PHYSICAL MEDIA collecting… or hoarding ? Struggles with collecting Blu Ray & 4k 

Randomly got recommended this vid and I have to say it genuinely got me thinking about my own practices. Thanks for posting honestly and very concise on the realities of what collecting means.

I think that good collecting is having items that are special and meaningful to you, which necessarily means a smallish number. Otherwise in the age of the internet and endless "limited editions" you end up with massive collections of things you don't care about, which is very similar to hoarding. It's not a good feeling because in the latter case the collection owns you.

For the past year, I've been buying ALOT of DVDs, and Blu Rays and honestly, the original reason was just to find the movies I liked and get them in whatever format I could find... Well, as time went on, I started to not only buy the DVD or Blu Ray of movies, but I would buy both. Even, duplicates. And, then I started picking up VHS and some laserdisc and I began buying OOP/Rare titles on Blu Ray. And so I started buying more DVD movies and Blu Rays for the sake of just, collecting and preserving, physical media, due to fears of digital causing its extinction. For me, I also think there could be a mental/depression thing going on... Spending time and extra money on collecting (or hoarding?) physical media has kinda taken over my life, since I honestly, don't have much going on, or I choose to have the "collecting" the physical media lifestyle that I do. I don't HAVE to collect physical media, but I choose to and it does make me happy, to think I'm helping to preserve physical media and movies. Preserving has turned into my main goal with this, I guess, but at the same time, it does feel like it has gone to a form of hoarding, because now I'm getting stuff that I don't really like or even have never seen, before...but again, there's that mentality, of thinking I'm helping to preserve. And honestly, there's a form of excitement, when you walk into a thrift store or used book/movie store and you find movies that you don't normally see at a department store. And, it's cheaper! So, I'm sure collecting physical media is different for everyone. We all have our reasons and motivations, and maybe, there's some that just don't realize it or can't really explain, why. If you think about it, everything you buy and bring to your home could be considered a form of "hoarding". We just may use things more often, than others. But, yes, there is that fear I have that digital/streaming is going to cause physical media to eventually, become extinct. And whether I'm right about that or not, it just gives me something to do and focus my mind on. Again, it could be a mental/depression thing going on, but it keeps me sane, if that makes any sense.

Here's what I've learned in accumulating about 3,000 titles: 1. Define your collection in terms of specific genres or actors. There are lots of great movies in every genre, but your collection is just going to be a tiny fraction of what's out there. 2. Getting rid of "one-time watches" or movies you didn't like is OK, and that process will make your collection better. 3. If possible, keep things you haven't seen separate from what you have seen. This gives you a clear indication of the amount of hours you need to devote to getting all the movies watched. This will also influence your decision in buying more things, or at least focus any buying toward what you specifically collect. 4. Shelf space is always limiting, but I've recently taken steps to get some of that space back. I've made two rounds already of purchasing batches of regular dvd cases (14mm) that hold 6 discs (individual tray style). These now hold a lot of the "franchise" movies (mission impossible, terminator, shrek, halloween, etc) all in one case. Even doing this for "sequel" movies helps, too. Once you get over putting the original paperwork into a file storage, you'll be fine. I now have 2 large bags of empty dvd cases, and I seriously wonder how the heck they existed in the first place. Thanks for sharing your collection and hope this helps for the conversation!

I really like that shine a light on the negativity of collecting. It's all sunshine and rainbows with other you tubers. I honestly think my uncles marriage broke down because of his collecting and in the end when everything fell apart he just got rid of i t all

So well articulated. Can I Thumbs Up this multiple times! I need to clean out my videogame collection in a similar fashion…

Self-aware, honest, mature, objectionable...good on ya

I’m in the same place. I just can’t bring myself to get rid of anything. No point selling as no worth. Charity shops refusing to take. And I can’t bring myself to put them in a bin. Most of my unwanted ones are Poundland pickups

I always joke the difference between collecting and hoarding is the amount of space you have 😂

There's definitely a door you walk through when collecting becomes hoarding. I think it's when the ability to pick up a last generations media for a very low price happens. I did it with records, now I'm doing it with CDs, dvd and blu ray. I've bought whole collections for next to nothing.. Sometimes absolutely nothing! Same goes for any collection. There becomes a point where that wade whimsie, or book or whatever becomes this avalanche of stuff that is actually strangling the pleasure of your particular collection. Great video, thanks for sharing.

I realized that main difference between physical media and streaming or hard drive storage was mostly paper and plastic taking up space. So I ripped all my discs onto hard drives and got rid of them, if I like a DVD or Blu-ray I will still buy it, watch it , rip the disc with all it's extras, and then sell it on. The removal of clutter and the extra space, not worrying about scratches, disc rot, having a spare player, etc has made a big difference to my enjoyment of movies.

