Comments on: Blu-ray vs. HD DVD: War without end

Which side will win remains unclear, but the camps seem to agree that both formats are mere rest stops on the journey to instant digital downloads.

[mikestroud]

The arguments seem specious

I think the whole question of HD DVD or Blu-Ray, either-or, is missing the point. Isn't the true question how quickly we can get to a machine that plays BOTH discs, making the whole question moot?. Hybrids are already out there. Look, for example, at http://www.digitalbattle.com/2006/06/23/blu-ray-hd-dvd-hybrid/ . Isn't that ultimately the solution? Would appreciate a quick response, since I'm about to write a blog about the subject for http://news.ihollywoodforum.com

[mikestroud]

The Never-Ending (Pointless) DVD Wars

Here's a portion of a blog I did today after reading the CNET article....

I'm so tired of the so-called DVD wars. Now that high-definition is clearly coming to DVDs, we're supposed to believe that one side "wins" and the other "loses" -- or even worse, they keep on fighting forever. A CNET article's title today was typical: "Blu-ray vs. HD DVD: War Without End".

That could happen, I suppose. But why weren't the executives at DisplaySearch's 5th Annual HDTV Conference and quoted in the CNET piece talking about the two formats playing on the same machine?

Could it be that some of those executives have already picked sides or are trying to desperately not to be quoted on the whole war thing? (The rest of the blog is at http://news.ihollywoodforum.com/public/item/186349
or http://www.ihollywoodforum.com

[amigabill]

I do not intend to choose

I've had an HD projector for about a year now. I have neither HDDVD nor Bluray. What will get my interest? Make a good combination player that does all features of all formats, at a price I'm willing to pay. More than $300 is too much. I'm not going to pay $700 to get the cheapest set of players I can. (HDDVD upgrade for my xbox360 + the cheaper Playstation3) That's too expensive, my Xbox360 is pretty loud, and I understand PS3 is also loud, which means they are poor choices to good movie enjoyment. For now I simply do not care about either format independently of the other. Independently, neither is worth the trouble. Let me have both, and there's a chance I'll begin to care. And if there's yet a new generation that supercedes this technology in the future, let's just have one standard next time, eh?

[GSRich78]

Bigger is better

Bluray is going to win. Why? Because I own one thats why! The only
movie i would buy on HD-DVD is Transformers. And thats it. I'll get
it on Bluray when HD-DVD dies off.

[MrKing.net]

Porn Industry Decides who wins, and Im hearing HD

HD will win over the porn Industry.

[CerberusRMG]

Remember this isn't betamax vs. VHS

I think a lot of people put too much stock in the adult film industry choosing a side, for the reason that they picked VHS last format battle. Keep in mind that there were a lot more forces involved in that battle, namely the fact that it was Sony against the world. This time its Sony, Apple, Dell, Samsung, Sharp, Phillips, Pioneer, Mitsubishi, LG, Hitachi Vs. Toshiba. Blu-ray has a lot more industry support than HD DVD does. Considering, I don't think adult film decision is as crucial as people believe it to be. After all, Blu-ray does have much higher capacity, which has obvious benefits in the PC realm. Since adult entertainment has gone the way of the internet since the betamax/VHS battle, thats another reason I don't think it matters. . .

[DavidABailey]

Best to wait for a dual player

I really think that this console war is silly. While I do have a slight leaning towards the Blu-ray myself (mostly because it has a larger storage capacity on the disks, which is awesome for backing up data), for movies, I see no real difference between the two. In fact, they already have players that can play both types of formats. While these players are expensive now (thousand bucks at the cheapest), you have to remember, not even half a year ago, the cheapest blu-ray and HD DVD players were the same price (not including the PS3). My bet is that in another half a year, the dual players will cost anywhere from 200-500 bucks. At that point, I might pick one up, as I'll also be buying an HD TV then. Then I won't have to worry which format wins; I'll be able to see both no matter what.

[crazycarl1999]

What war?

Average Joe consumer is presented with a choice, HD-DVD = $250 @ 1080i, Blue-Ray = $499 @ 1080p, or junk upconverting DVD player = $49.99 @ 1080p! Look! No one cares about these formats except for home theater nerds.

This is supported by the fact that 99% of user submitted reviews for upconverting DVD players tout "Awesome HD picture quality".

[djtek7]

Why I bought a HD-DVD player

Here is why I bought a HD-DVD player (and not a Blu-Ray).

I was in the market for an upscaling DVD player. I currently own a relatively new 1080i plasma TV. I was holding off of buying either a HD-DVD/Blu-Ray player to see which format would win. I went to Best Buy and saw that the entry level HD-DVD player from toshiba was only $199 and it came with 10 free HD-DVDs (3 off the shelf, 2 in the box and 5 mailed). Although this was more than I was initially planning to spend it was a great buy with the included disks. I believe the least expensive Blu-Ray player was $399. I briefly considered a PS3, but I didn't really want/need the gaming functionality. Also what I liked about some of the newer HD-DVD disks is that they are dual format (can play in both HD and regular DVDs). I'm not sure if Blu-Ray has equivalent disks...

Long story short, all things being equal a good deal is what got me into the HD-DVD camp.

[Tleonor]

I could not have said it any better......

