Now that HDDVD is dead...

[wildstorm]

I was thinking about getting a hd or BD player. Now that the decision has been basically made as to which one will survive, I'm guessing that prices for the Bluray players are not going to go down anytime soon. Once they come down to around $150 I might get one as for now...

[CABAL]

Only when I see HD-DVD's on clearance EVERYWHERE, will I believe that HD-DVD is truly down for the count. If HD-DVD is "dead", then why is WB pushing back the release dates of its' upcoming HD-DVD's? Why not release them side by side with the Blu-Ray versions? If Blu-Ray dominates the market and HD-DVD sales are dimminishing at an alarming rate, then what are they afraid of? It's pathetic of WB to do this and it makes them look even stupider than when they accepted Sony's bribe to go exclusive.

[jspartan]

I don't know...

-Beowulf
-American Gangster
-Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
-Twister
-I Am Legend

Are coming for the US market.

And coming for the European market are...

-Terminator 2: Judgement Day <COMPLETE WITH THE G&R MUSIC VIDEO PLUS A TRUCKLOAD OF EXTRAS!!!>
-Rescue Dawn
-We Own The Night
-The Golden Compass
-Jumper <OCTOBER 10TH, 2008!>

Woo! I could go Blu now but seeing as how Warner's Blu disc for Beowulf is a lot lighter on extras and is missing the In-Movie experience and web extras that's hard to jump. And with the ultimate T2 coming from Kinowelt in Germany (2 PIP video commentaries, 4 interactive movie modes, G&R music video, and all of the extras from the past releases), I'll be busy for awhile with HD DVD.

HD DVD is faltering and some companies need to switch but for now...its still a good option for those who have it.

[wildstorm]

I'm just hoping that this will end soon. I don't want to spend hundreds of dollars to find out I bought a "Beta player " instead of "VHS".

As for the releases that were mentioned, they probably had a deal to release them on HDDVD when they were released.

I already own T2 on DVD and upconvert it so thats one i won't re-buy. I saw Beowulf in theaters and when they release it in 3-D like I saw in theaters, then lets talk.

And as for Jumper, the release is 10 months away, things can change. We could get an new HDHDDVD that shows a movie at 2160p.

My point is is that why can't we just have one format. Until then I'll stick with upconverting.

[krammer]

My point is is that why can't we just have one format. Until then I'll stick with upconverting.

HD DVD is quite dead or will be once Warner pulls out.

National Geographic has announced its going Blu only being an apparent company to Warner.

Surround Records (This bug the hell out of me sinse I bought these on HD DVD) is going to release all their HD DVD catalog onto Blu-Ray as well.

BB & other rental chains will also only stock BD.

As for upconverting, any HD player wether HD DVD or Blu-Ray does a much better job than standard DVD upconverting players. (That said, I recently watched a SD upconverted.. YikeS!!!! Its been awhile sinse I watched a DVD & this was no crap transfer neither but even upconverted it looked VHS to my eyes.)

[kamikazesquid]

while i am not buying any new HD-DVD titles, i am not switching to BD. why? BD still has a long battle against regular DVDs to become the winner. upconverting players still look good to the normal consumer since they don't have to spend $300 for a player and they don't have to replace their DVD library. and they are getting a better quality movie.

when BD becomes a lot more than 5% of the DVD market, then i will consider switching. until then, i can't put anymore money down on a new format. who is to say something new won't come along in the next couple years and push BD out of the way?

[Guido Henkel]

You guys make I sound like it is a major investment to buy a BD player. It's not like you're buying a home. $299 gets you a Blu-Ray player which is not a lot more than a quality upscaling DVD player. Only difference is that the Blu-Ray player is the better DVD player and play high def material as well. It's even a multimedia center that allows you to view slideshows in high def, it plays MP3s so you can use it as a jukebox, it can play your own home movies in high def as well and the list goes on.

I do not understand this "I ain't buying" attitude at all to be very honest.

[Davex]

Well, Guido, for some of us, $300 is a lot of money to spend. We all can't afford the latest and greatest as it comes so we like to make sure that what we buy is going to last.

[Phat Albert]

I agree with you Guido. In the grand scheme of things $300 is a drop in the bucket. I've paid that much for a night's stay in Vegas, and I can hardly be considered well-off.

I own the HDDVD add-on for the 360 with about 15 HDDVD titles. I don't regret the purchase, the movies still look great and will for years to come. The add-on cost me 200 bucks and I've certainly gotten my money's worth, especially renting HD titles from Netflix.

As for Blue Ray, I will probably be picking up a PS3 soon. Not so much for the games, but for the player.

[Bron]

I use the Toshiba XA2 for my HD DVD's and for my SD DVD's. If and when HD DVD dies I will still be using that player for my remaining HD's and as my upscaling DVD player.

I use the PS3 for my Blu-ray player. I plan on getting a stand alone Blu-ray player later this year.