I became a hoarder for retro games at one point in the past, so I swore to myself to not go there again with my new UHD & Blu-Ray collecting. I just got back into physical movies for the first time in 10 years after recently getting a UHD Blu-Ray player. I'm making it a point to only get movies I LOVE, not just KINDA LIKED. If I don't see myself rewatching it, then I pass. Even if it's only $2. So far I've been surprisingly good with the self control 🤞🏻😁

I had a similar predicament with video games, I went through and got rid of dupes from for multiple systems, sold stuff I would never play or play again. Felt great to whittle down to a collection that is a truer reflection of my tastes. Movie collection has been growing to encompass my favorite titles.

3:06 There's NO such thing as "bragging rights".. 99.9% of the other people in this world couldn't CARE LESS about what you do, what you own, what you watch etc Understanding this is the first step.

I love old movies, and I love collecting the dvds! Thrifting for DVDs is a super fun casual/inexpensive hobby. I only buy DVDs of movies that i know I want to watch, so there's no real "collection spiral" of getting stuff I don't want. I don't go to collection groups/forums. I really only thrift them for a few bucks. I'm not into blueray. I like to watch movies on old CRT tvs anyways. Full honesty, I also got over packaging. To me, the movie is what I want. The experience of watching it on my CRT. I don't give a hoot about packaging. I've thrown all my boxes away. Even my box set boxes. Everything is stored in huge binders, and take up only a paltry amount of space in comparison to if I kept them in boxes. I know packaging and the ability to "display" the collection means a lot to some folks, but I've just gotten over that hurdle and now it's a lot more manageable now.

Ha!! Yes, I still have Laserdiscs!! But, I gave a local shop that sales used records, tapes, CDs, DVDs, VHSs and yes, Laserdiscs, three boxes of LDs and only kept the ones that never made it to DVD/Blu-Ray. I have a good size house, even by American standards, but my media collection had flooded my entire home. For the last two-three months, I’ve been going through my collections and trading off the stuff I no longer need or wanted. Now, I’m in the process further downsize my CD/DVD/Blu-Ray collections by going to “sleeve up” between 2500 to 3000 of all types of discs and afterwards, place them into stackable plastic boxes/cases and store all those 2500 to 3000 discs into one closet. In the end, I am hoping to have no more than 400 DVDs, 400 Blu-Rays and 400 CDs on open sleeves in both my TV room and my Music room. Afterwards, start the purging of my Laserdiscs, which I still have two functions players, and my VHS tapes, which I still have three functioning players, to the bear minimum of stuff that never made it DVD/BR. Afterwards, work on my LP collection…. I’m hoping to be done with everything by this coming July/August. Like you, I want my collection, on display, to reflect my interests within each media. I agree 100% with you that your collections can become overwhelming/stressful and basically become more of a hoarding event than a collection.

Wow. The best video on the channel. I totally agree with everything. Fear of missing out is what used to drive me but now it's all about my favourite movies and 1 edition of each (with very few exceptions) in the best possible transfer. The movies not only must represent me and my taste but I also have to feel that I will want to watch them again. It all came after years of experience though and lots of money wasted on DVDs and BDs that are still sealed and packed away. I still consider myself a collector (thankfully never a hoarder) but more importantly I'm a fan.

I found that collecting of any type of merchandise can be considered on the verge of hoarding. And fortunately or unfortunately (depending on how you look at it) I'm a collector. As a child I started with stamps, then moved to coins, then books & now dvds/blue rays. Some would say that my dvd/blue ray collection is to large & ridiculous in this age of streaming. But I have a love/hate relationship with it. I love that when the internet goes down (I live in Florida, USA) & due to storms as well as other unknown reasons our internet service goes down (or runs at a snails pace) frequently. So I turn to my collection for something to watch & I'm never disappointed. Then on the hand I hate that my collection takes up so much room (half of my living room). And when I've moved in the past most of the boxes I hauled around were filled with movies. I've been collecting DVDs/blue ray disks since the mid to late 90's. And while I haven't stopped I am more picky about what I purchase to add to my collection now. I hate that movies frequently disappear from streaming services so any movies put out by say Netflix or Prime for example, that I really enjoy I purchase a digital copy of to insure that I'm able to watch again. And any titles from the past that I love & have watched (or want to watch) over & over again I make sure that I have a physical copy of. Since my two favorite genres are horror & comedy, I have a lot of options, lol

I only collect what i love. I watch a movie on a digital streaming platform, if i hate it, or just simply am not interested in revisiting, i dont buy it. If i like a movie, i buy it and keep it in my collection, a month of two later (or longer) i rewatch it, if i find myself not liking it anymore, i sell it. This keeps my collection tight, so that i dont become overwhelmed with things i will never watch again.

