 DO NOT BUY |
| Review Date: September 7, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Bbutters, |
| I have an HD DVD player and was displeased to find that this did not play on it. Not only that, but ONLY 3 OUT OF 4 DISCS THAT CAME WITH THIS WERE HD DVD'S, the other was a regular DVD. This is by far the worst purchase I have ever made on the internet. I am horribly upset that Amazon dishonestly sells their products. Being that I paid for Planet Earth on HD DVD, I expected to receive a working copy COMPLETELY in the HD DVD format but apparently a simple task such as an honest customer transaction is a little to difficult for Amazon. This was from a company that qualified for Amazon's free shipping so I can safely lay the blame with Amazon. If you want this product BUY IT FROM ANOTHER WEB SITE!!!! Don't buy this here unless you wish to be ripped off. I am a regular movie customer on Amazon and really do wish to express my extreme displeasure with this drop in service quality. Unfortunately this will mark the end of my Amazon usage. |
Planet Earth....photographic heavan....
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| Review Date: September 6, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Huck/Baby, |
| The photographic panarama of the "Planet Earth" series is perhaps the most astounding visual experience I've ever had. With the ever-present God-like narration of Sir Richard Attenborough, this DVD will take you to corners of the Earth that sadly are quickly disappearing...glimpes of Mother Nature's spectacular colors and creations everywhere around the globe. Anyone who appreciates the thrill of cinematography above and beyond any other filmed series out there will fall in love with "Planet Earth". |
Planet Earth
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| Review Date: August 24, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Retired, |
| The BBC Video in HD DVD format did not work in the latest multi-funtion Blue-Ray DVD player. |
Great product, when it finally came
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| Review Date: August 21, 2010 |
| Reviewer: JL, |
| The experience of watching these videos is incredible. Watching the "Fresh Water" and "Mountain" episodes, a couple personal favorites, is an awe-inspiring, emotional, and simply fun experience. Standing in front of the TV screen during the scenes with huge high-definition shots of beautiful snow-covered peaks and foaming waterfalls makes me feel as if I'm right there. I would highly recommend this product. The only thing is that there was a bit of a delay with the delivery, and it came more than a week past the last day in the estimated arrival time. However, once it came, I can honestly say that I was impressed. |
HD DVD does not work unless you have HD DVD Player
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| Review Date: August 17, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Timothy Mohney, St Louis, MO |
| should have did a little more research on item. the price was very inviting. i bought 5 copies and none worked bc i dont have HD Dvd player. Blu Ray has made HD Dvds all but obsolete. but to the merchants defense, i contacted and received a full refund without issue after returning product. |
Blu-ray version does not have special features, also lower grade HD
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| Review Date: August 16, 2010 |
| Reviewer: NewNew, VA |
I live in U.S. but I bought this Blu-ray set from Amazon.co.uk and paid less than $30 including shipping. So it was a better deal. From what I read in the reviews, there are two BBC Blu-ray versions, both were narrated by David Attenborough. One version contains four discs. The other contains five discs. The version I bought from Amazon.co.uk contains five discs. The last disc includes two topics: Desert Lion and Snow Leopard. Each is about 40 minutes or so. However, both BBC Blu-ray versions are missing the behind scene/special features included in the DVD version. This is a big disappointment. What's more, this series was shot with a lower grade HD specification - 1080i (also known as 720p) instead of 1080p. 1080p was mistakenly printed on the covers of earlier boxes but this error was later fixed. All the boxes now have the correct format (1080i) listed. Whoever said that 1080i (720p) is visually undetectable compared to 1080p either has eye problem or is using a small TV. On a 40" or larger TV, 720i is noticeably grainier than 1080p. Compare "Planet Earth" with the new BBC series "Life" which was shot in 1080p, the difference is quite obvious.
Overall, this BBC production is fantastic, like many of the other series they did. If I am rating the DVD version (which I also own), I will give it five stars. But for the Blu-ray version, I have to cut it by two stars for its missing the special features and using the lower grade HD format.
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Useful product for teaching kids
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| Review Date: August 14, 2010 |
| Reviewer: K. Pisapati, PA USA |
I did a lot of research on what to give my nephew as a gift. Finally I found this planet earth and was amazed about the reviews. so I went ahead and bought it. It was truly a good product. It helped to keep my 2 year old nephew quiet at least for a short period of time. Kids like to see animals and birds. It improves their understanding of nature.
The camera work and the narration are extremely good. I haven't yet completely watched the entire series but I liked the portion that I watched. I am sure that this will be better in a Blue ray... Please buy it for your kids and yourself too. It is lot of knowledge. |
Amazing
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| Review Date: August 14, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Laurie, Florida |
the photography of this film is fantastic. And on Blu-Ray you can see every little detail.
