Prediction: Blu ray blows away HD DVD in 2008

[Gimpy Ric]

Link:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/features/film/e3i3b664324ba4ea5c03e0924ea906b3ecd?imw=Y

Article:

2008 is the year Sony's Howard Stringer and the Blu-ray Disc will slay HD DVD as effectively as Joseph Turok dispenses with dinosaurs. If you're unfamiliar with that metaphor, you probably don't have a PlayStation 3.

Every PS3 console sold in the U.S. comes equipped with a Blu-ray DVD player. That's an advantage that has put the Sony device in about 2.7 million U.S. homes, compared with fewer than 750,000 for HD DVD. Blu-ray movies also outsell HD DVD movies in Europe by a 3-to-1 margin. This despite HD DVD players costing less than half the price of a PS3/Blu-ray combo unit. True, Paramount, DreamWorks and DreamWorks Animation recently joined Universal in exclusively embracing HD DVD. But those decisions stemmed from a $150 million "incentive payment" that smacked of desperation.

To truly understand Blu-ray's dominance, compare titles that are available in both formats. Warner Bros.' "300" is the best-selling next-gen DVD, and Blu-ray boasts an advantage of 66% to 34% over HD DVD in sales of the title.

The final stake in HD DVD's heart could come from Blockbuster, which is testing both formats. "It's still about 70%-30% in favor of Blu-ray at our stores that offer both," a Blockbuster spokeswoman says.

Dual players are expensive, and a recent Forrester Research study suggests that 22% of Americans say they will not buy a next-gen player until one format wins over the other. Couple that with the 25% who say they'll never buy a next-gen player, and the incentives are in place for Hollywood to finally stop confusing the consumer with one too many choices.

[Alamar]

I wouldn't be surprised by BluRay winning at all because of the simple numbers game. I would be disappointed though because the BluRay camp seems [note the key] a little less customer friendly on issues like managed copy / region code lockouts / etc. Add to this that many of the supporting studios were swayed by the extra DRM on a BluRay system as their main reason for supporting Blu just means that I don't like the way that the wind is blowing here.

I wouldn't be surprised that as soon as they win the format war they'll start downsampling any component connections and hose people that have older HD sets .....

Either way I'd like to see the format war end as I'm getting really tired of the whole thing myself ....

[fmw]

While opions are a dime a dozen it is interesting to me that the press seems to want BD to win. I'm not sure why that is but sure seems so.

[Emusica]

"If you're unfamiliar with that metaphor, you probably don't have a PlayStation 3."

That's funny, they assume you have to own a PS3 to know about this game.:rolleyes: This article is biased from the start. This format war crap needs to end so I can ejoy some nice HD content. I'm not buying anything until it does....

[smurphy522]

No offense to Emusica but if you, or anyone else for that matter, are planning on waiting it out to see who wins the format war; then those waiting may be getting their HD just after the cows arrive home.

Just my 2¢

[GlocksRock]

Either pick one format and enjoy it, or get a combo player and enjoy both... Your best bet is to go with blu ray since there seems to be more titles available to it, and the things that HD DVD have that blu ray doesn't are getting less and less as more blu ray players are becoming profile 1.1 and 2.0 compliant.

[Alamar]

If you're a wanna be gamer getting a PS3 [from what I hear] wouldn't be a bad investment. If you're leaning HD I'd probably wait to see if there are any more 99$ Toshiba clearouts because [at that price] I'm sure the units aren't bad if you can get one. Plus if they throw in 5-7 free movies that's not bad.

[skads_187]

I think blu-ray will win over. You can fit so much more in a blu-ray disc compared to a hd-dvd. Also, here in Canada, there was a special on a toshiba hd-dvd player as well, I am not sure if its the same one you're tanlking about, but it only was able to output up to 720p? at 99$ its pretty tempting, but I dont think I would get it, since it kind of defeats the purpose.

[jake5717]

.... I'm not buying anything until it does....

IMO you really owe it to yourself to pick up a cheap HD player to enjoy until the "war" is over. I bought my player for like $350 and have enjoyed every penny of it. Blu Ray could win tomorrow and I'd have no regrets.