Remember that one way to reduce "collecting/hoarding" physical media is via your computer and your friendly neighbor public library. Yes, the same one that you've been funding all along from your rent or homeowner property taxes, specifically from your school taxes. Most public libraries of any size have a pretty extensive DVD/BD collection. Why not rip them to MKV or ISO files? You can store some of them on a NAS and some on a your cloud account. Okay, so you won't have the original BD/DVD case artwork, but that's a small price to pay for all of the shelf space you'll be saving. And if your local public library doesn't have title you want many contiguous counties have a regional mutual sharing program, where via an online database members of any such county library can "interloan" any media, and which will be delivered to your library. I've done this for years. Enjoy!

Collecting is just as much about getting rid of stuff as it is about getting stuff. In recent years I have been going through that same challenge. There is a whole science behind reducing a collection and upping the quality and relevance of that collection. It can be just as fulfilling as finding new stuff.

I started dating my girlfriend who is blind about 2 years ago and it halted my collecting down to almost nothing. The only way she is able to enjoy a movie is if it has a well done audio description track on it and that's few and far between for alot of titles that aren't brand new. So now I really only get stuff if it's super cheap and worth it to even own.

I've always tried to curate my collection so I'll never have everything but everything I have reflects me. Movies and TV I enjoyed. Comic book movies. Biker films. Interactive DVD/Visual Novels. I'm still running out of room.

Hi Phill. I just watched another RU-vidr discuss this and your video then popped up. These discussion videos are popular as I think all physical media collectors can relate in some way. I have a sizeable laserdisc and dvd collection and continue to add because of the variety of movies I’m able to find thrifting (I show haul videos etc). But yes, space now is a concern as all the shelves are filled. I have purchased a quantity of sleeves so as to get rid of the dvd cases, and that will save space but I know that saving space is not the solution as you can quickly fill it again. Ultimately it has to be making a decision to be ruthless with downsizing and/or stopping or significantly reducing collecting. Neither of which sound great but we will all have to do it at some point. All the best

the fear I have of getting rid of some of my titles is what if further down the line i want that title and the price for it has gone up to some stupid price

Coincidentally started doing this 3 days ago and then this video pops up on my feed...

I’ve heard and actually experienced on a few movies that if you have a decent system, disc is better than streaming

You said everything I was feeling and I agree wholeheartedly. I too am now waiting for sales and cleaning up to the essentials.

I have a large collection of music and movies. I try not to buy things I know I wont watch/listen to "often". However I have gotten to a point where there isn't enough time left in my life to watch or listen to all my media. So you got to thin the heard and let some stuff go. When it comes to music and movies you should only worry about limited editions and box sets for stuff you really love. Example I like Pink Floyd, I have a a few of their box sets and enjoy them, however other bands release similar box sets and I want them. But then I think is it worth the money and is it really important to me. If no, then let it go.

Have big collection of movies and rock cds running out of space and buying things twice because I forgot I had already bought it in the past. With music box sets and books about movies and musicians. Spend time reaching and buy the things and not enough time looking and listening to them. Unless you have a lot of space you will have to get rid of stuff eventually.

I’ll never understand why people double or triple dip movies. That tells me there’s a hoarding issue. There’s plenty of people who buy way more copies of the same movie than that, which I think is absurd.

I just found your channel and watched your video. I think what you said reflects the views of many of us older "collectors/Hoarders". I started collecting in the VHS days, then shifted to DVD's and then Blus and even some 4K's even though I don't have a player, as they come with the Blus. I still buy DVD's now as well. During COVID, I started going through my crap and realized how many unopened VHS tapes I had and didn't need anymore. I started selling many online and / or giving them away, keeping on significant ones. I have a hard time getting rid of DVD's, so my compromise was to buy albums that hold 250 and sought them out by genre, alphabetically in the albums and throw away the cases. I still have many to go through and many I know I won't put in albums, as they are "special". Also, like you, I don't feel compelled to buy right away and wait for sales to happen or many times just wait for streaming and if I watch it and like it, may buy it on sale or may not care anymore. I do like to rebuy the movies I love, but again when it is a significant upgrade, but I can wait, as I already own them. Making a shift in the buying habits has really changed me and now I'm gaining much more space. I do buy a ton of cheap used DVD's for a buck each, and almost automatically put them in a pile for the album collection. I do like to own any movie I enjoy or have enjoyed as there have been times I wanted to watch something, but it isn't available on one of the 5+ services I subscribe to and that is one of the main reasons. Also, I've had cable outages, etc. and can't watch anything, but my physical media, so I do cherish the collection, but managing it is part of admitting you have a "problem". :)

Great video. My collection isn't overflowing in other areas....yet. But I have started doubling up on shelves (2 deep) which has started to concern me. I've curated my collection in the past to bring numbers down but what I am finding is there are too many deals enticing me to buy more and too many nice limited editions which stirs that FOMO aspect of me. Like you, I need to slow down but it's very hard when there is a constant stream of deals. Films I want to watch but then not necessarily keep in my collection.

