Blu-ray add-on not coming to the Xbox 360

Blu-ray add-on, anyone?

(Credit: Microsoft)

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told Gizmodo in a recent interview that a Blu-ray accessory could be on its way. But speculation over the possibility of that accessory being offered for the Xbox 360 has been put to rest by the software giant.

"Well I don't know if we need to put Blu-ray in there," Ballmer told Gizmodo, responding to a question about Blu-ray in the Xbox 360. "You'll be able to get Blu-ray drives as accessories."

Ballmer then quickly hedged his bets a little, saying that he believes that "the future of movies is on-demand, actually, as opposed to via distribution on physical media." He then said that his company is focused on trying to create the "best overall entertainment experience" that it can.

Ballmer's comments about on-demand video echoes what we've heard from the Microsoft camp all year. The company has consistently said that it's tying its future to Netflix and streaming HD content.

But it was the Blu-ray comment that caused some raised eyebrows. It was originally believed that Ballmer was talking about accessories for the Xbox 360. But a Microsoft spokesperson wrote to me on Thursday, saying he was really talking about accessories for the PC.

"Steve was referring to Blu-ray accessories for the PC," a Microsoft spokesperson wrote in an e-mail. "As we have said in the past, we have no plans to introduce a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360. In fact, the future of home entertainment starts this fall when Xbox 360 becomes the first and only console to offer instant-on 1080p streaming HD movies. With a library of thousands of TV shows and movies to choose from, Xbox 360 owners can instantly watch the movies they want, when they want, in the highest form of high definition."

Rumors have been swirling for over a year that a Blu-ray add-on is coming to the Xbox 360. In fact, last October, it was reported that Microsoft had Blu-ray add-ons from Samsung and Toshiba ready for store shelves. Those products (if they existed) were never released. And by the looks of things, they won't be.

But we leave it up to you. Should the Xbox 360 feature a Blu-ray add-on? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Updated at 5:52 p.m. PDT to include Microsoft's comments.

[mdub311]

Ballmer is right that the future is online streaming and downloads. But we are not there yet. I'm sorry, but the nexflix "HD" movies aren't anywhere close to my BD Discs in quality both in sound and video. Bandwidth isn't there to support it and the technology is still a few years out until it can truly match BDs quality. Until that time, I enjoy my bd player (PS3) and truly getting the full experience out of my HDTV. The Xbox 360 will have to be supplemented by a BD player of some sort until then. Whether it makes sense to have an add on or just have their customers buy another separate player, I guess that's up to the consumer. But if i were an 360 owner, i'd just buy another BD player or PS3 to get the BD player they're missing.

[Saltiva]

I've had 3 XBOX 360's (early adopter but the tech has been improved) and can say that the Online far excedes PS3's capabilities and GUI! Plus the streaming/Downloading HD Movies are great in comparison to Bluray! I would rather buy a downloadable Movie content (as I did with "Wanted") than to buy a DVD/Blu-Ray that is prone to damage, loss, and having to sort while taking up time and physical space. You are wrong about the quility of the HD content mdub- it is very good IMHO.

[kswa1987]

DLC in HD in comparison to Blu-Ray is as simple as looking at the bit rates

Netflix HD Streaming on Xbox 360 tops out at 3,800kbps

Casino Royale Blu-Ray: 24.52Mbps which equates to 25,108kbps

Granted that Netflix is using an advanced Codec to maintain somewhat high quality at lower bitrates, most Blu-Ray releases now use MPEG-4 encoding of some variety or another (Casino Royale uses MPEG-4 AVC).

The point? The video quality of HD DLC cannot compare to the video quality of Blu-Ray.

So, either you can't tell the difference or your equipment isn't up to snuff.

[pfgym5]

I agree with Saltiva. I have a sony Blu-Ray player BDP-S301, and even though i am piping true 1080p to my HD-TV (which is beautiful) the player has some drawbacks. I have had to update the Firmware twice, once because the player was unable to play a blu-ray that i had just rented. No movie that night. Other draw backs: Blu-ray disks are more expensive, and so are their rentable counterparts. And importantly blu-ray players can be just another piece of equipment that can be stolen. (I was recently broken-into) Now, i have a friend with and xbox-360 with netflix and apple TV. Both systems stream content that in terms of quality is very appealing to the eye, and so darn convenient. He pays to rent digital media. He has shows,movies, podcasts, and music videos ready to play in an instant.

