For Those Of You Into Hi-def Technology

[Theologian in Training]

[quote name='hot stuff' post='1276424' date='May 18 2007, 09:27 AM']I'm gonna wait until the HD DVD and Blue Ray war is over. I still have betamax tapes somewhere in my house.
I did buy a 42" LCD Bravia and got the Directv HD package. They're going to over 100 channels before the end of the summer. The channels that I get right now are pretty awesome but I find myself watching odd shows like competitive cycling just because its in HD[/quote]

Well, like I said, I enjoy HD DVD and have seen Blu-Ray as well. As far as I can tell, there really is no difference between the two...the only difference, in my opinion, is who is offering what for which format...like I said, not all movie companies are on board for one or the other format and so you can only get the exclusives based on the system you have. Some have tried to reconcile differences, like LG, by making a system that supports both formats, but that is not across the board and all too common.

That said, though you can not really tell a difference, it comes down to which movies you want to watch and what kind of TV you have. And, truth be told, since I needed a TV, and wanted to take full advantage of HD, I just recently purchased a Samsung 1080p, and though the difference is evident between NTSC and HD, there is no difference, in my opinion, between the two different formats.

This is why I am not sure that the "war" will ever end, because they are comparable in quality.

Just my .02

[Theologian in Training]

This is an interesting article on the whole tension that exists

[url="http://www.highdefdigest.com/feature_matrixvspirates_052007.html"]http://www.highdefdigest.com/feature_matri...tes_052007.html[/url]

[Theologian in Training]

Heroes

[url="http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Universal/Disc_Announcements/Heroes_HD_DVD_Specs_Revealed/645"]http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Uni...cs_Revealed/645[/url]

'Heroes' HD DVD Specs Revealed
Mon May 21, 2007 at 03:23 PM ET
Tags: Disc Announcements, Universal (all tags)

Universal Studios Home Entertainment today unveiled the full specs for its upcoming HD DVD debut of 'Heroes: Season One' box set.

One of the most buzzed-about HD DVD releases of the summer, Universal announced earlier this month that it would debut the breakout series in high-def on August 28, day-and-date with the standard def release.

Now, they've issued a full press release detailing the contents of the set, which makes good on comments made earlier this year by the show's creators that it would contain a well of never-before-seen bonus content.

In addition to 1080p transfers and Dolby Digital-Plus 5.1 surround (1.5mbps) soundtracks on every episode, the supplemental features are extensive. Goodies include the original 73-minute version of the show's pilot (with optional filmmaker commentary), five making-of featurettes, and no fewer than fifty deleted scenes.

Universal has set a $79.95 list price for the HD DVD version, about $20 more than the DVD.

We've added full specs for our product page for 'Heroes: Season One,' which you'll find listed in our HD DVD Release Schedule, under August 28.

Edited May 21, 2007 by Theologian in Training

[Theologian in Training]

So, if Blu-Ray doesn't do something soon, looks like HD DVD may take it...

[url="http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/list/2"]http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/list/2[/url]

HD DVD Camp Claims Victory in Stand-Alone Player Sales
Mon Jun 11, 2007 at 12:13 PM ET
Tags: Hardware, High-Def Retailing (all tags)

While Blu-ray still dominates the market with over 3.6 million PS3s sold, the HD DVD camp says that when it comes to stand-alone players, HD DVD has outsold Blu-ray by a 50% margin.

In a press release this morning, the HD DVD Promotions Group announced that it has sold 150,000 stand-alone HD DVD players, accounting for 60% of the total market for standalone high-def disc players. Backing out of those numbers, it would seem that by comparison 100,000 standalone Blu-ray players have been sold.

Of course, counting the PlayStation 3, there are still twenty times more total Blu-ray players on the market, but the HD DVD camp claims a significantly decreased "attach rate" (the number of discs owned per player) for the PS3 vs other dedicated disc playback devices.