Go through your whole collection one by one. The ones you haven't looked at for over a year or didn't even remember owning can all go.

if your collection is encroaching on your living space, As if it is in your way. Then yes it is Hording. i my self put my dvds in Bulk cd cases. I have a 500 and multiple 250. I don't keep the cases. I still buy DVDs for a few reasons. Sometimes there are movies that are not on streaming. Some moves or shows will never be streaming. Lost media. some are tied up in licensing rights. others get banned for being inappropriate for 2023. Simpsons has a few episode for example. The big one right now is they are starting to edit movies and shows

I feel like asking yourself if something you own has a purpose is a good point.

I must say this is one of the best videos I've seen on this subject. and I can feel your pain

If collecting physical media brings you happiness, then have at it, good on you. If you like looking at the cases and their contents or the DVD extras and commentary, then have at it, good on you. For me neither one of these things is enough of an interest to me to hold physical media. As you correctly pointed out, you need a room or more to hold some larger collections, there is dusting, inventorying, loaned out media that is not returned, losing your collection due to fire, flood or other disaster, moving is a bitch, etc. Streaming also has it's down side, buffering, throttling, reduced quality, content being randomly removed, even if you purchased a license for it. No, for me storing media on hard drives in a media server is it. Once I have it, it is mine, can not be altered or deleted. When I am comfy in my bed I can switch between movies, TV series, music, games on console emulators, RU-vid, etc. without getting out of my bed. I have over 6,500 movies, over 1,600 TV series on my media server. I back it up onto 2.5" 5TB portable hard drives where I can literally hold my entire collection in the palm of my hands. I am in the process of purchasing 4TB NVME drives in enclosures to backup my collection. Once complete, I will be able to hold my entire collection in one hand. I could walk around with my entire collection in my jacket pocket and no one would be the wiser.

It's a fine line to tread. I've been collecting a lot of DVDS in the last couple of years from charity shops very cheap but im finding im not watching them. I think next year it will be watching them and then clearing them out

I’m being careful not to buy every release, almost for the sake of it. I’ll stick mainly to horror and pick and choose carefully what I get. I don’t want too many blu rays or 4k because it will just get out of hand. I sometimes wonder what the point of it all is, then other times it’s the opposite. Either way I’m glad you made this video, as it’s an eye opener.

I’ve been collecting since the days of VHS,but sold those off and slowly replaced them with DVD and then Blu Ray (I did not then go to 4K), I have around 4000+ movies and I would say I could get rid of quiet a few movies (1000+) that I know I will never watch again. I have started to sell off a few movies but to be honest it’s hardly made a dent in my collection.

I paused it on your Kevin Smith collection & easily saw you have a serious problem of having to have every possible release of a film! All you need is either a DVD or Blu Ray of a film! You don’t need multiple copies of Dogma or Clerks! Get rid of the doubles & you will see how fast your collection shrinks & frees up space!

omg! are you me from a parallel universe. My movie and tv horde have gotten the best of me. I have so many unopened releases that I had to stop buying cold turkey until I catch up. But I want to upgrade my electronics to continue my hobby. I keep all physical media from Cartivision to beta, vhs, laserdisc, dvdR,dvd. psp movies blu ray and 4 k releases, never throwing them out unless they break, or I need to sell on eBay when things get tight. Sorting everything in a climate-controlled storage unit is quite the project.

if it's organized it's collecting, if it isn't its hoarding. But yeah, my local library gives away movies for free sometimes, so recently that's where I've picked up a good amount, but I tend to have them in probation until I've watched them. Then if I like them they get their rightful place on the shelf, if not they go in the donate bin.

I've stuck strictly to Blu-Ray with the occasional DVD, but I've built a system. I've moved my standard catalog of movies to binders and recycle the cases. A binder of 400 slots can accommodate as many as 400 movies (depending on bonus discs, double features, etc.). And the physical space of 400 cases can be daunting. If you do mean to keep anything for its case, I recommend TV shows. Individual seasons, or go for complete collections. That or movies from specific companies (Arrow, Criterion Collection, Shout/Scream Factory, etc.).

Heres an idea if you not sure what to do just keep em,put them in big cardboard or storage boxes you can get from shops and stuff ,list contents on piece paper and tape to side stick in loft same list on pc job done.

I have an impressive seashell collection. I keep it on beaches around the world.