I'd say for those with an xbox, enjoy the streamable content currently available, and just wait for a cheaper blue-ray player.

[Ndavies2]

I have a 360 and a Sony Blu-Ray player, I agree 100% with mdub311. The 360 streaming IS quite good quality, but it is still nowhere near a Blu-Ray disc yet.

[sticks1839]

And the difference in video quality is small compared to the difference in audio. Netflix HD Streaming gives you 2 channel audio at around 150kbps. Bluray offers 5.1-7.1 lossless audio at 4-5 Mbps. Action movies lose most of their surround effect, and the lack of a discrete center channel seriously degrades the dialog.

These differences (both video and audio) can be mitigated by using low grade equipment like a small screen size HDTV and the tv speakers, but then what's the point since you're not getting the full value of HD quality anyway.

Oh and @kswa1987, I typically see 30-40 Mbps bitrates for my Bluray video when I hit info on my PS3, so your 24.52 sounds low. It fluctuates quite a bit depending on the scene.

[HMetal68]

I agree that Netflix streaming is no where near the quality of Blu-ray, however that is not really DLC. I have a stack of $25-$30 Blu-ray movies that were watched once. If the Zune update to the Xbox is really 1080p with decent sound, I doubt I'll be buying more Blu-ray movies.

Time will tell as from what I've read the Fall Xbox update is coming in a couple of weeks. If Zune movies look even close to as good as Blu-ray (better than NetFlix) then my PS3 is doomed to collect dust (at least until God of War is released).

[ferricoxide]

@Saltiva:

Are you high or are you just impaired in your visual and aural senses? Sorry, but BluRay beats the pants off the content delivered over either the streaming HD or the downloadable content. That said, streaming isn't even an option, at this point, for that kind of media quality.

Even if they had the equivalent of a ripped BluRay being delivered, it would take AGES to download. I can run to the local BlockBuster to pick up several BluRay titles, swing by a fast food joint to pick up food, re-gas my vehicle from the driving around, and STILL get home before a single BD sized download could be delivered. Worse, with the size of the downloads, I'd only be able to fit one, maybe two titles onto the puny drives currently available for the XBox (given that I can't do a TiVO on the XBox and install an "after-market" hard drive). It wouldn't make a good evening of movie-watching if I had to rely on either a streaming or a download service.

[FalstaffsMind]

I agree with everything mdub says. I would also add that for only a couple of bucks more a month, Netflix sends blu ray in place of DVD for most newer movies. And while the service might be slower than digital delivery, it's still quick. I would also add that blu ray capacty (double that of DVD) for gaming might become a factor as the richness of the backgrounds and the cut scenes increases.

[sav1981]

I've heard the same argument when it comes to CDs, "Oh CD is dead because of mp3". If that was true then why are CDs still selling? The answer is simple...people like to have physical copies of their favorite movie, music, and games. Why? Because unlike things that are digital a physical media have resell value (there are other reason but this is the main one). It's plain and simple. I think the the only thing that going all digital hurt are business like Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, and Redbox just to name a few. It's more convienent to rent online than to go travel to these store. So long as having a physical copy of your favorite movie, music, or games have resell value physical media are here to stay. By the way, don't forget that by buying digital movies or games cost just as much as their physical part. So all these executives who favors digital over physical media are basically telling the consumers and retailers to put an apple in their arse.

[kswa1987]

I would love to replace my HD-DVD XBOX 360 Drive with a Blu-Ray add-on drive. It Microsoft had any brains they would have come out with a Blu-Ray add-on drive weeks after Toshiba ceded the format war and would have offered some kind of discount or trade-in program to those of us unlucky enough to buy an HD-DVD xbox 360 add-on drive in the holiday season that came right before HD-DVDs bow out of the war.

Simply put, i want to watch Blu-Rays, but am still waiting for standalone players to drop in price enough to be feasible (also considering a PS3... which I'm sure makes Microsoft REAL happy). DLC in HD on ANY system is going to be incredibly inferior to the video quality and bitrate of an actual blu-ray disc for the foreseeable future, and most (if not all) of what Microsoft calls HD either through Netflix or their own overpriced store tops out at 720p (not to mention with a bit-rate that is crap compared to a blu-ray disc).