[Jacksmyname]

FWIW, I have 2 HD DVD players; the A2 and the XA2. Both are excellent (as I'm sure BD is).
If BD should be the format that "survives", I'd also have no regrets. The XA2 is an absolutely first rate upconverting player for SD's, and the A2 is no slouch in that department either.
Also, for *my* taste in films, HD DVD seems to have more titles that I like.

[Jacksmyname]

I think blu-ray will win over. You can fit so much more in a blu-ray disc compared to a hd-dvd. Also, here in Canada, there was a special on a toshiba hd-dvd player as well, I am not sure if its the same one you're tanlking about, but it only was able to output up to 720p? at 99$ its pretty tempting, but I dont think I would get it, since it kind of defeats the purpose.

The A2, Toshiba's entry level player, does 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i.

[jeffsg4mac]

Well before you make any snap judgements you might want to take a look at this.

http://charts.highdefdigest.com/versus.aspx

[aberkowitz]

Well before you make any snap judgements you might want to take a look at this.

http://charts.highdefdigest.com/versus.aspx

True, but in the interest of full disclosure Amazon is currently having a BOGO sale on HD DVD that includes 7 of the top 10 of the topsellers on the chart that you provided, and the entire top 5. The problem with that page you linked is that it gives up to the minute data, but provides nothing cumulative over a period of time.

Check out the graphical section and look at data for the last 90 days. You'll see that BDs outsold HD DVDs on about 75% of the days, many of which were by a large margin.

http://charts.highdefdigest.com/Controls/UI/cachedimageservice.axd?data=a8142ee8-52e3-4edf-81bc-09adcd79c35f

[Addy]

sooner or later xbox 360 going to decide to equip their system with a hd drive to counter ps3 sales when there own sale go south. i have a feeling Microsoft is just waiting out hd until its cheap enough to make a profit with xbox 360 :D when this happens the war will be tied again... i prefer blu-ray but i have both ps3 and xbox 360 elite

[agabriel]

I guess I fall in a different camp, I'm sick of these dumb silicon discs; I just want to be able to download my movies and have them look & sound great on my system. I don't care if the movie takes all night to download either... I think 2008 will be the year both formats die and iTunes or Netflix put out the killer technology.

[Joe Schmoe]

It wouldn't surprise me much to see both formats disappear. I expect that standard DVDs look great to the majority of consumers (as they do to me) so that the market for Blu Ray/HD will never grow large enough to be profitable.

[Jacksmyname]

It wouldn't surprise me much to see both formats disappear. I expect that standard DVDs look great to the majority of consumers (as they do to me) so that the market for Blu Ray/HD will never grow large enough to be profitable.

You just might be right. I love the XA2, not only because of the HD discs, but also because it's a terrific upconverting player.
Some of the movies we've watched recenly are the Indiana Jones series, some old James Bond, and I, Robot. The picture quality on those SD discs (and others), as played on the XA2 and a Sony 46XBR4, is beautiful. VERY close to being HD.

[AcuDefTechGuy]

It wouldn't surprise me much to see both formats disappear. I expect that standard DVDs look great to the majority of consumers (as they do to me) so that the market for Blu Ray/HD will never grow large enough to be profitable.

Yeah, my SD DVD of "Brotherhood of the Wolf" LOOKS and SOUNDS just as good as the HD HD DVD version!

The DUAL-LAYER SD DVDs are becoming more and more excellent in quality, especially with the DTS sound and Upscale to 1080p.

Seriously, I am buying LESS and LESS of these HD movies (both Blu-ray and HD DVD)!!!

I think they will only be a Niche Market.

[Addy]

the players it self is mildly cheap, but the disc's are a rip-off why would i pay 30 bucks for a blu-ray movie that came out in 82 when the same movie on dvd cost 4.99?

[Emusica]

No offense to Emusica but if you, or anyone else for that matter, are planning on waiting it out to see who wins the format war; then those waiting may be getting their HD just after the cows arrive home.
Just my 2¢

Explain....


IMO you really owe it to yourself to pick up a cheap HD player to enjoy until the "war" is over. I bought my player for like $350 and have enjoyed every penny of it. Blu Ray could win tomorrow and I'd have no regrets.