My DVD collection was really large and I ran out of space. I used to do a lot of blind buying. About 10 years ago I started the process of replacing DVDs with BluRays for any movie that I will revisit and are favourites. DVDs I would never watch again were sold or donated. But I did slow my physical media purchasing at the same time and fell into watching a ton of streaming. However, 4K BluRay has led me to revisit my collection. I'm now in the process of buying a good number of BluRays and 4Ks to fill gaps in my collection. But the same rules apply, I'm only buying films that I will rewatch and are favourites.

Great video really enjoyed it Phill, i feel ive got a designated space for my movies (although in our bedroom is a bit strange) and im navigating that space so it never spills out 🤞🤞 i think every collector goes through the just one more title phase until the go "whhooooopppppss" 🤣👍👍

I've realized this too. I've limited myself to two bookshelves (one smaller) and once they get filled I have to go thru and get rid of what I dont/havent watched or what I dont care for anymore. I sell it, or I donate them. I still need to slim it down more tho. I'm also suplimenting with places like TUBI and Pluto TV as well

So true, same here

Oh boy yes. I’ve gotten rid of so many old comics, TPBs and especially toys. A lot of stuff I’ve let go if I’m not going to watch them again. I might get some digitally (forgive me), for things I might watch and I’ll buy stuff I really want like Oppenheimer.

I collect things that have personal significance to me. I collect old postcards and old books that are of and relating to the town I grew up in. As far as movies, I usually collect ones that have sentimental value to me. Like the movies and television shows that I grew up watching with friends and family.

I grew up with physical media and still buy it. I've had OCD my whole life and find myself pinging back and forth like a metronome between buying a lot and wanting to pare down. Its like you said; a collection should be reflective of and representative of you and your taste rather than anything and everything, which is something important to think about. Do I like Halloween Resurrection and Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3? No not really lol. Do I own them to have the complete franchises and potential marathons? Yes. Is that really necessary? Something to consider. Starting this year I've taken to limiting myself to a large shelf dedicated to movies and TV. when it's at capacity it's time for curation and assessing what I really want and don't. Leads to some tough choices but also critical thought and evaluation. Also can motivate a rewatch to see if I still like the film in question if it's been long enough.

I buy cheap at like yard sales, I have 700-something and they've taken over my living room. I think I want to transfer everything to the PC, I already did that with my CDs so I can put them up and still have them available.

You're a hoarder when you own more media than you have time to use it. DVDs and Blu-rays especially are next to free at thrift stores as people feel as if they're getting a great deal but in reality , 90% of people don't want them as to why they're pretty much free . Also many collectors think that these items will be worth money in the future , which is 100% incorrect as to many people are collecting/hoarding making all these items dime a dozen . This modern era of media collecting reminds me of the sports card collectors from 1985-1999 as 97% of these cards are now basically worthless for this very reason.

I'm going to trim my collection and get rid of some of the fluff. if I know the movie is going to be poor quality sometimes I'll just fast forward through the majority of it and then get rid of it. I get excited when I find something that I feel fills a hole in the collection like Shanghai Joe. An Italian Martial arts Western.

I dont own one single steel book or limited edition box. I don't pre order anything, or have any FOMO or get sucked into the limited edition thing. It really doesnt bother me. I mainly buy films that i really like and are a few years old, unless something newer is on sale. The majority of my collection is blu ray,.I upgraded quite a few of them from dvd's but im not upgrading my blu rays to 4k, would be an extreme cost. My 4k player upscales blu rays and im really happy with how they look. I cant believe that people have bought the very same film on each new format over the years. And they are paying really high prices on old films now being released on 4k. I bought many of these films second hand on blu ray for as little as £1 each. The high price of 4k really puts me off them. I also dont even buy certain films in collections. Like with the Blade trilogy, i only own Blade 1 because the other two are just average films for me. I only own Terminator 1 - 3, Transformers 1 - 3. I am not interested in the newer star wars films, or the latest Matrix, Halloween or Screams. I've watched most of them, and all felt pretty flat in my opinion. Certainly wouldnt buy them. One thing that has changed for me is that i go less and less to the cinema, where now its basically stopped. I have a great set up at home and its far more comfortable for me there. Any new film I want to see, like the upcoming Aquaman 2, ill just wait for the blu ray to come out and pick it up for £15. Would cost that for us to go to the cinema anyway.

I'm lucky shawscope came out around the time I started collecting. Not a big fan of, but i really wanted the boxer omen. Did a bunch of searching for that one movie on bluray. learned more about all the companies around the world and the rise of physical media popularity. I ended up deciding to wait on its own release some will do. So I don't have the FOMO or a need to buy big sets I don't need. Also 4k is becoming a second chance to grab these films.

Quality over quantity. Do you want a curated collection of your favorite movies or do you want a large collection of mostly unwatchable turkeys for the sake of filling up shelves?