Up until last month I was buying mostly HD DVD's and I would only buy Blu-ray exclusives like Sony titles etc. Now I do the opposite, I buy all my High Def on Blu-ray and only buy HD DVD exclusive like "Zodiac".

It's not going to bother me when HD DVD is gone cause I will still have about 50 or so HD's to watch and over 1000 SD DVD's to watch upconverted on my Toshiba. Sure I might not be able to loan HD DVD's out to friends and family because no one I know has an HD player, but I look at that as a good thing.

My only complaint about Blu-ray disc is they are priced a little high...39.99 for Con Air is a little steep.

[kamikazesquid]

You guys make I sound like it is a major investment to buy a BD player. It's not like you're buying a home. $299 gets you a Blu-Ray player which is not a lot more than a quality upscaling DVD player. Only difference is that the Blu-Ray player is the better DVD player and play high def material as well. It's even a multimedia center that allows you to view slideshows in high def, it plays MP3s so you can use it as a jukebox, it can play your own home movies in high def as well and the list goes on.

I do not understand this "I ain't buying" attitude at all to be very honest.

if you want to take over my $100,000 in student loans then i would be more than happy to start buying BD movies and a player. for me it has nothing to do with who won or wins the format war, but when the format that i chose is not going so well and i have to start over i have to start looking at things differently. and the thought going through my head is "what if it happens again, BR still isn't a guaranteed format."

[CABAL]

Even if HD-DVD completely dies, I'll still keep using my HD-DVD player for viewing my current HD-DVD's and regular DVD's as I have no other DVD player at all. I'd only buy a Blu-Ray player if they ever came down to under $100 and suddenly felt compelled to buy one for some reason. I wouldn't want to spend hundreds of dollars AGAIN on a player that might be replaced by some newer technology in a couple of years. And if you guys think Blu-Ray titles are expensive now, just wait until HD-DVD completely dies and there is no more competition for High Def movies. You're gonna wish HD-DVD was alive then. Screw that, if it comes to Sony making extras exclusive to Blu-Ray discs to force consumers to upgrade to its' players, then I'm gonna be forced to start bootlegging my titles. I've never supported bootlegs of any kind, primarily because of sound/video quality, but if that's the direction Sony is pushing me in, then, so be it. Just look at most DVD titles being released nowadays. They're mostly bare bones, except for a commentary here and there. DVD's used to be crammed with extras the last couple of years before High Def started getting shoved down our throats.

[wildstorm]

I'm with you k-squid. I am currently in school, so $300 is like 2 textbooks for me. And quality upscaling dvd players cost around $99, so when BD players are around that price, then I will decide on purchasing one.

[jspartan]

Personallly...I'm waiting out on a BD player because YOU EITHER NEED 1.1 PROFILE OUT OF THE BOX or YOU HAVE TO FIRMWARE UPDATE TO 1.1 just to enjoy some of the special features on newer BD titles.

That doesn't add in the fact that BD Live has yet to be implemented on any player. Disney has titles scheduled to include this feature and I love some of the web bonus features on HD DVD. The real-time updated trivia tracks for Shrek The Third and Transformers (2007) are pretty awesome and my cousins love the Shrek Donkey Coloring Book. They color it however they want and Email it to me so I can print it out. I checked out Pan's Labyrinth and it has a web enabled trivia game but I'm not that good compared to other players.

Sure I'd love to go Blu-ray but I just want to wait until BD 1.1 either becomes the standard or 2.0 is debuted. HD DVD was released with all features available why couldn't Blu-ray Disc?

-

As an aside...I do own some BDs. I bought The Guardian for $7 with Wild Hogs (on DVD) through BB.com. I received Deja Vu, and Infernal Affairs as gifts. I've played them on my friend's BD players and man are the PCM tracks aggressive. Infernal Affairs has a softer picture compared to the others but I'm sure it has to do with the source not the BD disc.

[krammer]

WoW

Where to begin.

kamikazesquid,

I can understand that financial situation however that doesn't mean BDs will not be replaced by a better format so not jumping into BD because of uncertainty of its "its here to stay" comment, I just don't get. Money wise, sure ok. You ain't being forced to change into a format.

Bron,

I do the same thing except have no intention of buying a stand alone anytime soon.

CABAL,

If ya want to stick to HD DVD & DVD only, be my guest. If the only option for 1080p content is from BD players.. count me in. Buy 1 get 1 sales a plenty & new releases are maxed out at $26.99 at best.

jspartan,

These specs do not interfere with movie or audio quality playback in any way. If people want exclusive special features which use PIP & DLC for their films, so be it. Buy the cheapest BD player on the market. (PS3) The saving grace of these formats has always been & always will be content, PQ & AQ over anything else but if you want that little extra why wait for a stand alone?

[Nick August]

I wish the combo players would get cheap then I would go Blue Ray.

[jspartan]

krammer,

There's the rub...