I REALLY would like to get one, I just don't like spending money on something that wont amount to anything. I bought a Sony minidisc player back in the day... Nuff said...

I will get a PS3 eventually (not for the movies) so I will be a B-rayer by default. I ALMOST bought the HD player for my 360 but it can't pass the HD audio, so there was absolutely no point in me getting one, even though it was only $129 at the time. That was HARD for me to pass up, but I held steadfast and beat back temptation. Well, the temptation is back:o

[dorokusai]

I hope that BR "wins" but at least my only investment is a PS3 at this point. The fact it plays BR movies was a pleasant feature to have :)

Mark
Polk Audio CS

[runninkyle17]

While I like Blu-ray because it is a superior technology to HD-DVD I can't really stand behind Sony on any of their products.

The only reason I have a PS3 is because I got it free due to a best buy mistake (hehehe). Again, the only problem with both HD-DVD and Blu-ray is the price. Most people will get on the bandwagon though because anything HD must be better right.

Personally, the only thing that I think HD is truly good for is sports. Most movies look great on SD DVD. One thing is for sure, normal people will continue to be confused about HD-DVD and Blu-ray for years to come!

[dorokusai]

Absolutely. I'm very disappointed with Sony AGAIN, since they want to stranglehold their advancements just like the days of Beta. That's a generic statement but ever since the failure of SACD vs DVD-A....I've been unhappy with the line of thinking, or lack thereof.

If SACD was marketed, at all, it might have taken off but it's almost like it was doomed from the get go. Sorry to derail, back on subject.

Mark

[aberkowitz]

It is quite clear even with those poorly done charts, that the trend for HDM is rising.
But what is more visible, is the 2 days after Christmas with more sales on HD DVD (which I had already predicted) all the new owners that were given 98.00 HD DVD players for Christmas, are going to start buying in the coming days.
The 'kids' that got a PS3 for Christmas will not go out and buy 100.00 ~ 500.00 in movies at one shot.

Actually, you can't take any of what you said away from the charts because it only measures sales ranks at one store (not total sales, not $ of total sales), which over the past several months has offered way more BOGO deals than any of the other online retailers (As a PS3 owner myself, I'm always on the lookout). We have no clue from the data what the difference between #1 and #5 is, or even #10 from #250. Based on this set of data we really know nothing about who is doing better.

There was a magazine that I found once online that had some decent stats, but for some reason I cannot find it anymore. If you want to see real trends data provided by Nielsen check out this site http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/VideoScan/. According to Nielsen data (which I will admit is not the most reliable, but is a much better sample than Amazon sales ranks), BD has been outselling HD DVD every week consistently for the past 2 months- the only blip being the release of Transformers.

My personal opinion is that nothing will be over until the studios say its over. I'll probably go out and purchase and HD player anyway just to hedge my bets (mainly so I start buying movies).

[Emusica]

Absolutely. I'm very disappointed with Sony AGAIN, since they want to stranglehold their advancements just like the days of Beta. That's a generic statement but ever since the failure of SACD vs DVD-A....I've been unhappy with the line of thinking, or lack thereof.

If SACD was marketed, at all, it might have taken off but it's almost like it was doomed from the get go. Sorry to derail, back on subject.

Mark

I agree. I loved the way SACD and DVD-audio sounded. I wish those formats would have done better. I have a few DTS-audio cd's and a DTS 96/24 music cd that sound phenomenal.

[mtrycrafts]

Is that a Sylvia Brown type of a prediction? :D LOL

[B3Nut]

Is that a Sylvia Brown type of a prediction? :D LOL

LOLOL!!!! Oh god...if she ever gets interested in audio/video, we're doomed, I tell ya! :D What a dingbat she is...claiming to see a lost person alive when the man who murdered her was sitting in the audience...that was freaking rich.

Todd in Cheesecurdistan

[Electone]

I think blu-ray will win over. You can fit so much more in a blu-ray disc compared to a hd-dvd. Also, here in Canada, there was a special on a toshiba hd-dvd player as well, I am not sure if its the same one you're tanlking about, but it only was able to output up to 720p? at 99$ its pretty tempting, but I dont think I would get it, since it kind of defeats the purpose.