I have over 6000 blurays I used to keep them in alphabetical order but got tire of moving hundreds of movies to do so remember a lot of movies that are oop are worth a lot more than you paid for them and when physical media is done away with you will be sitting on a gold mind

My collection is mainly 4k UHD in titles I will only watch again and again over a lifetime. Otherwise, I just stream. All my Blu-rays I have sold off to replace titles in 4k if the restoration is better. I have around 50 titles altogether in 4k and 1080p Blu-ray. If the format is outdated, I get rid! At the end of the day, if you couldn’t watch your entire collection casually in your spare time, I think you have a problem. There are only so many hours in a day, people, places to see and there’s work commitments. I look at some peoples collections and think how can you watch all those titles again?

You could slim down your dvd collection greatly with tarifold sleeves. They even have them for blu rays.

meanwhile my friend is swimming in about 1000 cds. plus dvds. and lps. and cassettes

Streaming prices lately are insane what you're doing is fine

I'm doing this too. I've really gotten out of upgrading especially since I upgrade all my favorites. I take screenshots of new releases and what till Black Friday for new movies. I stream the most movies on tubi. Actually there's been a number of movies that got a lot of hype and I didn't like them so I'm glad I watched them first. That laser disc of The Killer looks amazing though. Display that shit! You could probably make some sweet change selling that 😄

Your thoughts are the same as mine, sometimes I collect because titles are really really cheap and other times I buy because I specifically need that title. I don't mind waiting for my local store to have a sale before buying and if I miss out then that's fine too. I've been collecting bluray's for two and a half years and now have over 3100 and 500 of those are 4K's. Recently I have slowed down on buying as I find myself staying at home more watching movies -- as the world passes me by. I much prefer the 4K releases so I am focusing on that at the moment as I have a serious home theatre system. I just purchased "Lawerence Of Arabia" 4K steelbook and that wasn't cheap. The more I buy the further retirement moves away too.....CHEERS.

A narrow, focused collection will usually be more complete and satisfying. When people hear that I collect comics, their first question is usually, "How many do you have?" For me it's not quantity, but quality. I only collect one era ("Age" in comic-speak), better condition, and one company (DC Comics). If you focused on one genre or one decade, perhaps that will help. Narrow and focused has helped me keep the volume down and the quality higher.

Editing movies is the biggest reason I still collect DVDs.

I used to be a collector a now sadly I am an order started putting movies into plastic boxes not enough room. And that's why I've came up with the decision to stop collecting movies. It's a shame the thing I love I've got to stop😩

Having collected for over 25 years, i have horned the art of only buying what i like, what i know i will watch more than once, and even blind buying i do my research first! I even buy second hand for less than £5 from CEX online or from their stores, sometimes selling some old replaced dvds and getting a voucher to use for my purchases, i like to recycle.

Well.. i have 2k vhs atleast. And lots of dvd and blue rays. Im working on selling many of them.

I have a big collection of dvd's but i am now addicted to collecting dvd boxsets, started with the 24 series and carried on from there, i enjoy the hunt but must admit am i going to watch them all?.

I still have hundreds of cds mostly because I still have a cd player in my car. But I have joined Amazon music and tried to cut back.

I collect video games and getting old stuff has lost its charm with all the scalping, and I can't and won't justify paying so much for a game that I can already play on actual hardware. Internet servers will outlife the cds anyway, but I still want my favourites. With new games, I buy them and keep them even if I didn't like them that much, mostly because I would be losing money (I know, I already consumed the thing, but I still feel like that). I really should reconsider this, though.

