I am a total lover of animation, and Toy Story really fueled this love. I owned the original copy that I believed to be of reference quality in both picture and in sound. I purchased the 10th anniversay edition because it had more extra's to check out, the promise of higher bitrate to the video, and the Dts soundtrack. I wasn't let down one bit on all accounts.

Forget the story line we all know it, but is it worth it to invest or upgrade to this disc? I would say definately YES!

I was so blown away by what I saw on the screen, and what I heard on my speakers, that I had to compare the two just to see why I felt more envolved in this edition, than I was on the last. In order to get a real time comparison, I syc'd two of my DVD players via their progressive output through my new Grass Valley video signal processor/switcher which allows me to split the screen and view each players ouput sync'd together. The comparison proved interesting and enlightening.

Overall I found that the new version looks like a for lack of better words a "digital glaze" has been removed, sort of bringing the characters one step closer to you, and enabling you to connect more with them. Color overall is more saturated, clean and clear on the new release versus the old. Black levels also seem a little deeper, but both had no chroma or visible artifacts to be found. There is no edge enhancement to be found on either. When it comes to 3D like qualities, the new edition subtlelt exceeds the old. There is absolute no color bleeding to be found. The old version went through the traditional video to film to back to video transition. The extra D/A conversion really made a difference between the two as this new version is a straight to video transfer and does look a little better.

Sound wise the DD is the same great audio that was on the previous release. I thought the first soundtrack was really very good, and the comparison between the two DD tracks revealed no differences whatsoever. However with direct level matched comparison between the DD and Dts tracks was very revealing.
From the very beginning you notice that the Dts soundtracks sound more dynamic and less "digital". There is more "air" and less grit, and it is much more revealing of nuance and fine detail. Doors that close have a nice thud, strings that are plucked have a greater leading edge transient response than on the DD. Timbres of different instruments are richer, and harmonically dynamic. The real improvement from the Dts track over DD is in the bass. The amount of detail in the Dts mix is astounding. Instead of everything taking on a distinctive boom, you notice that different effects has a very distinct quality. Some booms have a quick pop, and sharp decay, while others have a very tight snap with a lingering signal fading to a deep blackness. Dialog is richer with more air around it, and fully tracks the characters position across the stage. I found that Dts more accurately placed the pans than DD did. Another area the the Dts version exceeds the DD soundtrack is in the soundfield. Most sound effects are clear, and accurately placed. However when comparing DD to Dts I found that the effect on the DD tended to pool around the speakers, while effect, dialog and music tended to just float in space completely independent of speaker position. Phantom imaging is greatly improved in Dts, with effects between all channels(including center rear) much clearer, and easy to delineate. While there are no night and day improvements, there are enough improvement collectively to warrant a upgrade on the audio alone.

While I have double dipped titles in the past, none have worth the investment more than this one. This IMO is a must have for animation lovers with great WS digital television setups, and very good audio systems.