This morning's announcement comes three weeks into Toshiba's most aggressive HD DVD sales campaign yet. In mid-May, the manufacturer began offering a $100 instant rebate on its entry-level HD-A1 HD DVD player, which has seen the price for that player drop to increasingly bargain basement rates as low as $199 at some retailers).

Toshiba has said plans to extend the $100 instant rebate to all of its HD DVD player models this week.

"Toshiba's latest promotional efforts are clearly resonating with consumers and showing that price is king when it comes to hardware," said Craig Kornblau, chairman of the North American HD DVD Promotional Group. "Behind the increase in sales for hardware and movies, you're seeing fundamentally lower manufacturing costs and ease of authoring for HD DVD. That's the type of model that can scale."

See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.


[url="http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070611/aqm077.html?.v=9"]http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070611/aqm077.html?.v=9[/url]

LOS ANGELES, June 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Three weeks into its aggressive spring retail and marketing campaigns, the North American HD DVD Promotional Group today announced HD DVD is significantly ahead in the dedicated consumer electronics player market with 60% of all high definition set-top players sold. At the same time, high definition movie sales for HD DVD reached an all time high for the month of May, exceeding 75,000 movies the last week of May alone.

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Overall high definition sales hit a record last week as well, hitting $5.2 million in actual consumer spending, which was 31% higher than the previous record for the two formats. This highlights the growing consumer appetite for HD content across the board.

Sales of dedicated consumer electronics players are a critical indicator in the adoption of the high definition formats, given the high attach rates to these players. With the successive price drops by Toshiba, weekly player sales doubled in April when the price dropped from $499 to $399, doubled again during the first week of the latest promotion in late May, and increased again last week.

"Toshiba's latest promotional efforts are clearly resonating with consumers and showing that price is king when it comes to hardware," said Craig Kornblau, chairman of the North American HD DVD Promotional Group. "Behind the increase in sales for hardware and movies, you're seeing fundamentally lower manufacturing costs and ease of authoring for HD DVD. That's the type of model that can scale."

Consumers have purchased 150,000 dedicated HD DVD consumer electronics players which are holding a 4 to 1 movie attach rate over competing formats. The Toshiba HD-A2 model has also reached the top-seller mark among all DVD players on Amazon.com, and is officially the best-selling next-gen DVD player model to date.

About HD DVD

HD DVD is the next generation, post-DVD standard for high capacity, high definition optical discs, approved by the DVD Forum, which develops and defines DVD formats. Its more than 220 strong membership brings together leaders in movies and entertainment, computing, consumer electronics and software. HD DVD is fast becoming the primary visual medium for the age of high-definition TV. The North American HD DVD Promotional Group, Inc. is an organization established to promote the HD DVD format and educate consumers in North America. For more information and a complete listing of HD DVD launch titles please visit [url="http://www.TheLookAndSoundOfPerfect.com"]http://www.TheLookAndSoundOfPerfect.com[/url].

Edited June 18, 2007 by Theologian in Training

[Theologian in Training]

Get ready to enter the Danger Zone

'Top Gun,' 'Jack Ryan Collection' Lead Paramount Fall Blu-ray, HD DVD Action Wave
Tue Jun 12, 2007 at 03:09 PM ET
Tags: Disc Announcements, Paramount (all tags)

Injecting another shot of testosterone into the high-def format war, Paramount Home Entertainment will release the catalog classics 'Top Gun' and 'The Jack Ryan Collection' on Blu-ray and HD DVD this fall.

Bringing five of their most requested action titles to high-def, Paramount will rev up their fall next-gen schedule with two major releases.
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Hitting stores first on September 25 is the four-title 'Jack Ryan Collection.' The box set will include all of the Tom Clancy-inspired blockbusters to feature the Jack Ryan character, including 'The Hunt for Red October,' 'Patriot Games,' 'Clear and Present Danger' and 'The Sum of All Fears.'

That release will be followed on October 2 by the Tom Cruise mega-hit, 'Top Gun.'

Paramount has not yet announced specs nor supplement information for either of the action releases, though further details are expected shortly.