I have the same problem (I was mostly on top of things but now titles are are piling up in the living room and guest areas of the house) thoughI have been advised I should be 'not too hard on myself' as it's mostly taken over from alcohol as an addiction... it's safer, there's a positive outcome of actually owning something and it probably only costs about the same. However I know I will need to wean myself off _needing_ an arrival each _day_ to stop me entering depression, before it fully takes over. I am better at waiting than I was but I still need my 'fix' at the moment and, as my therapy sessions say (as I mention above), if it stops me returning to alcohol and killing myself it's an improvement *but* it can't go on forever. One problem is I'm very anti-streaming and have always felt the need for something tangible (even though I'll store music digitally, for example, I'll buy the CD and either use the digital copy I get for free for convenience or convert to digital for on the move listening). I was only getting into VHS collecting as DVD came in (before then I taped off the TV) as I didn't have much disposable income. When DVD arrived it was a revalation and a revolution in my buying habits and though I only imported a few things (I was multi-region capable) the fact whole TV series, with amazing extras, came out with whole seasons for the price of a few episodes on VHS and also took up a fraction of the space had me hooked immediately as did the quality and longevity aspects. I told myself when Blu-ray arrived I'd only upgrade things I'd rewatch or 'must have' on the new format... then I added in "well it's new out on both formats and the price isn't that much different, so get new things on Blu-ray too"... then, as I watched more Blu-rays, it was obvious how much better the picture quality was (to be fair for practically any movie it certainly is) so I set out to upgrade all I could. Then I discovered steelbook collecting! Things got more expensive as, given new ones often sold out before release, it wasn't possible to wait even if I was being patient with other titles and upgrades. Ah, here comes 4K... again here Iwent with "only upgrade things I'd rewatch or 'must have' on the new format"... on the upside my loved TV wasn't being re-released as there was little point (especially with old material recorded in 4:4 low def source material) but then I got stuck on new releases; 4Ks were much more niche than Blu-rays ever had been, even early on... and still are... so were quite a lot more expensive (especially in the UK) but I wanted the best quality and found/find it hard to get the Blu-ray if a 4K release exists; what was worse was steelbooks, my new passion, only started to be available for the 4K so I couldn't even try to make myself buy the Blu-ray steelbook instead of the madly priced 4K steelbook because, simply, there wasn't one. If I wanted the steelbook it had to be 4K and often had to be pre-ordered or it sold out (potentially costing even _more_ on eBay sice it was OOP). So now I had the twin problem of 4K steelbooks being the norm for new release movies, where available (and of course they're, practically, all Region Free so importing steelbooks was an option if the UK didn't get one... which was often the case being as the UK, despite actually having room sizes most suitable to taking advantage of 4K's improved resolution, is a huge streaming adopter being such a small country and most homes having access to high enough bandwidth... and, if I'm honest, seeming to mostly consist of viewers more interested in convenience than supreme quality; and sometimes who can blame them?). At least upgrading DVDs to BDs is relatively cheap now; weirdly the BD is often cheaper new thanthe DVD is, and therefore my need to keep buying isn't outstripping what I've always spent... well certainly not by too much. But the new 4K steelbooks add up quickly in cost and everything takes up room that I just don't have. I know I have to address it but getting rid of something, once I have it, even if I'm not a fan, is really hard... it looks good in it's spot on the shelf (when there is a shelf spot available, anyway!) and I'd feel a loss of "what if I wan't to rewatch to see if my tastes or perceptions have changed as I grow older?" It's tough but at a minimum I should take the DVDs I've upgraded to Blu-rays and Blu-rays I've upgraded to 4K to an exchange shop - it'll be a start even if I know it's far from the end!

I just recently started down sizing on movies I have no interest in and spending more time collection the titles i like. I had out of print movies that I didn't care about that I could sell to get money for titles i wanted.

Ha, I still have my laserdiscs. They’re in a box in the garage but I still have them

Cool!

In terms of buying any release I will when it comes to horror as I'll always find them enjoyable, other than that I buy films that have nostalgia for me like Pulp fiction, Escape from new York, ghostbusters etc or an actor which I really enjoy. Eg any Arnold schwarzenegger film! I tend to buy singular rather than sets but I'll get a set of it's a good price eg dirty harry, die hard etc

It's enough when you think it's enough. If others think you're hoarding, screw 'em.

I collect what i like 90% with the occasional blind buys here and there if something sounds good to me. I've started collecting 20 years ago but the country that i live in doesn't get any releases after the DVD and some blu ray so i have to import everything and with the Brexit and all getting boutique stuff is hard and pricy, so try to get what i can at reasonable price ofc. And man, i thought i hade some decent number of movies with 400-500 movies and 20-30 complete tv shows, but reading the comments i think i'm ok... for now, at least 😀

I’ve just recently started collecting Blu Rays/4K’s and Steelbooks the last 3 and a half years now. I mainly buy movies I’ve seen before that I liked, or a movie that I can’t find on streaming that I would like to watch. There are some movies in my collection I’ve yet to watch though. I also buy a lot of limited edition stuff because I like to think I’m not just buying a movie but a piece of art as well, because I like it to look nice. The only issue is the limited edition stuff are on the expensive side. I think it only becomes hoarding if you’re buying a ton of movies that you haven’t seen that’s not on your watchlist, like there is almost a pressure to watch that movie that’s not big on your watchlist. My goal is to have a collection of movies I like and that it looks nice through nice editions that look like a piece of art almost. But I have noticed the more movies I buy the more of an addict I feel, I’m only nearing 156 Blu Ray’s/Steelbooks/4K’s I own so far (including movies in box sets) as I’ve only started to collect them in the last 3 and a half years.

I buy lots from charity shops, like 99pence for 4.

These days the bigger the box the less I’m interested with some exceptions like the recently announced Conan set.

