have picked up if I had been by myself like Snatch and Leon: The Professional and still others if I had been with my sons like the Spidey flicks.

Hey Dean,

You're welcome for the news.....however, read my statements to Newtrix......

[newtrix1]

and at $9.99, I don't feel like too much of a sucker. I watched the frist 30 minutes of S.W.A.T. last night and it looked good (on a Toshiba HDTV tube set), but I have nothing to compare it to. As for the soundtrack, I don't have a multi-speaker setup anyhow :o so I can't comment there.

[Woochifer]

No, and your statement above makes no sense to me; what do you mean YOU were pointing out the fact that MY assertion was etc etc etc.....how could I KNOW what YOUR assertion was BEFORE I made a post?

Now look who's splitting hairs.


Paranoid? I WAS THE ONE that pointed out the fact that MY store had a completely different reply to my inquiries regarding this sale; the initial response of mine, buddy, was to your "mocking" of my tagline of "fiasco" which you obviously dont understand, based on this nonsense below.......

"I know what jokes are, too bad you weren't telling one in this case."

It is PAINFULLY clear you dont know what jokes are because I was in fact using fiasco as a joke and a "figure of speech" for the sake of this thread-----regardless of what you THINK I was not doing, I WAS in fact going for a humorous approach with that statement.

Mmmm, hmmm ... :rolleyes:


Yeah, right. More of your attempts to prove that you're always right and no one in here knows what they're talking about or has somehow garnered more knowledge than you....so sad.......yeah, they were PURPOSELY trying to rip me off when I walked in.....you are SO right....lol....LMFAO......

So sad when someone can't bear to admit that they're wrong and has to go on the attack to cover their back side, very sad indeed.


Again, you just dont get, are willing to accept or have the education level high enough to understand what I meant by fiasco, and, of course, you are doing it purposely for flaming purposes; but its all good, my friend. I TOLD YOU what the MANAGER of this store TOLD ME about THEIR pricing policy. Case solved for THIS STORE on Marlyland Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada.....call Chris White, manager for the store, if you want to argue this further with him.

And if you want to purchase Spider-Man Superbit for $10 and pick it up at your local BB store at that price, I provided you with the link. Instead of thanking me, you go into this tirade and accuse me of flaming. Talk about gratitude.


I was told....and I will say this again clearly.....that the DVDs that were MARKED 22 bucks WERE 22 bucks AT THIS PARTICULAR STORE. This included Spider Man and Spider Man 2, along with many others I noticed.

End of story.

And as I and others have said, go to the website and check the price there. If your local store isn't up to speed with their pricing, then buy it online and pick it up. You seem more tunnel visioned with self-righteousness than willing to listen to people when they point out ways that you can get what you want. Oh well, since you'd rather prove a point than buy something you want for the price you want, then you've just saved yourself $10.

[Lexmark3200]

"Now look who's splitting hairs."

Again, please make some sense with your posts as to where they're going.

"So sad when someone can't bear to admit that they're wrong and has to go on the attack to cover their back side, very sad indeed."

Now, who's spitting hairs as you accused ME of, and how can I be "wrong" in this instance when I told you what this store told me----dont argue with ME, argue with THEM. They told me that indeed all marked $22 Superbit DVDs WERE $22 according to THEIR computers. What is so sad about that?

"And if you want to purchase Spider-Man Superbit for $10 and pick it up at your local BB store at that price, I provided you with the link. Instead of thanking me, you go into this tirade and accuse me of flaming. Talk about gratitude."

Okay......thank you. I am uncertain at this point if I NEED the original Spider Man on Superbit just for its DTS track, but I will consider it; I have been finding uneven results on these so-called DTS tracks on these so-called Superbit releases having any sonic benefiits, as I have been finding via my reviews. But if I choose to buy the original Spidey on Superbit, I shall indeed use your link. Thank you; my closest store DOES have it for 22 bucks, which I know sounds outrageous.

"And as I and others have said, go to the website and check the price there. If your local store isn't up to speed with their pricing, then buy it online and pick it up. You seem more tunnel visioned with self-righteousness than willing to listen to people when they point out ways that you can get what you want. Oh well, since you'd rather prove a point than buy something you want for the price you want, then you've just saved yourself $10."

Your rhetoric of self-righteousness makes me chuckle as I am sitting here doing shaking my head because you don't even know me personally and have no clue as to the fact that my point was not via feelings of self righteousness; but be that as it may, I have GONE to Best Buy's website, and one of the titles I indeed want, John Carpenter's Vampires, is being stated for $23, unless you see something different.