I want a Blu-Ray player, I am going to eventually get one, and if Microsoft wants to be a part of that all they have to do is make a reasonably priced add-on for the xbox 360 available by the holiday season this year

[anthem11]

dude, blu-ray players can be had for $100.

[kswa1987]

not without crappy load times and if i'm buying a standalone player i'll want to opt for 7.1 analog audio outputs

[anthem11]

this took me 2 minutes to find. it is $179.

http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-DMP-BD80-Clarity-Blu-ray-Player/dp/B001V9LA4E

[aMUSICsite]

Will this give you a Blue ring of death? Sorry....

[solitare_pax]

Blu-Ray: The Betamax of the 21st Century.

[rfelgueiras]

I think HD-DVD fits that analogy better.

[stude1960]

HDDVD was fine, Sony just put a lot of pressure on the movie companies that they didn't own and made offers to lucative for them to turn down, thus HDDVD lost out. So did a lot of XBOX owners like myself. In the end in conflicts like these, it is the consumer who loses every time.

[Ray180]

Why is it so important to have blu-ray integrated with the Xbox? Why not just buy a stand-alone blu-ray player or, gasp!, a PS3 if one wants a blu-ray player? I'd much rather have HD streaming than messing with disks and mailing them in and waiting for a new one anyway.

[superjay77]

I agree. A blu-ray player is not necessary at this point. How many people are going to buy it that want a blu-ray player. Blu-ray players are cheap now.

[Renegade Knight]

Ignoring anything else. Game content. Blue Ray would give makers more room for content. At the least the 360 should have had HD-DVD. Then this one thing would be covered (it doesn't matter if a game uses a dead format as long as it work for the console itself).

However since MS blew it here they will have to relese the 3rd Gen xbox to cover the base.

[superjay77]

I disagree that they blew it for gaming purposes. The DVD drive has actually made games run more smoothly because of the high speed of the drive. I think this complaint about storage needed for games is exagerated. I have about 50 360 games and only 2 of them come in 2 disk's and they are both rpg's.

[Jawknee1]

"Why is it so important to have blu-ray integrated with the Xbox?"

Because DVD9 is last gen tech. its holding games back. When developers only have 9gbs to work with then have to pay MS for additional discs, it ties their hands and limits what they can do. you can only do so much with 9gbs. The PS3 exclusives are proving that Blue Ray was the way to go for True HD games. With up to 50gb in storage you can add alot more detail, store better textures, character polygon count goes up, and you get uncompressed true Dobly Digital Sound 7.1. The surround sound affects in MGS4 were amazing. Could not have been done on with a 9gb DVD.

The 360 is ln stuck in the middle of last gen and this gen while the PS3 because of Blue Ray and the Cell is almost ahead of its time.

[Jawknee1]

Superjay, once again your comments baffle me. Games dont run smoother because the disc spins faster. Its because of most the games you play are either Xbox exclusives or multiplatform games optimized on the 360. Play any one of the PS3 exclusives, they run as smooth as silk. Besides any problems that could occur because of the slow spin speed of the blue ray are taken care of with an install or the right burning process at the time of printing. Uncharted 2 for instance, easily the best looking and well made games when it comes to visuals, requires NO INSTALL, has NO screen tearing, NO frame rate dips.

Once again, you dont know what your talking about.

[superjay77]

"Superjay, once again your comments baffle me. Games dont run smoother because the disc spins faster. Its because of most the games you play are either Xbox exclusives or multiplatform games optimized on the 360. Play any one of the PS3 exclusives, they run as smooth as silk. Besides any problems that could occur because of the slow spin speed of the blue ray are taken care of with an install or the right burning process at the time of printing. Uncharted 2 for instance, easily the best looking and well made games when it comes to visuals, requires NO INSTALL, has NO screen tearing, NO frame rate dips.
Once again, you dont know what your talking about"