Collector. Hoarder if you have no place to store them. (Neatly)

Time to move on to collection 3.0

I collect blurays and dvds but iam now collecting dvds more cause they are cheaper and i dont mind the diffence from bluray to dvd but i do throw away my boxes of dvds and store them away neater big tub 😅😅😅😅😅😅 great video iam from northen ireland

i collect a lot of titles im interested in and have seen plenty of times but also blind buy some that i havent seen at all that i would like to watch

well said

Yeah im a hoarder lol and unfortunately for me i love movie artwork so its not just about the movie itself I'll collect from around the world different editions for different artworks or whatever is in a particular set and then because i like artwork i thought I'll make a few mugs with movie artworks printed on the mugs well i got carried away and made enough i could fill two bookcases to have on display but my movie collection has grown so the idea of displaying mugs is no longer an option so i have all these mugs in my cupboard lol a total waste of space and the Small fortune i spent getting them made , be so much simpler if i didn't care for movie art i collect diecast movie cars in the larger sizes as well so yep space is an issue

That’s a title which needs a blu ray release. Wonder boys!!!! It ain’t hoarding. Well that’s what I’m telling myself. Might have to return to RU-vid and do a similar video.

Its never too muxh if u stressing out then fix your problem so u can enjoy it

Digital game purchases are not owned by you. Someone else owns them and you just get a non transferable license. To the everyday person does this matter? Yes and no. If you pay full price for a digital product (I didn't use the word buy) and you wish to sell it for a bit of the cost - you can't. If you die and want to transfer your collection in your will - you can't. Physical media is still great and it's up to you if you want to hoard stuff you'll never watch/play/listen to again OR streamline your collection to only those products special to you. The choice is yours. So many people are falling for the driven narrative that physical discs are just a waste of space. Companies do this because consumers having product ownership doesn't benefit them in any way since they can't just resell you the same product which costs nothing for them to make (no disc, box, manual etc & the production costs get recouped) over and over. Take console games for instance. You pay hundreds or even thousands for a legal game collection that's digital. When those servers go off for the specific console the games are limited to the devices that they are currently on. Should you encounter a disc drive failure you must buy the latest console and all of your games again because replacing a drive from an identical unit will not work legally speaking. If companies do not want to make the game compatible they do not have to and you'll never be able to play the game again. You have no control but pay full price.

When we have a world where we are all forced into streaming only, kiss a lot of memorable and favorite movies, TV and music goodbye. THEY will choose. Not you. Requests not allowed.

Much like one of the previous commenters said, If you buy movies that don't interest you or movies that you have little to no interest in, then there's a problem there. Far too many people (in my humble opinion) collect just so they can say "my collection's the biggest". And a lot of the time, when people tell me they own over 10,000 movies, the first question in my head is "How many of those have you actually watched?". I've been a collector of both movies and games since a VERY young age (since about 6......over 35 years ago), and that long-held love has migrated to comic books as well. My three rules for collecting are: 1.) I don't ever feel that just because I'm hunting, I NEED to buy SOMETHING. If I'm walking through a movie/game/comics store, and I don't see anything that I have on my "buy list" or that catches my eye, that's ok. There have been MANY days I've ended a hunt empty handed. And there's nothing wrong with that. 2.) I only buy things that are interesting or important to me. If I don't have a history with it, or I don't care about it, it doesn't come home with me. To this extent, twice a year I go through my shelves and if I see something that's fuzzy to me or if I'm on the fence about whether something still resonates with me, I watch/play it again. If it's something that no longer sits right with me or if I've outgrown it, I sell it. This has not only helped me keep my collection managable and personal, but I've been able to see how I've grown as a cinephile/gamer over the years. 3.) Most importantly, with VERY FEW exceptions, I don't do duplicates. If, for whatever reason, I upgrade a movie due to packaging or format, I always sell the old copy and recoop some cash. Right now, out of roughly 800 movies/TV shows and 600 games, (small numbers compaired to some of the collections I see on RU-vid everyday), I have only two films that I own in duplicate and four games. (I don't own multiple variants of any comics.) And for each of those I have very sepcific reasons why. An additional rule I follow is that I won't upgrade just because an upgrade is avaliable. Let's assume you have It's A Wonderful Life on VHS, and you see a 4K re-release in your local store. Do you REALLY need to own that in 4K? Will a movie that's almost 80 years old in black-and-white be improved all that much over the format change or will it hurt (i.e. the Star Trek: TNG blu-ray re-release)? Some movies should remain at home on older formats. And others I only upgrade according to their importance to me. I like the first Iron Man for example, but not enough to rebuy it in 4K. Whereas Denzel Washington's Magnificant Seven was the first 4K I ever bought because I enjoyed the movie that much. So anyone who visits me can look at my wall and tell how much I love a movie based on the format that I own it in (with the exception of movies like the OG Star Wars trilogy which I still own on VHS because that was the best format for the film's original presentation).

I went all digital to hide my problem 😂

Rip them and put the disc in binders

Maybe you should consider selling the ones you're not interested in.

Hoarding is keeping everything even trash.