J.J. Abrams’ third Star Trek-franchise production Star Trek Beyond has just released to theaters, but already pre-orders are available for the film on Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, and Ultra HD Blu-ray disc format for 4k TVs.
The new Ultra HD Blu-ray format provides 4-times the resolution of conventional Blu-ray, and, the Paramount release will feature High Dynamic Range (HDR) — the spec that adds deeper color, wider contrast, and more details in light and shadow areas.
Abrams’ first two Star Trek films, Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), have already been released to Ultra HD Blu-ray with HDR, giving Trek fans and videophiles alike a reason to repurchase the movies on home media. The UHD editions also offer English audio in 24-bit Dolby TrueHD 7.1 encoded with the Dolby Atmos substream.
There are currently about 35 feature films on Ultra HD Blu-ray, and several available for pre-order such as X-Men: Apocalypse and Warcraft. The discs can only be played on certain devices, however. Right now there are only three options available in the US.
- Samsung’s UBD-K8500 curved UHD BD player ($317 at Amazon, $319 at Best Buy, $299 from Costco)
- Philips’ BDP7501 Ultra HD Blu-ray player with bonus Creed disc ($299 at Amazon)
- Xbox 2TB One S with support for 4k and Ultra HD Blu-ray discs ($399 everywhere)
It’s too early to know when Star Trek Beyond will be released to home media, including Digital HD, but pre-orders can be made for Blu-ray ($24.99), Blu-ray 3D ($29.99), and Ultra HD Blu-ray ($29.99).