Dude I could care less about what you think of me. Believe me my opinion is pretty low on not only you but anybody else who makes fun of people that loves a different video game system than you. Most games need a partial install just to run games. Look at MGS. I showed my friends different parts of the game and he had to wait more than 5 minutes for each part of the game to get installed just to show him a part of the game. What they should have done is allow you to install the whole game like the 360 does now because the wait is ridiculous. Oh and as for your "Games dont run smoother because the disc spins faster. Its because of most the games you play are either Xbox exclusives or multiplatform games optimized on the 360" Guess how they optimize the game for 360 yes one reason is the disc spins faster. Its not the only reason but its one reason. Oh yeah and it looks like some ports are still getting the shaft for the ps3 version. Look at the grading for Borderlands on Gamespot. They gave the ps3 version an 8 and the 360 an 8.5. So guess which version of the game I'm getting.

Your comments don't baffle me at all. I understand that they come from your pure fanboy hate of the system. The problem with you is that you take things to a personal level when there is no need for it.

[codynews]

I watch all my HD content via download. Is it as good as bluray? Nope. But it's "good enough" and looks *almost* as good to me. In fact, I really can't tell the difference unless I switch back and forth and look close.

I'll NEVER own BR. F Sony...

[hyghwayman]

2 thumbs up Cody!
Just want 5.1 SS and 1080p streaming and I'll be a happy old man!

[stude1960]

YOU ARE MISSING OUT ON THE AUDIO PORTION OF THE MOVIE EXPERIENCE WITH DOWNLOADS DUDE! That is the whole point. Picture quality is only as good as the display you are seeing it on. Sound is a whole other realm.

[mr_kingpin]

Ive been reading these comments all night and it just suprises me that people that do not have blu ray try and tell us why it is not needed..The thing is..why not have it,its the new tech on a next gen console.I would be more happy with a system that allows me the option to do what i want..why be limited to subpar.And as downloading or streaming goes whatch a movie on a stormy day when the net is crap or if you have have dsl and its a peak hour.If quality isnt really an issue get on the web browser on the ps3 and go to any free movie streaming movie site,you dont need netflix.Do any of you know how long it takes to download a true hd movie,you might wanna plan ahead what your watching.And talking about bluray getting damaged..have you tried to damage it..lolz you seriously have to try your hardest.My arguement is why not let them put blu ray in there i feel as xbox owners you deserve to have a true next gen system with all the options like us ps3 users do,yes we dont have the best network for ps3..but im not paying for it but its better then xblive silver

[megustansalchichas]

hm. $99 BD add on for a proprietary device or $99 for a standalone BD player? i'd take the latter.

[ferricoxide]

You may not have the choice after they start shipping. Games are getting bigger. They're going to need the extra storage space (witness the latest Halo). As a company selling games, I'd likely rather ship one piece of media than two or three.

[Renegade Knight]

@ferricoxide

Because of the 360 install base MS can't use BD for games unitl they release a new generation. Sony got this right even if BD dies the PS3 has more room for exactly the reasons you noted. MS could have used HD-DVD and still gotten this right even though that lost the format war (UMD was fine for games).

[ferricoxide]

The latest iteration of Halo came on two DVDs. Had they had a BluRay drive, they could have put it all on one piece of media. Games are only going to get larger and the need for larger capacity optical drives will become more acute.

The XBox also needs to be updated to allow the storage of downloaded content onto network shares - presumably CIFS. The puny drives that the XBoxes ship with and can be bought for it, just aren't up to the task of using the XBox as an HSI-delivery destination for games and videos. The ability to write to a network share would change that.

[b9rob]

I like the idea of being able to own a movie. If I have to "rent" it each time, I would probably loose money in the long run, and what if that movie looses popularity and isn,t available anylonger.
I bought my HDDVD drive when it hit end-of-life at $50.00 - got 6 free movies with it and enjoy the quality. I would definately but a Blu-Ray drive for my 360, if and when it becomes available.

[agriffith96]

If they ever come out with an add on it won't be much cheaper (if at all) than a stand alone Blu-ray player. Why add extra hours of use to your 360 in order to watch movies? Plus Blu-ray players can stream Netflix and other streaming movie services. Use your gaming machine to game and your movie machine to watch movies.