This is exactly the misinformed type of information the BD camp is forcing down the average consumer's throats. First, other than Transformers (no lossless track), there have been no capacity issues with HD DVD so far. Considering the recent development of the triple layer 51gb HD DVD disc, capacity will be a wash. Second, the lower priced Toshiba HD DVD players output 1080i and if you connect to a 1080p television with a good deinterlacer, there is no difference between 1080i and 1080p.

[Thunder18]

Not every TV does a good job a deinterlacing. In fact some do it quite poorly.

[skads_187]

This is exactly the misinformed type of information the BD camp is forcing down the average consumer's throats. First, other than Transformers (no lossless track), there have been no capacity issues with HD DVD so far. Considering the recent development of the triple layer 51gb HD DVD disc, capacity will be a wash. Second, the lower priced Toshiba HD DVD players output 1080i and if you connect to a 1080p television with a good deinterlacer, there is no difference between 1080i and 1080p.

Yes, but, say for example, blu-ray actually filled up a blu-ray disc to its full capacity (dual layer) for the 007 complete series, they would be able to do it with a lot less discs. Say maybe 2-3 movies per disc. Where as HD-dvd would maybe fit 1-2. These numbers might not be correct or exact, but the idea is there is more capacity on the actual disc to fit more media.
and to answer another point, imagine blu-ray considering triple layer? 75GB?

[gus6464]

Yes, but, say for example, blu-ray actually filled up a blu-ray disc to its full capacity (dual layer) for the 007 complete series, they would be able to do it with a lot less discs. Say maybe 2-3 movies per disc. Where as HD-dvd would maybe fit 1-2. These numbers might not be correct or exact, but the idea is there is more capacity on the actual disc to fit more media.
and to answer another point, imagine blu-ray considering triple layer? 75GB?

TDK already has a 100GB 4-layer BD. Hitachi as well.

[smurphy522]

[QUOTE=Emusica;348998]Explain....

Emusica, It was meant to be a reference of when the cows come home:

"then those waiting may be getting their HD just after the cows arrive home"
Was a derivative of when the cows come home, i.e. a long time coming if ever.

[aberkowitz]

Well, if you know the trend, then you also know that HD DVD has WAY less BOGO compared to BD in the last 3 months.
If you did not know the trend, trust me, I have bought thousands of dollars worth of BDs, 70% of them from BOGO offers.
And I still have more HD DVDs, than BDs, but only about 15% were bought with BOGO offers.

It is quite clear even with those poorly done charts, that the trend for HDM is rising.
But what is more visible, is the 2 days after Christmas with more sales on HD DVD (which I had already predicted) all the new owners that were given 98.00 HD DVD players for Christmas, are going to start buying in the coming days.
The 'kids' that got a PS3 for Christmas will not go out and buy 100.00 ~ 500.00 in movies at one shot.

More data to counter your argument. Check the the highdefdigest this morning after Amazon's BD BOGO deal... the entire top 10 is BD, with the best HD DVD being at #55.

If you really want to see how much BOGO means to amazon sales ranks, go to http://charts.highdefdigest.com/history.aspx and change the time span to 7 days. This is the transition from HD BOGO to BD BOGO.

[Halon451]

I predicted Blu-ray would prevail in the format war just about as soon as they both hit the market. This is not surprising news. :p

[aberkowitz]

Abe,

That graph is still proving my point. Look at the last 90 days, and you still will see that HD DVD is still pretty high in sales.
As the boost, has finally lifted it to a area that should normalize.

As well, when I said this.


It also has proven a point, as the HD DVD only needed 1 1/2 pages of discs that were BOGO to boost sales to very likely amazon highest HD DVD sales, ever..
Yet BD has 4 pages to get it back up in sales (which is common).

Personally, I do not care (I am neutral), I am just sharing an opinion and the fact that in the coming weeks (after X-mas)(not 1 week), as I stated.
That there WILL be a huge uplift in HD DVD sales, due to all the players that were sold (not so much for the PS3s).

EDIT:: Doh, I did say coming days in one of my previous posts.
But had clearly meant, in the coming time (weeks, maybe a month or 2) for people who got the new players to figure out where to shop for the discs.