Happy this is part of my collection - one more disk yet to view... |
AWESOME!!!!
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| Review Date: August 13, 2010 |
| Reviewer: John, USA |
| Bottom line - Every family in the world should own a copy of this documentary!!! If you want to see how spectacular, beautiful, and fragile our planet is then buy this documentary. It's the only teaching tool that I have seen that captures how precious our planet is, and how lucky we are to have it, and WHY we must protect it!!! Do your family a favor, and do yourself a favor, buy this documentary. The camera shots and narration are the best I have ever seen!!! YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED! After seeing the disaster in the gulf unfold, this documentary should be more important now then it has ever been and why we need to hold those responsible for their actions who are responsible. |
Amazing images
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| Review Date: August 12, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Paolo Piazza, |
Incredible images, need surely to be seen!!
But, just remember the disk reader must be able to read specifically BLU-RAY DISK.
Otherwise the DVD don't works. |
Nice pictures with poor stories
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| Review Date: August 10, 2010 |
| Reviewer: David J, |
| This video contains some really nice scenes but the story telling is stubbornly fixed on two themes, "feeding" and "breeding". I understand that these two aspects are the most obvious in nature, but they were treated in other documentary films to death before. Seeing the same topics over and over again in every episode was really boring and uninspiring. |
Gorgeous photography, simplistic narration
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| Review Date: August 8, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Music maven, Amherst, MA |
| The photography in this series is, as everyone on earth has noted, spectacular, and many scenes capture things not seen before or rarely depicted. But the glory of the images only shows by contrast how weak the script is. In fact, calling it "weak" is being too kind. It's moronic. Each episode takes on some huge topic, thereby ensuring that only the most broad statements can be applied. We learn, for example, that rivers flow into lakes or the ocean--something that my daughters knew when they were four years old. Except for very rare instances, there are very few sections that are focused or detailed enough to provide any substantial information. Worse still, such information as there is is riddled with errors. In just one episode--on fresh water--the film claims that the Grand Canyon has been formed by the carving action of the Colorado River, when in fact much of the canyon's formation was from other rivers, rain, and wind. In the same episode, it claims that the fresh water seals of Lake Baikal are the only ones in the world, when in fact there are several others, including one species in Canada. And then there's the more indirect issue of how predators are presented: always as evil, frightening creatures, rather than seeing them as a necessary and natural part of the larger system. It's a shame, really, because photography this ravishing deserves a script and narration of equal quality. I would still recommend this series to people for that photography, but I would recommend either watching with the sound off, or, if you want to watch with your kids, use it as an exercise in fact checking and research--have them double-check everything the film says; that way, they might actually learn something. |
Simply Stunning
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| Review Date: August 6, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Adam G. Vankirk, Houston, TX |
| This video series raises the bar to a whole new level when it comes to nature documentaries. Nothing captivates the imagination better than high-resolution flyovers of animal flocks and the broad array of scenes and species that this series encompasses! |
Ultimate Beauty of Our Planet
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| Review Date: August 4, 2010 |
| Reviewer: SK, |
| Bizarre, fascinating and breathtakng scenes of Mother Nature and living creatures in the wild beyond your imagination. Audio is a bit weak, and narration is felt inarticulate at times (to a non-English speaking audience). A rare classic documentary that one must buy. |
Simply Amazing!
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| Review Date: July 31, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Mark R. Loomis, |
| The most amazing blu ray money can buy! So informative! So educational, & they don't preach the evolution religion either! Its an unbiased and information packed amazing & beautiful look at our world! |
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No details are available for this product
Great Buy
My family and I love this dvd. We sit down together and enjoy quality time with a quality video, Planet Earth.
Stephanie K.
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Outstanding and educational
I am so amazed by the picture quality of Planet Earth. This has to be the most interesting movie Ive ever watch. I wish they showed documentaries like this when i was in School. Amazon have the best price and shipping was SUPER fast. It was at my door step in two days…Don’t wait, add this to your collection ASAP.
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one dvd didn’t work!
the product arrived in time and in apparent good shape. however, one of the dvds – the one I really wanted – is not working. the entire series is amazing, but I did miss one of the 5 dvds. i believe there is a bubble in the dvd or something that is not allowing it to be read.
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A cinematic study of Earth’s different ecologies
There’s not much more I can say – this is a beautiful documentary. Each episode follows a different ecosystem (forests, oceans, etc.). The producers have taken care to find interesting and new wildlife in each, not simply filming the familiar suspects from wildlife documentaries in blu-ray quality. There are some extraordinary memorable moments, such as a bunch of baby ducklings jumping out of a tree and bouncing in leaves.