[douglord]

"DLC in HD in comparison to Blu-Ray is as simple as looking at the bit rates
Netflix HD Streaming on Xbox 360 tops out at 3,800kbps
Casino Royale Blu-Ray: 24.52Mbps which equates to 25,108kbps"

kswa1987 ? I?m assuming you own an HDTV, Blueray Player and XBox 360. Are you really telling me that watching a movie on Blueray is 6.6x more enjoyable for you then watching it on a 360? TV is 6.6x more enjoyable then radio. Color TV is maybe 6.6x better then black and white. But my 65? 1080P TV is not 6.6x more enjoyable then watching a movie on a 10? laptop. Law of decreasing returns as you reach perfection asymptotically.

I own both (PS3, 360), a 65" 1080P TV and very highend speakers, and I can tell you that watching a movie on Blueray vs 360 streaming is a minimal difference. I don't mean that I can't notice that one looks better then the other, but that difference is small. The difference between SDTV and Blueray is significant. Maybe 1.5x. I have a hard time going back to watching stuff in SDTV ? but that?s also because I have 100 HDTV channels to choose from. Back when I had 10, I still watched a lot of SDTV. But with Blueray vs DVD the difference wasn?t even big enough for me to keep my Netflix subscription when they jacked Blueray fees. I just pay $1 at the Redbox machine in my grocery store or rent in real time with the 360. And that?s with the 360 renting me stuff in highly compressed 720p. Imagine if MS does with the 1080p content what Vudu did with HDX.

My point is that Blueray can?t beat streaming by just being marginally better. Its has to overcome the fact that you have to buy new equipment, you have to pay more to buy or rent BR disks then DVDs, and you don?t have the convenience of being able to sit in your underwear on the couch while you decide exactly what movie you are in the mood for. I?d say it?s like comparing a $1mm exotic sports car to a $50,000 Corvette. The first car is better, but by how much? I?ll bet you don?t think its 20x. I?d bet if you only had $1mm you?d buy the Corvette and keep the change.

[kswa1987]

i suppose i'm just a junkie for the highest quality experience, and some users aren't. at this point I think it comes down to personal preference. the sound quality difference alone is worth watching a blu-ray vs. netflix streams (not sure if Xbox 360 HD DLC is 5.1 or not...) Lacking 5.1 completely kills some movies, add in the high bit-rate video stream and I think its a compelling reason to watch on one format rather than another... but I suppose I may just be overly discerning when it comes to quality.

[mr_kingpin]

wow what tv and setup are you useing streaming is nothing like blu ray and not even close.why your sitting on the couch all day do you pee in a cup ..lol try pauseing and looking at extra material on a streaming video ..it doesnt work that way..i feel like streaming a whole collector set of starwars right now i wonder how it would be like to sit 9 hours on the couch without pauseing or stoping the movie

[chuzek]

I believe that Microsoft will offer a Blu-ray add-on accessory. However, the question is how many (if any) games will utilize it? I think it's doubtful any games would be developed for it since the install base for the accessory would be just a fraction of that for the Xbox 360 itself. Blu-ray is one of the reasons Gran Turismo 5 is said to have more cars and better detail than Forza 3, for example. But I doubt developers want to make two versions of a game for the same platform and will just opt for DVD based games.

[mr_kingpin]

I bet that microsoft wont add a blu-ray player is because they with have to pay sony royaltes,blu-ray was a joint venture with toshiba and owns rights to them

[t8]

Just buy a PS3 if you want Blue Ray.

[CrashPad63]

No. Any other questions?

[Jawknee1]

its amazes me that Xbox owners are so obessed with that piece of crap that out of sheer immaturity and nerd rage they wont even give the PS3 a chance. there was a few games that interested me on the 360 so i got a 360. Dont have it anymore because i got tired of sending it in for a refub, but at least i gave it a chance.

[Jawknee1]

should have said "some" xbox owners. not all are immature fanboys.

[DEVILSxxxFLAME]

The reason a bluray player is necessary for a 360 is not all about movies or hd quality, but rather gaming purposes. Games qill get larger in data required as they become more advanced. Microsoft has enjoyed the luxury of having developers produce games for the 360 and then port out to the ps3, but this will and is changing. With developers becoming more familiarized with the ps3 architecture, they will begin developing directly for the ps3 and port to the 360. Yes I know, you can always release a game with multiple discs to accomodate for the space, but that alone will hinder the potential of the game. For example a game that has a large map should allow you to retrack and explore previously ventured areas. This will be doable on the ps3 version, but how will microsoft confront this problem? Microsoft needs to set aside their pride and get on their knees; its time for them to surrender themselves to the sony's bluray. Remember, bluray belongs to sony. So any bluray activity that microsoft undertakes will have a
Sony involvement.