EDIT #2: whoah, I was going to get some BD BOGOs, but damn, they have almost all the catalog titles at 27.95 up from the normal 19.95
HD DVD BOGO did not do that.... Dang it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Granted I was thinking of getting Mr & Mrs Smith. :( and sadly will have to pick a few more titles... Grrrrrrr.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith just wasn't that good anyway.....

I don't discount the fact that HD DVD has upticked, I just disagree with your logic that all of these players are selling more discs. I also disagree with using amazon data as an indicator, particularly since they consistently have BOGOs which wildly skew the data. The only link I can find with reasonable data is this one- http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/VideoScan/. According to Nielsen data (which I will admit is not the most reliable, but is a much better sample than Amazon sales ranks), BD has been outselling HD DVD every week consistently for the past 2 months- the only blip being the release of Transformers.

Yes, the data only goes through the week of 12/16, but that does include a lot of christmas shipping. We shall see what happens going forward, but if you look at most of the future releases coming in the next month or two, there are not many good HD DVD movies that are coming out.

[gus6464]

Abe,

That graph is still proving my point. Look at the last 90 days, and you still will see that HD DVD is still pretty high in sales.
As the boost, has finally lifted it to a area that should normalize.

As well, when I said this.


It also has proven a point, as the HD DVD only needed 1 1/2 pages of discs that were BOGO to boost sales to very likely amazon highest HD DVD sales, ever..
Yet BD has 4 pages to get it back up in sales (which is common).

Personally, I do not care (I am neutral), I am just sharing an opinion and the fact that in the coming weeks (after X-mas)(not 1 week), as I stated.
That there WILL be a huge uplift in HD DVD sales, due to all the players that were sold (not so much for the PS3s).

EDIT:: Doh, I did say coming days in one of my previous posts.
But had clearly meant, in the coming time (weeks, maybe a month or 2) for people who got the new players to figure out where to shop for the discs.

EDIT #2: whoah, I was going to get some BD BOGOs, but damn, they have almost all the catalog titles at 27.95 up from the normal 19.95
HD DVD BOGO did not do that.... Dang it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Granted I was thinking of getting Mr & Mrs Smith. :( and sadly will have to pick a few more titles... Grrrrrrr.

So what happens 3 months from now BD is still outselling HD DVD? People are now holding off buying discs until next christmas? :rolleyes:

[j_garcia]

The problem with HD DVD is, I don't think that half or more of the people buying an HD DVD player even know that HD DVDs are not the same as SD....they think upscaled SD DVD is the same thing. "What the public doesn't know is what makes them the public..."

Thus far, more of the BD titles I have seen look better than the HD DVD titles I have seen. At this point, The Matrix is probably the best looking HD DVD I have seen, though I haven't broken open Bourne Ultimatum yet.

[gus6464]

The problem with HD DVD is, I don't think that half or more of the people buying an HD DVD player even know that HD DVDs are not the same as SD....they think upscaled SD DVD is the same thing. "What the public doesn't know is what makes them the public..."

Thus far, more of the BD titles I have seen look better than the HD DVD titles I have seen. At this point, The Matrix is probably the best looking HD DVD I have seen, though I haven't broken open Bourne Ultimatum yet.

Harry potter looks badass on HD DVD, so does Bourne, and umm can't really think of another movie that's worth buying over renting. To me it just comes down to price. If the movie is being released for both I just buy whatever disc is cheaper that day. But BD does have the upper hand right now with better titles available. I want Iron Man on HD DVD though. :D

[annunaki]

IMO you really owe it to yourself to pick up a cheap HD player to enjoy until the "war" is over. I bought my player for like $350 and have enjoyed every penny of it. Blu Ray could win tomorrow and I'd have no regrets.


Me neither (regrets). At least I have a really good upconverting DVD player if the format loses out.

[Johnd]

And the title reads:

"Blu Ray blows"

on the main page. Just thought I'd let you all know (and fuel this meaningless format bashing a little further). :p

At $160.00, I too will love my A3 to death (w/10 movies) until the war is over...or the latest, greatest format is unveiled.

[jeffsg4mac]

I have a grand total of $237 for both an A2 and a Samsung BDP1400 with 5 movies in each format on the way.