You are still---to this very minute---misinterpreting the concept and term that is "fiasco" and the different ways in which it can be used.

[Lexmark3200]

and at $9.99, I don't feel like too much of a sucker. I watched the frist 30 minutes of S.W.A.T. last night and it looked good (on a Toshiba HDTV tube set), but I have nothing to compare it to. As for the soundtrack, I don't have a multi-speaker setup anyhow :o so I can't comment there.

Oh, well, you absolutely need a multichannel setup to take advantage of the Superbit "advantages" in terms of DTS or Dolby Digital audio schemes and such.

Agreed that at $9.99 we are not "suckers" but what my review intended to say, in the beginning of the review for THE PATRIOT, was that for what these stores (or Sony/Columbia) charges for these titles ORDINARILY when they're not on any kind of sale, Im wondering JUST how much of an improvement we're really getting with these Superbit transfers......especially with HD DVD just on the horizon......

[Woochifer]

Now, who's spitting hairs as you accused ME of, and how can I be "wrong" in this instance when I told you what this store told me----dont argue with ME, argue with THEM. They told me that indeed all marked $22 Superbit DVDs WERE $22 according to THEIR computers. What is so sad about that?

And let's get back to the whole point of this thread, which was you pointing out that not all Superbits were selling for $22. Well, at the store I visited, they sure were and the titles that I price-checked were listed at $10 no matter what the price label said (and nearly all of them had been relabeled at the reduced price anyway). I pointed that out, and here you are flying off the deep end as if that's some kind of heresy against your worldview.


Okay......thank you. I am uncertain at this point if I NEED the original Spider Man on Superbit just for its DTS track, but I will consider it; I have been finding uneven results on these so-called DTS tracks on these so-called Superbit releases having any sonic benefiits, as I have been finding via my reviews. But if I choose to buy the original Spidey on Superbit, I shall indeed use your link. Thank you; my closest store DOES have it for 22 bucks, which I know sounds outrageous.

And to that, you're welcome.

The benefit to Superbit varies a lot from disc to disc, but at $10 a pop, it might be worth the double-dip for titles that you particularly like. Lawrence of Arabia is an example where the Superbit improved upon the original release a lot, primarily because Columbia wised up and brought Robert Harris (who supervised the original 1989 negative restoration and was inexplicably not consulted during the preparation of the original DVD) in to correct the color balances on the Superbit version. The DTS track in that case made minimal audible difference over the DD track.


Your rhetoric of self-righteousness makes me chuckle as I am sitting here doing shaking my head because you don't even know me personally and have no clue as to the fact that my point was not via feelings of self righteousness; but be that as it may, I have GONE to Best Buy's website, and one of the titles I indeed want, John Carpenter's Vampires, is being stated for $23, unless you see something different.

Rhetoric? Nope, just calling it the way I see it on this thread.

And on John Carpenter's Vampires, it does look like they have it listed on the website for $25, so you might be right that there are exceptions. But, that neither of us have seen that title on store shelves could indicate that this sale is more for clearing out inventory than anything.

[Lexmark3200]

"I pointed that out, and here you are flying off the deep end as if that's some kind of heresy against your worldview."

What?????

"The benefit to Superbit varies a lot from disc to disc, but at $10 a pop, it might be worth the double-dip for titles that you particularly like."

This may in fact be true; I have found that BAD BOYS II and THE PATRIOT in particular both didnt sound NOR look better in Superbit than the original already-stellar releases from Columbia.

"Lawrence of Arabia is an example where the Superbit improved upon the original release a lot, primarily because Columbia wised up and brought Robert Harris (who supervised the original 1989 negative restoration and was inexplicably not consulted during the preparation of the original DVD) in to correct the color balances on the Superbit version. The DTS track in that case made minimal audible difference over the DD track."

I believe you; I never auditioned the Lawrence of Arabia Superbit.

"Rhetoric? Nope, just calling it the way I see it on this thread."

Then you are calling it wrong. There is miscommunication going on here.

"And on John Carpenter's Vampires, it does look like they have it listed on the website for $25, so you might be right that there are exceptions. But, that neither of us have seen that title on store shelves could indicate that this sale is more for clearing out inventory than anything."

Indeed possible; but, I DID want to point out that VAMPIRES was not available for this 10 dollar deal, nor did I easily find it on shelves, nor did the website advertise it for 10 bucks either.

[musicman1999]

i feel that we have missed the real problem with the superbit editions and this i my opinion only,to each his own and all that,that the real question should not be if the title is worthy of superbit or not but if it is worthy of dvd treatment or not.just my opinion.
thanks
bill