List price will be $29.95 for 'Top Gun,' and $99.95 for the 'Jack Ryan Collection.'

Note that similar to the Paramount's hit 'Ultimate Missions Collection' released late last year, the studio is not yet announcing any stand-alone editions of the Jack Ryan films. However, if the studio's history with 'Ultimate Missions' is any indication, each of the Jack Ryan titles seem likely to be made available individually at a future date.

We've added both ' 'Jack Ryan Collection' and 'Top Gun' to our Blu-ray Release Schedule and HD DVD Release Schedule, under September 25 and October 2, respectively. Watch this space for more details to come!

[Theologian in Training]

And...the war continues...ouch!

[url="http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/17/blockbuster-chooses-blu-ray-is-the-war-over/"]http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/17/blockbu...s-the-war-over/[/url]

Blockbuster chooses Blu-ray: is the war over?
Posted Jun 17th 2007 6:51PM by Evan Blass
Filed under: HDTV


In a huge blow to Toshiba, Universal, and the rest of the HD DVD devotees, rental giant Blockbuster has decided to stock only Blu-ray discs in the vast majority of its nationwide locations, although HD DVD titles will continue to be offered online and in the 250 (out of 1,450) stores that have been testing both formats since last year. Blockbuster VP Matthew Smith revealed to the AP that the decision to go with Blu-ray -- which will reportedly be announced tomorrow -- stemmed from an overwhelming customer preference for those titles in the test markets, accounting for over 70% of all HD discs rented. Interestingly enough, it seems that content -- and not price -- was the deciding factor for consumers, with Blu-ray-only hits such as the Spiderman and Pirates of the Caribbean films apparently outmatching equivalent HD DVD exclusives. While it's still a little too soon to declare Blu-ray the outright winner, this Blockbuster decision only contributes to the momentum that Sony's darling has had of late -- momentum that at this point, might be too difficult for the other guys to counter.

Blockbuster to favor Blu-ray over HD DVD

By GARY GENTILE

LOS ANGELES

Blockbuster Inc. will rent high-definition DVDs only in the Blu-ray format in 1,450 stores when it expands its high-def offerings next month, dealing a major blow to the rival HD DVD format.

The move, being announced Monday, could be the first step in resolving a format war that has kept confused consumers from rushing to buy new DVD players until they can determine which format will dominate the market.

Blockbuster has been renting both Blu-ray and HD DVD titles in 250 stores since late last year and found that consumers were choosing Blu-ray titles more than 70 percent of the time.

"The consumers are sending us a message. I can't ignore what I'm seeing," Matthew Smith, senior vice president of merchandising at Blockbuster, told The Associated Press.

Blockbuster will continue to rent HD DVD titles in the original 250 locations and online, the Dallas-based company said.

The decision was helped in large part by the lopsided availability of titles in Blu-ray, Smith said. All major studios except one are releasing films in Blu-ray, with several, including The Walt Disney Co., releasing exclusively in Blu-ray. Only Universal Studios, which is owned by General Electric Co., exclusively supports HD DVD.

Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc., and Paramount Pictures, which is owned by Viacom Inc., release films in both formats.

"When you walk into a store and see all this product available in Blu-ray and there is less available on HD DVD, I think the consumer gets that," Smith said.

The rollout of Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3 game console, which comes standard with a Blu-ray drive, also helped give the format momentum, Smith said.

Blockbuster's decision, while significant on it's own, could boost Blu-ray even more if other retailers follow suit.

"It will help shift the balance toward Blu-ray, clearly," said Richard Doherty, president of The Envisioneering Group, a research company.

The North American HD DVD Promotional Group said Blockbuster's decision was shortsighted and skewed by the success of films released by Blu-ray studios in the first three months of the year. The group said HD DVD has since gained momentum, selling more players and popular titles such as "The 40-Year Old Virgin" and "The Matrix" trilogy.

"I think trying to make a format decision using such a short time period is really not measuring what the consumer is saying," said Ken Graffeo, co-president of the group.