Everyone has complained that Toshiba is the only manufacturer of HD DVD players. Well, so far only the PS3 has been the only good BD player out there. It can be updraded to support BD Live and 2.0 profile but a lot of folks don't want game machines in their homes. Home theater buffs who use a universal remote also find that since the PS3 lacks IR, you either need a new universal with Bluetooth or have remote/controller alongside it.

I personally don't want another game machine since I just bought a Wii system. I want a stand alone BD player that will be able to access the features on the back of my artwork AND that includes the video & audio.

Samsung's players have noted problems with several titles and Panasonic's players are higher tier priced with playback issues as well.

Here's a thought since the PS3 is the only good player:

-Drop the controller in favor of the remote control.
-Drop the hard drive to around 5gbs-10gbs.
-Drop the lower end connectors in favor of component video cables in the box.
-Include simple instructions on how to firmware update the player.
-Set the price for this unit at around $249-$299.

You'd have more consumers choosing the better player over other manufacturers and it sure would make the competitors build better players.

[Phat Albert]

jspartan,

You are really selling yourself short if the Wii is your only console.

[Bron]

"Drop the lower end connectors in favor of component video cables in the box"

I agree...this bugs me. Even when I bought my Toshiba XA2 which retailed for $999.99 it only came with composite cables. They couldn't even throw in a cheaper component cable. I wonder how many people bought an HD player, hooked it up with the supplied composite cables and think they are watching a film in HD. If your selling an HD player it should come with some type of HD cables.

[jspartan]

Phat,

I own the XBox 360 with HD DVD player add-on and a Wi.

I was debating whether to pick up the Wii or the PS3 as a second system, the Wii won me over for sheer fun. I got it last Sunday when my local Circuit City got a shipment in. There were still vouchers left at 9:00a so I picked one up and mulled it around for an hour. $250 well spent plus I got Resident Evil 4 Wii edition to go with it.

-

That means, I'm not shelling out again for a PS3. I'm going to wait until the next generation BD players which will be 2.0 compliant so hopefully there aren't any playback issues like in the past.

[jspartan]

Its time for Blu-ray to step up...

Netflix will go Blu exclusive by Fall 2008. They will still offer HD DVD product for rent for the time being.

Best Buy will showcase Blu in all of their stores. HD DVD will be still be carried but advertising and shelf space will be Blu priority.

Now is the time for the BDA to either mandate 2.0 compliant players for Spring 2008 or shelve Profile 2.0 until more households go Blu.

Now is also the time for Sony to fast track a PS3 geared towards home theater enthusiasts.

Now is also the time for other manufacturers to build products that are of the same quality as their DVD players.

Blu-ray Disc is the obvious winner and I'll stick to enjoying my HD DVDs but I still won't go Blu for a while.

[kamikazesquid]

Its time for Blu-ray to step up...

Netflix will go Blu exclusive by Fall 2008. They will still offer HD DVD product for rent for the time being.

Best Buy will showcase Blu in all of their stores. HD DVD will be still be carried but advertising and shelf space will be Blu priority.

Now is the time for the BDA to either mandate 2.0 compliant players for Spring 2008 or shelve Profile 2.0 until more households go Blu.

Now is also the time for Sony to fast track a PS3 geared towards home theater enthusiasts.

Now is also the time for other manufacturers to build products that are of the same quality as their DVD players.

Blu-ray Disc is the obvious winner and I'll stick to enjoying my HD DVDs but I still won't go Blu for a while.

there is also a class action law-suit against Samsung because of one of their older players not playing certain dvds and not being able to firmware update. i completely agree with it too, how can you release a player that wont play future movies and still not make it able to upgrade with firmware as well?

can't wait to see what happens with Netflix for all the people that signed up to just rent HD-DVD and now they won't offer it. do they make you go into a contract? will they let people out? will they have a law suit from it?

i'm still holding out on BR for awhile, especially because of players not being able to play new discs. i refuse to buy a PS3 because there are no games i want for it, especially since all the ones i want come out for 360 and i already have one of those.

[krammer]

No offence but Samsung sucks!

I almost gave up on the whole BD format because of 1 company. I don't blame the guy for going after them. I tried 3 first gen Sammy's (BDP-1000) & everyone would freeze the pq, not read discs, audio dropouts, sync issues.

Before & After firmware updates.

Right now the PS3 is still the best there is for BD playback.

AS a bonus, you just get to play games, download music, download games, download movie trailers, save photo albums, play Cds, SACDs, & copy them, browse the internet on your tv.

[jspartan]

can't wait to see what happens with Netflix for all the people that signed up to just rent HD-DVD and now they won't offer it. do they make you go into a contract? will they let people out? will they have a law suit from it?


No contract with NetFlix but I got an email from them. My saved HD DVD releases will be changed to standard DVDs before the end of February and by Fall 2008, any HD DVDs still in my queue will be changed to standard DVD. They do promise to notify me before these changes occur. I wonder if NetFlix will offer up these titles for sale or if they will offload them to discount dealer.