My only complaint with the series is that each episode follows ecosystems rather than continents. This means the same episode (“Grasslands”) covers wildebeest in East Africa, antelope in Central Asia, yak in the Himalayas, and caribou in North America. This means each episode jumps around the world and tends not to spend much time in any particular place. This can also become confusing if you don’t pay attention to where the scene is at a particular moment. I personally prefer viewing an episode about a particular region and learning more about it.
Despite the geographic jumping around, the footage is incredible and well worth the price. I would also highly recommend Nature’s Most Amazing Events [Blu-ray], made by the same team.
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Fabulous Purchase!
Planet Earth is the most amazing series I have ever seen. It never ceases to amaze me.
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Planet Earth – Nature
This is what Blu-ray is all about. Armchair travel at it’s very best. Soar with the eagles, dive with the fishes and walk with the beasts. Beautifully filmed and narrated. Informative too. You’ll wonder how they got some of these shots.
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AWESOME
This DVD Collection is awesome. the product was in great condition and well worth all the money i spent. You think you see more when you watch a normal movie over and over, try seeing the whole world in one watch
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A brief comment
So much has been said already about how great this series is that I’ll limit myself to a few comments specific to the HD edition.
Overall I was very pleased with the video quality; this was my first Blu-Ray purchase and I bought a new Blu-Ray player to watch it now that the prices have come down and are so reasonable, and I have to say the difference in clarity and detail is noticeable even for a new viewer to the format like myself. Since resolution is proportional to the square of the diagonal (sorry to wax a bit nerdy), the 1080 format has about 2.5 times the resolution of 720, according to my quick back of the napkin calculations.
The sound quality also seems better than my usual DVDs. Perhaps it is done in Dolby 5.1 or 7.1? Anyway, the dynamic range is also impressive and several times I had to turn the volume down during several scenes which I don’t usually have to do with many of my other DVDs.
My only quip, as with many of the commenters here, is the missing 110 extra minutes of additional material in the non-HD edition, which is why the four instead of five stars. I guess I’ll forgo seeing that for now, and look to pick up a used set later. Also, I’ve seen the Sigourney Weaver narrated ones on the Discovery Channel, and I prefer Sir David’s narration instead. And I say this as someone who’s something of a fan of Weaver, but her narration is a bit monotonous as others have said.
I also saw some animals I didn’t even know existed before, such as the caud-caud (a miniature cat found in Argentina, not sure of the spelling), the Amur leopard of eastern Russia and Asia (again not sure of the spelling), and other rare animals that I’ve read about but never seen caught on film. Overall a truly spectacular and probably once in a lifetime set of DVDs.
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Stunning footage!
Planet Earth in HD is a must have for anyone with a high definition set.
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Best present yet
Everyone has someone who just never asks for anything come the holidays. You know the type, they have everything. This was the gift I chose and it was so well recieved. The person I purchased for was thrilled that while watching was in tears. This is a breathtaking series so well done, I can not think of any reservations or reason for someone NOT to purchase. I really brings peace to your heart and mind while watching, truly spetacular.
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Astonishing
Spetacular video quality, amazing soundtrack. BBC quality – can’t get any better. What else can you expect? Just fantastic. Everyone should buy it.
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Wonderful program
The entire family just loves this series. The imagery is stunning and the diverse locations are very interesting. I would recommend this to anyone.
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PLANET EARTH HD DVD
WHEN I PURCHASED THE HD, DVD I DID NOT REALIZE THAT HD IS A SEPERATE FORMAT AND WILL ONLY PLAY ON A HD PLAYER. I THOUGHT HD WAS A QUALITY LEVEL. PERHAPS MY FAULT.
I HAVE NORMAL DVD AND BLU-RAY PLAYERS AND THIS DVD WILL NOT PLAY ON ANY OF THEM.
I TRIED TO BUY AN HD PLAYER AND FOUND THAT THE STORES I WENT TO ARE NOT SELLING THEM ANY MORE.
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Simply remarkable
This is the best nature series that I’ve ever seen. The HD brings it to life, and the photography is just astounding. The series has concentrated on flora and fauna rarely seen and some never before filmed. This is a must for any nature lover!
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No planet earth diaries on blu-ray
My husband and I bought the regular Planet Earth series a little over a year ago and LOVED them! Recently we got a blu-ray player and decided that we definitely wanted the Planet Earth on blu-ray and bought them off amazon. They are great on blu-ray but I was extremely disappointed to find out that the Planet Earth-The Complete BBC Series (blu-ray) did not include the “diaries” section for each episode! At the end of each episode there was a “diaries” section which focused on how and what they had to do to shoot the amazing footage. It was really interesting and amazing to see what some of these people went through to bring us the great filming of Planet Earth. We already gave away our old (non-blu-ray) series and if I was able to do it over I would have stuck with the regular series that had the diaries. The blu-ray is nice, but I did not think it that much better than the regular to be missing out on the diaries.
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