I have no regrets either:D I will rent both from netflix and sit back and wait to see who wins out.

[gus6464]

I have a grand total of $237 for both an A2 and a Samsung BDP1400 with 5 movies in each format on the way.

I have no regrets either:D I will rent both from netflix and sit back and wait to see who wins out.

Wait you got both an A2 and a BDP1400 for $237? :eek::eek::eek:

[Duffinator]

2008 is the year Sony's Howard Stringer and the Blu-ray Disc will slay HD DVD as effectively as Joseph Turok dispenses with dinosaurs. If you're unfamiliar with that metaphor, you probably don't have a PlayStation 3.Hmmmm, seems many were saying this exact same thing.......LAST YEAR. Don't kid yourself, this is still a long ways from being over.

For those of you who think BD is a better technology, really who cares? Is the picture quality better on BD? No. That's all that matters to me and many others. So what if a series takes up 4 discs for BD and 6 for HD. That didn't stop people from buying 10 discs SD DVD's now did it? As for computer storage BD (and HD) will NEVER become mainstream so give that one up as well.

And for those that think the HD formats will never catch on think again. You think people that just bought $2,000 1080P capable sets wont' buy $200-$300 HD capable players when they upgrade again? Sure they will. :D

Best bet is to buy inexpensive players for both formats and enjoy the amazing picture quality they both have to offer. ;)

[jeffsg4mac]

Wait you got both an A2 and a BDP1400 for $237? :eek::eek::eek:

Yeppers. I got the A2 for 98 bucks on that one day sale, and I was given a $150 gift card and I had a 12% discount at best buy. Then one week later they dropped the price on the 1400 a hundred bucks and had to refund me the difference. Total out of pocket for both players brand new was 237 bucks.:D I am a happy camper.

In addition to that I picked up the HD DVD version of Blade Runner final cut briefcase version for 45 bucks at borders. Thanks to a 40% off discount and $15 dollars in borders rewards bucks. :)

[Emusica]

[QUOTE=Emusica;348998]Explain....

Emusica, It was meant to be a reference of when the cows come home:

"then those waiting may be getting their HD just after the cows arrive home"
Was a derivative of when the cows come home, i.e. a long time coming if ever.

Understood:D I'll be waiting forever.... hopefully I wont have to wait too long.:mad:

[Rob Babcock]

Even Sony is admitting Bluray isn't likely to get the kind of big win they'd hoped for.

[Sheep]

I don't understand some of your positions.... you want 1 to win, but you buy both... I understand getting a universal player, but 1 of each? What are you going to do, sell the other when it's over?

SheepStar

[Duffinator]

I don't understand some of your positions.... you want 1 to win, but you buy both... I understand getting a universal player, but 1 of each? What are you going to do, sell the other when it's over?

SheepStarIt's cheaper to buy two players than one universal.

[Electone]

I don't understand some of your positions.... you want 1 to win, but you buy both... I understand getting a universal player, but 1 of each? What are you going to do, sell the other when it's over?

SheepStar

Maybe, maybe not. If Blu-ray wins, I'll use my HD-A2 for my existing HD DVDs and for upconverting my SD-DVDs. If HD DVD wins, my PS3 will continue to play my BDs and I'm sure that it will continue as a gaming format.

One issue that isn't discussed very often is the ramifications for Sony not only as a BD player manufacturer, but as a studio as well. If Blu-ray wins, Toshiba only needs to start manufacturing BD players. But, if HD DVD wins, Sony will not only have to start making HD DVD players, but software as well. Sony has much more at stake in this format war than Toshiba.

[Sheep]

It's cheaper to buy two players than one universal.

But by buying both you're not helping the war. Supporting both sides?

SheepStar

[Thunder18]

Sony has publicly said that they are not marketing Blu-Ray as a budget item on purpose and I think as crazy as it sounds, J6P who got the $98 Toshiba A2 is going to balk at the price of HD-DVD's and continue to buy SD DVD's while your typical Blu-Ray buyer because of the price point knows exactly what he/she is getting into and doesn't consider a $30 disc a bad deal. I mean maybe I'm way off base, but I don't think affordable hardware guarantees anymore software sales.

