I’m Tired of Pretending Physical Media Isn’t Still Better Than Streaming Digital

I like collector's editions that are actually nice. I have an edition of Dune (1984) on DVD that includes multiple versions, the soundtrack and an actual frame from a movie roll.

Yeah, I haven't dealt with actual physical media before Netflix was even an option. Piracy is becoming the best experience again.

This is basically my pseudo-legal solution to modern media collection and consumption.

I buy physical copies (or get DRM-free downloads) of the stuff I intend to keep and use more than once or twice, making my own rips using the settings I like.

Then I subscribe to streaming services that have all the other stuff I want… and just pirate it instead of using the service. Because torrenting and queuing media on my computer or phone is easier than using their players! I can download Japanese TV shows and find fanmade subtitles for them even if the streamer doesn’t have it. I can shoot the content to any device I own. To multiple devices at once. I can make screenshots. It’s the experience streaming platforms SHOULD be offering.

No, officer, I paid for it. But because their software is shit I rolled my own stream of their content. No sudden quality drops, no freezes, no “you cannot play this file you downloaded to your device because we cannot ping the home server” bullshit.

Okay, but this still requires the physical version, so the author's premise holds.