The two formats have been battling it out since they both hit the market last year. Studios hope the high-definition discs, with their sharper picture and more room for interactive special features and games, will replace standard definition DVDs.

The formats are incompatible and neither will play on standard DVD players, although standard DVDs can be viewed with either a Blu-ray or HD DVD player.

The Blu-ray camp has been helped by the release of such huge hits as "Casino Royale," "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Spider-Man" coming out exclusively in its format.

As the battle has unfolded, the price of the high-definition players needed to show the movies has plummeted. Toshiba Corp., the major supporter of HD DVD, is selling its player for $299 with a rebate, down from $499 when it first went on sale.

Sony, which is pushing Blu-ray, recently slashed the price of its player by more than half to $499. The player retailed for $1,000 when it first was introduced.

[Theologian in Training]

[url="http://tinyurl.com/22gaxx"]http://tinyurl.com/22gaxx[/url]

Report Predicts Blu-ray, HD DVD to Co-Exist
Mon Sep 17, 2007 at 02:11 PM ET
Tags: Industry Forecasts (all tags)

A new report examining the evolution of the high-def market predicts both next-gen disc formats are here to stay, and that most studios are likely to end up supporting both formats.

Released today by UK-based media analysts Screen Digest, the report includes detailed forecasts of consumer sales and revenues in the US and Europe for both new video formats through 2011, with each predicted to establish a viable installed base.

The report goes on to calculate that format-exclusive studios could be missing out on significant revenues, potentially eschewing over $270 million in consumer spending over 2008 alone. With so much at stake, Screen Digest expects several single-format studios to reassess their positions in 2008.

Although Paramount's recent decision to exclusively support HD DVD would seem to undermine the report's prediction, Screen Digest says that the move effectively secured HD DVD's immediate future, and cleared the way for the other studios that currently support one platform only to move to an agnostic position without being perceived as the studio solely responsible for prolonging a format war, or for killing off one of the formats.

"Christmas 2007 is going to be critical for the hi-def video business," said Richard Cooper, Screen Digest Video Analyst. "Both formats will be seeking to secure consumer buy-in to their proposition during the critical holiday season but with so much at stake on both sides we think it is highly unlikely that one format will emerge as the 'winner.'

"Once it becomes clear that both formats are gaining customer acceptance, studios that have chosen to support one format over the other will realize that they are missing out on potential sales and will have to decide how long they can afford to place principle over profit."

"We believe that eventually most will decide to offer their titles on both HD DVD and Blu-ray in order to maximize their returns."

See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.

[ReinnieR]

speaking of HD technology/format war and whatever. Apple disappoints me. Apple Joins Blu Ray Association and released all these cool stuff; like the iphone, the upcoming ipod touch, the new ipod nano, the new imac, the upcoming OSX Leopard. but the recently released ilife 08 still has iDVD. am I gonna see iBD anytime soon???

[scardella]

[quote name='ReinnieR' post='1388445' date='Sep 18 2007, 11:51 PM']am I gonna see iBD anytime soon???[/quote]

Not until they have a blu-ray burner...

[Theologian in Training]

This is partly for desertwoman, but, it seems the PS3 is dropping in price, yet again.

[url="http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/PlayStation_3/Sony/Its_Official:_$399_PlayStation_3_to_Hit_US/1083"]http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Pla..._to_Hit_US/1083[/url]

[ReinnieR]

i don't think i wanna see iBD anymore. with apple releasing the macbook air with no optical drive. i kinda see BD's and HD DVD's going out like CD's did.

[Theologian in Training]

[quote name='ReinnieR' post='1462309' date='Feb 14 2008, 01:48 PM']i don't think i wanna see iBD anymore. with apple releasing the macbook air with no optical drive. i kinda see BD's and HD DVD's going out like CD's did.[/quote]

Not yet. Everyone seems to say that, but none of them have the same quality as a Blu Ray disc or have the same quality of sound either. Also, it is impossible for all ISP's to support the dloading of High Def movies, because it takes its toll on bandwidth. BD still has a shot, at least for a little while longer...