As a new HDTV owner myself, and after months of research and deciding to hold off, I ran into the same deal for the HD-DVD player with movies included. It's something I couldn't pass up. I also have no need for gaming functions etc and so the HD-DVD not only makes financial sense but encourages the format given the accessibility. I don't see how Blu-ray can compete with HD-DVD's lower prices. This may turn the tide in the months to come.

[drfrost]

If....

If the prices of blu-ray players don't come within $50 of HD pretty soon.... it's going to be a serious blow to blu-ray.

Personally, I don't really care which side wins. For my computer I want blu-ray to drop in price so I can get a blu-ray burner for my computer (I archive a lot of digital photographs and the extra storage is a big deal). For my TV.... who cares.

[kwik5oh]

duh

of course consumer demand for next gen players is low...the VHS/BETA war is still in the back of everyone's mind, and no one wants to end up with the next BETAMAX paperweight in their basement.
If these guys would think past their cute little competition, they'd realize that they'd all make a ton of money if they'd just settle on one format.
ARE YOU GUYS LISTENING? We don't care which. Pick one & we'll buy it, like good little consumers.

[Escape_02]

I agree!

I completely agree! I would buy an HD or Blueray player today if they would settle on a standard. The only reason I have not bought one yet is that I don't want to potentially throw away money on the wrong one.

[Robberbaron]

duh again

We've had HDTV's for many years in my house and we have HD satellite but we have yet to buy a next gen player because of the format war. Just doing research on Blu-Ray vs HD-DVD makes my head hurt. We are heavy DVD consumers and would love to be buying high def movies but that probably won't happen until one format prevails -- it doesn't matter which. WHAT A WASTE!

[ccus944]

2 Formats/1 Package

Once upon a time, DVDs were sold in two "formats"...Full Screen and Wide Screen format...Now, it is common to find BOTH formats in one package...even on the same disc...If the two formats could come to a compromise so all movies would come in both formats in one package, everyone would win...There would be a sacrifice of "profit per disc" because it would be split, but discs will sell to the masses instead of being split...Ultimately, the consumer has to(feel like they) win.
As a consumer, I refuse to own two players for the sake of these conglomerate's greed. I won't purchase any of it...and I don't think I'm alone.
I spend a lot of money on entertainment, and HDDVD and Blue Ray are not getting it.

[michaellk]

blu-ray or hd-dvd

hi I dont know if this is going to be another vhs vers beta,I read about blue lazer tech back in 1995,and owned a ld player that never took off,for know I think I will just rent movies on demand in HD from cable,only some movies will I like to see more than once,dvd rental is much cheaper than buying,but my question is who will they support,when I bought a LD player only one rental place rented LD and only lasted for about 8 mo,as in the past the video rental companys will decide who wins as with vhs and beta,it is costly to have both on the shelf,I have been a big fan of home theater since it started,it cost alot to have the latest greatest thing,witch ever one comes out on top will make the other a collectable,thanks

[foxrings]

Digital Rights Management

The reason why i think that Sony will win this one is because i think the studios are more likely to back the side that has a "better" track record towards DRM.

Anyone remember when Sony had to recall some CD's cause the hidden DRM program made user's computers vulnerable to hackers.
And if I have my facts straight Sony DVD players (reg dvd) does not play DIVX, AVI and similar file formats common among file sharing users.

If HD DVD wins this one i think it will be a very long and drawn out war.

taken from www.startribune.com
"THIS IS JUST LIKE THE WAR BETWEEN VHS AND BETA
NOT QUITE. Rival videotape formats battled each other for more than 10 years. Although there were other factors, VHS won largely because of its maker's willingness to compromise playback quality for a longer recording time than Beta. It was all about consumers recording their favorite TV shows. The war between Blu-ray and HD DVD so far has focused on their containing prerecorded content such as movies."

[Art1945]

More "BETA vs VHS" Stupidity

The fact that there is another "format war" in play in home entertainment tells us that the manufacturers/producers haven't learned from their earlier format mistake, Beta versus VHS video.

The reported reluctancy for new player-buyers getting involved with HiDef may be that the marketplace does remember and doesn't want to pay for that kind of business lunacy again.

Technology changes and does so quickly but for a technolgy to be successful in the marketplace its life span has to be long otherwise it will fail to be supported. The DVD format is just roughly ten-years old and has not been fully exploited. In comparison, the CD is 25 years old and is still a viable market. Also, Audio Cassette and VHS are formats still very much in play and are considerably older than CD.

An alternative?
SuperBit, the SuperBit format offers HiDef-like picture quality along with your choice of Dolby or DTS audio. SuperBit is manufactured on convential DVD discs and plays in regular DVD players. However, on an LCD HDTV with composite video hookup to a regular DVD player, SuperBit reveals HiDef-like picture quality.

Unfortuanately, SuperBit has been ignored - it is is not a new technology but rather a different approach to convential DVD production. Sadly, only 55 titles have been released. If you can find a copy, take a look at The Fifth Element or Lawrence of Arabia. Their picture quality is remarkable.

SuperBit is a simple approach - the picture information area of regular DVD is greatly increased. This is accomplished simply by eliminating the "extras" from the disc. (Super Bit DVDs don't include the extras but they could be included by simply adding another disc in the package.)

Want to lean more . . . just Google "SuperBit" for tech info and available film titles. The marketplace advantage with SuperBit is that to see this level of pictute quality all one has to do is buy a SuperBit disc!

[Digiman14]

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