[Jawknee1]

MS's other arche enemy is also apart of the Blue Ray Disc Association. Apple. pucker up Billy!

[tubaloth]

I do agree with Devil some what. Microsoft could care less about having a Blu-ray drive for movies.

How much would have to charge for just a drive? $100? How much of that is going to go to sony anyways.
Devil is right that a lot of the money does go into sony's pocket. But also part of the codec used in Blu-ray is from Microsoft Windows Media Format. So Microsoft gets money for every blu-ray movie.

The only Reason Microsoft would need a blu-ray drive is for bigger video games. I think it is getting closer to the point, but I don't think its there yet. Really Microsoft just has to hold out until there next system which I think they can do just fine until then. But the problem with having bigger video games, you then have longer development cycles. Games like Killzone 2 and even Uncharted 2, how long where these games in development? Compare that to Gears of War, and even Halo, or I guess Call of Duty. Yes having more room means you can make a better game, but then you can't come out with a game as often.
Even when Microsoft gets to there next video game console that does mean they HAVE to go blu-ray. I mean they could use the Old HD-DVD format for video games and it would give them plenty of room for gaming. (and they aren't paying Sony as much money). And keep HD Movies to over the internet

After getting a HD tv in the spring I considered getting a PS3 for blu-ray. I then heard about the price cut for Augs so I waited. During that time I got DirecTV HD. I don't have a DVR, but honestly now with having DirecTV I don't ever have time to sit down and watch some movie. (Between video games and moves) . If I had a DVR I could record so many movies in HD I don't know if I would ever catch up. I'm now to the point that I am selling off my DVD player (Xbox can play dvd's) and thinking of selling off my DVD's that I know I won't ever get around to watching again (unless I loose my job).

[Preime]

if microsoft started using bluray for media storage they would either have to also release the games on dvd (making the whole issue pointless) or they would now make over 30 million consoles redundant, which would be financial suicide. They would be better off providing games that desperately need larger than dvd capacity from a single disc (which would actually be pretty rare) on a usb memory stick. In all other cases they simply need to drop their madatory "must run off a the disc only" policy and simply introduce an install on the hdd to make up for the lack of space on a 9gb dvd.

[scrubbingbubbles]

wait what?

[GreatStudent17]

X-BOX 360 using Blue-Ray Disk is Impossibe,
because
Blue-Ray Disk is only for Playstation 3.
SONY will not give permission for his rival.

[CrashPad63]

Ahh MS already has the "permission" to use BRay. MS built support into the OS back on the first release of BRay.

[Jawknee1]

That has nothing to do with MS having permission. That has more to do with PC builders having permission to use blue ray drives. If MS wants to sell their Operating systems they need to allow for blue ray support with in the op system. that in no way means they can just up and stick a blue ray drive in their xbox.

[factdroid]

Until streaming can support subtitles and/or closed caption, it could never be that widespread or standard.

[blit33]

I don't really buy the idea that on demand is the future of entertainment. I just watched The Dark Knight on blu-ray at 1080p, and there is no way streaming HD comes close. I was playing Uncharted 2 on my PS3 (which is my 3rd one because the other 2 broke just like my 360 that broke 4 times), and then I threw in Gears of War 2 on my 360 and noticed how muddy, and colorless the graphics were on Gears 2. The 360 could never push graphics like Uncharted 2. The 360 is already out dated in my opinion. The shopping experience on the 360 is lame. You have to buy set amounts of points and always have some left over, let's just give Microsoft money, what the hell. The PS3 is far more of an entertainment machine than the 360. When PS cranks out more games like Uncharted 2 that utilize the power of the PS3, that is when the console will really shine. Uncharted 2 is just like one of the first high quality games the PS3 can push. On the other hand, the 360 has games with great graphics but no colors. Physical media will be around for a long time. The market will always be here as long as the people want it.