[mtrycrafts]

Sony has publicly said that they are not marketing Blu-Ray as a budget item on purpose and I think as crazy as it sounds, J6P who got the $98 Toshiba A2 is going to balk at the price of HD-DVD's and continue to buy SD DVD's while your typical Blu-Ray buyer because of the price point knows exactly what he/she is getting into and doesn't consider a $30 disc a bad deal. I mean maybe I'm way off base, but I don't think affordable hardware guarantees anymore software sales.

Perhaps not but that would not be a point for renting HD from on line places:D

[allargon]

The problem with HD DVD is, I don't think that half or more of the people buying an HD DVD player even know that HD DVDs are not the same as SD....they think upscaled SD DVD is the same thing. "What the public doesn't know is what makes them the public..."

Thus far, more of the BD titles I have seen look better than the HD DVD titles I have seen. At this point, The Matrix is probably the best looking HD DVD I have seen, though I haven't broken open Bourne Ultimatum yet.

You haven't seen Hot Fuzz, Transformers or Eastern Promises?

Yeah, the cautious folks are buying HD-DVD players and renting the discs. (Too bad Blockbuster was too stupid to capitalize on this as usual. :rolleyes:)

I thought Blu-ray was sure to win back in spring of 2007. However, i saw HD-DVD lower its prices to reasonable early adopter levels and saw that profile mess unfolding. I then heard prediction after prediction about HD-DVD is on its death bed. Then, Paramount switched and people shut-up briefly. Both formats will coexist well into 2008 barring a major studio shift.

Honestly, even if Blu-Ray wins, it will be the next laserdisc. For the average person with a smaller than 50" HDTV, upconverted SD DVD is good enough. (However, the differences are noticeable on a 32" screen.) Blu-Ray has significantly larger authoring and replication than HD-DVD and SD DVD. Independent (pr0n, high art, audio-only music, sports, non major production houses) studio support is almost non-existent on Blu-Ray.

For the price of a combo player one could buy a Universal (DVD, SACD, DVD-A) player, a Blu-Ray player and a HD-DVD player. The combo players are not Universal players. It boggles my mind that they didn't add SACD and DVD-A playback.

[Duffinator]

I mean maybe I'm way off base, but I don't think affordable hardware guarantees anymore software sales.No guarantees but it can't hurt. :D

I wonder what the ratio of HD/BD disc sales are compared to players sold? I bet it's much closer than it appears. I'm in the just rent HD DVD's camp but I'll do the same thing for BD as well if/when I buy a BD player. I stopped buying DVD's a few years ago and think of NetFlix as my personal library of thousands fo DVD's. :D There's a NetFlix DC a few miles from me so I have a 48 hour turnaround on rentals.

The PS3 was supposed to be the decisive weapon in this battle and it very well may be in the end. But it's taking a lot longer than most Sony fans predicted. If there is a winner I think it will be BD but by the time this war is over we might be downloading movies and this will be a moot battle. In the meantime anybody know where I can get a BD player for $200 or less???

[j_garcia]

You haven't seen Hot Fuzz, Transformers or Eastern Promises?

Oddly enough, I picked up Hot Fuzz and Eastern Promises last night :)

For the price of a combo player one could buy a Universal (DVD, SACD, DVD-A) player, a Blu-Ray player and a HD-DVD player. The combo players are not Universal players. It boggles my mind that they didn't add SACD and DVD-A playback.

They didn't include them because they already weren't selling players based on those features.

[Thunder18]

For the price of a combo player one could buy a Universal (DVD, SACD, DVD-A) player, a Blu-Ray player and a HD-DVD player. The combo players are not Universal players. It boggles my mind that they didn't add SACD and DVD-A playback.

You won't see dvd-a support from Sony because they were one of the creators of SACD. Of course, on a side note, my Panasonic blu-ray player plays DVD-A. You're right though, for the price of the combo players, to not include something my $35 refurbed Samsung DVD-HD841 had(upscaling dvd, dvd-a, sacd and cd)? It can't cost that much to implement if you're still making the player compatible with the old formats. Although, weren't there several next gen players that wouldn't actually play cd's :eek: