Cool News
WARNERS Has Chosen BLU-RAY!!!
Hey folks, Harry here... About 3 and a half weeks ago I bought my first BLU-RAY player... The SHARP - BD-HP20. Until 2 days ago - I had only 11 Blu Ray titles - as the player was hooked via standard def cables into an outmoded ONKYO Receiver... But then I bought a DENON AVR-3808CI receiver - mainly due to the number of HDMI ports and the amazing upconverting powers it wields - and its general adaptibility. And then yesterday I finally received my Epson Cinema 550 Home Theater Projector with full 1080p super powers. And then Yoko and I hooked it all up and took it out for a ride.
First title I put in? CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND - Blu Ray... For weeks I've wanted to watch this disc, but with the ports I had available - it looked like normal broadcast fuzzy television. Sadness. Through the DENON and the EPSON projector... it sprung to life in a way I have never seen. Crystal clarity and the 7.1 surround with that sound... my god... it was beautiful. I watched the "light show" part of the film, then put in RATATOUILLE - wanting to see Pixar converted - and frankly - what blew my mind was the BLU RAY trailer for SLEEPING BEAUTY - due out Fall of 2008. GODDAMNIT, PUT IT OUT NOW!
Then I put in EXCALIBUR on HD-DVD and then a Comparison of THE HOST in both formats... Frankly - they were both excellent. Then I turned on my HD DVR and decided to watch HD MOVIES presentation of DRAGONSLAYER in 1080 beauty... Then... I went shopping for the BLU RAY titles I've been coveting. I got BLACK BOOK, DAY OF THE DEAD, SKY HIGH, APOCALYPTO, CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER, LAYER CAKE, THE TERMINATOR, SPIDER-MAN Trilogy, All 4 DIE HARDS, The PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN Trilogy, Pixar Shorts, FIFTH ELEMENT, MONSTER HOUSE, BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA, HAIRSPRAY, SHOOT EM UP and then three titles I haven't seen that were massively marked down... DEJA VU, CASANOVA and THE GUARDIAN.
FRY'S got some good money from me today... And at the end of the day I come home to find out... WARNERS has chosen BLU-RAY.
For me - BLU RAY titles are still a bit weak, compared to the titles that have come out on HD... but now that Warners has lined up behind BLU RAY exclusively starting this summer... It'll be hard for anyone to make a case that HD DVD can win. The only things that HD DVD could do would be to woo DISNEY or FOX to their format... and at this point, I don't know how likely that is.
My personal collection stands at over 230 HD DVD titles and 34 BLU RAYs. At this point, I prefer the interactivity of HD DVD and obviously my at home selection. What I'm TWO MILLION PERCENT sold on is High Definition. This new Epson 1080 p projector is just fucking jaw-dropping. And the Receiver's up-converting of my cable is the best it has ever ever looked.
I know the good folks at HD DVD, and it'll be fascinating to see how they bounce back from this blow. Losing WARNER BROTHERS isn't quite the kiss of death, but it is a blow that needs immediate miraculous attention. Now excuse me... I get to rediscover most of my existing HD DVD collection and my ever-growing BLU-RAY collection... and I have to get the new DVD column together. The war wages on, but Blu Ray won quite a victory today, there's no doubting that.
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First Again? Better get PS3 folks!
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Just when I bought a new HD DVD player... Still, that Dreamworks and Paramount deal is pivotal... hmm...
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they have canceled the CES hd-dvd conference. this is pretty damn bad.
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But I owe Uncle Sam out the ass, greedy bastard. And I can't believe that it looks like the better format is winning out... Wonder how many "told you so" posts you're gonna get here, Harry? Heheh.
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and i'll keep on lovin DVD for a few more years. crisper clearer whatever. i want more news about the movies themselves
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Consumers are pretty irritated by HD but at the same time I think they are for the most part interested. If this goes on longer than it could, it might just be the BETA/Laserdisc it between DVD and the hard drive theory.
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too soon too tell. besides, DVD is the last physical format. 2 or 3 years from now, it'll be downloads with a moderate Paypal or debit card fee.
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This gets us one step closer the lucasfilm releasing on bluray
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As and avid HD-DVD fan I don't really know what to make of this yet. I mean I understand that this might be the end of HD-DVD but I still consider them the better of the two. I own both so I think I'm just gonna start buying 2-1 blu instead of the other way around.
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Business Week some time in December. They quoted someone from the blue ray camp saying that Warners was coming over after the holidays.... I'm just not sold on blue ray. So many things i've seen look fake and computer generated with no depth of field.... I can't decide between the 2 and just might buy the LG combo player.. Advice? Harry? I saw Pirates on Blue Ray and it looked terrible...
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There is a rumor that a BLU exclusive was going PURPLE or all out HD. This might be announced at CES.
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::clap::
::clap clap::
::clap clap clap::
::thunderous applause::
Speaking of movie news, the new Bond girl's been announced: http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=40652 -
Jan 04, 2008 9:55:05 PM CST
Wasn't Harry just whining about money not too long ago?
by shiftyeyeddog2
I think it was about the cost of wedding and honeymoon, and how he couldn't really afford a Blu-Ray player right now. Did he win the lottery in the few months between then and now? Now he not only picked up a BR player, but some serious projectors, receivers, etc.... damn, im in the wrong business. apparently webmastering is where the $$ is!
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Jan 04, 2008 9:56:18 PM CST
PS3 sales are going to EXPLODE in the next few months!
by shiftyeyeddog2
This ought to piss of Microsoft
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Just kidding. Just wanted to rile the fanboys up. You're dead on about one thing Harry, HD rules all. I personally have Blu because of my PS3, but I just want someone to win once and for all for fux sake. Any flicks in the Warner catalog you cream your underoos about seeing in Blu in the near future???
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Brought to you by your friends; the Writer's Guild.
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I want the "We're advancing! Is that CLEAR!?!? ...We're going to attack all day! we're going to attack all night!If we are not VICTORIOUS....Let no one come back alive!" Scene in full 1080p & Uncompressed 7.1 Audio.
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... because Sony has pissed off both Disney and 20th Century Fox with BluRay.So the question is... WHY? Does anyone here, not a flamer, know why this went down. I heard a rumor that Sony is ponying up big bucks, which is the only thing that makes sense considering HDDVD players outsold BluRay 5 to 1 this Christmas.So, please, if anyone really knows, let US know. No flamers or Sony hacks, please.
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Can someone list out studios by format? Is universal now the only studio exclusively HD DVD?
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HDDVD: Universal and Viacom (Paramount/Dreamworks, etc)BluRay: Disney/Touchstone, 20th Century Fox, and now Warners.
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I had thought Paramount was dual support, but I haven't been following it too closely.
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Gee, when exactly WILL we see Profile 1.1 players and titles in stores? Will there be rebates offered to the 80% or-so of Blu-Ray owners who now own $1000 paperweights because their machines won't play 1.1-enabled titles? Will Sony EVER let stand-alone players sell for cheaper than the PS3?
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Fucking great receiver. I've got one too. At least you know how to pick a great Audio Receiver Harry. :p
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I don't think so, son. I bought the Samsung BD-P1400 for $299 and threw in a 2 year Best Buy service plan. I did the firmware update and with the TruSurround, it kicks unholy ass. And I read that there will be a firmware update to 1.1, so no worries. When 2.0 comes along, I think my player will get sick and I'll go back to BB and grab myself the newest version free of charge. Boo-ya!
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Followed by Dreamworks (and Universal). Paramount's contract was supposed to last 18 months.
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Not the nail in the coffin? Whatever you are smokin, i want some too. This thing is so over now. Funny how Harry started this thing out with his exploration into Blu-ray. Backtrack city methinks. Harry chose HD because he was wined and dined by them and probably paid nicely for it either by free products (butt numb athon anyone?)or advertising support for the site. It is called payola. I hope this is the end of it.
What happened to the "I call these format wars correctly" from last year? If Harry was sure the HD format was going to win, why not just wait it out till all the titles went HD? But no, he caved even before the announcement by Warners.
I will say that the two titles early adopters want more than anything in high def are LOTR and Star Wars. Lucas films has said they are waiting for a clear winner, or they would skip high def for download. I hope they get the supposedly worked on high def sets ready for deployment by 4th qtr of this year. Same for LOTR.
-Steve -
Dark Knight,Speed Racer,Half Blood Prince,Watchmen and everything else will go Blu-Only.But I have a feeling Universal and Paramount are gonna stay HD DVD ..why?..Microsoft.
Plus why did Warners go Blu...SALES.The end.BluRay outsold HD DVD all year but HD DVD fans cant except that,Bluray has everything HD DVD does not with the over rated PiP function and theres nothing left. -
Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. WB going blu-ray is pretty damn major, but it doesn't necessarily mean the end for HD-DVD. What I don't understand is why WB made an announcement today, 2 days before they were already scheduled to make an announcement on the subject: why not just wait until Sunday at the CES, as scheduled? It just seems a little hinky to me, is all. BTW, I just finished watching the new Blade Runner set in HD and it is frickin' SWEET! The docos are fantastic and exhaustively detailed and the film looks absolutely incredible. Well, at least I'll have that to watch on HD-DVD...(still no plans to buy a blu-ray player at all right now, though. I MIGHT buy a PS3 sometime in the far future when prices go even lower and the victor is truly declared) Looks like I'll be watching standard-def DVD's upconverted to HD for a while...;-)
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Jan 04, 2008 10:37:12 PM CST
expert_40, you are sadly mistaken; HD-DVD did not outsell BD thi
by atticus finch
Especially at a ridiculous 5-1 clip that you state! From digitalbits.com quoting Warner Bros. pres. Ron Sanders: "One of the things you see in the NPD data for this fourth quarter was that even with a $100 [price] premium, Blu-ray set tops outsold HD set tops in December. Even with Toshiba having the lowest-cost player in the market, software sales remained 2 to 1 in favor of Blu-ray." So where did you get your 5-1 propoganda?
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HD-DVD is backed by Microsoft. So you know every Vista running system from now on will only support HD and have driver 'issues' with Blu-Ray. It ain't going down without a fight. Trust me.
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Shit, man, everyone knows those "warranties" are a scam...
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HD-DVD fanboys are weeping.
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HD outsold blu 5 to 1? Really? Everything I heard was that Blu-ray outsold HD this christmas and continues to do so. And i know for a fact that software is selling at least 3 to 1 in favor of blu ray despite having more total players in a year long period.
but is warner going with blu exclusively any more questionable than paramount going HD after MS and toshiba paid them?
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... then it's propaganda that's been quoted to me, that HDDVD has outsold Blu during the Holidays when not counting the PS3. If that's wrong, it's wrong, but don't go quoting propaganda. Sony is the KING of sending out propaganda in situations like this. Remember the fake movie critic?
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I've used my warranty on my Sirius S-50 to upgrade to a Stiletto when the S-50 crapped out and on my Stiletto to upgrade to a Stiletto 2. I also used it when my iPod shuffle went through the washing machine by accident. Each time I did an exchange it was hassle and question free. So put that in your pipe and smoke it, scam-boy!
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I bought a 5mp Sony digital camera from Best Buy in 2003, and paid extra for the four-year extended warranty. Three years into the warranty, the disc drive in the camera went bad. They did more than I expected - they let me match dollar-for-dollar what I paid for the original camera, so I ended up with a much better camera than I had before, extra batteries and an extra Flash drive. The warranty even paid for the extended warranty on the new camera, and the guy didn't even give a hard time about it - he just flat out told me I could get whatever I wanted. I was more than pleased.
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In other words, how much did you pay for your warranty versus the cost of the item replaced? Really, all they are is over-priced "insurance policies". Consumer Reports recommends NEVER buying extended warranties because it's not economically advantageous to the consumer. (Why do you think they sell them so hard? It's because they stand to make more money for NOTHING!)
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According to highdefdigest, WB said that is there choice.
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Jan 04, 2008 10:52:21 PM CST
Not all of us are made out of money -- screw both formats
by freakemovie
I like techie toys as much as the next guy, but I've spent a number of years and money on a nice little DVD collection, and I'm in no rush to start paying more for quality that I'll be amazed at for a week and then get used to. No, I'll wait a couple of years until my job stops severely underpaying me -- and then I'll think about switching to the new format, which will be all Internet downloads by then, and I'll chuckle heartily at everyone who wasted their money on Blu-ray/HD.
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I think now that Warner is going exclusively with blu-ray that sales of blu-ray players will increase. People such as myself have been waiting to see what Warner was going to do after 4th quarter sales came out. Many news sources on the net are already declaring hd-dvd dead as a result of this news. This will create confidence in the marketplace. More players will be sold and prices will come down. Many may buy players when they get their tax returns.
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HD-DVD is DEAD. Blu-ray had been outselling it all year and it crushed it during Christmas. Not counting PS3 sales is nothing but HD propaganda. Even without PS3 sales and $100 HD players Blu-Ray still outsold HD in December. It's over folks, get your PS3 or stand alone Blu-Ray players to tide you over until everything gets downloaded. The format war is OVER.
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What nimrod said HD-DVD outsold Blu-Ray 5to1? I like the caveat stated later that the statement didn't take into account PS3's. That's the same rationale that takes place in Iraq when tabulating the death toll. Shot in the back? That doesn't count. Killed by roadside bomb? That doesn't count either. You also have to remember that a good amount of HD-DVD players were sold this holiday season simply because of the special price cuts on 'em and they were selling for $100-$200. Those players were only 720p capable and not the 1080p that most Blu-Ray players are. There are 1080p HD players but, the majority sold and counted towards the holiday sales claims are the cheap, lower quality ones. It's like comparing Toyota Camry sales to Cadillac sales. They're just not equivalent. By the way, the guy whining about no Blu-Ray 1.1 players out? The PS3 got a firmware update about 3 weeks ago updating it to 1.1. Just waiting on the movies now and Resident Evil :Apocalyps is the first one out. More are on the way.
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The warranty is where Best Buy makes the majority of it's money since yes, the majority of the time, people don't end up bringing it back. But I for one, made damn sure to buy the 2 year warranty when I picked up my X-Box 360. Besides the fact that Microsoft can't make a video game system or an operating system that actually works properly, when they come out with the new versions with a cooler processor or any other added feature, all I've gotta do is take it back and get myself a brand new one. Hell, if they come out with a new system in the next two years, I can just take my 360 back, get a sealed one and ebay the fucker. Either way, I win.
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I mean come on, who cares? DVDs are beyond good enough. It's about the movies, man. It's like with music... millions of people are happy to listen to music on crappy mp3s via their earbuds or shitty computer speakers, while a smaller contingent of audiophiles listen to music on CDs with tricked out systems. It's all about the song, not the picking up of details of the hand squeaking on the fretboard.
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'According to a trusted source that was close to the negotiations, Warner and FOX were working on a deal to go Exclusive to HD DVD as recent as last week. Our source tells us that Warner was only willing to go to HD DVD if FOX would go with them. Their thinking was if they just went to HD DVD by themselves, it would not end the format war. Early this week FOX was paid an undisclosed amount to remain exclusive to Blu-ray. With the FOX deal falling through, Warner had no choice but to accept the BDA’s $500 Million offer to go Blu-ray exclusive. We do wonder if FOX was just playing the HD DVD side, while having no intentions of ever switching.'
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Even before I got my HD-TV and PS3, I knew that DVD's weren't "beyond good enough". The step up to Blu-Ray from DVD is like the step up to DVD from VHS.
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I have 50 blu-ray titles and about 15 hd dvd. For dual format releases I buy blu-ray. I only buy HD DVD for exclusives I can't live without. I'm so glad WB did the right thing and went with Blu-Ray. Now we just need Universal and Paramount/DW to fall in step and all will be right in the HD World.
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...don't mind re-buying every title they've bought so far. Because once the Profile 1.1 discs start coming out, and the interactivity begins to match HD-DVDs then they're gonna re-release everything with 'new enhanced features'.
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Wait! Whatsa meesa sayin'? I WANT A BLU-RAY PLAYER PRONTO!!!
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your mom told me so.
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Sony adds the PS3 to the Blu Ray numbers, even though 95% of the PS3s will never play a Blu Ray disc.
Apple TV will win the format war. -
Jan 04, 2008 11:55:52 PM CST
so STAR WARS and LOTR are blu ray exlusives, R.I.P. HD DVD
by lavatory love machine
warnes distributes for lucasfilms and owns new line
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For all the idiots that followed Harry's "I've chosen Hd-dvd" in the summer and bought Hd-dvd's due to his influence how do you feel to get shafted? I feel like pointing at all the HD-dvd guys and taking my right hand an putting my index finger and thumb perpendicular to each other then placing that in the middle of my forehead while pointing with my left and and laughing. What suckers! You knew from the beginning that you would never ever in history ever get sony columbia/mgm titles. WHy would you buy a format if you weren't gonna get that studios vast library? you knew with blu-ray you might get universal/paramount later on but with HD-dvd you'd never get SONY titles!!!!! total idiocy. the hd-dvd war only helped christmas blu-ray shoppers as the competition allowed for BOGO free deals culminating in a 400 dollar ps3's with spiderman 3 and 5 blu-rays, and ten dollar blu-rays at amazon. Hd-dvd has cheap media too but you have a catch 22 as it's only from limited studios and the more discs you have you risk losing it all 2 years down the road when HD-DVD is obsolete and you can't buy another machine to play your discs if it breaks. So Harry led you down that path and he's enjoying his 3000 dollar projector and new blu-ray player using HD-DVD money while you're left holding the bag. Hilarious!
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Harry there was a reason that steaming pile of shit was marked down.
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what happens on the US is just a part, PS· is selling a million consoles a month between europe and japan
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Why do you make this announcement to a room full of soon-to-be pissed off people? Why not make it at a BD forum? If they're saying this now, what's the point of the CES party for HD-DVD? Or is that cancelled now?Why in denial about the rumors for so long? The whole thing's hinky to me...
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a movie through my eyeball and it fuses with my neural system to present an awesome high-def sensory experience, I'll give two shits about any of this. Until then, Catnip_Thieves has chosen jerky internet streaming web footage, and here's why - 'cos that shit is for FREE, playa!
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Clearly the most ridiculous basis for a prediction of all time. This war's over, boys and girls. 70% studio support, Universal likely to go at least format neutral (per digital bits), Paramount's deal set to expire - Toshiba's about to lose a ton of money.
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http://media.dvd.ign.com/media/142/14225451/img_5152494.html , http://www.dvdempire.com/Exec/v4_it...377739&searchID=
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Then go pick up a...Standard Upconvert player. After having HD-DVD and my friend having a PS3, I really don't see that much of a difference. There are parts that are pretty clear, but then I watch regular DVDs, and I don't notice I'm not watching an HD-DVD until the menu comes up. Maybe I don't have the greatest TV or player, but it just doesn't look THAT great. Not to mention there are some titles that are just completely disappointing.
Now that there are super cheap standard DVD players that also play AVIs, it just makes sense for me. Blu-Ray can win for now, but I'll take the enevitable winner: Downloadable HD movies. Congrats to all the BR owners! -
it distributes through fox. always has for star wars and through paramount for indy. tsk tsk.
only an idiot would say lets not count the ps3 because thats cheating. well you have to count every device that is capable of playing back the disk. ps3 or not. this was the right thing to do. I'm tired of buying discs in two formats. now I have 240 hd dvd coasters unless they role hd dvd playback into new players for years to come -
I'm glad Blu-Ray is winning the war.
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we all have 1000 terabyte harddrives. lets face it to get great quality hd it takes about 15gbs space using avc or vc1 codec. who's going to want to only own 70 movies on their 1 terabyte drives and what happens when those drives die as they do. packaged media is going to be around for a long time and thats a good thing. sure you may use vod or downloadable movies on occasion. but collectors which many of us have become want something we can hold and something thats safe from a harddrive crash. and this idea of downloading 1080p movies over the internet is just a fantasy. until we're all sporting dedicated 250mb links to the internet this shit won't fly.
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Here's how they do it. I've read online that at the next big videogame/electronics show M$ might be planning on introducing the XBOX 360 Ultimate. This thing has the new and cooler chips, 320GB Hard Drive, HDMI, Hi-Def Audio, new software features (IPTV?), built in wi-fi, and even the HD-DVD drive as the main disc drive. But here's the thing: If they put in an HD-DVD/Blu-Ray combo drive in the Ultimate they could essentially destroy Sony's PS3 by having a dual-format system. But who knows. It's all rumor... ___KNEEL___
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Because no matter who wins this war, I'll still get drunk. Hot shit!
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I don't see how that's good for Microsoft. Let's assume that they make an internal HD-DVD drive. Now, you can't have the games on HD-DVD, because they'd be incompatible with all existing Xboxes on the market. You could therefore only use it for movies, but at the moment it seems apparent that the format is dead. Plus, Microsoft would be putting another, more expensive version of their system on the market, which will serve to confuse consumers. Besides, according to Gamespot, Microsoft has gone on record and denied any intent to create an internal drive. There's also no way they'd add a combo player, because Sony would never license to them. The Ultimate might have the other listed featurs, but the fact that new versions of the Xbox will finally include features that the PS3 has had all along simply shows the technological superiority, and value, of Sony's system.
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Cuz Harry sold me on HD-VHS in 1999 and I've never looked back. HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHAAAAAAAAAA..... oooh, that was a GOOD one...
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Curious how many of those were freebies?
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Again, what you don't know (or what you pretend not to know) about the tech is astounding. Any Blu Ray player will upconvert without the need of a reciever or any other device for that matter. The payoff you got from the HD-DVD camp couldn't possibly be worth your lame misinformation attempts at this stage of the game. HD-DVD is dead Harry. The check has cleared. Let it go man.
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Bullshit. The vast majority of consumers buy physical media and downloads only for all is a decade off or more. Just because you live on the internet doesn't mean most of us do.
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Microsoft already shot down the ultimate rumor. it's not happening
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It was always gonna end this way; with Sony lying, stealing and bribing its way to an apparent victory. And so the superiour, cheaper and higher quality format will be left in the dust. But if people think that there's a future in Blu-Ray then they're in for a shock. It has no legs. Hell, it isn't even FINISHED yet. When the PS3 dies, so does Blu-Ray. Simple as that.
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...you mention in the article and the one you link to at Amazon are two completely different models. The 550 is an older 720p model, so if that's what you bought, you're not getting full "1080p super powers". The HC 1080 is a pretty good unit, if that's what you did purchase (Epson reliability is excellent), but I think you probably would have preferred a DLP projector (better black levels, slightly more "film-like" than LCD). Nice to see some projector love, either way. They are excellent value for the money, for film geeks. As for this stupid format war, I don't care who wins, but does it even matter? If Paramount and Universal keep holding out, I'll just buy both players when I'm ready. Prices are becoming so affordable, there's almost no reason to have to choose. Peaceful coexistence.
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...coasters!!! Anyone with knowledge in the HD war will tell you that Warner's choosing Blu-Ray IS the kiss of death for HD-DVD. Come on now Harry...never bet against two powerhouses like Sony and Apple who choose Blu-Ray long ago. Why in the hell anyone would follow a mediocre company like Toshiba's lead and invest in 200 + plus HD-DVD titles is beyond me. Start using them as coasters Harry or better yet, start selling them on eBay while you can still get some decent money for them.
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and what the shit is blu-ray
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Anyone notice how many fucking Blu-ray commercials played on network television over the holidays? A ton!!! I saw a few combo Blu-Ray/HD-DVD commercials for some new releases (primarily Blade Runner) but none solely for HD-DVD. During Christmas shopping at Best Buy, all I saw were people looking at or buying Blu-Ray discs. The HD-DVD aisles were dead. And now tonight, while at the movie theatre, I caught my first in-theatre Blu-Ray commercial just before 'Atonement'. Blu-Ray is everywhere! Never underestimate the power of advertising. HD-DVD is dead!!! R.I.P
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Ratchet & Clank and Uncharted are some really fun games. Watching YouTube on my TV is sweet. Blade Runner and Kubrick look fucking awesome. I love that I don't have to keep buying batteries for my controller, that I don't have to pay for online and I didn't need a 99 dollar adapter. I do not fear teh RROD. Thanks Warner's, I shall buy even more BD titles from you now. Universal...get on it. I want Galactica on Blu-Ray now! New Line & Lucas...LOTR & SW announcements now! Those are all next on my list for re-purchase...and Excalibur. Cheerio
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Saving money by not buying into the hype behind this stupid format war! Huzzzah! DVDs and the upcoming Netflix set-top box for me. Fuck all your Hi-Def. companies. If you can't get your shit together and support a single format, I'm not going to support either one of ya. Peace, bitches.
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I had $100 bucks on a Best Buy card to waste from the holidays, threw an extra $100 of my own cash in, and got the Toshiba HD-DVD player yesterday. 6 hours later I read this shit. The best part? The fact that WB had the Matrix Trilogy exclusive to HD-DVD was the tilting point for me. now I'VE got a $200 paperweight. I'm sure I'll have a better sense of humor about this in a few months, but right now I'm livid.
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... you should live up to your namesake, because you're just talking out of your ass. Superior... Cheaper... Higher Quality?. Cheaper maybe, but thats all. The rest is bullshit. The specs are easily available, why don't you do some actual reading. Bribery? HAH! Wasn't it onlymonths ago that Paramount and Dreamworks were paid off to br HD-DVD exclusive?
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Finally! In March of '07 the $3000 barrier was broken, and just 9 months later the $2000 barrier. It's the new Mitsubishi LCD unit, true 1080p!Now to find the money :(
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need a super cool Blu-version of that too. Hopefully with an even better transfer and all the extras from the last release. A
long with all the Euro-stuff anything else you can dig up Uni. Maybe even a commentary track with the Dino. -
Your Dead Wrong!
Film isnt like music, people want the highest quality possible, whereas with music they dont really care (hence shit quality mp3's).
I read somewhere that to download a full high def film it would take weeks for us normal proles/plebs, and unless they replace the broadband network soon, you wont be relying on Internet Downloads for you films for another 8 years or so, thats a fuckin long time.
Start buying Blu-Ray asap. -
Yeah... as much as I don't want to believe it... it's over. Unless by the grace of God a Blu Exclusive company goes over to HD, there's no hope. It's just so insane, I mean, it's cheaper to make HDDVDs, they already have all the features Blu wish they all had at this point, but oh well, such is life.
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what does wb have, the old cartoons, some shit like batman and superman... that's all I can think of, oh and harry potter. Wow big woop.
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Jan 05, 2008 5:21:02 AM CST
"THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE" to quote a certain French Immortal.
by alucardvsdracula
Besides Fox is backing Blu Ray - so Mr Lucas's 6 part space soap opera thingy will no doubt make its HD debut on the Blu boys machine.
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Every sweat bead and hair follicle - ugh. And there's still a shite-load of people out there that don't even own a computer, let alone download movies in any way shape or form, but they sure as hell watch DVDs. Ergo all the Laserdisc comparisons are way off.
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How do I know this? Simple.
1. Apple Inc. is a member of the blu-ray forum. Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Inc., is on the board of directors for Disney and Pixar. So it will be a cold day in hell before Disney goes over to HD-DVD. They will go with blu-ray.
2. Michael Bay made a post about MS, blu-ray, and HD-DVD a while back. Whether or not you like Bay, he said a very important thing: Microsoft wants BOTH formats to lose. Why? Simple. All about control. With the anti-trust sanctions for MS about to expire, they want to control the entire gateway for media, tied in to their OS and online services (via devices like the xbox 360).
You can have your 1080p movie, so long as you get it through their online service (meaning either via windows, or the xbox 360, which is designed only to support HD-DVD as an add-on, opposed to being built in), or through some other gateway which has to go through a gateway they ultimately control. MS did the same exact thing when they tied Internet Explorer to their OS and Windows Media Player all in one neat little package. Same shit, different approach. If MS REALLY wanted HD-DVD to win, why haven't they put their massive marketing power and deep pockets behind pimping it out? They did it with the xbox and the 360, why not with this? Because they don't control it, body and soul.
And as for the whole bandwidth issue, it's not a question of "can it be done". but "how can we profit" for the telecoms. I guarantee you, if movies were available only via download, you'd see infrastructure for fatter pipes installed real quick, because telecoms would want a piece of the action.
Sounds like a bunch of conspiracy theory, I know, but like Deep Throat said, "Follow the Money." Whoever controls the keys to the gate of the castle controls the castle. -
Yes it is. Toshiba's "licking our wonds" statement just confirms that.
Its over. Thank heavens. Its finally over. -
This is the great Toshiba quote:
"We will assess the potential impact of this announcement with the other HD DVD partner companies and evaluate potential next steps"
Here's a recommended potential next step - give it up now, rather than in the last few months of the year. Save us all the effort and tedium. -
blu or hd or who cares. there will be a common format replacing both of these in a few years.
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Sony paid 500 million for Warner, I guess Toshiba didn't want to pay as much for their exlusive.
Blu-ray is a crappy format, have fun with your rootkits, region coding and BD-J non working menus. -
You Lose...Good Day Sir. And while yes, money was exchanged for Warner to come to their decision, HD-DVD is a garbage format. Warner knows it, Blu Ray supporters know, even Microsoft knows it.
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because the public at large DON'T GIVE A FUCK.
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You're right, they don't care...YET. That won't be as true Christmas of '08 and by '09 you won't be able to say that at all. DVD's will be equal to VHS.
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spot on - this whole HD bitchfest has been a disaster for the home video market.
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And in my case if BD wins I buy another hd dvd player right off the bat and or in the future seek out dual format players in order to garantee I dont run out of hardware if the HD camp bows out. Ill need players for the next 15-20 years (or pretty much when I kick the fuckin bucket my thinks). The same goes for BD owners if it ended up dying. No way in hell am I buying back my hd dvd movies in blu ray. Ill add blu ray to it but thats it. I still expect to build my hd dvd collection for another year at least. Probably end up being at least about half or a third hddvd over the next 3-4 years.
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Jan 05, 2008 7:43:53 AM CST
These competing formats have chosen my cock, here's why...
by grandmufftarkin
Because until Bluballs and HD-DDT sort it out, I ain't buyin' shit. One format to rule them all, then you'll see my money. Until then, ballsweat for you.
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About Microsoft creating a new version called Xbox 360 Ultimate, which will include a built in HD DVD player and Wi Fi?
Methinks Sony has made gates & gang a wee bit nervous. But hands down Blu Ray shall win the format war witout a doubt. I prefer FoX,MGM,WB movies over Universal and Paramount anyday. -
You're market stats are off, the average age of a video game buyer is 37 years old, and has been playing for about 10 years. The average player is 30 years old. Hopefully this group has more financial savvy.
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With having the ability to download movies in HD content to your Xbox 360 and now the upcoming Netflix/LG settops, there well could be
competition.But for those who rather collect than rent, It's all about BD as I will purchase another PS3. -
Dear God that is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
I don't have nearly enough components to fill it up, but I want it anyway!
BTW, i'm still waiting on picking a Hi-Def player.
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Shit, I'm as much of a movie geek as any of you. But replacing over 2500 dvd's ain't in the cards folks. Fuck that.
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are you can. whatever.
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Taking it back to get a PS3... damnit!
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You just won't have anything new to watch. Just accept the fact we live in a technological age where formats WILL be changing every 5 to 7 years. Get used to it.
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Better win now that I have a PS3. I do not yet have any discs to spin as we get royally ripped off over the pond in England, but I am sure I will get some soon. I recently found out my 40" Samsung "1080" TV I bought around a year ago is only 1080i the fuckers. Nowhere did it say 1080i on the bastard box.
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Does anyone know of any cheap Blu Ray offers in the UK? The best I can find is Play's 3 for 2 offer. 3 titles for £46 doesn't really float my boat. I know a lot of the USA titles are region free, the postage hits you in the nuts though.
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I was a staunch blue ray support purely because of the capacity issue. But then I find out that half the discs are only single layer and not even making use of the potential capacity because of the manufacturing costs. Then throw in the fact that all the early BR discs used shitty old codecs, their draconian antipiracy features, region encoding and the still un-resolved java crap and you have a format which is a horrible prospect compared to HDDVD.
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I only have a 40" 720p LCD TV but have not been blown away with the difference between HD-DVD & regular DVD's at 420p. Dont get me wrong there is a difference but its just not that big of one to merit the $20 price difference in DVD prices nor the cost of buying a blue ray player too.... Now broadcast or cable TV compared to HD TV is a huge difference but I find myself watching HD movies and just not being blown away sitting on my couch 10 feet away... At least I can rent HD-DVD through Netflix and not have to pay any extra cost which is how I will watch most of my HD-DVDs as I am not being raped by the current prices. Blue Ray & HD are both just ways to rape e consumer of their hard earned money.
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So, people ARE dumb enough to re-purchase all of their DVDs? I have a relatively small collection compared to a lot collectors (only about 650 titles), and if they think I'm buying all of those over again, they're sorely mistaken. What's going to happen in another five years when they come out with yet another format?
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Connor McCloud from Clan McCloud. Now, for your pennance; you must eat a delcicious, warm bowl of haggis.
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...if there are two formats and one of them involves money ending up in Bill Gates's pocket, then I'm going with the other one.
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Long live Blu Ray!
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....and anyone who thought that his keen insight and love of movies was going to help him divine the future of tech was fooling themselves. I'm 100% positive that Harry got a nice, big, fat kickback (maybe with a paid honeymoon on top?) to pimp HD-DVD. Go back and look at his posts. But if you ever stopped to read Harry's comments, they were riddled with incorrect info and ridiculous supposition. (My favorite being "backwards compatibility just feels right", insinuating that BluRay couldn't do it -- which is as far from the truth as it gets.) Harry is a nice guy it sounds like from what folks have posted here, and he's put together a web site I really dig for the most part. But his shilling for the HD-DVD camp has been nothing short of abominable, and has truly hurt his credibility with myself and I think many on this site. When he used to have "Cool News", he ran with it. Now --- now he's dug such a hole from being bought out --- I don't know if he, or this site, can recover. I almost feel like he's Krusty from the Simpsons in the episode where he gains huge cred for "telling it like it is", then throws it all away in the end to pimp some car -- "The Canyon", if memory serves correct. It's pretty sad, all in all.
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The ONLY thing Blu-Ray has EVER had to crow about over HD-DVD was this myth of larger capacity. Although I've yet to find a single Blu-Boi who could tell me exactly WHAT that extra space was ever used for seeing as though Blu-Ray has NO Interactive or online capabilities. My only guess is the space was needed in the early days to accommodate the woefully outdated codecs that chewed up disc space. Tell me, when exactly WILL there be Profile 2.0 players and titles in stores? And will ANY current players be capable of playing them. I'm going to enjoy watching Blu-Ray destroy itself over the next few months. That's what you get for picking Sony.
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Jan 05, 2008 10:28:39 AM CST
Now we have something to make very clear to player manufacturers
by brendon
We want multi-region Blu Ray players. I don't care if this function has to be hidden behind a remote hack, I still want to see these players on shelves ASAP.
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almost as predictable as the UMD downfall.
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http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/CES_2008/HD_DVD_Promo_Group_Cancels_CES_Press_Conference/1331
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gee....I seem to recall someone saying that he'd buy a Blu-ray player when he had the cash. Seems that someone fell into an awful lot of money if that's the case, seeing the Denon and Epson gear he just got. Ka-CHING! Whut happund, Harry?
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to buy one more film that I already own in two previous incarnations...that's it. I'm out. Going to go out and buy myself a Cosby sweater...listen to nothing but crackly old jazz recordings on scratchy vinyl and polish my dentures. I will not spend another dime on this neverending fucking corporate plastic box treadmill of crap that you won't even be able to GIVE away at a garage sale in seven years.
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...is only a 1.5 year exclusive contract, with about a year to go. According to the tech rags, their is an out as well that will allow them to go BluRay if the industry turns that direction. (I don't know the validity of the contract information -- just repeating what I've read.)
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...are through the roof, and they expect to have 11 million by fiscal end installed. So to Max The Silent, on a product with a predicted 10 year lifespan (just look at how strong the PS2 still is), PS3 ain't going no where. With the HD-DVD consortium cancelling their CES conference, I think the white flag is up. For it's first year of being available, BluRay has done very well in comparison to how DVD did in it's infancy as well. If anyone cares to look at the history of it all, many said that when the PS2 had DVD capabilities they were shooting themselves in the foot as well. Look how that turned out....
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http://www.themanroom.com/news/New_Line_Confirms_Going_Blu-ray_Exclusive/1889
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Look at the shitty discs they put out for the last decade: No extras, cheap-ass cardboard cases, bad transfers...they even made you turn off the subtitles ever time you watch a fucking movie. What makes anyone think they suddenly are on the ball as far as which format to go with? Fuck Warner Bros home video dept. They have their heads up their asses.
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One month ago i finally caved in and dumped my beloved CRT (which admittedly was on its last legs) along with my trusty ol’ DVD player, and finally entered the world of HD.
After massive deliberation I bought a 42" Pioneer PDP-428XD (and dear god it's a lovely tv!), and I also decided to go ‘red’ and bought the Toshiba E-35 HD-DVD player and about 10 or so films (all of which were faves of mine that had received rave reviews for their image quality).
First of all, to all you doubters of HD…. it rocks, end of story! There can be no argument that the image quality of HD, when viewed via quality hardware is unbelievable! But almost as satisfying was the excellent upscaling of all my normal DVDs. For example, when I watched my normal DVD’s of LOST, they knocked my socks off. They could just of well of been HD versions they were that good!! So to those who are under the impression they’re gonna have to replace their entire DVD collection… don’t be daft! In reality, you’d only really ‘need’ to replace your favourite films/shows with HD versions. The upscaling features of most HD players and receivers are more than enough to keep the remaining DVDs in your collection perfectly useable.
As for the ‘war’, well we all knew there had to be one winner. Having two formats was definitely confusing and frustrating the general public. In a way I’ll be glad when there is only one format to choose from. And yeah, this Warner move to BLU-RAY is probably going to mean the end of HD-DVD but… a) that won’t be happening for many, many months yet, and b) it doesn’t mean that people who went with HD-DVD are left with expensive paper-weights. I mean, they still work ffs, and work REALLY well too.
All it means for me is that in a few months time, once the hysteria has subsided I’ll review the situation and maybe buy a BLU-RAY player as well – effectively going ‘purple’ as some call it.
No big deal guys. -
They'll just announce it later, in another press conference. This is confirmed.
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...you speak decent sense. I still feel grumpy though, could you make me some chicken noodle soup?
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Jan 05, 2008 11:18:19 AM CST
Another example of studio GREED fucking the public over
by harryblackpotter
Cock-sucking, money grabbing studio execs don't give a fuck who wins the war, or which format is better, they just want to know who's gonna give them more green to feed their coke and whore habit. Warners deal with Sony / Blu Ray was probably done in a seedy motel room at 3am, with a load of bugle on the table and hookers on standby once the deal had been done. Fuck, even Tom Sizemore and Linday Lohan got an invite. So know Warners are in Sony's back pocket - good for them, I hope it was really good fucking coke. As for me, I'm happy with my trusty old X-Box 360 DVD strap-on until George Lucas rips my back-doors off with the inevitable Blu-Ray Star Wars release where Jar Jar shoots first.
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The reason this is seen as death of HD DVD when Paramount wasn't seen as death of BR is to do with percentage marketshare.
Warners move means that approx 70% of market is now BR exclusive (Warners are largest player accounting for around 20% of DVD sales, but Disney makes up a lot too and Fox, etc.) vs 30% on HD DVD (Paramount, etc).
Now, one thing for sure is that none of the studios want two formats - so this is seen as tipping the balance too far in BR favour. The other studios will now dump HD DVD like hot potato and jump on BR bandwagon so that all the studios can begin to work marketing to move us all (and gain new customers) to BR over DVD.
Also, at the risk of sounding morbid, to answer those complaining of buying in new format again - the studios don't really care because there is constant stream of new consumers being born and hitting age to start buying and that (coupled with the folks who must have the best picture) is their target market. For all they care you can stay on DVD for a long time - although eventually you'll see that new material is only BR (although that point is a ways off yet) so you'll need to invest in BR eventually to keep buying (or renting) movies.
As for MS using 360 to push HD DVD - forget it. MS are behind digital downloads and backed HD DVD more to hurt Sony PS3 sales. Whatever they do with PCs ain't gonna affect movie players and no way will they risk harming 360 sales by sticking a presumed dead format in it. If anything they'll release a seperate BR drive at some point.
Although, if they were playing integrated HD DVD you can bet they're hastily unplanning it right about now.
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How come I put in spaces between paragraphs and they vanish when I hit 'post'? Why can't I edit and why does this forum have much less functionality than others I use? Oh, and thanks in advance for any assistance.
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DVD. Does anybody think that DVD won't carry us to the file transfer age? Why go buy some new format only good for 5 years or so? My DVDs look GREAT on a HD tv and I really don't need it any better until it's downloadable. That's the only sane thing to do.
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"Based on the timing of the Warner Home Video announcement today, we have decided to postpone our CES 2008 press conference scheduled for Sunday, January 6th at 8:30 p.m. in the Wynn Hotel. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
We are currently discussing the potential impact of this announcement with the other HD DVD partner companies and evaluating next steps. We believe the consumer continues to benefit from HD DVD's commitment to quality and affordability - a bar that is critical for the mainstream success of any format.
We'll continue to keep you updated on new developments around HD DVD."
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of film.
I'm ultra happy that onside one. I love watching my high def films and honestly can see a BIG difference on the 50" screen. Watching Unforgiven, 2001, The Shining, Wild Bunch(which was my first dvd I ever bought), Rescue Dawn, Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth, and Corpse Bride looks leaps ahead of the dvd's. Corpse Bride almost looks 3D. I don't know it's a wondefull step up. I'm just happy that Blu one cause that's what I chose. I've had no problems with it so far but it may be because I'm watching on a PS3. If HD-DVD won then well, I guess I would just had to have to get another player at the end of the year. People are freaking only because they invested some cash into something that turnded out not to work out in the long run. It sucks, but that's that.
Just sit down and enjoy the movies that will hopefully spill out before us. No one says you have to re-buy or even upgrade to HD. It's just an option in life. An option I'm stoked for. It's NOT ELITIST! Friggen dvd players were over 500 bucks when it first started. Hell mine was $230 in the year 2000.
As for warner shoving out shite films... check out the new Kubrick collection on dvd or any of it's HD counterparts. Check out,if you can, Wild Bunch, Batman Begins(HD-DVD) or Matrix(HD-DVD) and a tell me they are not doing their job.
Anyways, I'm excited for films like the Bourne's, Batman Begins, The First Matrix, Big Lebowski and Fear and Loathing finally port over to blu-ray. Can't wait to see which films will be next on the restoration process... West Side Story, Ran(Not holding my breath for that one), LAURENCE OF FRIGGEN ARABIA MOTHA FUCKERS!!!!!
And out. -
I should proof read before clicking "Post talkback". My Post is an eyesore.
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That quote has got me going.
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I love how people say, HD sold 5 times as much as BD not counting PS3 sales. Ummm, why not? PS3 is a legitimate blu-ray player. In fact, according to Gizmodo, the strongest Blu-ray player on the market. Why the fuck wouldn't you count PS3 sales? Its because when you do count PS3's, the stats weight heavily in blu-ray's favor.
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minus the spaces of course. That should help you with your problem. just twice and you've got a space between paragraphs.
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They claim that you can't include PS3s in the Blu-Ray players because it's predominantly a gaming system (meanwhile I've heard that some people in the market for a Blu-Ray player were told to buy a PS3 because it's one of the better ones. Yet the HD-DVD folks turn about and claim that on average, HD-DVD owners have more movies for their player than Blu-Ray, but they include PS3 owners in those numbers.
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FlickaPoo, sorry mate i only got a Chicken Pot Noodle... will that do? :P
EliteStance, you can add paragraphs by using and before and after your sentences. Oh and a linebreak is added by using (remove the spaces ofc) -
And apparently accidently double posting!
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I didn't like their cardboard cases, either. But I have found that Warner Bros. often makes exceptional transfers of their films onto DVD, especially their classics. Have you seen their Special Edition of CASABLANCA? The quality is absolutely mind-blowing, like it was made yesterday. Also, one of the first DVD's I ever got was Warner's TRAINING DAY, and I'm still very impressed with the transfer of that one.
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However as the price of Blu Ray goes down DVDs will become VHS-like. And by mid-2009 50% of you "I won't rebuy all my movies" people will have rebought most of your entire catalog of movies in Blu Ray format. Mark my words.
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HUGE BOGO for both formats. Something that includes majority of the titles. But alas... it looks as if those days are over.
Now we just have to wait for saturation and price drops. -
...but I'm keeping the Cosby sweater.
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Jan 05, 2008 12:14:52 PM CST
I'm not buying a fucking thing til this format war is over and d
by merlox
...so hurry up already!
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Looks like our dvd collection will continue (and that's not a bad thing), along with HD downloads. No Blu-ray for us. At least, upscaling standard dvd is a nice option.
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I'm thinking of all my WB Tim Burton movies that look like crap, especially in the dark regions. Not to mention how there are virtually no special features. Ditto Goonies, one disc, barely any special features. Also the WB Seven disc I have is garbage, it's like I'm watching it over the internet. The Harry Potter discs are pretty good. I've noticed they started doing the plastic cases like everyone else. I guess they got tired of being the cheap eyesore of the DVD market. But I'll never forgive them for making me turn off the subtitles before I watch one of their older discs. I mean, 1% of the market requires subtitles, so they make 99% turn them off instead of the other way around. Dumb shits.
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I only wanted HD for the big blockbusters and visually interesting titles, anyway. If I can't get the titles I want in HD-DVD, then I'll watch them a different way. But it will not be Blu-ray.
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If you are strongly taking one side over the other, your a loser. This was all corporate warfare from the start. The way to go was obviously going to be the LG combo player once they ironed out all the bugs. It's a good thing HD-DVD existed because they pushed Sony to add interactivity. I can't wait to buy a HD-DVD player on clearance and load up on discounted HD-DVDs.
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sincerely, Waylon Smithers
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BRD was always to have interactivity built in, the java type and final specs just weren't finalized when the product kicked off. With ethernet ports on most players (not all -- which was a huge mistake on Sony's part), making the upgrade to v. 1.1 is as simple as downloading porn. PS3 has been 1.1 ready since the end of last year.
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IS a great upscale DVD player as well. Waiting patiently for Bluray to his $200 and then I'll bite. I only hope that HD-DVD stays in the market long enough to drive entry level blu-ray players to $99...
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http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS230058+04-Jan-2008+PRN20080104
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HD-DVD supporters always use that faulty logic to back up their format.
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Jeez never realized there were som many shills suckling the peepees of Sony and Toshiba execs here. I bought both because they are relatively cheap and Paramount is still HD exclusive. Digital Bits Sony dick sucker won't kidnap me and force me to choose Blu-ray at gun point will they??? Bill Hunt loves him some Sony exec peepee all over his tastebuds!!!
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I don't need a gaming system with no games that I want to play and I guess I'll settle for an upconverting DVD player. And to those people saying sell your Toshiba players and HD-DVD's: why would I do that? They still work fine! Hell, I still have a VHS player and and a Laser-disc player! (Still a few titles that are only available on LD and no copyguard on LD's either!) If anything, I'll wait for the other HD-DVD owners to panic, sell their stuff and then buy it myself for ultra-cheap at Amoeba...(which is what I did with LD's) Besides, while the writing may be on the wall, it ain't over yet, fanboys...
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Give us more movies for download, Hollywood.
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those fucking movie companies want consumers to get all excited about "new hats" and such.
I couldn't give a fuck.
If I've already got a movie, that's it I'm done. I don't care what you put on the "new one". I ain't buying it.
On the same page, if I don't have a movie and a "special edition" is coming years down the pike, I ain't waiting.
Bullshit. Fuck you. Go to hell. I'm not playing their game.
It's all about the power of the dollar. If you faint every time they enhance their little studio farts and spend your money rewarding them for endless
upgrades that are virtually meaningless (I mean, they rarely are changing the actual film itself--it's just more or different extras) then YOU ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE PROBLEM.
It's like the remake/sequel thing. If you go see them, you are contributing to the problem.
Since I don't like these things, I don't spend my money on them. -
2001 looking crystal clear and fully functional in my blu player...
Gimped... what evs. The movies play and look awesome. Why is everyone still complaining. Just let us enjoy our films in HD in peace from now on and let this bickering stop. Let's do some real rallying and ask for more restoration and MORE HD FILMS!!! -
Woops. Sorry to jump the gun.
I hope movie rental downloads become viable soon. Apple, Netflix, Amazon.... in which ever form it would be nice when you're traveling for work or whatever you could watch on the go. As for owning the film... Hard disc is still the way to go for better quality. Especially when it comes down to what you have said. -
Do the new Blu-ray come with a docking port for your peepee's????
Mine doesn't have one. Must be pretty great though that people are more passionate about a soon to be obsolete technology that more important things in life. Does alot of this have to do with PS3 owners trying to tie this into a win for them somehow??? Although I have both blu-ray and HD DVD if I had to own one piece of hardware to go along with my new 65" Mitsu DLP it would in fact be my xbox 360. The future of movie rentals are marketplace downloads. -
People like you make me laugh. Hard.
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Your bunghole plug? =)
Sorry. Couldn't resist. I could care less what label is what. Just make some product that I can enjoy, then I'll vedge. -
How about throwing a party for the TBers so we can judge for ourselves which format is best? And make sure there's plenty of Cool Ranch Doritos ...
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Love that cliche. Had to use it again. It's like a drug. Gimme more cowbell- blu-ray- HAS A BEER AND CHEETS ON HIS WIFE!!!
Sorry. I'm having a meltdown. After reading what Joe Quesada did to Spider-Man in One More Day, I think my brain's broken. -
Look at me, I can afford a Denon receiver and i have 230 hd-dvd titles. I have a rear projection system and its all paid for by shilling propaganda for babylon. Harry sounds like such a douche bag im embarressed for him and myself for even liking this website.
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I don't understand!!!! How could it lose????!!!! You HD-DVD bastards lied to me!!!!
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Nothing compares to the sweet love of VHS tapes! Eat that Sony! Toshiba! Dickholes to you.
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...that we could use many more HD movie selections on Xbox Live? Since getting married and gaining a family, I've missed out on too many flicks....including those flicks that've gotten (at least some) positive word, here at AICN. To be honest, I'm not a fan of the horror genre (though I am a fan of some movies that contain horror)...but if I really was such a fan, I'd have plenty of horror movie options on Xbox Live. But what I want available in HD download...is more of the BIG BUDGET BLOCKBUSTERS, especially in the fantasy and sci-fi genres. And how cool would it be if they made a number of Oscar-worthy flicks from 2007 available? Give me more options, please! Maybe AICN could sponsor a flick on Xbox Live download, like something low-budget or foreign, that may otherwise be underexposed. (If that was the case, I would more likely check it out.)
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To MaxTheSilent and all those that ask "tell me exactly WHAT that extra space was ever used for," please remember that one of HD-DVD's flagship releases, TRANSFORMERS, was adversely affected by HD-DVD's limited capacity.
To quote the review from High-Def Digest:
"...the question was asked almost immediately -- why no Dolby TrueHD or uncompressed PCM? The studio's answer was that due to space limitations on the disc, the decision was made to limit the audio to Dolby Digital-Plus 5.1 Surround only (here at 1.5mbps). Unfortunately, this confirms the long-held theory that the 30Gb capacity of an HD-30 dual-layer HD DVD disc has forced studios to choose between offering a robust supplements package (as they've done here) and the very best in audio quality." FACT
You say that we will be "watching Blu-Ray destroy itself over the next few months" so my guess is that you are predicting, even with the Warner Bros. news, Blu-ray will fail. Are you serious? What facts do you have to back up your prediction?
davywankenobi, do you really think that DVDs will "carry us to the file transfer age"? As has been said elsewhere before, for that to be realistic internet connection speeds will have to be about 50 times faster than they are now.
And once those faster internet speeds are available, do you realize how much storage space will be required to store a decent movie collection?
If we assume that, with advanced codecs, we can compress a high-def movie into 15 GB of space, a 700-movie collection (probably typical with this crowd) would require 10.5 TERABYTES of disc space!!
To put that into perspective, if you went out and bought a new Dell computer today with a larger than typical 500 GB hard drive (currently $1,029.00 for a base model), you would need the equivalent of twenty-one (21!!) computers to store just your movies!! If movies on disc cost an average of $20 each, 700 movies would cost $14000. The 21 computers needed to store those movies, at today's prices, would cost $21609 and you still wouldn't have any physical media!!
And what happens when your hard drives start failing, as they all eventually do? You would lose your investment or, at the very least, have to download your content all over again.
The fact is, most people will always want physical media they can hold on to. Virtual ownership of a movie is, at best, temporary. And how would you bring your copy of TRANSFORMERS to a friend's place?
Face it, movie downloading services will never catch on with the typical consumer. -
that I don't want to shell out more money on another HD system? Or that I have no use for a PS3? Or that I still own VHS and LD? Just curious...
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and a friend of mine has a PS3,it is also a great console.The POWER of both consoles is really good,the games look pretty much the same(COD4:modern warfare and the DARKNESS look great on both).But neither of us would use it as a movie player,because it sucks to look movies on consoles(pay extra for a remote control,extra for HD-DVD part,and so on...).Who looks DVD`s on a PS2,is there anybody?It is like DVD and VHS back in the 90`s,when the majority of movie companies and big TECH companies choose side for one system the other one is DEAD(and BETAMAX was far better then VHS,and we all know how this one ended)!I am for no side here but I think HD-DVD is done by the end of the year.And then when all is One system the prices for soft and hardware will drop,so that anybody will enjoy the new shit!And standard DVD will be gone at the latest in 2010.And to all the PS3 vs.X-BOX 360 guys:dont forget that NINTENDO`s Wii last year outsold both contenders combined by the double(proving that innovation is still working)!But in the end,everybody should go with the system that he likes the most,and going apeshit at other systems leads to nothing.Thank`s for your time(my longest post so far).
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Man, you're like a clueless ball in a table tennis match. Do you even have a paying job? How can you afford this HD mania with such nonsenses?
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on the shit they are buying!At least me.You are just on the point AllenUSC.And I love it to go to a really BIG FUCKING MEGASTORE and spend hours to go through thousends of DVD`s!And deep in his HEART every REAL MOVIELOVER get`s a real BIG BONER when he is sitting at home and is looking at his huge whatever medium Movie collection,all the TV-shows,special editions and what not(not to mention when normal folks come by and get that amazed look on their faces,you all know what I mean)!Now IMAGINE all your MOVIES in a FUCKING computer,where is the "OH SHIT I HAVE A FUCKING GREAT MOVIE COLLECTION"feeling!A fucking list on a PC is not the same!
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Idiot losers who actually buy their crappy HD players lose.
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Another incredible format, you simply have to buy! SUCKER!
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I wish people would shut the fuck up saying that digital downloads are the future of HD movies. Have you ever tried downloading a STANDARD def film? It's fucking torture. Let alone one 3/4 times the size. Anyone who thinks downloads are the future, are just the sort of customer that Microshit loves - the sort that love to spend their money and get nothing for it. Physical media FTW.
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I was happy than a dog with two you-know-whats, then I read that everything is going blue-ray. Never having watched a blue-ray disk, I have to ask, it it really that much better? I'm pretty stoked with the hd player. Does this announcemtn mean that all blue-ray movies will never come out on high-def, or will it just take forever. I know I can't afford to buy every different kind of player that comes along. Oh well, I guess a few years from now they will have a green-ray player or something and we will all be hosed. It would be nice if one of these multi-million dollar companies would come out with a player that actually played both. I know I don't plan on buying fifteen copies of batman begins or pan's labrynith, no matter how much I like them. Thanks for listening and I wish all of you a better new year than the last one.
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i download all my HD movies, they weigh in around 10-15gigs, 1080p 5.1 and fucking perfect quality, and i can pull in about 2-3 a night! i know guys that can pull TB's of shit off the net, maybe if you got yourself a half decent connection and knew how to use newsgroups, you'd see that the future is digital downloads and not re-buying every fucking dvd you have just so hollywood can make more money of you
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so i guess Hollywood still makes money offa me... cunts
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people are fucking morons, especially studio execs. Nevermind that the PS3 is the only Blu-rayer player that's selling. Nevermind that the PS3 is the trailing THIRD in a console war. The last person you want to do is give the Sony-monkey the key to the banana plantation. But people will do it regardless, because they are clueless fucks.
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So, I've got to pay out for a ridiculously expensive connection, trawl through paedo-infested newsgroups and then end up watching on some PC monitor? How is that good?
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Just GOOGLE them!
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thank you for the info. Too much out of my 8.00 and hour price range, but maybe they will come down in the future. I am just hoping that hd-dvd's don't go away. does anyone know if some titles go on blue-ray for a bit, then go on sale on HD? Sorry for sounding like a newby, but I am one. Thanks again for the info
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Exclusive on HD-DVD I think.Warner Brothers will still put out HD-DVD`s to later this year.Maybe if Disney goes HD-DVD it will change something,but i think HD-DVD will be dead by the end of 2008.But I could be wrong on that.
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Bongo123, how much do you pay for the high-def movies you download from those newsgroups? Nothing, you say? They're free? Great. I'm sure producers are willing to support that.
How many of those downloaded movies do you keep on your computer before you have to start deleting them to make room for more? Ten, 20, 100, 200? And if downloading is just as good as physical media, why do you still "buy the good ones?"
If you can download 2 - 3 movies a night that comes to about three hours per movie. After downloading a movie from a newsgroup you would need to reconstitute the video file(s) using something like WinRar. That means that to find, dowload and reconstitute one movie from a newsgroup you've invested almost four hours of time. Just how much is your free time worth to you, $5, $10, $20 per hour? At $5 per hour you invested nearly $20 per movie. For that price I can drive to Best Buy and get a Blu-ray movie on sale and be back home in half an hour.
I realize that legitimate movie downloading services are much more consumer friendly than this example but they do cost money.
As I've said before, physical media will always be more popular than digital downloads. -
All great points, well made.
Digital downloads can SUCK IT. -
this sucks, i have a blu ray and a hd dvd player, so it doesnt matter to much. but personally i wanted hd dvd to win, how can anyone say its a shit format? its got no region codes, how can anyone complain about that.
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And that sure is some eating. Lay off the man for pimping the formats. If anyone would listen to me and some clown would pay me a shit load, I would plug whatever the fuck they wanted me to. I would use some of the cash to buy a stair master though.
So far I have burned a few 720p movies, well a lot actually, and watched them on a upscalling DVD player through HDMI and I love it. As soon as Blu Ray titles are cheaper, my PS3 is getting a daily workout. Seems to me like a lot of people can't see the difference (like my backward girlfriend for example) good for them, they can get DVDs for next to nothing and enjoy their shit. Give me more HD man, more HD. -
I won't be wasting anymore money on HD content. I refuse to support a Sony exclusive format.
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You go out and buy an Xvid or Dvix compatable DVD player. Dirt cheap, too.
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I am not buying any HD player until the player is under $100 and the movies are the same price as regular DVD's. I've not waited 10 years for DVD prices to be where they are to only start paying $25-30 for a DVD. No thanks. My upconvert is just fine.
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www.isohunt.com and mininova.org are all you need.
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Half a billion dollars on a format that's in its infancy, at best, is very risky. They better hope it pays off. It's not like the jump from VHS to DVD. Hd over DVD is fractional to most people.
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...there's more than a handful of companies that are in the business of making BluRay players. This isn't like Betamax.
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You have VHS, LD, DVD....you've bought into 2 major and 1 minor medium for movie watching over the past umpteen years. Yep. Three (3)separate formats. And NOW you're drawing a line in the sand because????? Prices will be through the floor in the next 18 months. Watch. And you'll see how correct AllenUSC was in his post. HD downloads now are compressed out the ass and don't have close to the quality of BluRay or HD-DVD. (Both of which have fantastic pictures, btw.)
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It is how BIG companies work!They push it through!You are no idiots people!Look at the past,LP-MC:KILLED BY CD,MP3.VHS:KILLED BY DVD!And you can add many other shit to that list!If the BIG PLAYERS want it the DVD is DEAD!Maybe not tomorrow or next week,but in two years it is over!But if you can prove me wrong,go ahead(maybe Laserdisc or Minidisc,they failed at that)but anything else?
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One of their first dual-layer discs was "Contact", and the transfer holds up to this day.
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Companies aren't going to abandon such a huge cash cow.
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I can fucking start the movie for my kids and leave the room. I know, I know. Great parenting. Alas, that's life. Do the BlueRay discs have that FastPlay feature?
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but they won't be replaced with HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. all 3 formats will disappear together. the next thing will either be downloads, or maybe taking your 200 gig thumbdrive to some kiosk, sticking it in, swiping a debit card, and getting the movie. only "collectors" want to stare at all the crap they own. the rest of us want to make room. i've got 2 bookshelves full of DVDs, and I'm sure as shit not going to buy 2 more bookshelves full of MORE DISKS. fuck that.
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I'd soon believe a serial killer before I believe anything that moron says.
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DVDs are a huge cash cow, yes. But that's because Blu Ray is in its infancy. DVDs will be the equivalent of VHS by Christmas of '09. Secondly, "Digitalbits is nothing more than a Sony dealership". That's a pretty heavy accusation without any proof to back it up. So where's your proof? Or are you just a bitter HD-DVD owner?
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Settle down, people. It will suck for whoever picked the wrong format, but there's no reason to type like a 14 year old who just discovered profanity.
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Jan 05, 2008 9:52:02 PM CST
Warner's announcement was not only a blow to HD DVD, but to you
by reelman
You think that HD DVD has the edge in picture quality over Blu-ray? This opinion coming from someone who said that HD DVD made more sense because it could play DVDs? Come on...you've lost all credibility when you first posted your HD DVD purchase and the reasons why. You're losing even more by knocking the quality of Blu-ray. Sounds like you’re just trying to save face after the Warner announcement. No one should take any advice from you when it comes to High-Definition players or movies. Everyone, stay clear from Harry’s HD opinions!!! He has no credible knowledge in the area. How many loyal AICN fans jumped on the HD DVD bandwagon after Harry said that he has a talent for picking the winning format? So sad. I'll continue to visit your site for movie rumors and news, and when I want to laugh, I'll read your HD opinions.
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I got an LD player at the right time and didn't pay too much for it, and I never bought a lot of LD's, 'cause I knew S-DVD was on the horizon, so I didn't lose a lot of money on that purchase. There are still some good prices on LD's in used retail stores, like Amoeba, and I can make good copies to DVD. I'm happy with my HD-DVD player, which I got a good deal on, and just have no interest in spending a lot of $ on another HD format right now. It looks like BD has the advantage, but I don't want or need a PS3 and I really don't want a stand-alone BD player. The majority of my movie collection is in VHS format, then S-DVD, then LD. I've gradually been replacing my collection with DVD's, but I've NEVER been one of those collectors that has to upgrade movies to the "latest tech". (The one exception: Star Wars OT. I've had that one in EVERY format!) So for now, I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop...
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Answer me this, Blu-Boys. Including the PS3, there's about 4-5 times as many Blu-Ray players in homes as there is HD-DVD players. Then tell my why Blu-Ray is only selling about 75%-80% more discs than HD-DVD? Simple: Only 1 in 7 PS3 owners buy Blu-Ray discs. becasue the stand-alone install base IS NOT THERE, with HD-DVD thrashing Blu-Ray in stand-alone player sales. So enjoy your Sony-mandated delusions while they last, and offer Ken Kutaragi a job while you're at it. Because unless the cost of BD discs can come down from costing 4 times as much as HD-DVDs to manufacture, and if stand-alone players can ever come down from about $400, then Blu-Ray will be a very, very expensive niche failure that has already cost Sony $4 billion in losses with the PS3. And will no doubt continue as studios lose more and more money on each disc sold. Face it fanboys, you backed a loser the moment you bought a PS3, which has already proved itself an utter disaster as a games machine. And in doing so, have inadverdantly doomed the HD media market by giving control to the incompetent, arrogant, deep-pocketed egomaniacs at Sony who actively REFUSED a proposed amalgamation of the formats early in the piece for the sake of Ken Kutaragi's ego. And where is he now? Fired. Does that sound like a company riding high on its 'success'. No. Blu-Ray is, at best, an failed experiment caused by corporate thuggery. At worst it's a Jedi mind-trick that sucked a lot of money out of people's wallets and delivered an unfinished, under-performing, overly-expensive format forced on the public by exploiting its goodwill towards the brand name of Playstation. If you Blu-boys consider this a victory, it's only a victory of greed over common sense. So sayeth Max, so sayeth the flock.
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but good POST!I dont agree on all terms,but good to see some heart here!Many Posts are just totaly out of reality here!Get your SHIT together guys and witness the 10.000 POST TB over at the LOST TB!
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kicks the living shit outta blu-ray. I despise blu-ray and all those fucked up movies that won't play because you need an update. HD-DVD doesn't fuck the consumer because they are afraid of a couple of pirates.
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I choose HD-DVD and here's why...I couldn't afford a $1000 LG combo drive and I'm hearing it had issues playing HD discs. And I couldn't afford a $799 Samsung combo. So I read my ass off on this site and ma others that were saying HD had better quality and would soon be selling more and more Chinese made cheaper players. Cheaper could have meant more and more adopters cause money conquers all. What really burns me aside from this Warners news is that you have to plunk down $400 for a player (with no frigging cords) and then you have to buy a new TV EVEN IF YOU ALREADY OWN A 55" 1080 HD projection TV because it's over a year old and has no digital audio inputs and no HDMI ports. And because EVEN IF YOU ALREADY OWN A 32" flat panel with al of the proper ports it's small compared to today's standards and I have no surround system hooked up in my bedroom! Now I've already got my first two HD discs and ordered the re-mastered Star Trek TOS from Amazon and they pull this shit. Harry's post, while terribly haughty, is actually the tru problem outside of the format war. You don't just need a new player...for true 1080i or 1080p you'll need HDMI in your TV and your sound system, My sound system is a cheaper Panasonic 5-disc up-converting player that for reasons unknown only gives me 1080i when using the HDMI-to-DVI cable. I've switched it to component Monster cables and now it only gets 480i!!!! And apparently this "home theater" only gives true dolby surround when using discs natively in the older player itself. There's not HDMI input and no digital audio input to loop the HD player into! So that means choose between up-converted Standard Def with true Dolby Surround or HD-DVD quality pictures with lackluster sound. Aside from Harry who the HELL can afford to upgrade their entire system every time we make leaps in video tech? Certainly not me.
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New Xbox 360 with HD-DVD player built in. Duh.
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Am I the only one that purchased a PS3 because I read reviews online and basically every site called it the best Blu Ray player out there? If you can live without an onboard display this thing rocks and rocks as a upconverting player too. Also can connect with your PC and serve music and video (now divx too) com on. I got mine and the 5 free (albeit crappy) titles and "Memento" free from Amazon and $100 cash back Sony Card it's a no brainer. If HD-DVD wins then I got a nice DVD player *slash* video game player. Also all these sites saying who sold more...Sometimes US numbers get mixed with worldwide numbers, etc. I think people worldwide are more likely to side with a format backed by Sony. Anyway screw all the fanboism. I bought the PS3 cause it is a fun unit to own.
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Have spoken THE truth. DRM is the bane of bluray and may screw the hd market for some time to come. In fact Id have to change my barely 4 years old component in only CRT rear projection 47" panny (with built in sound so Id also have to buy a new sound rig with a new tvset)to make getting bluray worth it. Since I dont expect to buy another set for at least 2 years (gonna wait till the new laser tech comes down to lcd levels) might as well put me in the hd-dvd only market for that period. Warner has lost my business for the next 6-8 quarters for no good reason. They could support both formats and wait it out knowing combo players would have taken care of any format issues. Warner was paid off plain and simple. The ont thing thatsa really killing and pissing me off to no end right now is New Line and LOTR.
Maybe Peter Jackson can do something about this. -
PS3 has component out up to 1080P (granted you have to buy the cable) and stereo out) till you upgrade.
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When you say, "Only 1 in 7 PS3 owners buy Blu-Ray discs." According to who? Because according to Sony, "research shows as many as 80% of PS3 owners have used the machine to watch at least one Blu-ray movie". Plus with Blu-ray's continued 3 to 1 software sales advantage in the U.S. (despite having slightly fewer stand-alone players) is proof of this. You make a claim that, "stand-alone players can ever come down from about $400", but there's already 4 Blu Ray players on the market that are sub-$300 (Samsung's BDP 1000, 1200 and 1400 and then there's Sony's BDPS300). When you say, "Blu-Ray is, at best, an failed experiment caused by corporate thuggery. At worst it's a Jedi mind-trick that sucked a lot of money out of people's wallets and delivered an unfinished, under-performing, overly-expensive format forced on the public by exploiting its goodwill towards the brand name of Playstation.", how so? If by this statement you mean the PS3 has bugs, well DUH. Every new tech gadget has bugs. And any tech savy person will tell you not to buy that gadget until at soonest the 3rd Generation so that the bugs are worked out. To me, you just sound like bitter former employee of Sony that got fired. If you have actual sources to back up any of your claims, I'm more than willing to listen to them. Otherwise you're just spreading propagandized rubbish.
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is paramount, so it will be realeased on hd dvd. ive heard people say transormers didnt make a difference, but thats wrong. Im in australia and untill transformers and knocked up came exclusive to HD DVD you couldnt find hd dvd anywhere, now they have a huge range here.
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Especially this card called 'MaxTheSilent' who isn't so silent over his unwise decision to side with the losing team. Boo hoo Max... Answer this question: with so many known dedicated people who are very into HD-DVD, how come you lot still suck when it comes to total overall sales? Maybe you aren't trying hard enough... maybe you and your HD-DVD buddies can go out there and rebuy your movies... twice, three times even, because that's how much this 'lower installed base' of Blu-Ray standalones and PS3s are kicking your collective asses! Blu-Ray ***DISCS*** which is what movie companies who don't manufacture hardware care about, sell much much MUCH more on blu-ray. NOT HD-DVD! You LOSE!And son't worry about the price of BD-Roms, they'll drop in due time for both consumer disc and hardware prices and manufacturing costs, so don't you worry... let the big boys at the studios tke care of those... or if you think they've overlooked it, please write to all those studios and pressing plants backing blu-ray a letter informing them about that particular monetary issue they may have overlooked when they made their decision to support blu-ray. Perhaps your daddy runs one of those plants and renovating their equipment to press blu-ray discs may hurt your family business' bottom line... I sympathize with you... no wait, I don't really give a damn! And seeing as how I'm so cocksure the blu-ray studios and manufacturers have considered the costs and expenses involved, they don't give a damn either because it's negligable for them in the long run! And if they want to draw consumer attention away from good ol DVD, then they have to begin dropping prices, and contrary to what you'd think I'd say that when there's no format war to worry about, they'd be more willing to take losses because they know returns are now better guaranteed on that specific format. They'll read the trends and react based on consumer interest, just as how consumer interest has informed WB to go blu... because the majority of consumers have chosen blu-ray, much to the chagrin of HD-DVD hardcores and Xbox 360 owners who want their dismal predictions to come true about PS3 so they won't get made fun of on their respective forums where they trolled and made their stupid claims but are now too ashamed.Better face reality Max, the losers aren't teh ones who backed PS3, in fact they're winning andthe PS3 is shaping up to do well and outsold the Xbox 360 in hardware AND software for the past few recent weeks and despite OMGNOGAMESWTFRIDICULOUS!!!So Maxthemoron... Ken Kutaragi was 'fired' eh...? And where did you get this juicy insider info from hmmmm? Because over here in the real world and no maxworld, Kutaragi retired, and remains a consultant for Sony. Please leave your hyperbole aside or inform yourself. Kutaragi and Sony took risks and guess what, looks like they might pay off and in that case they deserve to reap whatever rewards come their way, good for them. So stow your bullshit crackpottery about greed and corporate thuggery, and bold movies and exploiting which can just about describe every fucking business practice and method under the sun, all legitimate, all sensible and that's what gets people ahead and companies to where they are. Calm down and face the truth, the recent news and turns all point in blu-rays favor and you put your money on the wrong horse... whereas PS3 owners will get their games and HD movies on a standard next generation format and all teh other stuff Sony's got in store. Your common sense failed you and I wouldn't buy your stock trading tips and business strategies from a bargin bin. So you and your crum chums can go back to patting yourselfs on teh back at your smooth decisions to buy better HD-DVD players and movies on clearence, I'm sure you'll enjoy the fine selections of yesterdays movies, many of them that you already won on DVD anyway, but what the hell, you're striking a bargain here, and have fun lending those and borrowing form the rest of the big blu world of people and blockbuster. But there's always digital downloads right! Just you wait, give it 5-7 years, maybe 10 years and the infrastructure will come for everyone, but maybe there'll be something for the elitists to get into early, enjoy paying those costs you early adopters of downloading! Do it for free illegally too! That'll show those corporate bastards at Sony a thing or two!
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Check the Rockstar Home Theater link. I know they're a Sony dealership because I brought a tv from them some years back, before any of this 'format war' nonsense started.
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Ain't happening as soon as some think on this board. The 35 and under crowd can at least handle the concept of Digital Downloads, however the majority of the country is over 35, thus tech unsavy. If you're being honest with yourself, are your parents and grandparents going to understand how to digitally download movies? Or would it just be easier for them to do what they've always done and go to the local video store and rent a Blu Ray. Also, there's a good argument to be made for the willingness to pay $20 (the going price for a movie) for each download vs. Paying $20 for a physical disc that can't be lost due to a hard drive failure or power surge. I'm not saying Digital Downloads can't or won't happen. I'm just saying it most likely won't be for 7 to 10 years down the road before it's a viable option. By that time, your precious DVDs that you vow to keep and not upgrade will be the equivalent to Vinyl.
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1. There's no way Fox was going HD DVD because they chose Blu-ray due to the DRM of BD+. 2. There's no way Disney was going HD DVD because Steve "Apple Inc." Jobs is the largest shareholder of Disney and HD DVD is a Microsoft format. Anyone thinking otherwise on these points is smoking medical crack without a legal ID card.
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They RAN OUT OF FUCKING SPACE on the dual-layered HD-DVD!!! So they had to choose between special features and high quality audio! Meanwhile TDK has recently developed a 200 GB Blu-Ray disc that they say is usable in all current players! Not only can we say it's all good for movies like LOTR + Extras and audio who have their future in blu-ray, but once writers and discs become commercially available at affordable prices it's going to come in real handy for me! Maybe I'll use one of those to store all my HD Digital Downloads to clear off space from my harddrive and take them with me and lend them to people! Magnificient!Wha wait...? What's that you say? Maybe both these formats will go away and be replaced by something else? Well, how about that! Can anyone say... "no shit?" The question is when? 10 years from now? Isn't DVD lasting about 10 years now? Is it doing fine? Were we happy? I guess so... But wait? Some of you cretins think holographic versitile discs or some other amazing tech is gonna be out right around the corner? Well colour me impressed! But hold on there... so when these things come out, blu-ray will have had a head start, all the movie companies will have settled for it, consumers will have settled for it... also these HVD players and discs will no doubt be even MORE EXPENSIVE than the fanciest blu-ray player! And be MORE EXPENSIVE to manufacture! And we ought to ask ourselves, do we really need a fucking terrabyte disc to hold one HD movie and extras! When a 50-100GB may really be sufficient enough, or can we count on some new fangled form of movie contentcoming out soon that's rendered so big and in such crystal clear sound that it can be projected on the surface of the dark side of the moon via satellites and people in the south pole can still hear it??? Wow! that sounds just as amazing as the promises of faster, more versatile broadband internet connections for instant digital distribution! Then can anyone explain to me why when two months ago I tried switching my rogers cable internet account to Primus high speed DSL, after weeks of trying and being without a connection and on the phone with customer support in the end they told me I'd have to go with my old provider because they couldn't give me a simple dedicated 5mbps DSL service signal in my area???!!!!! And I don't live in some hicktown, I live in Toronto! Go FUCK YOURSELVES and your dream speeches on why digital is the next thing, because back in reality is sure as hell isn't gonna be anytime soon! Not unless you like waiting! I'll walk to the store in the thick of winter, buy it and be back before that thing reaches 15% Until all those things come together, movie studios have no incentive to offer it, well... maybe they can, because it costs them nothing to distribute digital files so they can still cater to what will in actual fact really be a niche audience of people with the connection speeds and large HDDs to make it worthwhile! The infrastructure just isn't there for everyone, and by teh time it eventually gets here the Apocalypse might come and none of this shit's gonna matter anyway...
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Rockstar also sells other brands. And the biggest sponsor on that site is Amazon who sells...HD-DVD.
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While you're echoeing every bit of skewed Sony propaganda you've ever read spouted by the likes of 'Billy-Blu' over at the Digital Bits, you should concern yourselves with getting in line to buy those Profile 2.0 players that'll be released... sometime soon. With actual discs to follow... sometime later. Maybe by the end of the year your beloved format will match what HD-DVD has had AS STANDARD since launch.
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I bought Resident Evil: Apocalypse on Blu-Ray for $25 this week at Wal-Mart. That is only $5 more than the regular DVD and hardly expensive in comparison.
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Good comeback. Two Thumbs Down. Go back to my 3rd Generation explanation.
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I'm sure Sony will be kind enough to give me an update for my PS3, you know... the real majority of blu-ray players out there... for profile 2.0. And I hope you've enjoyed all those HD-DVD features since launch for these past 2-3 years until it all comes to an end... we'll let you have those and proceed to enjoy the next 7-10 years, and perhaps you might be inclined to join us when studios eventually start releasing newer or particular titles only on blu-ray and not DVD to force conversions and phase it out, but by then I'm sure the price of entry will treat you kindly...
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I am not patting myself on the back to get a 360 or hd-a3. I just didn't feel like spending over a grand to get what I thought would be a somewhat comprable format. I guess I just figued that the powers that be(i.e)the rich and greedy might give a good quality product to the masses at a fair and reasonable price. Unfortunately, it looks like they are just going to jack up the prices of the game system and player, monompolize all the studios and stick it to those of us who can't afford to take out a bank loan to enjoy the movies we thought we would be able to when we purchased these systems. Guess the joke is on us. Hope everybody gets a good laugh at our expense while we enjoy sub-par releases on systems we spent our hard earned dollars on.
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Jan 06, 2008 12:25:58 AM CST
I'll never concede defeat to the inferior format until...
by maxthesilent
...Ken Graffeo, the patron saint of HDM, declares Universal's acquiesence to the Evil Empire of $ony. I just hope $ony's pockets are deep enough to buy them out like they did Fox and Warners. They can just add that $1 billion as a tax write-off to the $4 billion they've already squandered on the rushed, faulty format and the worthless PS3. By Auguse the PS3 and Blu-ray with it will be dead. And HD-media will be the big loser. To paraphrase one of Fox's most 'creatively significant' franchises; Blu-Ray wins, We lose. Enjoy your Sony-controlled future, Sony acolytes. If you think a single movie studio controlling the ENTIRE HD media format is a good idea then you deserve what's coming. As for me, I'll but HD-DVD until the last disc leaves the factory. THEN I will assess the state of the format and decide if I wish to continue supporting it. And if Sony's handling of the develop,ment and release of the PS3 is any indication of their plans for Blu-Ray then I doubt it'll be an issue before the second quarter of 2008. I can just see the it now: "You can't release I AM LEGEND and THE MATRIX on Blu-Ray that month because we've got another SPIDER-MAN box-set coming out. Delay it!!" Congragulations, Warners. You've effectively handed the keys to all next-gen HD media to a ruthless, lying rival studio. I sincerely hope you're happy. And that's all I have to say on the matter. Good health and happiness to all of you.
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Bongo 123 and all those that continue to say that digital downloads are the way of the future. Quit thinking we currently live in the Star Wars-Blade Runner-age. We're many years away from flying cars and a 800 movie library sitting on your thumb drives! Please re-read AllanUSC's post above. This perfectly summarizes why for the next 10 years or so, downloads WILL NOT be the way for true movie buffs who appreciate true HD quality sound and picture. The monetary and technological need for computer storage space (plus back-up storage in case of crashes), faster download speeds and more importantly, people's patience and personal time, will prevent this hopeful fantasy from happening anytime soon. I want it as much as you but it's just not here yet. Honestly, can you really imagine someone's grandmother chillin behind her computer for hours, downloading a library of her favorite movies? Tangible media will be around much longer to warrant an investment in Blu-Ray discs now. Marv4213...LG is releasing or has released a dual format player called SuperBlu which will play those soon to be obsolete HD-DVDs. Better yet, why not just sell the player and movies while you still can on eBay and start buying Blu-Ray? Hope this helped.
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I meant I bought Resident Evil: Extinction. My bad.
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Thank you for the support. Good to see that at least one other person has common sence.
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Ummm... this MaximillianTheQuiet guy sure has a vendetta against Sony. That's unfortunate for him.
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where the fuck do you get your information? do you really think the ps3 is outselling the 360 in software and harware sales the past couple of weeks? "Xbox 360 software represented 74 percent of total software sales for the next generation market compared to 17 percent for Wii and 9 percent for PS3." and "According to the numbers, the Microsoft XBox 360 sold 1.1 million units in December as compared to 490700 units sold for the PS3. " - gamespot
get your facts straight fanboy
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Your idea about putting a price on time is okay, but you act like it's actually labor-intensive. Fact is, I can be at work/school/getting lunch while my computer is downloading 4 films. So now, the model is reversed. It takes about 1 minute to seach and start a download. It takes another 15 seconds to use WinRAR and another 20 seconds to boot up your burner program and start burning yourself a DVD.
That's less than 2 minutes of actual work expended to get a $20 hard copy.
I don't even do this kind of stuff for movies, but I do download music (mostly CDs that I sold way back in the day when I was dirt poor or things that were broken/stolen). -
MaxTheSilent, I loved your last post. I've really missed good comedy writing since the start of the writer's strike.
But seriously, please clarify some of your positions for us.
Are you predicting that the PS3 and Blu-ray will be dead by AUGUST OF **THIS YEAR** (2008)?? If so, what makes you think this will happen? And please don't say it's because "$ony i$ Evil." (I LOVE THAT CREATIVE USE OF PUNCTUATION. Using a dollar sign instead of an "S," I HAVE **NEVER** SEEN THAT BEFORE!!! I think I'll try that for the rest of this po$t!! <<<
If you have any fact$ to back up any of your prediction$, plea$e let u$ all know.
Max, once again, it wa$ great to hear your idea$. PLEA$E keep them coming.
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--->>> $ee how I'm using a dollar sign instead of an "S,"COOL!!
I think you al$o $aid that you're $ticking with "HD-DVD until the la$t di$c leave$ the factory. THEN I will a$$e$$ the $tate of the format and decide if I wi$h to continue $upporting it." Doe$ that mean that you'll wait UNTIL THE LA$T HD-DVD di$c leave$ the factory and at that point you'll decide if you $till want to continue $upporting HD-DVD? What if, after "the la$t di$c leave$ the factory" you decide you $till want to continue $upporting HD-DVD? What do you do then? Make your own HD-DVD$? If you're that technically $avvy maybe you can $ave money by building a water-powered HD-DVD player that al$o play$ VH$ tape$ and cook$ pancake$.
La$tly, you $ay that $ony will $omehow control the relea$e $chedule$ of other Blu-ray-$upporting $tudio$. If they really wanted to do thi$ why haven't they already $tarted? And if I remember correctly, JVC invented VH$. Did they control home video relea$e date$?
If you have any fact$ to back up any of your prediction$, plea$e let u$ all know.
Max, once again, it wa$ great to hear your idea$. PLEA$E keep them coming.
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He's too big a movie addict to have done without for long, no matter his friends in the HD-DVD world.
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so you base your argument on STEALING movies online and call that a reason for not buying Blu-ray? Wow, as a friend of writers, actors and producers I have to say that is the lamest reason ever. Support stuff because it's better, not because you can STEAL it easier...
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Like a broken record it is repeated. Sony did not make Blu ray by themselves, they are not the head of the BDA and the do not have final say in all matters blu ray.
Warner going shouldn't be a surprise because blu ray media has been outselling HD DVD media pretty much all of 2007. Some dust was trying to be blown into peoples eyes about stand alone players. It was obvious it was smoke because the companies do not care what people play blu rays on as long as they are consistently purchasing the movies.
It's over. It was a forgone conclusion. It was said when the sales surged and didn't seem to cease.
Just like harry said though this has sold people on HD. If the tide was in the other direction I would have turned red because I refuse to go back to standard def. -
Maxthesilent, you are one seriously funny dude. The majority of blu ray players are PS3. Guess what that means. Profile 2.0 is only a firmware update away for millions of PS3 owners and blu ray supporters.
Not only does space prove an advantage and allows studios to use varying types of codecs and audio tracks but the individual and overal maximum bitrates are higher on blu ray. That talks within itself.
So as far as features it will be only time and seeing how fast things are moving I don't ecpect it to be that much longer before 2.0 hits and all the feature associated with it.
And before you continue spewing your nonsense about sony controlled future maybe you want to take another look at those who developed and control blu ray
http://www.blu-ray.com/faq/#bluray_developers -
First of all, we were talking about HD content so the download time for a 15 – 20GB movie will be significantly longer than for a standard DVD (4-9 GB). And just because you don’t have to sit at the computer while it downloads movies doesn’t mean you get them in no time.
If we both decided, at 12pm on Sunday, that we wanted to watch an HD version of “The Fifth Element” and I bought a copy at Best Buy and you started your download and burn process, which one of us would start watching the movie first?
I assume that we are all movie lovers here. Don’t you love HAVING an official, professionally manufactured copy of a beloved movie instead of a plain-looking disc with a title scrawled on it in your own handwriting?
Maybe I’m strange but for me It’s not just about the movie. I love the artwork and extra inserts. I love seeing movies I love on the shelf. Just seeing the spine reminds me of how good the movie is.
Don’t you like seeing all three Lord of The Rings Extended Editions in your collection, in their beautiful book-like cases?
And don’t forget that paying for a movie is a way of showing our appreciation to the producers and actors for a well made film.
I’ll admit, I have downloaded movies (from MovieLink) that I just want to watch but don’t care about. If I ever felt like watching crap like “Daddy Day Camp” I’d probably download it and watch it on my PC that’s attached to my HDTV. I wouldn’t even waste a blank disc to burn something like that.
For movies that I actually want to watch again downloading is just too time consuming and leaves you with an inferior product in the end.
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And if I ever get Blu Ray, I'm gonna have to get a Ps3? Bull... Boo on warner.
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So you won't be seeing The Dark Knight? Sucks to be you.
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...about the new HD formats. DVD still is fine for me.
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This might be a stupid question but how do you add paragraph breaks to posts in these TalkBacks. This system seems so clunky, like the 8-track of message boards!!
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before and after your paragraph. Without the spaces.
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Thanks.
I'll try it. -
I'm not pointing to anyone in particular here but to all those that post comments like "I don't care which format wins" or "I don't care about HD on disc at all. DVD/VHS/Beta are just fine for me."
I you really I don't care about these topics, why are you posting comments on this TalkBack? I counted at least half a dozen posts that basically stated "I don't care about what you guys are talking about." What's the point of such a post?
I, for one, really don't care who becomes the new Governor of Nevada so I'm not going to find one of their online forums and tell them that. What would be the point?
I know that "I don't care" is a valid opinion but what does it really add to this discussion? -
Better selection of Blu Ray. Dusty cases for HDDVD. Playstation 3 has now had the Bluray update so is ready for the new features. Would prefer that distrubutors supported both formats.... tech wise it can't be that hard and surely they will sell more? Silly format war. Also, upscaled DVD's on the PS3 look great. No reason to replace my back catalogue. Just gonna buy new releases on Bluray.
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The format war is over. Period. The HD DVD camp has pulled out of CES. It's DONE.
All the HD DVD supporters need to stop their bitching. The writing has been on the wall for months now. Blu-Ray has been the clear leader as far as software and player sales (don't ever forget the power of the PS3). Oh, and "boycott" whoever you want. I'm sure it'll make quite an impact.
And don't ever kid yourselves that Harry was probably in the pocket of the HD DVD camp from the get-go. -
Ya but without competition its likely discs will be coded to only output 480 (540) via component now... Its a disc to hw related thing that both hd dvd and bluray have but hddvd hasnt enabled yet. I suppose there could be some kind of hack eventually... I hope so.
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I've chosen not to buy either at this point. Regular DVD is still good enough for me.
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Was at a Best Buy yesterday where I passed by a customer taking with one of the guys in the home theater section. She had a 19" lcd in her cart along with an HD DVD player. I politely interrupted their conversation to let them know that Warners had just announced exclusivity to the Blu-Ray format and that the last thing she wanted to do was to buy an HD DVD player. I excused myself and went back to my shopping. A little alter she came up to me and thanked me for my help and ended up buying TWO Blu-Ray players. She was upgrading her home entertainment gadgets. And she was in the 60's!
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We're not anywhere near that, folks. I don't give a shit what MicroShit says.
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on this whole matter. Wait and see. When the time comes at which download speeds and storage space aren't an issue, there will be no need for tangible storage devices like discs for anything but backups in the future.
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AllanUSC, before he got all pissed, is one of the only folks on here who actually posted logical argument with verified facts. Maxthesilent could actually learn from this rather than just pulling crap out of his tail.
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It seems, after looking, the numbers that have been quoted here are only USA numbers. Worldwide numbers have been projected the PS3 to have sold more than the 360 over the holidays per vgchartz.com (which is an estimated number, but about as close as one can expect from any reputable site). Worldwide, BRD is the only HD format that actually made sales, period.
Worldwide -- that's key -- folks. Don't be so damn myopic. -
Pipple - Let me guess. In your idealistic future "there will be no need for tangible storage devices like discs" because all the movies we pay for will be stored on the content provider's servers, right?
That means that we never own another piece of physical media again. Do you think people will pay for virtual ownership of a movie?
In reality we'll probably be renting or leasing these titles. Do you think these content providers will be willing to store our movie collections indefinately without further payment? Not likely.
As I've said before, I can see the possibility that movie dowloads MIGHT replace physical movie rentals in the future but downloads will never satisfy our desire to own and hold something tangible when we pay for a movie.
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Jan 06, 2008 9:54:34 AM CST
I WILL go Blu-Ray, but not yet. We'll now get CHEAP HD disks!
by harryblackpotter
I've only just got me an X-Box 360 strap-on HD. I've just got Terminator 2 HD from Amazon Frenchy. It's a 2 disk set and the picture of the directors cut is AMAZING. All the reviews say it's much better transfer than the Blu-Ray, so there, neh! But I will probably go Blu Ray when I get a stand-alone player, but in the mean time THINK OF ALL THOSE HD DVD'S WE'LL GET FOR MARKED DOWN PRICES! So, maybe we're all winners in the end!!!!!!!
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YOU are idiots!In a POST above I stated that you are no IDIOTS!Man I was wrong!That "this is better then that"shit is BORING!THE FORMAT WAR IS OVER(read my POSTS above to see why)!ANYBODY WHO PREFERS DIGITAL DOWNLOAD SHIT TO A REAL DVD IS NOT A MOVIELOVER,HE IS AN "I HAVE TO WATCH ANY SHIT I CAN GET MY DIGITAL HANDS ON ASSHOLE"(also read my POSTS above to understand)!AllenUSC and some other TB`s seem to be the only ones with BRAINS around here!But I like the MaxThe...dude for beeing so pissed and his ANTI-SONY hate rants are funny!
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THERE IS NOT ONE GAME FOR THE PS3 THAT COMES CLOSE TO THAT MASTERPIECE!NOT ONE!And I like the PS3,but gamewise it still very weak!
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I have both systems and agree that the gaming is better on the 360--when it works. I just sent my 360 in again last week to be repaired/replaced, this will be my 4th one in a year. The PS3 stays on and just keeps on chugging. The PS3 just incorporates a much larger package than the 360--bluetooth, built-in wireless, blu-ray, larger HD (in my case) but you're right the games are lacking. And if you don't have a 60gb (or 20gb) you don't get the backwards compatibility with the older PS2 games. Just glad I don't have to get an HD-DVD player now too.
BTW, I bought both systems on Craigslist for half the retail price. MS still honors the warranties so for those just looking to get in to the next-gen gaming at a lower price point there are deals to be had on Cragislist.
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I don't care one way or the other (and I think it's silly to be a format evangelist), I just want there to be a winner as quickly as possible so I can buy it. My 46' Samsung 1080p needs to be fed! It's all going to come down to cash, and the consumers are going to eventually make the decision. Take a look at current rankings on Amazon.com for DVD sales (all formats): http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/dvd/ref=pd_dp_ts_d_1
Top 50 best-selling DVDs (all formats)
Blu-Ray: 15
HD DVD: 1
#1-4 were all Blu-Ray (Harry Potter films).
Top 100 DVDs (all formats)
Blu-ray: 29
HD DVD: 2
The top selling HD DVD was David Attenborough’s Planet Earth series. It’s also available on Blu-Ray:
Planet Earth Blu-Ray: #21 overall
Planet Earth HD DVD: #34 overall
The next highest selling HD DVD? #76.
Blade Runner 5-disc set Blu-Ray: #20 overall
Blade Runner 5-disc set HD DVD: #76 overall
That’s it for HD DVD in the top 100 selling DVDs on Amazon. What’s most remarkable about this is that BOTH of the HD DVDs in the top 100 are also available on Blu-Ray, and the sales are far better on Blu-Ray.
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I know we'll keep discs around for backups and of course store the movies on a harddrive, but let's be realistic. What use is there for dvds these days after you've watched a film once or twice? It sits on a shelf collecting dust. 20 bucks sits around doing nothing! Well I'm guessing that we'll do away with that whole store-bought digital media shit and just download everything. Whether you want it sitting on your shelf until you're dead is up to you.
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and here in Germany Sony has just two versions of the PS3:one with 60GB for 599€ and one with 40GB for 399€,but the smaller one cant run PS2 games anymore!And the smaller one has lesser USB ports and some other shit missing.Sony has some FUCKED up politics!
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In the small scheme of the two high def discs, this is a big deal. But compare the number of High def TVs bought this past year with the combined number of high def disc players (that's HD-DVD and BluRay). No one (that is, the average consumer) really gives a crap about the high def player. They buy an upconverting DVD player and that's good enough for them.
High Def IS a niche format, pure and simple. The studios need to put their products out in different formats (downloadable content, on demand, etc.) and it has to be simple with minimal "rights limitations" so people can access the content on their own terms. -
Their Kool-Aid is better than Sony's Kool-Aid. The average Xbot has the same fanatical devotion to destroying Sony as your average Islamic fundamentalist has towards driving Israel into the sea.
Just a quick reminder kids: Microsoft are many things, but "the good guys" isn't one of them.
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The reason that the number of HD players bought remains small is due to the format war, not because they don't want the quality. If there was a clear choice I would already own one of them.Once you get an HD set and watch the difference between HD and non-HD content you become obsessed with the higher quality. Viewers watching network HD broadcasts can tell the difference between that and upconverted DVD players. It's not a niche, it's the future. The only thing delaying it is the stupid format war.
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bought a PS3... ill prolly pick up MGS and Resident Evil when they come out... but other than that, no reason to buy games for PS3... I am a HUGE PC gamer... I don't how people play FPS games with a controller... so alien to me!
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How is that possible? The price of HD-DVD players...which upconvert standard dvd...take a nosedive in price. Suddenly, if your in the market to upconvert your cheap dvds, why not grab an HD-DVD player and grab some cheap HD-DVDs? Next thing you know, you have this snowball effect with consumers. Anything is possible.
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Anyone with half a brain who actually knew what they were talking about technically knew that BluRay from the offered the most future proofing and some attempt at DRM right from the off. I don't expect anyone to make films for you swabs to swipe for free otherwise we'd all go bankrupt and you wouldn't get any new films or in fact any old films either. Pron was never a factor, nor was the name and neither is downloading. Case closed. End of story. We told you so. All the naysayers can try and explain how 80% of the worlds major film producers are going to suddenly do a U turn all you like. It's game over guys... GAME OVER. So Harry, you can apologise whenever you like. Go ahead, it's easy and we'll all love you the more. Any time fella.
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Apologies. My bad. :D
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By the time enough people would have purchased HD-DVD players out of the discount bin to affect video sales, all of the studios will have moved over to blu ray. Universal and Paramount aren't going to be sitting around for years hoping for a miraculous recovery in HD-DVD's fortunes. Besides, blu ray upconverts too and the price differential will soon become negligible. I'm sure that most consumers would prefer to go with a player that supports a "living" format.
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Why not grab a cheap HD-DVD player to watch your dvds upconverted to near HD level. Hey, cool. I think I'll grab some HD-DVDs. Score! I still win! (heh,heh)
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Using a controller for FPS becomes second nature. Once your past the learning curve it's actually quite cool that you can do it all with just a simple controller. I used to use a keyboard only, no mouse or trackball for FPS. You'll grow to like it. As for games, try picking up Orange Box, after 10 years Team Fortress is still my favorite game :D
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travis-dane, the cheaper PS3 has hardware missing? Who woulda thunk it? Maybe that's the reason...... it is cheaper.
It's called a choice. Having one is better than having none. All sku's of the PS3 retain the ability to play PS3 games. Now there's a choice for people who don't care about BC and possibly for those who don't care about games at all. -
The 4 HP BluRay films are BOGO right now at Amazon, which is why they are 1-4. A lot of BluRay are BOGO, which could explain why they are in the top 50. I would be interested in seeing the sales for a week or so ago when a bunch of HD DVDs were BOGO, including Harry Potter 1-4. I bought them then and I'm sure I wasn't alone. For the record, I have both an HD DVD and BluRay player and honestly can't tell a difference. I bought the HPs on HDDVD solely because they were BOGO. If a title is released on both formats I base my purchasing decision on which disc has the lower price and/or special features I would actually watch.
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Reading this thread. They do indeed say hope springs eternal But Warners wants to tip the balance (and very probably has)... so very soon: There will be no new HD DVD content and no more players will be built It will become harder and harder to buy an SD TV - and strangely easier and easier to buy an HD TV (because the manufacturers aren't going to give you the option) and after a while you won't be able to buy DVD (so sorry) but only BR (but hey, they'll play your DVDs, unless we rip that out too) These companies need to keep moving us to new formats, they need to keep bringing out new tech for us to buy, and they take the choice to stay put away from us. As an example could I (in an easy and meangingful way) walk out and buy a VHS player, Transformers on VHS and watch it? Nope. Most people blowing a fuse on this site either need to face facts or take some valium and deal with it.
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Shut up, all of you.
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Do you all realize how fucking spoiled we’ve all become? We are ALL sucking on the teets of the studios, and have been for years. Doesn’t matter what format we’re choosing, we’re all at their collective whim.
Remember when your local theatre had one, maybe two screens? The best quality films would come to town, you’d wait in line for an hour or two JUST TO GET A TICKET. Then, if you saw a great film, you’d pass the word on to your friend. They’d go stand in line the following weekend because they were so stoked. They’d tell two friends, and then they’d tell two friends, etc., etc. THAT is what made a blockbuster in those days. THAT is how the studios made their money. You didn’t have 20 screens and 100 showings a day. A blockbuster film would stay in theatres for months, selling out night after night. Movies were an event. An experience.
Those days are long gone. The studios don’t give a shit about anything but the opening weekend gross. After that (usually about three months later, if that), it’s DVD sales. These studios now pump out the most unfathomable shit, and then shrug when the movie bombs opening weekend, saying, “ah well, we’ll make it up in DVD sales.” The funny thing is, they almost always do. There are no box office bombs these days, because the market is not geared that way anymore. It’s not quality any more, it’s quantity. Then, the studios start freaking out when people start downloading pirated versions of “Who’s Your Caddy” off the internet, when they know damn good and well people aren’t going to pay over $20 of their hard earned money for two tickets to sit in the theatre and endure such a hunk of shit. But, the DVD will be out in three months for $15 or less at the local Best Buy. That way they can have their Big Boi fix any time they want. The studio still gets your money. Look how much the theatrical-to video window has shrunk over the last few years compared to the nine months to a year we used to wait to get our hands on a home release. We’re a market that is no longer patient to get our fix, and the studios know it. It’s garbage in, garbage out.
The only way to change things is with your wallets, folks. There are a few reasons why standard DVD sales dropped 5% last year. The main reasons are that Joe Consumer has either: A) bought either HD-DVD or Blu-Ray (or both) and has begun upgrading his or her collection, B) Is waiting for a clear-cut winner, so he or she can restart purchasing with peace of mind, or C) been scared to death that his or her library will becoming obsolete and refuses to buy anything more until someone tells them to. Personally, I fall under option B, because I am just so flat-out frustrated with the bitching and moaning from both sides and their own varying degree of corporate greed. I used to easily buy two or three DVD’s a week with what disposable income I had left. Now, I have Netflix. The first DVD I bought in almost four months was “Order Of Phoenix,” and my justification was the fact that I felt more comfortable giving my money to Warner, because they stayed format neutral and left the choice to us. Until this weekend, they were the studio I detested the least.
I still think downloading is years from being a reality, and I still don’t feel like I will be interested. Why? Because with my crappy broadband connection where I live, it would literally take hours to download the movie I can already order on pay per view (which I don’t do, either). This is years from fixing itself, especially where I live. I like buying DVD’s (or, at least I used to), because I have it. Right there, on the shelf. I can pull it out, throw it in my player, and within a few seconds, I’m off and running. Plus, I have all the extras, the commentary, the cover art, etc., etc.. Something tangible. Something I can take to a friend and say, “hey, you gotta see this.” I guess I just don’t see downloading catching on, unless it’s literally the only thing that’s left. How many times have any of you spent hours at a store, sifting through tangible product on the shelf, and walked out with something you clearly did not go in to that store intending to buy? Movies, for the most part, are an impulse buy. That is something I just don’t think the studios understand. They aren’t a necessity (at least for most of us).
Look, I’ve said this from day one. HD-DVD has no region coding, which would be great for us consumers, but bad for the studios. Why do you think Fox made such a big deal about jumping on the Blu-Ray bandwagon because of copy protection? MORE CONTROL. Region coding gives studios control of the distribution of the copyrighted product, especially when it comes to dealing with foreign distribution rights. God forbid I use this example, but let’s just say if a copy of “Titanic” is sold here in the states, the sale goes to Paramount. That might not necessarily be the case abroad, because theatrical and video distribution rights may belong to Fox over there, and Paramount loses the sale. I’m surprised any studio jumped on board with HD-DVD until this were remedied, but obviously Toshiba and Microsoft were more worried about clogging the market and further enhancing a “format war.” The financial incentives to probably played a hand in easing Paramount’s mind about relinquishing some of that control, as well as a promise of what the future may bring. I’m sure they attempting to make out like bandits in the end, when a secure, encrypted, method of download delivery would become the standard. Then, the control comes back to them. If they were serious about a next generation format, they would have protected their investment to begin with.
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DVD....
the loser is anyone who buys a HD-DVD or Blue Ray player. -
games on the smaller one!Just was wondering about SONYS politics since the gamers in Germany want to play their old games too.
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Sorry, that was a rant. I'm stepping down off the soapbox now.
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How so? Explain how that logic works. Because I really have NO idea how DVD wins.
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Holographic Versatile Disc. This will hold 3.9 terabytes. Look it up. I ain't buying fuck. Blu-Ray's days are numbered. As of HVD, then you will be watching movies uncompressed. So clear you'll be able to see the hairs on a Fruit Fly's ball sack!
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....especially within the rental market alongside VOD...however physical media will never go because people like collecting things, they're usually a lot more reliable and well isn't always that extra bit of excitement/specialness when you hold a cd/dvd in your hands? That you paid for this because you wanted it/found it interesting via the cover art? Downloads will never replace that and cd/dvds still make great presents. Simple as.
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They got balls?
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Unless you want to be limited to whos movies you can watch .. buying either of the new formats right now is a mistake. I love HD picture but i dont want to watch Star trek on HD-DVD and Batman on Blue Ray (not so much that i dont want too, but that i cant afford it).. right now DVD gets both so ill stick with that until the war is over .. or this HVD thing comes around. (also the price tag on these new format disk is outrageous)
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Actually Xbox Live has digital downloads already. Michael Bay was right; Microsoft doesn't want either format to win.
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You mean in the short term. And that's fine. Earlier in this TB I said that DVDs are fine right now. But by Christmas of '09 DVD = VHS.
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Isn't that more than enough time when you really think about it? If you use Netflix it takes several days. If you go buy the DVD you don't normally watch it that same night. People have been downloading films from Bittorrent for quite a while now, and that isn't immediate gratification either.
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Seems the last week December numbers of PS3 outselling 360 hardware and software are probably not reliable since they come from VGChartz, so I'll take my statement back, but I don't know if official numbers are out yet, but anyway I'll concede for now. Anyway I will reiterate that the PS3 is doing well, and they'll be around way longer than this August, unlike what some people on this board think... Especially given that the PS3 is selling well in Europe and Japan, some people here honestly think PS3 will go under before Final Fantasy arrives??? That's just delusional...Again, back to maxtheSilent... where the hell do you get the idea that Sony is this God-like company who can tell other studios what and when they can release their own movies??? That is utterly ridiculous! First off as others have repeated, they aren't the owner of blu-ray, they're part of a consortium, and no doubt they are the biggest member and the ones spearheading it, given that they're the ones taking the bigger risks means that they get to reap bigger benefits, but that in no way makes them controllers of what goes into every freaking blu-ray disc. Are you going to claim next that when blu-ray burners and discs are available for consumers, that Sony is going to come over to my house and prevent me from storing my 10 years worth of family pictures on one of them? Or will they tell me that jpegs are unacceptable and I must only use bmp?And about all the HD-DVD price bullshit, yes it is cheaper tha blu-ray overall, but prices would not be this low was Toshiba not desperate enough to cave in to the blu-ray juggernaut. Thanks to the format wars prices dropped fast. I don't see them going back up, that'd just be retarded, at least you know the PS3 price won't jack back up, and no new SKUs don't count because the cheaper option is still available.Lastly, HDTVs are practically the only televisions available in most stores, hell you'd have to go out of your freaking way to find some old ass black and decker TV. That's all people are buying and people love televisions and surround sound and all that jazz, sure they may not buy the most freaking expensive televisions and systems, but they will buy an HD player at an affordable price. I'm a cheap consumer, but even I'll spend a couple more if I'm already spending a lot. It's up to the salesmen at Bestbuy and Walmart to convince the buyer. And now that the format war has a pretty dead on leader in blu-ray, that makes convincing the customer that much easier! Plus everyone loves Playstation, so a lot may be convinced to get the cheaper 40GB PS3 with Spider-man. And I'll predict another price drop this summer so Sony can try and sway buyers when MGS4 and GTAIV and that Home service of theirs come out. Also cable TV networks will continuously be shouting at their customers to switch to HD channels, they won't shut up about it and they'll tihnk of ingenious ways to discuss it. Shit there are already people I wouldn't expect ever making enquiries about what 1080p means or what HDMI is...
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In 10 years time you'll be able to store 3.9 teraytes on a damn pen drive. We'll certainly be talking hundreds of gigabytes enough for the average movie fans library. Digital Downlaoding is not so remote or improbable. Of course there's always something to be said for owning something tangible but that people will end up only buying real event movies and such that way. Personally, though whenever Criterion decide what their new format will be I'll be sold.
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Sure it's a plus for HD-DVD, but I can see why studios would want to control their releases, for example sometimes a DVD may release in teh states long before plans are in place to even get that same film to play on another country's theatre screens, so that eats into some theatrical profits. On the other hand sometimes it's the only way for some countries to view a movie that'll never be released there. And then there is that hardcore group who love foreign movies enough to get it day and date. That said, DVDs had far mroe restrictive region encoding than blu-ray does... did that keep region free players from coming out? Don't you think that sooner or later region free blu-ray players will be out? So relax...And for the people anticipating holographic discs, you make me laugh... you sure you're going to pay for that when it comes out? The player and the disc? Can't wait to see studio support for that one! Even funnier I bet those now boasting about HVD are teh same ones insisting HD-DVD is better than blu-ray because it's cheaper...
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Your argument is flawed. According to your argument, I can either wait 6 hours for a download or wait a day for Netflix. However I can always drive a minute down the road to my local video store. Downloads as a viable option as I posted way earlier in this TB is 7 - 10 years down the road, if ever.
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I didn't say that I stole films in my post, tjhksig. I merely was giving an example to AllanUSC that it doesn't actually take 4 physical hours of time to download a film.I've bought too many DVDs, physically, as it is. If anyone here wants to buy "Punch Drunk Love" off of me for $5 + shipping, I'd be more than happy to sell it. Along with about 100 other films that I don't even watch anymore.
As for AllanUSC, you're right in saying that if we both spontaneously decided to watch a film, you'd win out, although I don't know of any 24 hr. Best Buys, so maybe you'd actually lose, depending on when we decided. It's all semantics. You're trying to state a point that no one will ever embrace a non-physical medium, and I think that's just wrong.
Look at the new Radiohead download of In_Rainbows. People most definitely embraced that idea, despite getting an adequate, yet poorer quality, recording. And Radiohead released a high-quality box set for purists. People bought that as well.
It comes down to how far you're willing to go. I noticed a huge difference between DVD and VHS, but I don't have the equipment necessary to actually enjoy much of a difference between BluRay/HDDVD and DVD, so it's not worth it to me. I can't afford to buy an HDTV AND a BluRay or HDDVD player. When we talk about prices of players and people transitioning over, you're not just talking about the player. You're talking about a $50 HDMI cable, a 1080p TV, and a player. That will always come to well over a $1,000, unless you're buying Uncle Nutzy's Wally World TV.And I think that people coming here and stating that they don't care is important, because that is a large number of people who're simply stating that the format war has no effect on them, or that they're simply not going to choose a side because of this ridiculous expense associated with it.For two, while downloads might take you some foresight (though renting through Netflix/LG's set-top box is supposed to stream the film to you), it would be a cheaper alternative. If there was an non-proprietary download service that I could pay say $10 for a DVD and download it, I honestly wouldn't care about having the case. It's a lot of clutter, anyway.
On top of all that ... it's easy to make a professional label for your DVD these days. Pirates make 'em all the time. AGAIN ... I'm not condoning piracy, world. But I'm stating the technology is not as ass-backwards as you make it to be - this physical format war seems ridiculous in light of what is actually possible. -
a movie or download the ones you'd just rather rent. I didn't rent LOTR, I bought the fucker. But if I want to rent a Farrelly Brothers movie, perhaps I'll download it, wait 6 hrs, go take a shit, mow the lawn whatever the fuck then watch it later. You don't own Netflix or Blockbusters, so what's the difference? Digital downloads are more convenient then waiting for the mail or going to the store. Now downloading a terabyte movie, now you're talking a little bit of time.
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Billy: "Hey Johnny, wanna borrow my copy of Balls Of Fury? Here, just take this hard drive..."
Billy: "Johnny, you asshole! You just wiped my drive! Now I gotta pay microsoft $10 a pop to get all 100 movies back that were on there. @#$%&^$"
We all know hard drives are OK for backups, but if you really wanna keep something, you don't keep it on an eraseable product with an average lifespan of 3-5 years.
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By now most people are Netflixing or OnDemanding or Bittorrenting or whatever. I guess downloading would be a shock for those who still do brick & mortar rentals, but those people are still living in the 20th century anyway. They probably aren't set to buy an HDTV until next decade.
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I have a 360. I love it. I have no intention of buying a PS3, but I want to watch HD movies. I'm glad that the war is finally over, now I just hope M$ either A) Release a Blu-Ray add-on for the xbox360, or B)put an internal Blu-Ray drive in the fabled Xbox 360 ultimate. Don't leave us dangling until the Xbox 720 M$, give us Blu-Ray now. Swallow your pride, admit defeat, and start backing the clear winner.
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It's the way the infrastructure works because many things need to fall into place and many people have to invest and get off their asses for things to be developed and rebuilt, sometimes from the ground up, so some may look at the work needed to be done and scoff at it or delay it for years. For example, I live in one of the most modern cities in the 1st world and because of some discrepency in my area I can't even get a simple high speed 5mbps DSL connection... in this day and age... how fucked up is that? Luckily there's cable, but now the company is going about telling everyone that they're putting a bandwidth cap on their services allowing for 90GBs a month! So with all this shit going about, with cable companies holding a monopoly on their areas and shit you tell me how all this is going to work out for everyone or why we should even bother unless major changes happen within the systems themselves!
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Blueee
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I just wikied that and it's pretty interesting. I don't think that will ever be a practical option for movies though...unless you're planning on buying a studio's entire catalog. (Man, that would be bitch to put together that menu).Also, "However, holographic drives are projected to initially cost around US$15,000, and a single disc around US$120–180"...so yeah, that's neat and all, but nothing I would wait around for
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As I mentioned in a post earlier, to the 35 and under crowd, downloading a movie is at least an understandable concept. However, the majority of the country is older than 35 and thus techno unsavy. ye olde shiza, is your grandma or grandpa going to download a movie? Or will they go to a local video store and rent a Blu Ray? I'll guess #2. Besides, are you willing to download a movie for $15 - $20 that could easily be lost due to a hard drive failure or a power surge? You won't have that problem with a Blu Ray disc. Again, I'm not saying it will never happen. I'm just saying it isn't a viable option for about 7 - 10 years down the road.
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A lot of things need to happen for digital downloading to become as common as DVD. But those things will be happening. Computers/The Internet etc will always be getting easier to use, easier to access and so on. Things change exponentially in that enviroment. But for the next 8-10 years I think the vast majority of people will still be using DVD's. Not me, or many people posting on this talkback because we are all larger movie fans than the average consumer but the majority will.
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Jan 06, 2008 1:43:58 PM CST
You're a dumbass if you bought a player over a ps3
by guy who got a headache and accidentally
PS3 is cheaper and has firmware updates, there is NO FUCKING REASON AT ALL to have ever bought an actual blu-ray player only over a PS fucking 3, whether you play games or not.
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I completely agree with you. There is going to be a transitioning phase between the physical medium and downloads. But as far as this format war is concerned, I don't think we're speaking about a lot of older people anyway. I know my parents didn't even own a DVD player until I bought them one, and the only reason they use it is because Blockbuster decided to switch completely to DVD. I just don't see DVD going away anytime soon, either.
And that said, it seems silly (to me, grant you) to pick a format now and fight over it. But I've never been the type of guy to jump all over the newest technology, either. I've watched too many people get burned by hopping on what was supposed to be the shit immediately. Hell, I even thought it was hilarious to watch people buy iPhones only to have the price drop $100 a month later.
I'm a movie fan, and part-time critic, and because of that I watch most films in the theater still. The home format doesn't need to be pristine. Chances are I'll be watching some shitball Steven Seagal film at home, anyway. -
"By now most people are Netflixing or OnDemanding or Bittorrenting or whatever". When you say "most people", who are you talking about? Because most people are over the age of 35 in this country and are not using onDemand or Bittorrent. They don't even know what that is. Netflix, Blockbuster and Hollywood video is the future (for at least the next 7 years), not downloads. And as far as you saying, "They probably aren't set to buy an HDTV until next decade". I guess most people plan on not watching any TV after 03/2009 as all TV signals will be going digital. And while you may argue that they can buy a converter box, the majority of consumers will buy an HDTV as prices will be SO cheap by that time.
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of course everything is up the ass in price. These discs don't spin to and the read times are super fast. If a movie uncompressed is around a terabyte or more then some form of a holographic disc is practical. What I find not practical is a player where you can't play any of your existing discs on. Unless they change that where you can play both old and new formats because one spins and another doesn't not. I'm not talking next year or anything, but I'm not rushing out to get Blu-Ray when it's so new and is still expensive. How much is a blank Blu-ray? $15-20. Flash rom is an excellent storage media. It's lighting fast compared to a clunky hardrive and has no moving parts. Well they make flash drives that holds mega gigs, so why are we still using harddrives to run our pcs? But we have smaller versions of flash for cameras..etc. For all I know HVD might replace our hardrives. Some form holographic media and storage whether it be on a spinless disc or a business sized card is coming. This kind of technology makes more sense to become the format of choice then what we have now. But these companies have invested millions into Blu-Ray and are going to stretch it out and milk it.
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Geez, people on these forums get so worked up and so self-righteous. You can make a prediction about consumer behavior in the future, but it's only your guess, no matter how well-educated it may be. Not everyone (including grandpa in Palookaville) has to use downloading in order for it to work or be profitable. My comment about those people not buying an HDTV was an exaggeration, but not entirely untrue. Those people will still be able to exchange their coupons for a converter, and thus hold on to their Magnavox CRT for another decade.I'm not a big proponent of downloading over rental (I'm planning on sticking with Netflix thanks), but it's not smart to dismiss an advance like that as quickly as some are doing on this forum. It just makes too much economic sense, and major players like Apple think you're wrong.
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I would agree that downloads are the wave of the future, if we're talking a future that is 10 years away. Most of my family lives in an area where there is no cable access, unreliable dish network access, and hardly even any DSL access. The infrastructure just isn't there for wide swaths of the country.
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Any techno savy person will tell you to wait until at the soonest the 3rd generation of a product before you buy it (run on sentence). The iPhone thing is a perfect example. Another good example is the Samsung Blu Ray Player. The BR1000 (Samsung's first BR Player) is a complete piece of junk. I would suggest no one to buy it as it will very well turn you off of Blu Ray. However, they recently introduced the BR1400 and it's a decent player as most of the bugs have been worked out of it. So in the near term (next 6-12 months) DVDs are fine. But as all the bugs get worked out and prices start dropping like flys HDTVs and Blu Ray players will become a very viable option for most people. Thus, also having the lead on downloads. By the way, "Chances are I'll be watching some shitball Steven Seagal film at home, anyway", that's CLASSIC!!!
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Shoot 'Em Up sucks major balls. You should pick up Crank on Blu-Ray, that movie is 100 times better!
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You know, I remember people telling me that 360 didn't have a chance. It didn't have the base, the developers, games/exclusives etc. that Sony had. Now everybody's acting like Sony's the new kid on the block.Now that PS3 is affordable and BD is the clear winner of the format war, what makes you think the tide won't turn again? I've been an XB-supporter for a long time and endured a lot of shit over the years and I say now without hesitation that PS3 is a better machine. Just as the original XBOX was better than PS2, (only this time I don't think Sony will have to wait another generation to be back on top.) so too the PS3 schools 360.Besides, it's a great DVDOC/BD player in it's own right, as well as a great entertainment/media center/hub. The games will come soon enough. They're already starting to hit now. The same type of fuckers screaming "Bioshock" & "Mass Effect" will be screaming for some sweet PS-exclusive next year or much sooner....mark my words. Don't forget that the rest of the world still loves Playstation.Oh, and BD is much bigger than just Sony or PS3. I happen to have a PS3 and it's a great way to go Blu....but this goes way beyond gaming-consoles. PS3 certainly helps, but BD wins out regardless of the separate console-war or what system has what games etc. It's not so much about 360 vs. PS3 anymore. Just about everybody and their dog backs BD now.
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They aren't going to support any technology that helps Microsoft. And while I understand your grandpa in Palookaville (that was funny :)) example, my point of that was that the majority of the population is older than 35. Thus if they know how to check email, they're doing good. And you expect these people to be able to download a movie vs. going to a video store or buying a Blu Ray at BestBuy? Not so much. And while technically, you can call the stuff I say "speculation", I generally only post what I know to be as fact or close to it. For example, I've known about the Warner going Blu (not just speculation, but confirmation) since Monday. And I feel I know what's happening and coming in the industry due to my contacts that told me about the Warner thing. If they don't know, no one knows.
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"For all I know HVD might replace our hardrives" That's what I was thinking. That tech is so beyond anything now that we're no longer in the same kind of argument. When you're talking about storing the entire Library of Congress on six disks, we're in the area of overhauling....fucking everything.
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Sorry, but all the guys using VHS-DVD or CD-MP3 analogies for the blu-ray are high. There is a major difference with those different fromats as a DVD is far more compliant with consumers needs than VHS ever was same with MP3's and CD's......there is nothing that differentiates blu-ray/HD-DVD from regular DVD's that people will bother buying them. This is all just market hype and only those with disposable income are buying into it, I and many others see no point as DVD is great and works fine....if they create a format with more convenience than a DVD than we will see a greter turn-over.
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you seem like a good fella. You should roll over to The Zone if you haven't already. Or roll by more often.
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just for not being associated with Microsoft, who are at the forefront of trying to go from tangible media to downloads. Old ass fools are never going to dl movies or understand whats going on, you wont really be able to bring a dvd over to some girls house to makeout with her to. So thats dumb.
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My friend, you do realize that the Internet, and most of the technology that makes it possible were authored by people who are now in their 50s or older, don't you?
You drew the line too low. I'd say the line for "not understanding tech" comes in around 60 or so. Anyone younger will have lived in a world with home computers since they were a young adult at least.
Now my parents in their late 70s? Clueless about computers, but they do OK with their WebTV, HDTV, and HD-DVR. -
I admit it, I'm well over 35. Most of my friends are (so are many of the writers for this site). They're at least as technology-friendly as you, and in general we have much more money. We buy stuff, we're early adopters. To hell with the PS3/360 argument, we went early with the Genesis. We can afford to make early mistakes because we have the cash (many of us have iPhones, and don't care if there's a cheaper version around the corner). So enough with your 35+ argument, you need that to be 65+ these days. Everyone under 60 uses email, this ain't the 90's. As far as Apple goes, I'm talking about iTV. Isn't that the kind of movie downloading people are talking about? It doesn't have anything to do with Microsoft. They want to rent us movies, and Steve Jobs doesn't think it's going to take 10 years before it's happening. I don't know your track record on predicting technology, but his has probably been better.
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6 hours isn't a long time? Do you work for Microsoft? I can go to Best Buy down the street, buy the movie and have it in my player within 20 minutes. And then I own it and don't have to deal with stupid license expirations and faulty hard drives. Hell, even VHS was better than digital downloads.
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and conventional DVDs are not far apart enough for an average Joe to go "I want That". Now the difference between VHS and DVD is big time. All this is, is a better looking DVD. Most people need not just a better looking DVD but a more convenient option with it too before they consider paying these high prices. Most people like myself, think dvds are good enough, until the prices drop. Just like TVs. Why would anyone buy a LCD, Plasma or a DLP TV when this year they are unleashing OLED TVs. These TVs totally blow away anything we have now. Super thin, hang them up like a picture, can be giant sizes, bigger then all the LCDs, plasmas, and DLPs, cheaper to make and look better. 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio.
They too will be expensive. These companies have spent millions researching this shit and want their fucking money back. But eventually they will come down. The best thing for home theater is a projector. Flat out. Monster fucking sizes. Can even be displayed on white drywall and look killer. The ONLY draw back to a PJ is light. You need controlled lighting. And they are cheaper or the same and give you a much bigger picture. -
Answer: Gimmicks! Fancy Java Gimmicks! Fancier menus, fancier options, fancier buttons and browsing functions and internet functionality. Sure it's not as impactful a feature as no rewinding and Scene Selection, but give the Disney guys enough time and they'll be doing all sorts of things to keep the kids entertained far from watching the actual film over and over for itself. Shit you're probably buying a movie and mini-games in one! And I know a lot of us sci-fi types would totally dig some fantastic looking presentations of our favourite films! That's what makes this so much more magical, make all HD players upgradable via firmware updates, either through the net or with a quick installation file on the disc itself and who knows what the future holds? It'll sure as fuck make the DVD authoring guys put some more effort into it to stay in competition! Shit I put more efort into my own home projects using Encore than 60% of commercially available DVDs...
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The CEO of Blockbuster probably thought the same as you do: who's going to wait several days for a DVD to arrive in the mail? Meanwhile, Netflix ate their lunch.If you like shelling out $20 for the priviledge of repeated viewings that's cool for you. But you may have learned by now that the impressive collection of Beta/VHS/Laserdisk/DVD movies you've got have become obsolete, just as HD DVD/Blu-ray will eventually. Better to spend that $20 per month and watch a variety of films. You can always order your favorites again later. Anybody who think that the difference between DVDs and HD isn't similar to the VHS/DVD difference needs a better/bigger HDTV. Or new glasses.
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Jan 06, 2008 3:58:49 PM CST
It's good that Harry not only told us what components he got
by detective_fingerling
but hyperlinked them to amazon. Hmmmmmmmmmmm.
Reminds me of when too much product placement started happening in movies. -
Thanks. I'll check out The Zone.
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I make decent enough money for a single man, but w/ car payments, credit card debt, student loans, and day-to-day living, theres no way I can afford a good hd tv and the accompanying machines. So whats the deal? Are you guys just loaded with cash, or are you crazy deep in life crushing debt?
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I am rich.
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I think most of these people pay for this "shit" with a credit card. When they have a toothache, they have a tooth pulled, instead of fixing it. They can't afford to have good teeth, because they don't have priorities.
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Jan 06, 2008 4:54:13 PM CST
Now I don't feel so bad buying the Harry Potter set on HD-DVD..
by havokscry
At least now I know they won't be coming out with another set once the next movie is released. ;)
I've been using the cheap $98 Toshiba system as both an HD and DVD player. I don't have a huge collection of HD-DVD's. Most that I do have, I've received free with the Toshiba 5 free HD-DVDs rebate and the 5 free HD-DVDs rebate for the 360 add on. In addition, I received both 300 and King Kong free with the 360 player. Worst case scenario is I can look at it as receiving 12 HD-DVD's for $270 (the price of the two systems).
Eventually, I'd like to get a PS3 around next holiday season, so I'll be converted over to Blu-ray as well. I'm just waiting for a better library of RPG games that made the PS2 better than the original XBox in my opinion. Outside of Folklore, I really don't see anything I'm interested in yet that is PS3 exclusive.
Until then, the HD-DVD owners still have some good movies to look forward to until the exclusive contract with Paramount and Universal runs out. Two of the best movies of 2007 "No Country for Old Men", "There Will Be Blood", "Atonement" and "Charlie Wilson's War" are Paramount or Universal. Several of the most anticipated movies of 2008 are distributed by either Paramount or Universal as well. "Iron Man", "The Incredible Hulk", "Cloverfield", "Hellboy 2", and "Wanted" are some of the titles that should be initially available to HD-DVD owners (unless Universal and Paramount has an out in their HD-DVD contract). Eventually all these titles will probably be available to Blu-ray owners, but there is still light on the horizon for current HD-DVD owners.
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So said Harry, remember? :) And he was right! Now, that he owns both, he can't lose. :D
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it doesn't matter who releases a film, it matters who distributes it in the home video market. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN is being distributed by disney and thus being EXCLUSIVELY RELEASED ON BLU-RAY. THERE WILL BE BLOOD has already been announced as a blu-ray release for the european market via miramax. the only light on the hd-dvd horizon is the LUST/CAUTION disc, but that will inevitably appear on blu-ray down the road because...
HD-DVD hath died. it didn't matter who won, but for the good of the consumer (and for a hi-def market to exist before downloads take over) a decisive winner needed to be crowned sooner rather than later. this is good for everyone.
finally, harry... please please please never again post about the format war. your ignorance / willingness to be a schill is astounding and the damage your influence has wrought will only negatively effect your burgeoning hi-def library. in the future, please just link to the digitalbits. also, a mea culpa for last summer's notorious article would be appreciated. -
Sorry about that. I saw Paramount Vantage associated with a few of the films, so I just assumed it would be HD-DVD exclusive. I apologize. My point was that there is still something to look forward to for HD-DVD owners in 2008, as long as Universal and Paramount keep their existing contracts. I totally agree that there needs to be one format, as long as that one format is affordable.
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Can't speak for everyone else, but I love researching products and bargain hunting. Check out sites like fatwallet, dealnews, craigslist and ebay. 90% of the time when I buy something used, I'll register it with the manufacturer and find that the previous owner never even bothered. That happened with my my Xbox360 Premium (bought for $200 on Craigslist) and my PS3 60gb ($300 Craigslist). The 360 is being replaced for the fourth time as of this post :D
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It's a wonder that anyone ever went to the movies and continue to do so, to this day! And you don't get a disk or anything! Duh! I absolutely LOVE downloading HD movies from Xbox Live. It's cheaper than ALL other HD options. No travel involved, with the price of gas and everything else that gets factored in. And it's a convenience, compared to all that's involved in going to the movies or going to some movie rental business, like blockbuster. Downloads are already here. And I, for one, like it very much. I'd prefer more movie selections (recent and classic) and a 48 hour rental versus the current 24, but it's a very convenient service, as is. And I could rent "TRANSFORMERS"...like...6 times for what a Blu-ray disk would cost. And I seriously doubt that I'll see it so many times in my lifetime. (Just be sure to keep your Blu-ray disk scratch-free.)
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...then THAT might be something convenient for me, having Xbox Live already. Who knows, if the price is right? That could possibly be enough to peak my interest...and give Blue-ray another look. Otherwise, it's downloads and maybe cheap HD-DVDs, for me.
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Sue me.
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Contrary to what most people think, not everyone who comes to this site is an acne-ridden teenager living at home. Some of us have real jobs and contribute to society...
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I'm making decent enough money, I'm not struggling or anything, but this gadgetry I'm seeing bandied about is pretty pricey... especially if you have real-life expenses that supercede entertainment expenses. I reckon most of the people who have this stuff and come to this site don't really have the money either, they just buy it on credit, which is going to drive them, if they aren't already in, a deep stygian well of frivolous debt that will slowly strangle them. OR, people be all rich n' shit and they can buy what they want. DAMN YOU RICH PEOPLE! My hate for you is born completely out of envy.
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no xbox 360 console will ever have blu-ray unless hd-dvds are no longer being produced and the format war is officially over. microsoft is among toshiba's few remaining allies, and is certainly the closest of which among those left. talk of xbox going blu in the near future is as laughably ignorant as talk of hd-dvd somehow surviving past 2008.
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You guys who say that make me laugh. You're on a movie site, discussing something that is supposed to be your passion, and yet you're ok with not paying for it, and contributing to the industry you (should) love so much. Pathetic.
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Jan 06, 2008 6:16:28 PM CST
Yay! AICN chooses against America! The world is ASTOUNDED!!
by immortal_fish
Erm, ah, not really.
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rxse7en is right. Plus get rid of your credit card debt. Honestly, eat Ramen Noodles for a month if that will get rid of $500 - $1000 off your credit card. It's amazing how that will free you up financialy (not owing the credit card company). When you do have the money, research, research, research. Look on cheap websites. The PS3 I own I got for $200 on eBAy. All I had to do was add a $50 hard drive to it. Look for out of box items. Also, you don't have to buy everything at the same time.
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A technology has to begin somewhere, as did the dvd market. Microsoft may be a bit stubborn about this format war, sure. But if they can adapt and maybe even extend features and abilities of a Blu-ray system, why wouldn't that be a possibility? Because one is Microsoft and one is Sony? Is that your reasoning? Quite honestly, there's no telling WHAT Microsoft will answer with.
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I fully accept your envy.It is well deserved!
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I get a kick out of seeing all this Sony dicklicking all of a sudden (except Bill at digitalbits...he's been teabagging Sony for months)....all of those stuck with that POS console, the PS3, finally have something to chirp about. Let's all be honest here....the only reason Warner switched to Sony was for the ludicrous amount of money....nothing else. Sony has to make BluRay win, or eat even bigger losses on the PS3. And yes, Ken K "retired" from Sony, but you're a naive boob if you don't think he was pushed out. Sony took a bath on the PS3, and still have no 'must have' titles, so we have the BR enema forced on everyone. I think with HD being such a small fraction of DVD purchases even still, there was plenty of room for 2 formats. In the end, Warner execs were whored out, and Sony dumped 1/2 billion to make the PS3 more than a $500 doorstop.
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I talked with a guy today whose wife bought some cables at my store to hook up his "High Definition DVD Player." After much talking, I figure out that the problem he is having is that the player is saying "Disc Read Error." I inquire about the brand and he says Sony. Can you see where this is going? He bought a couple HD-DVD's because he confused the up-converting DVD player for a HD-DVD player. I assured him that they would not play no matter what cable he bought and that he needed to buy a player that will play the discs, and he inquired about the difference between all three formats. It was not fun. He was no older than 30 and a lot of you guys think that digital downloads are the future? Give me a break. I talk to many people each day who claim to not even be able to turn on a computer, let alone download a movie. Also, people who see digital downloads as a viable alternative to the mainstream have to realize that not everyone lives in a broadband area. There are millions of people who barely have access to dial-up, let alone a fast enough connection to download a movie.
One more thing, I recommended that guy buy a PS3, and guess what? He agreed with me. -
The actual sales of Blu-ray had nothing to do with it? You should change your name to Ostrich ver 2.0.
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Would it have been OK with you if Warner took HD-DVD's $475 million (kind of a guestimate)?
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First off, the sales numbers are all over the place
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first off, I'd like a comparison of base players for both camps, including the PS3. These sale ratios people are throwing around are all over the place....I hardly think BD was "destroying" HDDVD ********Regarding the $$$$ Sony offered...my point was, Warner didn't choose the superior format, it went with the higher bidder, that's all. Outside of capacity, the BD format has nothing on HD. ******* Finally, lets all be honest...the PS3 was the most overhyped gaming console, which is typical of Sony, with NO GOOD TITLES. Remember how everyone was flooding their shorts over the rendered video in Killswitch? Puhlease. Everyone has a hardon for MSG, but meanwhile, I have several 5 star 360 titles that will keep me busy for 2008....have fun with Ratchet and Clank. : / Oh, and there is still speculation that MSG will go to both consoles, unless of course Sony throw another small countrys GDP at Konami.
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Ravenlord, they don't need to turn on a computer to download a movie. If it's a setbox setup, like iTV, it's all taken care of for them. You think it's that much of a jump from Tivo to downloadable content? All you need to do is hook a Tivo-type box up to the net and you're done. How much more complicated does it need to be? Comcast is already selling movies OnDemand, and so is Apple. Once upon a time they scoffed at the idea of people being able to understand downloading songs and putting them onto a device through a computer, and Apple made it simple. You think someone can't easily do this for movies? Come on, it's billions of dollars.And as far as Microsoft's concerned, they'll go where the money is. Once it's obvious HD DVD is done (not saying we're there yet) they'll turn that aircraft carrier on a dime and go Blu-Ray. It would be different if it had MS' name on it.
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I actually noticed a better picture quality when I played my HD-DVD's as opposed to the regular ones. It was a gift and I really appreciated it. Batman Begins was much better on HD, so were the Bourne movies and Pan's Labrynith. From the way it sounds in this thread, I guess I'll just have to settle for Rambo or the old Jean-Claude movies in HD. Maybe I am just a total idiot, but I really doubt that they are going to phase out HD movies for all blue-ray. People will get pissed. Studios will cave. And I may be wrong, but I bet alot of the movies that are only blue-ray now, with also be HD before long. If I'm wrong, which I doubt, at least I'll get to see Cloverfield on HD. Once the public outcry over this all starts, the rich people in their ivory towers will realize they are losing money. Never underestimate corporate greed.
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Please help me out. Every forum I've read this weekend has had some version of the "Sony paid Warner $500 million to drop HD-DVD." I've been trying to find some confirmation of this story. Do you have a link to a credible news story?
I've also heard that FOX was very close to jumping to HD-DVD and didn't in the end. Does anyone have any confirmation for any of this?
I know that this discussion might really be moot at this point. The important thing to know is that Warner is now Blu. But I really would like to hear the details.
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I'm too drunk on Belgian ale to go looking for the site, but I don't think it's any big secret....companies pay money for exclusives...it happens all the time in the game industry. I'm not sure what Toshiba's bid was, but probably somewhere close. Sony needs to end this war to become a contender again in the gaming industry. A small part of me smiles when I think how Nintendo knocked everyone on their asses with their genious little console....bless their creative little hearts. : )
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That's the whole point, the studios that are Blue-Ray only ARE phasing out all HD-DVD now. What they need to do is offer incentives to HD-DVD owners to make the switch now. Studios should just suck it up and straight out swap BD for HD-DVDs to make them happy. That would be a class move.
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Choose a player. Stick a compatible movie in it and enjoy.
If your jumping in HD now and really want a player it would be smarter to wait just a few more months and see where the tide goes. We finally have a light at the end of the tunnel. We'll see. -
The REAL Bob Orci - writer of Transformers and the new Trek movie - is on the Star Trek TB answering questions! Get over there if you want to ask him anything. Or just abuse him for Transformers.
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Well Steven Spielberg, Michael Bay, and my eyes and ears would like to disagree with you.
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lol....talking about Michael Bay like he's a real director or something....lol....silly little rabbit.
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I agree with you in the short term. But once this stuff becomes a little more affordable that will change. Have you ever watched a full length Blu Ray film? I will guess it's a no. Once you have there's no going back.
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I agree with you about Bay, but where will we all be when Paramount in the shithouse when Spielberg blocks the HD-DVD version of (I refuse to call it by the other name) Indy 4?
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Warner Home Entertainment President Kevin Tsujihara says the studio took no pay-offs to exclusively back Blu-ray.
In a post-announcement conference call, Tsujihara flatly denied rumors that studio had accepted anywhere from 250M to $500M in exchange for dropping its HD DVD format support.
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Someone mentioned The Incredible Hulk being a good HD-DVD exclusive later this year after it's theatrical release. Ang Lee's HULK was released through the currently HD-DVD only Universal, but The Incredible Hulk is th first movie done by Marvel Studios, therefore, wouldn't it be able to pick it's own format when released on Hi-Def? Also, wasn't Paramount the company that released Transformers? They claim to be HDDVD exclusive but that came out on BD AND HDDVD.
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Jan 06, 2008 9:04:28 PM CST
Why would you want to swap out HD-DVD movies for Blu-ray movies?
by havokscry
I haven't compared too many titles that have been released on both HD-DVD and Blu-ray, but the few I have gave the HD-DVD versions better reviews, primarily in the extras category. The only two I really compared were 300 and the Harry Potter box sets. I guess as a consumer I'd rather go with the best product rather than brand or format loyalty. Eventually, I'll get a PS3 or a Blu-ray machine. If there is a WB title that is released prior to the exclusive deal that receives better reviews on Blu-ray, I'll hold off and get it in that format.
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Jan 06, 2008 9:09:08 PM CST
I think we can all agree that Warner didn't drop HDDVD for free
by ultron ver 2.0
Kevin Tsujihara needs to lay off the chronic if he expects us to believe that.
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Dead Rising, Gears of War, Halo 3, Mass Effect and the GOTY, Bioshock. And don't forget: 2 exclusive downloads for 360 on GTA IV!
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After all, if they don't have to produce 2 different versions in the 2 formats of each movie aren't they going to spend less money on production? I don't necessarily believe him, but their stated reason does make sense: the only way to ensure the viability of the high def disc format is to end the format war as soon as possible. The sales figures over the holidays clearly show that more people are buying Blu-Ray over HD DVD, so which would you choose if you were them? Toshiba itself stated today that the market of players is 51% Blu-Ray, 49% HD DVD, NOT COUNTING PS3. No idea what total that would be, but there have to be many more PS3s out there than Blu-Ray players. It helps all of us (not counting those brave pioneers who went with HD DVD) to have this confusion end as soon as possible. Then prices on the players will go down as volume goes up, just like it did for DVD.
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Nothing to worry about. Speilberg has his own deal worked out because he saw what garbage HD-DVD was. Secondly, Paramount has an out clause with their deal with HD-DVD.
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HDDVD format looks just as good if not better than bluray. Outside of capacity, BR couldn't hold its jock. Spielberg looked at the large deposits in the checking account when he made this decision, nothing else. Have you ready any comparisons of the two formats?
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the 360 games are pretty fantastic. Mass Effect and Bioshock are stellar......I work with several unix PS2 fanbois, who own a 360, and they agree Bioshock is all that....amazing story, and the level of detail is tremendous....although anyone who played the System Shock series isn't surprised. Mediocre gameplay? : / The new GTA looks ghey...the engine looks horrible..rockstar shoulda used the Unreal engine. Burnout Paradise, is that coming on PS3? Another amazing title. Outside of Snake, what is the PS3 banking on?
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Is Warhawk....I LOVED the first one on PS1...one of my favorite games on that console. Yes, I was once latched to the Sony nipple. : (
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With the Speilberg thing, (if you know this part, I'm sorry for wasting your time on it) when Dreamworks signed the exclusive deal, Speilberg insisted on not being included in it as he felt the HD-DVD format was not up to his standards. Proof of this can be seen in interviews where he quickly corrects assertions and reports of his movies coming to HD-DVD only and how he loves the format. Secondly, as far as you liking the picture quality better, I can't tell you what you should or shouldn't like, however with BR, the consumer is getting the same quality picture (1080p/24fps) the director of the film gets with his own personal copy of the film. Also, with BR you're getting the best possible sound. The same can't be said for HD-DVD. I'm interested what it is about the HD-DVD picture you like more. Again I would just like to know. I won't pick you apart about your personal opinion. To say I talk shit is kind of strong, I represent the facts. To talk shit is to not back up the things that are said, but I back everything up with facts.
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Yes 'Ultron ver 2.0', if that is your real name and version number... I'm aware of the internal politics at Sony and how for the longest time many have been unkeen on Kutaragi and his ambition, except they couldn't do dick because thus far all his ambition paid off for the company, and given the direction the HD format war is headed, it may pay off for him again. Given the amount of flack the PS3 was getting they let him go, though they were trying to have him go long before the PS3 was out for anyone to bitch about even since the PS2 era... It's a real interesting story and people ought to search it out. However he was certainly NOT fired, they had no grounds for it, big difference!And no good titles on the PS3? Maybe I'm just being delusional since I'm having tons of fun with Ratchet and Clank and Uncharted! Downloaded plenty of demos too, and am having a blast even playing recent PS2 releases! Plus PS3 will be dropping big titles like flies come 2008. Yeah it's taken awhile to get there, but so what? Xbox 360 was the same until a year later too... so what's up? That's right, absolutely nothing!You know what the funniest trend is, especially between HD-DVD fans and 360 owners, both went for the cheaper system, both crowed about it, but when their consoles break at a level unseen of in the industry where some poor mofos must exchange their console 15 times and wait a month for the next one, they still lick the balls of their electronic god and moon the competition which has been reliable since day one... then when Transformers extras and audio can't even fit on a fucking dual layered HD-DVD, the highest capacity HD-DVD to date... they still think they format is superior compared to the larger capacity blu-ray. And here's why... these are the guys who need their shit here and now for cheap so they'll waste their money on a system with an extraordinarily high failure rate because these 'epic' games are out now, NOW, NOW!!!! Or HD-DVD despite the lesser support and lower capacity because it has PiP no, NOW, NOW!!! WOW!!!! IT'S LIKE THE DIRECTOR IS TALKING TO ME!!!!1111 In the meantime Sony has been slow on their shit but when it finally lands it's great stuff and best of all works and future proofed to take care of the issues that 360 and HD-DVD run into... Maybe I'm the kind of guy that can wait unlike some people and invest wisely... Face it, you fuckers made some BAD DECISIONS in your hastiness and now you're fucked! So PS3 owners are waiting a year for their anticipated titles to arrive... oh well... but what really gets me is that this same stupid crowd of people are that like to laugh at PS3 owners for all this waiting are willing to... get this... wait a whole fucking year for Metal Gear Solid 4 to supposedly come to their system!!! And that what makes this even funnier, that MGS4 ISN'T EVEN VAGUELY MENTIONED TO EVEN SO MUCH AS TOUCH ANYTHING WITH THE LETTER X ON IT! It's NOTHING but 360 fanboy delusion and hysteria! Konami have shot down their rumors! Hideo Kojima has shot down their rumors! The MGS4 trailers have shot down their rumors! The official MGS4 site shoots down their rumors! Ryan Payton Shoots down their rumors! Sony and Jack Tretton shot down their rumors! Even Xbox 360's ex-lead man Peter Moore shot down their rumors! Yet it persists to this day! They won't give up on MGS4, the one game exclusive and optimized for Sony's console that I'd boast single handedly puts all their exclusive shit to shame! And in the same vein they're not going to give up on HD-DVD either! HD-DVD will live on just like MGS4 will on the 360! And they'll hope there'll be a 'Substance' version of MGS4, but even Kojima Pro is intent of making this THE definitive version of the game with any extras if they absolutely must be any be downloadable content! This is their mindset! They're unable to let go of HD-DVD! They'll ship up and repackage their faulty consoles for the 20th time and won't mind waiting a month for it to return, hopefully fixed... I guess they need something to do in their spare time like slag the competition for being 'slow and forward thinking' and not being as 'here, NOW, CHEAP, RELEVANT' as they! You fuckers depress me!
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What, you don't think Toshiba tried to hand out any money too? Digital Bits has the story there... both sides tried to lobby WB, and WB said the most sensible thing... that compared to what each lobby was offering them, the worth of the DVD market itself is far more important in the long run by billions! Anything either side could bribe them with it is totally worthless next to that! See 360 and HD-DVD owners? That's called 'forward thinking' that profits large and better in the long run, you ought to learn it! And it seems WB probably didn't even take the bribe at all, and what is probably most indicative of this is that they'll continue to honor their HD-DVD supporters by releasing that titles they said they would and that were on pre-order, compared to Paramount who was paid off by Toshiba and promptly cancelled any and all their blu-ray releases, even those on pre-order!And as for comparing HD-DVD to blu-ray, yeah earlier on you could say the picture on HD-DVD was better due to better codecs, but blu-ray is also currently using those codecs and there is no difference in picture! The format itself doesn't matter, it's storage, otherwise you can do anything you want on it! The only difference is that HD-DVD is too fucking small and fucked over Transformers on audio... that's certainly not the format you want to support for the look and especially SOUND of 'perfect.' Blu-ray is the superior technology, the only thing either of them have to do with is storage space, that's all! And Blu-Ray now has up to 200GBs worth and usable compared to HD-DVD's 51!
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These fanboys are killing me. It's like you can't read an article about HD-DVD/Blu-Ray or PS3/XBOX without a fanboy for one side spewing a bunch of incorrect facts and hatred toward the system they don't own. Imagine if there was internet back when Nintendo and Sega Genesis were going at it.
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On the Nintendo/Genesis thing, it would have been horrible if the internet had been around during that time! Truly, that idea is the most nightmarish I've heard in a while!
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Ha. What are you talking about, man? Sega and Nintendo nerds are still duking it out online. You just have to find the right forum. Nerds fight about everything online. It's like Battle Royale every day, from coast to coast - pimp-slappery of the most insignificant kind.
This is better; I'm better. You suck. That's bullshit. Oh, really? Fuck you. Cocksucker. Penis-Enlargement. I'm a Nigerian banker. On and on and on and on ... 24 hrs. a day. -
I think we should consider this a rumor but according to Engadget, during the Philips press conference it was mentioned that Target is going to become Blu-ray exclusive.
More bad news for HD-DVD?
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PS3 has far, far, FAR more power and potential... BUT the problem is they are not selling. I tried for a month and a half to find a 360, there were STACKS and STACKS of untouched PS3s laying around in every single store. It may have better power, but if there are only a handful of people using them, as a game developer, who am I going to cater to.. legions of 360 owners, or a few PS3 owners? Besides, 360's HDDVD is an add-on, they'll just come out with a Blu-Ray drive if need be. It's a Mustang vs Porche debate... and I've seen alot more Mustangs than Porches out there...
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Jan 06, 2008 11:31:54 PM CST
br1947, USA is not the world, in Europe and Japan is the other w
by lavatory love machine
you can't get any wii though, but people outside the US don't give a shit about 360 and HD DVD and as much as big the US market is it remains a fraction worldwide, by the end of the year PS3 will reach 30 sales and by 2010 it will reach wii's, and that was projected before the warner exclusive anuoncement so it might be even faster
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I like the PS3, I hope it does do well, it has alot of potential to do some really, really amazing things hardware-wise. But the market is the market, projections or not, 360 and Wii are killing it, by 2010 if it does catch them, it'll be 4 years old and we'll be talking about the PS4 or whatever its sucessor is.
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PS3, 360, and Wii holiday sales figures, if anyone is interested.
http://tinyurl.com/2h9gwn
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are u a moron? do u not see that jhonno is a ps3 fanboy who is talkin shit about the 360?
people seem to forget that gaming consoles sell because of the games, not because it can play hd-dvds or blu. I mean just look how well nintendo is doing, the wii cant even play a freakin dvd and its the console that sells the most.
I really dont care who wins what, i got all 3 consoles, the more competition between the companies the better for me. -
The movie that should have seen by more people but was got a lousy released instead, will at least finally get the beautiful transfer that it deserves. This movie was announced on HD-DVD. It better be out on Blue Ray. I agree with Harry that whatever format you like, HD movies needs to stay.
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its fucking hilarious.....its like the heroes vs lost tb's...pointless nerd shit....yet here i am....posting...reading....crying. there has to be more for me.....THERE HAS TO BE MORE!!!!!
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You are a fucking whore. A prostitute. Why bother with the pretense of a personalised article. Just use goddamn pop up ads or something.
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Sorry, but the only good game in that series was MGS1, and I don't care about the next one, anyway, as it looks to be just as incomprehensible as the rest of the games in the series! (and it definitely ISN"T coming out on the 360...yet! ;-) Oh, and as far as the so-called "gaming superiority" of the PS3, how come of all of the games the two consoles share, the PS3 versions are lower-rated in terms of quality? (COD4, Orange Box, Oblivion, etc.) In other words, the game play and image quality are WORSE when compared to the 360 versions. Don't believe me? Do a comparison on Metacritic. And how come the top 3 titles for PS3 are ALSO on the 360? And every other title drops considerably in rating after that? (Uncharted? Ratchet and Clank? Were they GOTY? I don't think so!) It's all there in black and white: games on the PS3 suck, and they aren't going to get any better! (even with Solid Snake sucking your solid cock!) Whoops! Too much scotch is making me repeat myself! See ya!
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I'd shit on its grave and piss on its headstone. If you've ever gotten one of those goddamn BD+ discs that wouldn't fucking play without some kind of fucked up update (if you could even get one on your player) you'd want those goddamn slant-eyed bastards to fuck off and die as well. Fuck Sony up their ass.
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Way to represent, you fuckwit!
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Hey all,
Over at DigitalBits they floated the idea of the BDA offering "incentives" or free exchange programs for those who have purchased an HD-DVD player or HD-DVD media respectively. It may happen as they give the indication the BDA already has something in the works.As for me, I got to my local Futureshop (Best Buy type place here in Canada) at 0500 hours on Boxing Day and the lineup was already 300+ deep. I didn't get a shot at the $99 HD-DVD players from Toshiba. Kinda glad I didn't now, although for $99 I was willing to bite even if HD-DVD went tits up. So, later that day I bought at PS3 instead. I realize that doesn't really make any sense but, hell, I did it and I can't complain. At least it appears there will be one format to rule them all and in the darkness bind them....damn. Oh, and I got the first to Pirates movies for $15 each at Walmart. Now for the ultimate Indiana Jones collection this Christmas on Blu-ray. Oh Yeah! Now for a parody porn movie name based on an actual movie. In Diana Jones 4 & the Temple of Poon.
Boo-Yah!
Thanks to a friend of my brother-in-law for that one.
MT -
Harry - time for another talkback.
http://tinyurl.com/2uq89o
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...as in 2.
damn.
MT -
This is another knife in the heart of 35mm film. Have ye no shame???
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Now Harry is rubbing salt in my wounds by boasting of a weekend buying HD Projecters HD and BluRay Discs whilst in the company of a Chesty lovely!!
Cant be all bad being Mr Knowles -
The difference is fucking negligible. Oooh, its a teensy, tiny bit crisper. DVD images are clear as is the sound. You fucking technocrat jack offs should just open a direct deposit account with all known electronic manufacturers, so they can stop bothering to release stuff and just take incremental payments from you every financial period. I'm still pissed that the death of VHS all but ruined the stacks of trailers preceeding a movie. I might update my viewing technology when shit goes downloadable. Much like I did with music. Tape/VHS, CD/DVD iTunes/iMovies. But outlaying thousands on minutely better pictures for fucking movies I've already seen that looked better on the big screen? How about no.
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is it just me or are more and more dvds doing this lately? and in many cases, you cant just skip chapters, you either have to watch em all or fast forward through em. i thought dvds were gonna kill that? i mean why put trailers on a dvd when a year later its all old stuff and already on disc. not to mention how annoying it is.
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I just wish a main menu popped up as soon as the dvd was placed. Disney titles have a FastPlay feature. It's great if you have kids. You can put the dvd in and leave the room. You don't have to sit there for 5 minutes in order to see a main menu.
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Is it only on Disney dvds?
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A high definition web site for fans of high definition movies made by fans of high definition movies!
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The CONSOLE WARS WILL GO ON FOREVER dudes!Getting so heated will get some of you a fucking heart attack!If you want the best games,HERE IS WHAT TO DO:BUY a very powerfull PC,BUY a XBOX-360,BUY a PS3,BUY a Wii,get rid of your GIRLFRIEND and start PLAYING what you like!IF YOU CANT DO THAT:KEEP FIGHTING LIKE 14 YEAR OLD PUSSYS!OR:CALM DOWN!
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...The fuck would I REWATCH spider man 3 in any format? Thats the difference. I care about content. Yes, Spider-Man3 may look marginally better in HD. But how would you notice while you slept through the fucking thing? I don't miss VHS, cause I still watch it. And laser discs, and DVD's. Or fucking Divx. I'll take whatever format can deliver the goods. If I was a generic sheeple, who only watched 5-10 of the tent pole studio releases each year over and over, I guess I could spend the money on a big ass TV to watch stuff on. Since you certainly cant watch it for the entertainment value alone.
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This doesn't include the kajillion mulitplats like Burnout: Paradise, Turok, Madden, etc.
And the rags are saying that Devil May Cry 4 is markedly better than the 360 version, for what it's worth. (COD4, Oblivion, and Dirt were the only two that were better on the PS3 to date). -
I thought Disney was already Blu-ray exclusive? I don't recall seeing any Disney HD-DVDs in stores, and every Disney preview I see ends with "coming soon to Disney Blu-ray and DVD."I remember there being rumblings of Disney possibly going with both brands last year, but that never happened, did it?
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I'll be watching for big bargains. Will you? All that...and upscale your dvd collection, too!
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...please? You HD DVD fanboys lost. There's no way on earth 80% of the studios are going to turn around and support HD DVD now. Stop dreaming and get over it. It's end game time. Now can we all watch some great movies in one HD universal disc format whether thats A great Kurosawa movie or some stupid superhero pap . And when downloading and storage becomes possible (I like to OWN my movies, not have em stuck on a hard drive that might drop dead at any time, thanks) we can bleat on about it then. But in the meantime, case closed. And for the retard racist jerks on here, both formats are mainly manufactured by our asian friends, so you hood wearing cross burnin' red necks lose both ways, you know, the same way you lost out when all your major manufacturing went west of the pacific. Stop thinking you still own the world. In this war, the rest of the world actually decided what would win. Get over it.
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In fact, I just bought one on amazon about 4 days ago...total price including tax and shipping and ten free movies was $178. So, if HD DVD dies tomorrow and Blu-Ray "wins" I'll basically have an upscaling DVD player for my hdtv for about 78 bucks more than a regular one...and I'll have 10 hi-def movies. I don't see how that is a bad deal. OH YEAH, and I'll be netflixing Star Trek Remastered in HD and Galactica Season 1 in HD as welll...and don't forget the Transformers HD that is waiting on my coffeetable to be watched from netflix. Even if this is the "death knell" it's not a big deal. I knew going in that backing microsoft in anything is never a good idea anyway...
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And so will you kids if you know what's good for you. Physical media is dead you fools. Just wait until Microsoft or Apple rolls out their digital movie distribution system. Enough with the petty fanboy bullshit already.
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By the time it makes any damn difference, the players of the winning system and the discs will be as cheap as DVD currently is.
Also all you morons getting your knickers in a twist about how your chosen system is better for XYZ reasons; all modern recordable technology becomes obsolete in under 10 years.
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..or all the PS3 owners will slit their wrists. It's almost fanatical how the Solid Snake teabaggers are betting that this game will own everything. Meh, that series does nothing for me...honestly, you can keep it. Konami always was a shit developer, imho.
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...but from what I've read, the picture quality is pretty much even between the 2 formats. I never said HDDVD has superior picture....they're both 1080P, both stellar...not sure where you're getting that impression. *shrug*
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I'm waiting for the next Final Fantasy game more than the new adventures of Snake.
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The Blu-Ray on my new PS3 doesn't want to play many of my DVDs. Why? My HD-DVD player will play everything! I actually prefer the HD-DVD in useability and price. But until I can purchase a movie for the same price as a current DVD, then I am not investing more money in EITHER format.
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...since there aren't any new manufacture costs (because they are considered "DVDs on steroids" since they are built using existing techonology and production lines), then my money is still with HD-DVD. This fact gives HD-DVD the greatest ability to get prices down to current DVD market price and availability levels. Yet, even though the cost and availability advantage has to go to HD-DVD, the studio execs will make up their own minds based upon their own rationale. The bottom line is $$$ -- and how much more $$$ they can make. Just look at the current writer's strike. The rich, liberal execs are just not willing to budge an inch because they know that there is more money to be made in the future through online downloads. Thus, the next generation DVD will not last very long anyway. The studios hope to actually keep prices high for quite some time in order to milk every last dime from consumers before moving to online download delivery. This is one reason to cheer for HD-DVD. The price will drop drastically much sooner than Blu-Ray.
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Ooooh....evil Sony, they BOUGHT the format war off with MONEY!! Ooooh....yeah, just like Toshiba/M$ tried and failed buy bribing Paramount...
You really know how to cut loose with the double standards, big boy. Face it. HD-DVD had comparable standards, and dirt cheap players and still couldn't convince studios or the buying public over to it. Blu-Ray is a superior technology, with a fuckload more content. It deserved to win. Now, go and throw your HD-DEAD player away, buy a PS3 and enjoy the taste of eating shit. -
because he owns a 36" CRT TV and DVDs cost under $4-$14 these days (even the new releases).
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I liked Johnno's posts because they kinda hit the nail on the head by debunking a lot of the flat out inaccuracies that people put out there when we should be talking about facts. I'm fairly certain the following are facts, with very little room for argument or debate:
(1) There is no discernable difference in picture quality between HD-DVD and Blu-Ray
(2) Blu-Ray discs have a significantly higher capacity than HD DVD's which will, simply put, allow for better quality audio and more extras for Blu Ray discs.
(3) The coding problems that made HD DVD's look better than Blu Ray discs at the initial launch have been fixed and this is a non issue
(4) Although HD DVD touts more interactive menus and this picture in picture option (which doesn't interest me at all, personally), there is nothing stopping Blu Ray from implimenting these features and they are coming soon, again making this a non-issue.All that being said, I don't see any reason why people are getting so upset over this, unless, obviously, they have invested in the losing technology. This isn't like a debate over abortion or capital punishment where there may never be a right answer. That's why I hate when fanboys come on here and say stuff like "Sony obviously bribed the studios" when the studios could tell for themselves that Sony offered a better product going forward. As for PS3 v. 360, whatever. Both have terrific exclusive games, and once developers figure out the PS3 architecture (particularly EA), there will be no difference in the ports either. We should all just be happy we have these amazing systems (though, like with Blu Ray, I think PS3 clearly has more potential given it's processor that people still haven't come close to harnessing). Ok, somebody please flame me and tell me I'm wrong. -
Am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that Harry doesn't get all his DVDs for free? Last time I checked the studios shovelled DVDs out the door to anyone who reviews them for a living. It must be your reputation as someone who can't be boughjt that has caused the Studios to blacklist you from all that free swag.
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in any version or format is just peculiar if you're a guy over age five.
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Where you play Hung Phat, a line cook at P.F. Changs, and try to slowly poison all of your customers with MSG. Killer title.
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I'm sticking with normal DVDs and will continue to do so for a long time. Nobody can convince me that the quality is SO much better that I should pay $10 more per movie. And Tourist or someone above made a nice point when he said, why would anyone want to watch or rewatch HiDefs of movies that SUCK in the first place? As for bonus features, I just don't care enough about bonus material in general to change formats because of it. Previews and bonus features are just more shit to skip over to get to the goddamn root menu and start the movie. Only if a film is one of my faves will I care about bonus features, and when that's the case, I'll usually shell out for a deluxe edition released years later to see it (Jaws, Close Encounters, Rocky, etc).
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Jan 07, 2008 11:23:12 AM CST
I now have 27 HDDVD titles why? cuz they are good movies
by stormwatcher
And when a Blu Ray costs around 250 and is made by Sharp or LG (not Sony) for that price then I will buy one. Warners has already released a huge amount of its catalogue (Blade Runner ect...) so not that sad. Paramount and Universal stlll make the best movies by far, I mean FOX anyone? So I would rather have these movies now, for about 20 bucks each playing on my Xbox player that cost 150 bucks rather than wait 2 years for Universal/Paramount to drop them on Blue Ray. Only got an HD cuz of my 360 and there is ZERO regret there. Xbox is such a better system than PS3 for the simple reason of LIVE and games released.
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... it just tastes better.
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on Cnet but since I'm reading the same stuff here I thought I would post this here as well.
Alot of people have already bought HD DVD and won't be happy about this. You know I used to be a BluRay supporter but two things changed my mind.
One was that HD DVD was cheaper ( alot easier to buy into ) and the same kind of childish stupidity ( lots of false info on talkbacks like this ) was going on in the BluRay camp. So how are all those people going to react? Are they going out to by a new player right away? Or are they going to be discouraged about the whole thing? And how is the rest of the consuming public going to view this? In a positive light?
Number two about downloading in the our future. Why this won't work in the mainstream sense. Portability! You download a great movie and watch it again and again ( depending on the scheme may or may not have to pay for it again and again ) and you want to take it over to your friend's house to watch on his rigg. How do you do that? Assuming you can transfer it to your big screen at all. I really don't picture movie companies oking burning it to a HD-type DVD. They really haven't demonstrated a relaxing attitude toward this. As a matter of fact they're downright paranoid about this. So how do you get the same flexability with downloading? Which in turn means how can it ever become mainstream? Now maybe convergence ( that pie in the sky marriage between computer and TV we've all been waiting for ) will finally happen in the next 10 years but it has a long way to go before then. So until they develop some scheme to get around this I really don't see downloading as anything more than a timeshifting item. I know I keep saying this but people don't seem to get the fundamental problem here. -
Jan 07, 2008 11:43:43 AM CST
"buy a PS3 and enjoy the taste of eating shit." - ricarleite
by jdanielp
Now THAT is a quote that says everything. (heh,heh)
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I can play my standard DVDs on my laptop, on vacation or on myu lunch breaks at work. Also my current DVD player yup[scales to 1080i just fine, my Blade Runner set looks sweet uposcaled. So does Stardust. And they're both standfard def.
When the dust settles on the format wars and they and laptops that can play which ever become standard, and all the hardware and disc get cheaper and maybe then. And maybe after I get 60 inch or more flat screen caudse otherwise what's the point. -
...has admitted difficulty with playing DVDs. They told me this when I called them about it.
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And these BluRay rips are legally done by private parties? Sure the technology's there but is it legal? Because the problem is getting it to something other than your computer's HD. Also if it's going to be a mainstream replacement for DVD it has to be legal.
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http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/01/07/gadgets.gates.ap/index.html
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Let me just say " Star Trek " " Battlestar Galactica "
Do they exist on BluRay? And they probably won't for at least 18 months because of contracts. This whole thing has been handled terribly on both sides. Both should have had equal studio support. Then the consumer could have decided instead of the decision being bought. -
Bzzz. Wrong try again. The 40 gig PS3 will play almost anything you can throw at it. DVD-R's, DVDs, BR, etc.
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I wish he'd just fuck off. Who is he to talk about pushing technology forward? He's nothing more than a peddler of shoddy, third-rate rip-offs which do nothing but stagnate the tech market.
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Here's a working link :
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/01/07/gadgets.gates.ap/index.html -
Jan 07, 2008 12:52:44 PM CST
Re: 'I rather do other things than stay at home watching high de
by 69dude
Then why even comment on the issue, if it's of that little interest to you?
Just for the sake of correcting you, I work too, and I earn plenty of money. Plenty. -
I notice he didn't address how the interactivity will take place or any of the concerns I've voiced here. I'm sure MS would love to charge you again and again everytime you download HD contnet. And how do you get it to anything bigger than your computer display? And before you start I don't think they are going to have 50" computer displays in the future for obvious reasons ( close up field of view ). So this would depend on the convergence question again. And again we've been waiting 25 years for that.
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But their board of directors will eventually swing for this, investion billions of dollars starting up a format that's probably never going to catch on with anybody except for hardcore movie geeks goofy enough to pay 35 bucks to own 'Transformers'.
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You can get it for 29.95 or cheaper. And if either of these formats caught on they would be cheaper. DVD's used to cost the same.
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but with the recent firmware upgrade, I can watch my DIVX videos via streaming from my PC or from the console's HDD. Now if only Sony had more exclusive games and the rumble feature.
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Ok. How do you get that content to your friend's house? And is it true HD quality?
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1.Wireless adapter: $100.00
2.HD DVD add on: $179.00
3.20 GIG HDD: $99.00
4.Xbox Live service $50.00
compare that to a $400.00 GIG PS3 if it wasn't for the games, M$ would lag far behind in sales. A good console but the expenses don't add up. (or do they?) -
Stop using old cliche one-liners, that one is not only old, but overused and no longer funny. And maybe I am a Special Olympics participant... you ever think about that? Maybe I'm offended!
ccchhhrrriiisssm, how can it not work! The PS3 plays DVDs fine, even upscales them if you're using HDMI, maybe there's something wrong with your settings or you're one of the rare few with a faulty one, better get it checked out!
Back to the virtual_ninja, did I bad mouth the 360, well... other than for the fact that, you know, "things break..." Did I bad mouth it's games? Well maybe in comparison to MGS4... but that goes for every other game beside that monolith as far as I'm concerned! I'll admit I'm a fanboy for that franchise and I'd suck Kojima off in a second. But I got no problem with the 360 otherwise or it's games or whatever... Nothing's going to happen the the 360 damnit, so you and your kin should stop being so paranoid as to lie about PS3 exclusives confirmed to come to your system or bad mouthing the competition unprovoked, sure soem chumps on our side of the fence will do it too, but be the bigger man, and if you love the 360 games releasing currently, all on DVD and it's making you happy and keeping you satisfied, then I don't think there's anything to worry about as long as there's more of the same and you keep buying it... I believe Sony's console will have greater promise thanks to advanced tech and developer like Kojia who love to optimize and exploit it with exclusive games. You play with what you paid for, so stop with the penis envy! In fact, sometimes I feel sorry for Microsoft because of the userbase it has to put up with... "OMG XBOX LIVE IS DOWN FOR A DAY! WHAT AM I GONNA DO??? LAWSUIT!!!" Also I have a Wii which is pretty cool, but even I won't buy a product guaranteed to break, I just don't want to put up with that shit, I hate speaking to customer service on the phone, or their answering machines or their stupid voice recognition or wondering if the mailman lost my return package and UPS loses tracking.... I've dealt with that shit before and I never look forward to doing it again! In any case, the point is, it DOESN'T MATTER what kind of fanboy I am! It's am I right, or am I right? Blu-Ray wins, the majority of detractors here of blu-ray and the PS3 are idiots and hypocrites and I'm right on that! Now join in the fun or leave us the hell alone! Complain if you want about your bad decisions, but it's not our fault for making a smart choice, yes SMART! Because as soon as Sony announced blu-ray in the PS3 and the better studio support I'd say it was really obvious how things were going to turn out, it was only a matter of when! Maybe if those rumors of an Xbox Ultimate were true and it included a sku that worked, I'd consider getting it! I like Ace Combat!
And ricarleite... Blu-Ray IS BETTER BECAUSE OF THE STORAGE!!! THAT'S ALL AND EVERYTHING THESE TWO THINGS ARE!!! STORAGE MEDIUMS!!!! Did that slip past you or are you too bitter to think logically? And who cares what companies spent and bribed in order to win? Was it your money? Did they borrow it from you without asking? Why the fuck does anyone care about those particular details? Maybe if Toshiba threw more money at them and won the war I bet you'd be a-okay with that, right? Just as long as your side won! But you didn't! And now you're mad! So you and your bitter buddies can keep buying DVDs for the rest of your lives if that makes you feel better and miss out on all the new HD content completely to spite that company's precious feelings just so you don't feel you wasted all the good money on an HD-DVD player by making use of it's upscaling ability for good ol' DVDs. Exercise your stubborn freedom! Show your patriotism! Plug your ears and go "LA LI LU LE LO" as you watch those DVDs upscaled to the look and sound of almost-perfect! There's no significant difference, right? Enjoy your upscaling DVD player! -
I thought not. So please stop with the "it's so great", B.S., all right? That's the one ace you've got to play for the PS3 and it probably won't be here until 2010...
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...and Sony admitted this to me on the telephone! They told me that this was a problem with many of the new $399 PS3s. I have all of the firmware updates too. Weird. But I guess you PS3/BluRay loyalists know more than Sony. ... ... ... *Rolls eyes. ... ... ... However, I do love the quality of the Blu-Ray on my PS3. However, I won't even begin to stock up on titles until their price drops to less than $20 a film.
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Well, the Divx capabilities is another option of the PS3 capabilities, and why would I bring a movie to a friend's house when he can get his own? :0P
Blu-Ray provides such an option when it comes to "portability" and High definition content, while I stream DIVX from my TV & Anime fansub downloads. (watch, the erase) Digital Downloads are a thrid option, but 360 has that advantage. I love the fact that the next-gen consoles are capable for various things other than playing games, and with firmware updates the possibilities are almost endless. -
I'd wait and see if BR becomes mainstream before you crow too loud. That hasn't even come close to happing yet. And I know a lot of people this whole thing has left a bad taste in their mouths. The entire transition to HD hasn't exactly been handled in the most consumer friendly fashion. As a matter of fact it's been all for the companies not the consumer. I'm hoping that we have some kind of user owned HD medium that's portable in the future ( because it really does look better than upscale, broadcast, or download but this whole sad story of transition sucks!
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Show the evidence. Show documentation.
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I am choosing Direct-TV HD because those crappy ass movies will end up on cable anyway...this crap is so overrated and I have a HD-DVD player.
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Please don't try to pretend this problem doesn't exist. I have this problem durrently with my DVR. There's stuff on it that I'd like to show my friend but he has to come over to my house to see it. Which really isn't a big problem but it's all about flexability and what people are used to doing. Right now they're used to a model that has existed for more than 25 years where you can do this. I really don't think people are going to want to go backwards on this. Also will it also cost your friend money if he gets his own? Right now I can take a DVD over to my friend and he doesn't have to pay for it again! Of course there's always the illegal route but we've already been over that one above this post. Trust me I've thought this out completely.
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I also have an HD DVD player and it's contnet looks better than anything ( HD ) you can get on cable or Direct TV. It really does look better and BR does also.
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Just come on over! Make sure you bring your library of DVDs. Better yet, just Google some information about this problem. I had never read anything about it at all UNTIL after I purchased the machine. However, there is quite a bit of info about it available online. Sony reps also will tell you if you make a telephone call. They simply said that there is a "backward compatibility issue" with some DVDs on the Blu-Ray drive. In the case of my PS3, it is about 40% of my DVDs. Just Google this info, buddy. Don't take my word for it, even if you want to keep loving and worshipping the PS3. Besides, I didn't buy it for the Blu-Ray drive. I just like to play PS games (even though I still prefer the XBox360's controller, price, XBox Live feature and interface). But it would have been nice to have been warned about this compatibility issue before spending $400+ on this system.
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Just to clairify I was talking about the problems of not having physical media and it becoming a mainsteam replacement for the DVD. Yes if you have a BR disc you can have portability.
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Consumers love, and I mean LOVE, tangible merchandise. Something they can hold onto, easily take with them, and that has eye-catching artwork emblazoned on it. That's the real problem with downloads. People WANT the actual disc in the case product. Why? Two reasons. Number one, they want something that is virtually risk free for transportation reasons. Hard drives are still far too fragile, and crash or die way too easily. If I have my copy of Blade Runner on Blu-Ray or my copy of Batman Begins on HD-DVD (yes, I have both) and I want to go to my friends house and watch it, I don't have to worry about some major expense or loss of tons of movies/data/files if I slip and drop the case versus if I slip and drop a hard drive. I simply pick up the case, wipe it off, and continue on my way. No big deal. Number two, there is a massive portion of the population, specifically those over the age of 50, who are still fairly computer illiterate, and would have no friggin' clue how to even use a hard drive, much less handle downloads, etc. They just want to go to the store, pick up the latest release and pop it in their player when they get home.
Until people can get past those two issues, there will continue to be viable formats that can be purchased at the local electronics store. -
Exactly! Couldn't have said it better myself.
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Yeah, I did buy the LOST Season 3 on Blu-Ray. It is impressive (to say the least). However, I don't forsee myself buying many more until the HD war has a victor and the price has dropped to a civilized level.
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read 'em and weep: (add 1.2 million PS3 units sold over X-mas to figures below)
Sony has said previously that it sold 5.6 million PS3s worldwide as of the end of September. The latest will add to the tally but the company did not yet have the numbers from the other regions.
The PS3 has lagged behind the Xbox 360 console from Microsoft, which has sold 17.7 million Xbox 360 consoles globally over the last two years.
(Third place isn't so bad, fellas!)
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Exactly, my friend. That has been my point from day one. No one wants to piss away their money on something non-tangible that is one lightning strike away from being lost forever. I learned that lession six months ago. Lost three PCs and everything on my hard drives. Best believe having a physical tangible product for the same price, if not slightly more, will be way more desireable to the general public then downloads. Choose to deny it all you want, folks. If it turns out we're wrong, we're wrong. We are all at the mercy of evolving technology and the suits in charge anyway.
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I would agree at first that paying money for a downloaded product, vs. say a nicely packaged collector's edition of a DVD with lots of neat packaging extras like film frames or illustrated disk chapters, seems impossible. But consider the fact that we are trying to imagine this scenario with current constructs as our basis. Imagine a portable device, similar to an i-pod, that can house hundreds of movies (hard to imagine for now, but just stick with me) that you can carry portably, and that slips nicely into some massive wall screen and upcomes an HD quality flick. That would be pretty sweet. The problem is right now that is essentially impossible (but again that is only for now) and secondly I tend to imagine some hard drive desktop which I have to plug into a TV, log onto some 3rd party site, enter a username and password, click around with the settings to get it just right, close down the pop-ups and banner ads, and then enjoy a movie but suffer through consistant imaging issues due to transfer of files, slowdown in connection, etc. etc. If we imagine non-physical media with what MS would offer us, I concur that is a scary thought indeed. But I have a feeling it won't work like that, if they really want to sell that concept. Think about it, 15 years ago could you imagine telling people they would never buy a physical CD again, that they could get all their music online, and load it onto a little device the size of a credit card? I think we are limited right now in how we imagine this system working, but give it time and we could be changed.
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"Studios will not hesitate where money is to be made! While Blu Ray may have its advantages, they will evaporate in the terms of cost and availability. "
"If this doesn't happen before Christmas 2008, my guess is that the winner will already be declared by Christmas 2009. ... ... ... ... ... ... "Welcome to Wal-Mart! Would you like a HD-DVD player in your PS3?!?""
"The three important factors are: 1. Cost of player. 2. Title selection and 3. Backward Compatibility. While Blu-Ray continues to enjoy more title selection, the potentional amount of purchases will continue to suffer due to player price. The war is far from over, but HD-DVD seems to have two of the three factors well in hand."
Well, according to your previous post I would have thought you purchased your HD-DVD player and wouldn't even consider a BR one. But it seems as if you are hard set against BR from the get go. I personally think your logic is flawed on many levels.
If the studios were losing money on blu ray do you really think it would have the support that it has? And you do know that the price reductions for HD-DVD will bottom much sooner than blu ray's right? The trade up was for up front savings and a moderate jump in profits versus expensive refitting and an incredible jump in profits. -
I still stand by my thoughts in this. I didn't intend to purchase a Blu-Ray player. I purchased a PS3 so that I could play games. I won't spend much more $$$ on movies for either unit until the war is nearly won and the prices drop to a civilized place. BTW, the studios weren't losing $$$ on Blu-Ray. Sony was losing $$$ on the player (by selling it for less than the cost of manufacture) and the studios were not maximizing their profits by having to produce selections on Blu-Ray, HD-DVD and DVD formats. As far as your notion that HD-DVD will "bottom" much sooner than Blu-Ray, I couldn't CARE LESS! I would prefer that they BOTH bottom soon. However, once a player and the movie selections are quite affordable to the common consumer, there will not be a winner. My $$$ is still on HD-DVD (due to the cost and availability of production); however, the recent decisions by studio execs now have leveled the playing field. Blu-Ray probably has the advantage -- to the detriment of consumers.
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go hug a fucking tree and fuck your boyfriend if you're so easily offended you shit eating bucket of monkey spunk.
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Well we've already been over this. The problem here is to get the movie studios to agree to this. This kind of thing could be done right now with the technology we have today. Burn it to a HD format DVD ( yes I mean BR also ). Movie studios will never go for that unless they can say it's pirate proof. And as we all know nothing's that way. So there's the problem. They are especially sensitive to HD content. So sounds nice but how will this happen?
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Only the idiots are forsaking physical CDs and DVDs in favor of "free/cheaper" il/legal downloads. I scarf up their collections for $2 a disc on eBay every damned time. Just wait till their iPod or treasured terrabyte holding hard drive goes tits up, with no backup. They'll eventually see the light. $.99 a song is way too much for a sequence of "0's" and "1's." An entertainment economy based solely on renting individual spins of varioius media will - praise Jebus - never fucking happen. Of course, as this neverending debate demonstrates, there's a fuck of a lot of idgits out there.
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if he's spending so many tens of thousands of dollars on DVDs and home theater systems and then CHANGING to buy replacements for everything he just purchased, just so he can say "he has it."Clearly, wealth doesn't buy any sense, but I'm sure Yoko's happy with it.
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I am not proposing the solution will happen any time soon. But I would argue that making digital copies of films available for download does not necessitate an increase in pirating in and of itself. It exists with out that, there is tons of film pirating going on now that doesn't use DVD burns. Besides, they have DVD quality digital downloads that are now available through the studios (see Harry Potter DVD) so I fail to see how putting together some sort of i-Tunes system for purchasing downloadable films is going to freak out the studios. They already freaked out 5-10 years ago when this stuff was first happening. By now they understand this wave is already rolling, their best bet is to get ahead of it and see how they can help stear the tide.
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You think that people who use i-pods and download their library of music are a minority, or fools, because it could all go away? On the contrary, did you see the number of personal handheld electronic devices sold this year at X-Mas? This trend is not changing. Now with movies, I agree, these are so much larger, with such a big investment, vs. say a .99 cent song, but give it time. If there is money to be made, someone will come up with a solution, and you know Steve Jobs and Bill Gates are racing to see who can control the form for that next big media breakthrough. For whatever reason, the i-Pod is the chosen MP3 player for a majority of Americans, not the tech savy ones, but the normal, everyday, middle America population. These are the ones that those companies want in their pockets so desperately. When your grandma's are buying i-Pods, you know that you have something, especially when they can charge $150 for something you could probably get for $50 for the same quality but with out the cool name i-Pod.
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Has anyone else noticed how there's more complaints about poor CGI in movies recently, what with the advent of DVD technology and movies becoming more sharper and clearer???
I don't think it's a coincidence. Take a movie like The Relic. Shot on 35mm. The monster appeared properly near the end and was CGI. And for the time, the monster looked great! All this high-def crap is like buying white shoes. You'll see the shit easier! -
To be honest it's no suprise that Blu-Ray has lined up Warner Bros, the only real threat to them now is Fox as Disney will want in on Blu-Ray. As there technology gets cheaper, while HD-DVD is going no where fast.
The only real shocker here is that you bought a Denon and not a Rotel system, you could have had crisper sound and used a SONY HD projector to get those images flying. -
Eventually as more games and exclusive killer apps like MGS4 and Killzone come out for the PS3,it's console sale will further gain momemtum especially now that more major studios are backing the BD format. The PS3 has been said to be a better Blu-Ray player than certain stand alone BD set tops. Don't get me wrong, I love my 360 (especially when it's not getting the "Red Rings Of Death")but I'm losing faith in M$' business practices. (see my previous post.)as Sony is somewhat leveling the playing field via dropping the price of their console but Microsoft and it's arrogance has refused to lower the price for both 20/120 HDD snap on,Wireless adapter or thier Xbox live subcriptions. I'm not too concerned about sales as the 360 has had a head start meaning installed fanbase, but anything can happen in a matter of months.
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I wish the stand alone prices will get lower for the average consumer but just like when dvd came out, the prices didn't rop for years but that didn't cause the format to disappear. In this generation I already have sen (thanks to ces as well) how quickly the prices have dropped for both players and I believe that its only a matter of time. Once the harware and studios see more savings they will pass it along to entice even more people to spen their money.
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remember when mp3's were the "poor man's music", and considered ghetto, while everyone was still paying 17.99 at Sam Goody for a jewelcase with pretty packaging? I was working there at the time. Glad I got out, because they're all going belly-up. Out of the four malls in my area, not one of them has a music store anymore. Now, I like having two bookshelves full of DVDs with pretty, solid and reliable packaging, but when the next big format change happens, I'm not selling all of these on ebay and rebuying a new disk. If I replace these, it will be a download or bust. As for HDDVD and BluRay, I say follow the soccer moms and watch Blockbuster Videos. When the regular DVD becomes the minority on the shelves and middle-class soccer moms start buying HD or Bluray players, I'll buy a new player. But it better be backwards compatible. Shit, I spent 100 bucks on just a Godfather boxset, an Aliens boxet and a LOTR boxset, and that's about 5 percent of my collection. Not eager to do it again.
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...Mike Huckabee!
Everyone else still likes RON PAUL!
I wanna fuck HILLARY! -
sure, downloaded movies suck now, but broadband speeds and compression quality will increase over the years. clicking "buy this movie now" and ok'ing your Paypal account, then getting the movie in 30 secons is a long way off, but it's inevitable. just like music, buying physical media in overpriced brick n' mortar stores will go away. all our Sam Goody's are gone, and half the Suncoasts are gone.
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Hillary actually looked hot during the debates Saturday night. I'd have hit her from behind, no question.
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List some popular dvd's that your PS3 will not play.
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TO ROUNDHOUSEKICK US ALL TO HELL!
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I think we all know the future of movies and music is in the digital world. The idea of a physical item you can hold in your hand (apart from your external hard drive)will probably be gone on a few years.
It's just so much easier and cheaper for both consumer and fat greedy nazi pig fucker. After that, I don't think they can go much further. Your avi's and mp3's will just get smaller in size and improve in quality, but there's not much left in the line of new formats. By the time they come up with a new one, we'll probably be underwater. -
Because those bastards charge %4 more than say, BestBuy, Walmart and circuit city. Screw them, Ebay is the way or to some dergree Amazon.
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Chuck Norris wants mandatory religion lessons in schools. I don't like Chuck Norris anymore.
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It's the most cost effective solution, the technology is there, and people are going to get fed up with going back to paying $30 a DVD. Fun fact: if you don't buy an High Definition television, it doesn't make a bit of difference and DVDs are getting really, really cheap.
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Now that we all agree that HD DVD is the lifeboat not to get into (despite some laughable crying-into-their-beers HD DVD fanboys still in a state of denial on here), can we also agree that digital-HD -quality-downloads-into-some-sort-of-an ipod-for-movies-device is still years away despite the magic algorithms that will download a full movie in a minute still being in someone's imagination? I think this discussion is over. Can we buy some nice Blu Ray movies now and just get on with it and help the cost of the whole thing come down so everyone can buy one :D
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You don't have to convince me. It's the studios which if they had their way we wouldn't even have VCRs. Back in 1982 their president testified in front of congress how home video would be the end of the movie industry. Now that's the type of attitude you have to deal with.
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It'd be Heaven:
http://tinyurl.com/27hy62 -
Read above why until some pretty big chnges are made Downloading probably isn't the future you think it is.
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Read above why it won't be. And HD is the future. That's pretty clear now. Last year 8 out of 10 TV's sold were HD. Get used to it.
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I don't think anyone is claiming that downloading non-physical media is today. I think pretty much everyone agrees that is down the road. But considering that DVD's were brand new in '97 and '98, and only ten years later we have a new option, you could bet that it won't be more than 8-10 years for there to be a new advance that will take us to downloading crap. Probably a lot less, and that really isn't that long to wait. All that to say, why should I be interested in Blu-Ray right now. How much difference will I notice between a sharp, new DVD on an HDTV and a Blu-Ray on an HDTV? Probably some, but enough that it will make my movie going experience that much better, or make it worth it for me to invest hundreds of dollars in a new system and new movies. Nope.
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You know the scene.
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As I've said before there is a big difference between DVD and HD DVD or BR! If you own a HDTV you'll want a source material to match eventually. I've compared and they even look better than broadcast HD. Also Standard definition amd NTSC is on the way out. Much quicker than anybody suspected. Also I'd be willing to bet that it will take longer than 10 years to convince the movie studios. I'd be willing to bet they'd support the idea that if you download it's pay as you go. So you pay everytime you download! So it's never really yours. I've even heard some talk like that. So go ahead and wait 10 years or so. I don't think everyone else will. As I've said 8 out of 10 TV's sold last year were HD.
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I agree that HDTV is THE ONLY CHOICE. If someone's analog burned out today, even if they were strapped for cash, it would be a poor investment to purchase anything other than HDTV. But I think where you and I differ, is that I will be okay to live with my standard Def DVD player and DVD's for a little while longer. Not because I fundementally believe that Blu-Ray or HDTV will never catch on, but for now I am not interested in burning up my kid's college fund so I can see all the detail in Kong's fur that much clearer. I see your point, that there is an clear distinction between the two formats. But is it to the level of VHS vs. DVD? Cause with those two formats it was a no brainer, one was based on a chemically dipped film that would eventually corrode and downgrade. The other was a laser coded digital disk that would allow for not only brilliant images, but a much longer lasting product.
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I guess this is not surprising but I just noticed a Microsoft coverup of sorts. I watched Bill Gates' CES 2008 keynote speech online. In that whole presentation, as has been reported here before, I didn't hear HD-DVD mentioned A SINGLE TIME.
But when I looked for the official transcript on Microsoft.com and read that, HD-DVD is mentioned THREE TIMES! They even call HD-DVD "the top selling format this year"!!!!
It really looks like Microsoft made some last-minute changes to their presentation and deleted any mention of HD-DVD. It appears that whole section of the presentation, which included a discussion of XBOX Live gaming, was scrubbed.
Here's part of it:
"And I want to talk about four ways for you to get high-definition movies today on the Microsoft ecosystem. Now, the first of those is through our HD-DVD player. This comes that you can buy for Xbox 360.
Now, I want to point out we've been making as many of these as we possibly can, and they continue to sell out. Demand for this product is incredibly high.
Perhaps the bigger news than that, though, is that the HD-DVD format has been the top selling format this year. And that's a combination of the fact that it's had the most movies, it's been the most affordable, and it's had the most interactive and compelling interactive features with our technology that we've put into that product. So, this really creates a great environment for people who want to use the disk space environment to access and interact with high-definition movies." -
Quite simply one looks soft by comparison and colors aren't as good. The other looks sharp and the colors are more like what you would see in the theater. Which would you pick? If you've already invested in an HDTV why wouldn't want to see it at it's full potential? Also for HD dvd it only cost me $199.00 to buy the player. The movies I'll get over time as not every movie is available in either format. Plus both will still play DVDs and they look better on an HDTV ( upconverting ). I don't think that'll break you kid's college fund and if it does you've got bigger problems.
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Ps. So if you're really saying yopu don't want to spend the money on a new format right now I can understand that. But that's something different than what we've been talking about.
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Ps. So if you're really saying you don't want to spend the money on a new format right now I can understand that. But that's something different than what we've been talking about.
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Good luck on that one.
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I've written in this TalkBack before about why I think movie downloading services are not feasible for those that want to OWN their movies.
filegumbo, you suggest a different method where the content provider stores the movies on their servers and we would pay for unlimited access to the content. You say that we would have "the rights to watch forever."
Really? Could you pass your movie collection down to your children like you could pass down a collection of treasured books? What if the company you bought your collection from goes out of business? Where does your collection go? If New Line Cinema goes belly-up, I still own my copy of "Lord of The Rings." Where does your virtual copy go?
The model you propose might work for rentals, as a matter of fact, Blockbuster and NetFlix already offer a similar rental program. But, again, it will not work for those that want to OWN their movies.
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me and my brother recently wanted to see so we rented the 3rd pirates movie on blu-ray (he already owns it on regular dvd) and we put the blu-ray in the ps3 and the regular dvd in the normal player. i have a 42inch lcd tv if that matters. anyway while there WAS a difference in quality, it wasnt really that big. we even put the regular dvd in the PS3 and it was the same story. now i'm sure someone's go start babbling about needing a better setup or tv to "really see the difference" but yeah. now HD television, there is a difference in that case. when movies play on HD channels, they look quite better than normal channels and even better than dvds. not sure why but yeah, high def discs just arent that big a step up. i'm not saying either format sucks or they're never gonna catch, but when HD television is able to have a drastic difference but the actual high def discs barely do..something's up here.
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As a former Suncoast store manager for the better part of a decade, let me just say this. Probably the most dominant reason why you don't see Suncoast or Sam Goody stores in malls anymore is that Best Buy bought them out back in 2001, elimating one of it's largest competitors. It then treated these stores like red-headed stepchildren, refusing to lower prices while decreasing their own. The big misconcetion is that Suncoast deliberately kept prices high. The simple fact is that as a smaller retailer without a "big-box" marketing strategy, Suncoast and Sam Goody kept prices at the STUDIOS suggested retail prices to keep with good relationships with them and carry more of their niche product (like criterion dvd's, monster selection of anime and foreign films). Best buy sells most of their DVD selection at a loss, to get customers into the stores and buy more shit. It's the WalMart philosophy. You sell a $10 DVD at a loss, while selling monster cables (which are, at cost, about .10 on the dollar), accessories, and stereo equipment at a huge margin. Suncoast was never as much about the prices as it was the selection. We relied on the movie geeks. We WERE movie geeks. Our knowledge of the product and the studios was ten times the average pimply-faced high school kid working the DVD stock shelves at BB. Then, after Best Buy chewed them up and spit us out. They kept the huge Musicland warehouse of product, and sold Musicland as a company off to the highest bidding predatory liquidator. I saw the writing on the wall and got out while I could. I do cherish the people I met while there, especially some of the customers whose knowledge was far beyond even anyone we had on staff. This won't keep me from buying BB or Walmart, but I think you should know that Suncoast was never meant to compete with the big box stores. We were a movie store for movie fans. Too bad the average customers want to remain blissfully ignorant and buy their DVD's and Huggies at the same place.
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Sorry everyone. Please disregard my previous post about Microsoft and HD-DVD.
Someone sent me the transcript from LAST YEAR'S keynote speech and I didn't notice that until now.
I apologize. I didn't mean to mislead anyone.
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Um, downloads are not the wave of the future...really? Because last time I checked that itunes thing was just tanking...people just hate to carry around 1000s of movies, media and music in their pocket.... I mean seriously, who buys cd's anymore. Are you cavemen? This HD battle is silly, both Apple and Netflix have box's coming out this year to download HD movies, and xbox does already. For all you people so worried about having your movies fry in an old hard drive, its called back up. I am trying to figure out why anyone would want a wall of dvd/BDs H-DVDs discs anyhow? Ownership of physical storage is on the way out. No way to stop it.
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BluRay's packaging just looks sexier as does my PS3! :)
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Jan 07, 2008 8:39:18 PM CST
I have a question for anyone who has watched lost season 3 on bl
by marv42134213
Does the picture quality give any better hints as to Jacob is? I know this isn't the lost thread, but I had to ask. As for the whole blue vs hd debate, I got an hd and am happy with it. Bummed that now I just found out that most of my favorite movies are going to be blue ray, but am hopeful that eventually the price will drop and I'll have both. At least my HD player makes my regular movies look better than a regular player. I do take slight offence at some of the people on here gloating and ridiculing those of us who have HD players. It wasn't too long ago that this site was promoting them as the best thing to come along since sliced bread. So...until the prices for blue-ray players drop or I find a million dollars in my mattress, I guess I will just be grateful for what I have. We all know these are going to be obsolete in the not to distant future anyway. Hope you are all having a good day, wherever you are.
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and immediately rip everything HD-DVD off the shelves whether it had been pre-ordered, ordered, shipped or not. They're going to honour everything they'd announced so far in terms of upcoming HD-DVD releases (which means may). Which is pretty fair considering.
If Blu-Ray companies DO actually take up Bill Hunt's idea of 'offering an olive branch' to HD-DVD customers though I think the world will explode, 'cause it's almost too noble to even contemplate.
Or maybe all the AICN TBers who hate Hunt so much for his bias (oh the hypocrisy - and they seem to miss repeatedly that Hunt NEVER said he was or the site was ever intended to be impartial - whaddya know - just like this site they whinge on) will explode. 'Cause God knows they couldn't concede that it's a great idea. I hope the latter happens.
I read the WHOLE thread. Harry, can I have some free BDs? They're givin' 'em away apparently.
Wow Poetic. Your logic is incredible! "I'll defend my infantile racism with homophobia! ". Ataboy, keep digging, ya pathetic little shit! -
Looks like they're still planning on it... for the moment.
http://tinyurl.com/36vcjs -
Hey all,
I tried to go HD-DVD on Boxing Day but missed out on the cheap Toshiba player. Went Blu-ray with a PS3 and don't regret it.
If you look at a Blu-ray or HD-DVD movie on an HDTV and don't see any difference over DVD (even up-converted) then there is something wrong with the TV or your glasses need cleaning. It is unfortunate for those who chose HD-DVD that the format is likely going to wither on the vine but it's not the end of the world. Like other's have said you likely have a decent upconverting player AND there're some pretty good flicks out there on that format. Watch for the sales and stock up on the clearance HD-DVD media as Blu-ray becomes the dominant format. You'll probably have a pretty decent library to enjoy in glorious Quicktime...er, HD. For those of you who haven't gone HD you won't regret it if you do. Also consider that if you get a blu-ray player - and the prices are becoming palatable - you'll still be able to enjoy your DVD library through quality upconversion and you'll have the option to buy/rent HD media as new movies are released.
Now to the subject of downloading of HD content.
It's a pipe dream.
At least for the long forseeable future.
What I think some people are forgetting is that vast swaths of North America have limited or NO access to broadband. Right now the networks are running at peak capacity and until some form of massive broadband pipeline available to everyone - the TV spectrum Google is after? - is online HD movie downloads of the quality that we see with BD and HD-DVD are, as I said, a pipe dream. Mind you, I'd dig it but I also dig holding that shiny disc in my hand. Also the bandwidths necessary for HD content aren't there and likely won't be there for years to come.
I used to live in the country - up until this past September - surrounded by people who had access to hi-speed internet and it was frustrating to have only dial-up for access. There are still a TON of people who are in that situation and will be in that situation for years and years to come. If anything, downloadable HD movies will be the "niche" market for many years to come until the vast majority of consumers have access to broadband and the infrastructure is there to handle the massive load that HD downloads would bring.
Just sayin'
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Borabora, we're talking about HD movies here, not music. Most people can't tell the difference between CD-quality and MP3-quality sound, especially on a tiny headset.
How many full-length, HD-quality movies do you have saved on your overpriced iPod? None? Maybe that's because the iPod's maximum resolution is 640x480. And not a single HD-quality movie would fit on most iPods.
You also say that we shouldn't worry about our hard drives "frying," we should back them up. What whould you use to store the backups, other hard drives? That means you need even more storage space. You could backup to optical discs but then you're stuck with physical media again.
As I've said in previous posts, most people will always want physical media to store their collections. That's why, even after thousands of years, we still have books.
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The Mind. I read a book, listen to a song, watch a movie in the theater, and BAM, right there [taps temple] at the best quality imaginable.
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Because BB doesn't really give two shits about niche market product. They need to cram the shelves with thousands of copies of shitty studio titles in both WS and full screen versions for the masses. You'll be lucky to find your criterion Kurosawa films there. If you do happen to be lucky enough to find one, snatch it up. Now. They'll pull it by week's end. Stores like Suncoast existed for the fans of film to not only have the selection, but also let them know how to locate the hard to find films. I can't even count the number of hours I spent trying to educate the difference between WS and P&S only to have it fall on deaf ears. Another reason why I just can't really see how downloading movies will ever become the standard. Sure, it'll be a convenient option. Hell, I'll probably even use it for the shit films I don't really care to keep. Could be totally wrong on that. I'd be the first to admit I could be wrong. I just don't see it.
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on all blu-ray discs reacts chemically over time and melts all the blu-ray discs. Would serve you all right for your sickening attitude.
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Blu-Ray has the edge for now. But considering that HD/Blue Ray discs compose only 1.6% of the video disc market, your standard def. DVD's will be around for a while yet. Microsoft will back HD-DVD on their PC's. Apple backs Sony and may have Bluray drives soon. And Sony Vaio machines...gee, I wonder. The battle has only begun.
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Remember DIVX discs? The ones that had limited play time before they wouldn't play to keep us folks from making copies? This was backed by Speilberg/Dreamworks and Disney. Anything can happen.
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Jan 07, 2008 9:45:54 PM CST
Remember the DVD vs. DIVX "format war" from sbout 10 yrs ago?
by el_duderino
I do...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1998/08/13/BU36940.DTL -
That's funny. read my mind.
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Sweet :)
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The Financial Times of London is reporting that Paramount is getting ready to drop support for HD-DVD.
Apparently, they have a clause in their agreement with HD-DVD that allows them to cancel the contract "in the event of Warner Bros backing Blu-ray"
Read the whole thing here:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/dc409afa-b...nclick_check=1
Here's part of it:
"Paramount in HD DVD blow
By Matthew Garrahan and Mariko Sanchanta in Las Vegas
Published: January 8 2008 02:49 | Last updated: January 8 2008 02:49
Paramount is poised to drop its support of HD DVD after Warner Brothers’ recent backing of Sony’s Blu-ray technology, in a move that will sound the death knell of HD DVD and bring the home entertainment format war to a definitive end.
Paramount and DreamWorks Animation, which makes the Shrek films, came out in support of HD DVD last summer, joining General Electric’s Universal Studios as the main backers of the Toshiba format.
However, Paramount, which is owned by Viacom, is understood to have a clause in its contract with the HD DVD camp that would allow it to switch sides in the event of Warner Bros backing Blu-ray, according to people familiar with the situation."
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and "Is understood to have"
Not to let the wind out of your sails there as you could well be right, but that's like the Financial Times equivalent of "a close friend" or "a reliable source". -
If the Financial Times is right, that would certainly be the end of the format war, finally. That's kind of like stating who lies in Grant's Tomb, though.
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Let it go, people. The Blu-Ray/HD argument is a non-issue, because you can already buy hard disc drive media players that handle video, music and pictures, connect to your TV easily, stream data wirelessly from your computer, and store hundreds of gigabytes, all on a device that's about the size of a hardback book. They're like an iPod for your TV, but ten times as good as Apple's bullshit "Apple TV" gadget, with as much as ten times the storage of an iPod ~ AND they're a third the price. For now. Get 'em while they're under the radar, before some huge corporation markets the fuck out of them and passes the cost of said marketing on to you. Mine only cost me $200, and it works like a charm -- I'm NEVER going back to DVD, Blu-Ray or not. The only reason companies aren't pushing HDD media players yet is because they want to squeeze a few million dollars more out of everyone with one last physical format before we all jump to pure data. Me, I say fuck that. While we're at it, fuck plasma screen TVs, too -- my $600 projector allows me to watch HiDef signals on a $200 10-foot screen: the difference in quality is negligible, and the roughly $9000 I didn't spend on a comparable plasma setup gives me a much thicker (and thus comfier) wallet to sit on while I'm watching one of the hundreds of movies I can choose from at the push of a button. But if you want to spend ten times as much, hassle with disc storage and handling, and shell out even more money for yet another intermediate step between VHS and intangible media, go for it.
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I set out to buy "Flight of the Conchords" and none of the ten Best Buys in my town carried it. Finally found it at Suncoast.
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There is no chance of Digital Downloads taking over in the near future. Just because you like it doesn't mean that your average Joe will or even UNDERSTAND the concept. I deal with these average Joe's everyday, and trust me, we are no where near digital downloads taking over. Also, tell the hundreds of millions of physical media that it is dead. If they even understand what you mean by physical media, they will disagree with you. HD media just has too large of a filesize to be feasible for people to download at this point.
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"Tell the hundreds of millions of physical media buyers that it is dead."
That's how that sentence should read. -
It's over!
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chumpmonkey, you have "hundreds of movies to choose from at the push of a button" from your hard disc drive media player? How many of those are full-length, HD-quality movies?
In a previous post I calculated that a 700-movie collection (assuming a VERY conservative 15 GB per movie) would require 10.5 TERABYTES of disc space. Just how big is that hard drive? And what will you do when it's filled? And what happens if the hard drive dies on you, buy another hard disc drive media player and download all your movies again?
And how much did those "hundreds of movies" cost you? -
Are you accusing chumpmonkey of watching PIRATEs of the Caribbean?
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Is blowing smoke straight out of his ass. I can guarentee he's sitting on an HDDVD player stewing over the purchase. And Plasma tvs??? Fuck those things, anyway. No one carries plasmas anymore. Have you noticed the bulk of television sales is LCD now? Plasmas are too much of a headache to deal with, so they're not being heavily manufactured anymore...right?
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Have to disagree with you. For one, streaming data will likely be the route of choice for Joe Average, not hard drive storage. For those of us who (to date) have amassed huge DVD libraries, it's more likely they'll be downloading. For another thing, HDD media players are simple as can be -- they connect to your TV the same way a DVD player or VCR does. All that needs to happen is that people are introduced to them as an option. I just bought one for my parents for Christmas, and while they're complete luddites, they loved it and understood how to use it right off the bat. There's no crazy wiring here, no programming, no formatting. Simple. And remember, it was just a handful of years ago that an iPod was WAY too much tech for the rank-and-file to figure out. Same goes for just about everything related to the internet. Hell, I remember being confused about how to play an MP3, not-so-very-long-ago. Considering there are already multiple direct-streaming video options online (including NetFlix), it seems to me that we're on the cusp of a sea-change with regard to how we watch video. The net is merging with our personal home entertainment systems as we speak, and I guarantee you that within 5 years, all hard media will be dead or rapidly dying. I've watched this process too many times before (vinyl, reel-to-reel, casette, analog cable, and on and on) not to see it coming again this time. The technology is ready, simple, and handily available; the only thing keeping it from reaching the masses right now is the aforementioned media blitz that will come hand-in-hand with a huge spike in cost. I'm willing to bet that the big holiday gift of 2012 (if not sooner) will be some variation of an HDD player, it will come from a major tech company (probably Apple), and it will cost a minimum of three times the price of the current incarnation. Mark my words, you will see this all happen relatively soon.
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Have to disagree with you. For one, streaming data will likely be the route of choice for Joe Average, not hard drive storage. For those of us who (to date) have amassed huge DVD libraries, it's more likely they'll be downloading. For another thing, HDD media players are simple as can be -- they connect to your TV the same way a DVD player or VCR does. All that needs to happen is that people are introduced to them as an option. I just bought one for my parents for Christmas, and while they're complete luddites, they loved it and understood how to use it right off the bat. There's no crazy wiring here, no programming, no formatting. Simple. And remember, it was just a handful of years ago that an iPod was WAY too much tech for the rank-and-file to figure out. Same goes for just about everything related to the internet. Hell, I remember being confused about how to play an MP3, not-so-very-long-ago. Considering there are already multiple direct-streaming video options online (including NetFlix), it seems to me that we're on the cusp of a sea-change with regard to how we watch video. The net is merging with our personal home entertainment systems as we speak, and I guarantee you that within 5 years, all hard media will be dead or rapidly dying. I've watched this process too many times before (vinyl, reel-to-reel, casette, analog cable, and on and on) not to see it coming again this time. The technology is ready, simple, and handily available; the only thing keeping it from reaching the masses right now is the aforementioned media blitz that will come hand-in-hand with a huge spike in cost. I'm willing to bet that the big holiday gift of 2012 (if not sooner) will be some variation of an HDD player, it will come from a major tech company (probably Apple), and it will cost a minimum of three times the price of the current incarnation. Mark my words, you will see this all happen relatively soon.
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That the blu ray camp will trade in hddvds...http://www.thedigitalbits.com/#mytwocents Hope its both the hw and discs.
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I know a guy who bought 12 Plasma TVs for his game store and two of them died within a week. He's had a couple more go out since then and that was like five or six months ago.
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That is just a hopeful wish from the Digital Bits at this point. It would be cool if true though.
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I would never accuse chumpmonkey of anything illegal. I'm sure all the "hundreds of movies" he has were paid for and legally downloaded.
That's why I so, very very concerned about his investment. What if a lightning strike went through his power lines and fried his disc drive media player? I'm just looking out for him, like any good friend would do. -
You're a gentleman and a scholar.
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They're ALL full length, and the majority are HD quality. 15 GB per film?! You're high. Beautiful quality comes in at roughly 1 GB, 5, if you're REALLY going nuts. If you need a 15 GB file in order to be satisfied with video quality, I fear there is NO reliable format for you, muy friend. As for how big the HD is, that's up to you. As I say, you can stream from your computer. MY computers (all of which are accessible via the HDD player) have a combined storage of roughly 2.5 TB. I'd also point out to you that a 1 TB hard drive is affordably available now, though just a couple of years ago they were outrageously expensive. By the time a mass-market HDD player is available, 5-10 TB drives will come cheap. As for data loss, what do YOU do when you lose a drive on your PC or Mac? For that matter, what do you do when you scratch or crack a DVD? It's all a part of the game, and there are no guarantees with ANY medium. As for how much my movies cost me, most of them are ripped from my DVD collection, so roughly $20 apiece. Yet another reason to adopt HDD players ~ flawlessly transferring the previous format to the new one, thus making it backwards-compatible.
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The last DVD player I bought was several years ago (a cheap RCA 5-Disc changer), which I mainly bought for the home theater setup it came with. RE: "plasma" ~ my bad. I meant to say 'LCD' (which is shit anyway, so my point still remains).
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How long do we start seeing those words popping up on your precious downloads you look forward to? Once cable TV goes by the wayside and everything starts being delivered on demand as a digital download, the ad agencies will be all over that. Watermarks, tickers, all out commercials, and the like. Ad money's gotta go somewhere.
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See my response to AllanUSC for what I'd do if I lost my data in a "lightning strike".
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Depends on whether you're paying for a specific download, or paying for a service. If I'm paying, say, Comcast for a month-to-month, membership-based download service, it's analogous to paying for cable (and thus getting commercials with my programming). If I pay for a direct download from, say, Anchor Bay however, it's analogous to buying a DVD in a store. Simple, really.
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It certainly does seem you have it all figured out. Good luck with that. In the meantime, I'll wait it out, watch my upscaled thousands of upscaled DVDs. They work perfectly fine by me. When blu ray becomes more affordable, I'll pick one up and keep building a collection that I can pick from anytime I want without fear of losing anything to a fried hard drive. If I can haul my ass up off the couch and load it myself, I didn't really want to watch it anyway.
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If I CAN'T haul my ass up off the couch and load it myself, I didn't really want to watch it anyway.
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Hey, whatever floats your boat. I'm just saying that it's more likely than not that you (or someone you know) will own one of these soon. Personally, I'd just as soon skip the Blu-Ray step and go straight to what's inevitable anyway.
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chumpmonkey, if you're not too picky about quality you can compress a two hour onto a 700MB file or CD. If your movies are 1 - 5 GB each, they are not HD-quality. That might be good enough for you but it's not HD.
If you could really get an HD-quality movie down to 5 GB, why don't we have HD movies on DVDs that can hold 9 GB? If "most of them are ripped" from your DVD collection, they are not HD. Again, if you're happy with non-HD content, good for you. There's nothing wrong with that but most of us are talking about HD-quality stuff here.
As for hard drive failures on computers, of course most people backup any important data. Are you backing up all the movies on your hard drive(s)? I'm guessing you're not since doing so would require even more disc space. Nearly equal to what you're using now as a matter of fact.
I know that the system you're describing is convenient for distributing content throughout a home. I use a similar system myself. But I don't consider the stuff on my media server as my collection. It's just an easy way to distribute it between rooms. My movie collection is still the discs that I own, I just temporarily transfer some of it to my media server periodically.
It sounds like most of your collection still exists on physical DVDs. Do you throw away your DVDs once the movie is copied to your hard drives?
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Apparently Paramount are following WB to the blu-side. If any HD-DVD/360/Harry fanboys want to disagree, this is according to a well respected British business news/editorial site, I guess the equivalent in the states would be the Wall Street Journal. This site has a lot more credibility than us fanboys and Harry, what they print can affect market trends and share prices. They don't print 2 bit stories, they have their facts!
http://tinyurl.com/ypm2wh
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Sorry I didn't realise you'd already posted about this news! :)
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"HD quality" and "ripped from my DVD collection"? or ripped from your HD-DVD collection? Because essentially it comes off like you're saying you've got it sussed and the future is actually using the PREVIOUS technology - DVD, yet sticking it on a server/bigger disc. So basically you're compressing the shit out of it when you've actually GOT the uncompressed original data there anyway. It's not a fat wallet you're sitting on, it's a fat arse. What, you've spent how much time/money transferring that stuff to drives because you couldn't be arsed going from your chair to the player (it seems that way - you weren't even happy with a 5 disc player)??
I thought you were arguing about HD quality but if I did understand your post correctly "HD" is a bloody rubbery term to you, and you should take yourself out of the argument. AllanUSC is obviously arguing HD (hd-dvd or BD/1920x1080) and you're arguing regular (additionally compressed) DVD. Apples and oranges. Fine if you can't see the difference (obvious) but don't pretend you're talking about the same thing as he. It's not just audio rates, or just sharpness, or colour. You're kidding yourself if you think the raw DETAIL/information in a 1080p picture is analogous even with an upconverted DVD.
It may be me though - "See my response to AllanUSC for what I'd do if I lost my data in a "lightning strike"". Huh? You DIDN'T say what you'd do! You just turned it back on AllanUSC by saying, "what do YOU do?"!
I really don't mean to sound like I don't think you or others can be happy with your solution, it's just I think you're being disingenuous because Allan is arguing one thing and you're misrepresenting the reply, that's all. Not trying to be some rabid technopsycho fuckhead. That's what bigotted little trolls like Poetic are for. -
You have a valid point as far as high quality versus high definition, and I concede that the files on my system are not, in the majority, HD quality. As for data backups however, I have to point out that my DVDs are boxed up and stored away for the time being, and the files on my HDD player are de-facto backups themselves, not vice-versa. Further, I'd point out that as you say, you back up your most important data; while I'd be pretty bummed if I lost a hard drive with a few hundred movies on it, it's not like I just lost my tax information, banking files or credit-related data. It's just entertainment, after all. And again, ALL forms of home entertainment come with risks of loss or breakage, both with the media and with the device used for playing it. I doubt anybody here ever shied away from DVD or VHS (assuming they're old enough to remember VHS) due to these risks, right?
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That'll serve me right for walking away for half an hour then hitting post when I come back. Most of my stuff is redundant now I guess, but the point still stands.
Eonblue, take a good look and see how unspecific and unsubstantiated it is. As I said when I answered Allan up there, it's pretty much "according to a friend" stuff. Financial Times or not. -
You're apparently not reading everything I'm saying, since the "HD Quality" argument/discussion was ancillary to my main point, which is that intangible media is now a viable way to watch video at home, for a reasonable price. Also, you're not RESTRICTED to compressed video in this format, nor are you restricted to old (i.e. DVD) technology as the source for said video. So I'm not too sure about your non-HD-related points, either.
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I'm inclined to believe FT, they don't print hear-say unless they have greater than a reasonable doubt. I'm sure you are aware of the FT... you sound like a fellow Brit to me, I can tell by the use of your vernacular :)
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ignorant little shit??? I would've figured you're mother would've been doing her internet sex gig by now but apparently you've got some wi-fi down in your basement. In closing, fuck you very much you simple little cum stain.
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...there is no way that they will replace physical media anytime soon. North Americans are consumers, first and foremost. We like shiny packaging and PHYSICAL THINGS that we can point to and say: "Behold! This is the spawn of my buying power! Quake in the presence of my accumulated material goods!" A dorky list of titles on a harddrive just doesn't it cut it in that regard. And, as a film buff, I really love the artwork on some of the more unique packaging. Aesthetics are important to a lot of us. I don't think the pro-download side really understands that. Plus, as has been stated above, the average Joe will not want to deal with the technology. The overwhelming response, for a long time to come, will be: "Screw that, give me the shiny disc." I just don't understand this compulsion to turn over every aspect of our lives to the digital realm, when there is a perfectly fine existing alternative. Or, look at it this way: in theory, computers were supposed to eliminate paper, too, right? Good job with that so far. I expect the "inevitable" shift to downloads to be as smooth and quick.
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i truly hope that someday everyone who thinks that it is so funny that I spent my hard earned money on hd, which this site bragged on not to long ago, buys something they were looking forward to getting and then find out they basically got stuck with something that is going to be phased out and are screwed. I think anyone who gets such a kick out of someones misfortune is an idiot. remember what comes around goes around.
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The 'fetish object' argument only holds so much water in light of the fact that CD, movie and book-related companies have all taken both a major sales hit from illegal downloading, as well as a precipitous increase in digital sales in recent years. Amazon.com now offers downloadable products, and they even just rolled out an e-book reader device with great fanfare and a prominent spot on their homepage. Just as people love their shiny objects, they also love their intangible data, obviously. It's important to remember that the people who are becoming adults right now (and therefore a viable sales demographic) have grown up with the internet being there for their entire lives, as have downloads. It's the language they speak, and digital sales is going to elevate dramatically in the next few years as a result. Things are changing, and rapidly. As for the Average Joe not understanding the technology, I've covered this in previous posts - the technology is no more complex than the current technology they're using, the same argument could be made at every step we've made previous to this one, and people managed to figure it out every time before just fine. As I've said in previous posts, the ubiquity of devices like HDD players is coming in the next handful of years, not immediately. As for your argument that we already have a format that "a perfectly fine existing alternative" to things like HDD players, the same could be said about VHS, the same could be said about casette tapes, the same could be said about vinyl records. And there were those who DID make that argument, and even continue to do so about those formats today, wht guess what: they all rapidly became the minority when the popular tide turned. The same thing will happen here, that's all I'm saying.
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marv, unfortunately the people who listened to harry are the real idiots (harry being the biggest idiot of them all, obviously). his initial statement in support of HD-DVD was both ignorant and insulting. that being said, i do truly sympathize with your plight, and sincerely hope that the blu-ray camp offers some sort of trade-in program for your now worthless hd-dvds.
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A couple of things...
First, you have to remember that the population is getting older, living longer, and the standard of living is generally decreasing for each succeeding generation. That means that there will still be a lot of purchasing power residing in the hands of older technophobes. Good example: I have a client who's a lawyer in his late 50s. Very well off, big movie fan, extensive DVD collection. Could not navigate the internet to save his life. That generation loves electronics, but so many of them just avoid computers like the plague.
Second, most people are still legally paying to see and purchase film products. Criminals are still, thankfully, a tiny minority in society, and not really representative of the market. The fact that there is a percentage of the population downloading films illegally does not necessarily mean that it's a more accessible format that the majority of consumers will inevitably embrace. It just means that it's the easiest way for dishonest people to steal. And, I don't think that film will ever have the legitimate online sales success that music has. Music is an infinitely more mobile medium that benefits from the use of portable devices like iPods. Film, not so much.
Also, the VHS argument doesn't really hold water, because optical discs have been a quantum leap forward, both in the delivery of improved image quality and content over the crudeness and limitations of magnetic tape. I don't see the same "leap" with migrating to downloads or streaming content. If anything, you could argue it's a step backwards. For downloads, I'm supposed to rely on storing my precious films on a harddrive with moveable parts? I don't think so. For streaming content, I'm supposed to rely on my internet connection not to cut out in the middle of a film? Networks go down. Optical discs have no moving parts, and the content is already "there". Plus the quality and content is as good as you can get. I understand your position, and, if it ever comes to that I'll adapt just fine, but, I honestly think you underestimate the "fetish" appeal, as you say, and overestimate the AVERAGE consumer's ability to embrace substantive change. I think there is a lot less of a change in going from plopping a tape into a machine to plopping a disc into a machine, than there would be from going from the disc to "managing" a digital library and everything inherent with that. A lot of things have to fall into place before the world you envision comes into being, and I just think we're a long way from that. Plus, from a distance, the DVDs on my shelves look like books, and, for a few seconds, people think I'm well-read. -
That is the new "standard" for movies floating around on the net. The latest x264 encoders can deliver nearly invisible re-encodes of HDDVD and BluRay titles to these standard sizes, which are VERY easy to transfer with today's broadband speeds. (2-3 hours per film for Cable, 1 hour on FIOS)
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half vader was absolutely right. We are comparing apples and oranges here. There is a big differnce between "high quality" (whatever that means) and High Definition-quality (HD).
The fact that you still keep your original DVDs after you've "backed them up" on your server makes my point perfectly. We may all store some of our content on hard drives from time to time but, in the end, the stuff we want to keep is on some kind of physical media. And while any of us can lose our entire DVD/Blu-ray/HD-DVD collections in a tragedy like a fire, optical media is still much more reliable for archival storage than any hard drive.
I could probably play my copy of "The Departed" continuously for a hundred years and the disc would be fine. I would probably have to replace the player a thousand times but this disc itself would be unharmed. Can you say that about any hard drive?
Imagine what would have happened if the ancient Egyptians had relied on some kind virtual storage to record everything. We would know virtually nothing about them today. -
that no-one ever talks about is the difference between a full length CD and a movie. Downloading has effectively destroyed the physical market for singles- but reinvigorated the single as a market (if this makes sense), however it is bullshit to compare a 3 minute pop single with a 2 hour movie- it simply isn't analagous. People may download individual tracks, but if someone wants the whole album, more often than not they'll actually buy the physical disc. Sure, they may then dump it on an i-pod, or whatever, but they will buy the disc. This is especially true of people 30+ (who don't listen to individual singles as a rule), and the major retailers in the UK are specifically targeting a group they call the £50 man- the likes of me that will walk into HMV and blow money on a couple of CD's, DVD's etc. Physical media is not going anywhere, but if Hollywood wants to learn a lesson from the music industry it is: The albums that are selling are those that are of a high standard- the reality TV driven teeny-pop drivel that is cynically marketed to 13 year old girls will make a short term profit, but is not sustainable. So therefore, suits, stop dumbing down your product to cash in in the short term, try to credit the audience with some taste and intelligence, and don't copy the major labels- that way bankruptcy lies.
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Well, if these re-encodes are "nearly invisible" and you can get 1080p quality in 8 GB, all these tech companies and movie studios must be crazy or stupid.
Let's forget about Blu-ray and HD-DVD altogether!! Lets just put our 8 GB HD-quality movies on STANDARD 9 GB DVDs!! We'll all save a bunch of money and, just like that, THE FORMAT WAR IS OVER!!!!!!!!
I'm sure there's absolutely no difference between my nearly 50 GB version of Spiderman 3 on Blu-ray and your downloaded, super compressed 8 GB version. All that extra space is probably being used for useless, hidden stuff like the entire Encyclopedia Britanica. I'm sure none of that extra space helps the movie look or sound better.
I'm putting my now-useless PS3 on eBay now. If you win the auction and tell me you heard about it on AintItCool, I'll give you free shipping. Good luck and Happy Bidding!!! -
While I love my XBOX 360 I don't plan on getting a PS3 or any HD DVD or Blu Ray players or movies any time soon.
I have over 1,000 Fucking DVD's and im not starting my collection over!
Fuck that! lol Now if someone wants to donate a free player of either with a good thousand or so movies to replace those I already have on dvd I won't say no... To either!
lol I'm a whore like that... -
I don't have time to really go into it and address your entire post, but I'd like to point out to you that the problem of storing video files on one's personal hard drive(s) is only a shortcoming of the current constraints of technology. There are already online storage services available, and this is, again, the future of things. In a few years, paying for internet service will include access to virtual storage that will eventually be, for all intents and purposes, infinite. Uploads and downloads to and from these servers will be instantaneous, and the combination of speed and storage space will put an end to any discussion about the pros and cons of hard media versus soft.
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thank you for your kind responce. Nice way to wake up with my cup of java. I know I should have waited, but I mentioned the hd player to my mom, God bless her, and she was determined I was going to get one for christmas. Unfortunately, no technophile and doesn't know the difference between a blue-ray and a death ray. After reaing on this site about how HD was the next best thing to Jessica Alba's ass, I figured what could go wrong. Well, Sue Storm got pregnant and I got a player that won't let me play the high quality Spiderman movies I have been waiting 30 years to watch. I do hope they offer some sort of trade in program, but I doubt it since they may lose fifty cents or so in the process. In the meantime, hopefully HD-DVDs will drop in price, although the probably won't, but if they do, I'll stock up on the ones I want, save some of my pennys and get a blue-ray player in a year or so after the price invariably drops. Thanks again for not ripping me a new one and I still say that the jerks that are making fun of us who got the HD players are being assholes, for lack of better term. You just need to look up at the posts a bit to see one of the people I am refering to.....polyh3dron...you crushed my hopes of Cloverfield in HD. I'm not trying to start any arguments here because I know it's nobodys fault but mine that I got the HD player everybody hates, but I still think it is crap to make fun of people and take joy in the fact they or their loved ones spent mucho dinero to make them happy. Just be glad you are perfect and picked the worlds best system. And as much as I love this site and check it every morning, I hope in the future they do a little more homework before getting everybody worked up to buy electronic equipment that turns out to be getting phased out a month or two later.
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Yes I have an xbox360. I don't own an HD-DVD drive, but I was just about to go and buy one. Now I won't. But I won't be buying blu-ray either. It's not because I won't spend the money. It's because Sony now has us all by the balls. Sure this is excellent news for all PS3 owners out there, and good luck to you (at least you'll have some decent movies to watch as the games are shit!). The downside is that we will not be seeing blu-ray coming down in price now that there is little competition. We will also have to continue with pointless region coding on our discs. And folks, when Sony pays £500,000,000 to a studio to go blu-ray where do you think they recoup those costs from? Players will remain expensive, media will be the same. It wasn't just Tosh that lost out big time. We all did. This war was not decided by the consumer. It was decided with the right money going to line the right pockets. Bad day.
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The more you spin out your argument for hard drive storage and the need to back it up by using some sort of online storage, you forget the fact that actually the internet is clogged up enough already. Having everyone shuffling their HD collections around cyberspace is gonna give everyone a terrific case of bad pings. We'd all need 250mb connections minimum not to mention a major internet backbone upgrade! Now unless you have some great solution to solve the increasing lack of bandwidth on the net, can we safely say that your solution (if that's what it is) is more than likely 10 years away? Oh and by that time we'd also all be using static memory. I predict another debate on here in 10 years about drive vs static memory storage :D
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Thanks for the explanation, I now stand corrected in spite of my ignorance for bashing SC. I also remember the DVD vs Divx war as well, The idea of renting or purchasing media that will be rendered useless (Divx) after one viewing ws laughable at best. Now years later,the format has served it's purposes.I prefer owning a psysical copy as oppossed to having it stored on a hard drive,but if it's a watch, then dispose(IE TV episode,sports or some movie you don't really care to own) digital distribution is the way to go.Netflix plans to use their downloading service for not only settops, but Next gen (really current gen)consoles like PS3 and 360 which is much faster than waiting for the Mailman to deliver the DVDs. Ironically, MGM plans to distribute their Movie catalog in HD to 360's XBL service. (Isn't MGM owned by Sony?)
Now it's more than a format war, but giving the customers arious options. -
I am right with you on your statments. It makes me sick that these billion dollars companies come out with these wonderful systems, decide one is crap and decides not to support it since they won't make as much money as the other one, then vacation on their yatch with their hot babes as we fret over which system we should drop our hard earned money on. I really doubt any of these people are standing in the welfare line waiting for government cheese. Glad to here you have a 360, get Bioshock if you don't have it, it rocks. Also, and I know I am going to get grief for this statement, but I bought the first generation and just recently got the three red lights of doom. Hopefully that won't happen to you, but if it does, call them up. They were more than helpful and sent me a brand new console in less than two weeks. Have a good day and good move on waiting on that add-on
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"...unfortunately the people who listened to harry are the real idiots (harry being the biggest idiot of them all, obviously). his initial statement in support of HD-DVD was both ignorant and insulting..." Well put, and something I highlighted back when this whole longass thread started. Harry is not smart.
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Because it's still FREAKIN' SWEET to own (or even just NOW purchase) an HD-DVD player, despite all the trumpets sounding in the Blu-ray camp, even after Warner's announcement. Yes, the end is NOT quite here for HD-DVD, as even Warner Bros. will keep releasing titles until May. There's still a small library of HD-DVDs available. (And you can still watch standard dvds upscaled to near HD levels.) And expect prices to drop on everything HD-DVD...so you can build that small HD-DVD library, if you're a smart shopper. And if you still consider HD-DVD the better format, that only adds to the plentiful reasons to be happy with your purchase. (I'll be watching for sweet HD-DVD movie/player deals, new and used.) Me and the family already have a large dvd collection and the ability to download HD rentals via Xbox Live, so we may end up having two or three HD-DVD players before all is said and done. It just depends on the deals that are find. And if the HD-DVD players get dirt cheap and into enough homes, there's no telling how long HD-DVD titles will continue to trickle out.
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LOL. I got the dreaded red ring of death 3 weeks before Xmas. Luckily got it back after only a week without it. Cost me nada.
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has to it's advantage is capacity. this doesn't make it better. PS3 owners like to think it is, as they happen to have bought the right peice of kit to play em (and as I said before, good luck to em).
Apart from the capacity, which is not really a good argument what else does it offer? If we can have a 1080p film and extras, plus HD soundtracks on a HD-DVD, why do I need the extra capacity? Blu-ray is also region coded, more expensive to manufacture for both media and hardware and lags severely behind in terms of java PIP and internet functionality. This was the winning format????! -
Why is capacity important? Because when New Line releases Return of the King Extended Edition at around 4 hours in length, with uncompressed video and audio, with HD extras, PiP and anything else you can think of, you will be happy not to have to get up off the Couch and switch discs right after Denethor bites into his exceedingly juicy 1080p tomato. There is simply not enough room for all of that on an HD DVD.
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it will have won the war in my heart.
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This whole shambles should never have happened in the first place. Didn't they learn the lessons from previous format wars? Instead there are huge companies that have invested mega bucks in a soon-to-be obsolete format, but more importantly consumers who have spent hundreds, thousands of dollars only to then be told they have the wrong machine.
The high-def DVD revolution could have been much further on in acceptance if this had all been sorted out before either had a chance to reach the market. These hundreds of millions of dollars wasted by Sony, Toshiba et al could have gone to the damn writers so we could be sure of actually having some new movies to buy on the format next year and beyond.
For what its worth I have a PS3 and have about 20 blu-rays which I love. I wasn't really rooting for either; just a resolution so we can all get our favourite movies on one fantastic format.
Waste of time, hope you're all happy with your greed and screwing over millions who believe your hype.
So....Universal and Paramount - announce you're supporting blu-ray already and then we can move forward. Don't prolong it even more and waste millions of yours and consumers dough for no reason. Don't be delusional. Spielberg, we know you're Blu, so sort it. You're the most powerful man in the game! Say something and end it. They'll all listen to you instead of Bay who doesn't have a back catalogue of movies worth owning in HD to be relevant.
I want Raiders, ET, Jurassic, Ryan, Jaws in HD before the end of the century please!! -
My mother bought me that as a gift for christmas. I honestly thought it was a nice present and to be honest, I didn't spend hours and hours pouring over every nuance between HD and Blue Ray. I actually don't hate Sony, many of my favorite movies are Sony movies that I am stuck watching on regular DVD. I do own a 360 and like it, but that has nothing to do with me having a HD player. I am glad you are happy with your blueray player. I will point and laugh at you, however, because you are a jerk. I know I won't go into debt over it, because I will save my money and maybe by that time a better player will be out and then you will be the loser that I will be laughing at. Right now I am just satisfied with what I have and know that I don't have to wish someone into debt and call them a loser to make myself feel better.
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Jan 08, 2008 11:30:39 AM CST
I prefer Blu-ray but still think Jett is a jerkass fuckweed.
by iamjack'suserid
Laughing at people and hoping they go into debt? Very professional, rational, and non-mentally fucking insane, dude.
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but my point is hopefully made.
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On the gaming front, the 360 is clearly better. It just is. And not one thing the Cows say will change that. If not for Blu-Ray, it would be a complete doorstop.
Sad thing is, it didn't have to be. If they would have gave the PS3 a unified ram architecture, like the 360, it would have been much easier to program for. Development time is everything to a game maker, something Sony clearly has forgotten. -
Thanks Jack. I just hope the best for everybody and obviously some get there kicks at others misfortune. I am greatful for what I have. And by the way, I'm already in debt and it is for bills for family obligations. If I do upgrade eventually, I'll save a little money when I can so don't worry your kind heart about it jett
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First losing out to VHS with Betamax, and now this. Even with the better name (c'mon, HD-DVD works. Da hell is a bluray anyway?)
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Because their mommies bought them PS3's for Christmas.
and thats it.
besides this is the type of war that every nerd dreams about.
you know a safe one where no harm can come to their chicken shit little asses.
and no I dont have either Blu Ray or HD DVD.
Now continue pounding your nerdy, sunken little chests like the great big Format War Soldiers you pretend to be.
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Borabora stated that owning physical media was on the way out and that downloads are the future and that the way to deal with potential loss is to "back-up" your files. Well, with the average cost of a 1 TB hard drive still at $500, let's do the math...
HD film download at 1080 24p = 25 GB
1 TB / 25 GB = roughly 41 HD movies
Now, to have a back-up of all those films requires another 1 TB hard drive. After tax you are at roughly $1100, which, oddly enough, is the SAME cost as it is to buy roughly 41 HD-DVD's or Blu-Ray's. It's a wash still, at best.
So why is it still better for most consumers to continue to buy physical media at this time? Simple.
Time.
To download 41 HD films would take the average broadband user 43 days. How long does it take to go to Best Mart and BUY those same 41 HD films on physical media? A few hours at the most. And, in 43 days, they could have watched ALL of those films multiple times! Then you say back-up all those films you spent over a month downloading onto ANOTHER hard drive? Add another day or so wasted on doing your back-up, all the while you still cannot watch any of your films, as they are being backed-up.
Until the powers that be can create a way for downloads to happen WAY faster, and prices for hard drives come seriously down, not to mention ease of connectivity, downloads will not be the way the majority of us get to enjoy our media.
As for iTunes and music downloads, yes, it is easier and more convenient, but that got a HUGE boost from Napster back in the day. If it weren't for illegal P2P sharing, that still wouldn't be what it is today... -
Over the last couple of years, when it comes to HD televisions, the talk seems to be all about plasma vs. LCD. The third option, DLP has seemingly fallen by the wayside. At CES this year, however, DLP stands to make quite the comeback, with the new 240Hz display mode DLP TVs.
The new products sport a 50% increase in motion reproduction and boast contrast ratios of up to 500,000:1. Word is that Mitsubishi is also preparing to unveil a laser HDTV, working on the same premise as DLP technology.
No official products appear consumer ready yet, but then again, the week just started. What do you guys think? Are you ready for a Laser Television? -
Jan 08, 2008 12:43:02 PM CST
Once Again For Those Of You Who Think Downloading Is The Future
by real deal
Well another day and more people spouting nonsense about downloading HD content when they really haven't thought it through.
Once again I posted this over at Cnet and it applies here :
There are so many problems with this idea it won't be anything but a minor item for at least the next 20 years.
1. Portabiltiy. How do you download something and take it over to watch on your friend's TV? Or for that matter on your own big screen and not your computer monitor? Remember we're talking mainstream here so it has to be LEGAL!
2. Bandwith. If everyone was downloading HD content can you imagine how it would clog up the internet. Sure the pipeline is getting bigger but not that fast!
3. Tangibility. People love to own things that they can touch. They love packaging also. What they don't love is a scheme where you pay for something everytime you download or are limited where you can play it. See above.
4. The Movie Studios. Movie studios have been less than open to copying HD content. As a matter of fact they're practically paranoid about it! So how do you keep this item on anything other than you hard drive? There's that portabilty problem again. See above.
I think it would be great if you could legally download, burn, and make your own packaging. But it's just not practical right now or for the foreseeable future.
This would only benifit kids who watch everything on their computer or iPod. Not for an adult that has a 50" flatscreen TV. Now you could say " What about convergence ? ". That pie in the sky idea where the computer and the TV will merge. Well we've been waiting 25 years for that one. Until companies learn to cooperate ( which by the way is what this article is all about ) That just isn't something that can be worked out easily. And once again I'm sure the movie studios would love to have a system where you pay for something everytime you watch it. Would the public go for it when they already have a model where they don't? Hell no!
You can say " But what about renting? " well most people buy now days because if you like something and want to watch it again and again it's easier if you don't have to pay for it again and again. So if you're talking about something that will replace the DVD ( mainstream ) it isn't going to be downloading. Sorry.
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will you shut the frak up about physical media, owning terabytes of hard drives and whiney HD DVD cry baby shit. BR won. It won. My head hurts with the bullshit on here. Now you're talking about TV's that wont be on shelves until 2009 at the earliest! SHUT UP!!
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If you're that bothered by the subject matter why are you here?
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Don't know if you've heard if this is true or not, but if it is, the war is over.
http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=21745 -
Old news but not confirmed by anyone yet.
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They still buy regular DVDs, because they're just as good.
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Jan 08, 2008 1:47:19 PM CST
Digital Downloads will pave the way for censorship, advertising
by alfred_packer
It will be a cold day in hell when I give up the right to watch Star Wars whenever I damn well want too, without having to rely on the cable signal or the internet not working. Streaming content will be full of advertisements and popups, watermarks, channel identifiers, etc, just like pay cable has become now. Call me paranoid, but I also dont want to sign my privacy away by subscribing to any transmitted service and allowing some unamed entity to know what I watch and when. Plus, one angry letter from some busybody grandma, or a few copycat crimes, and movies will be yanked from availabilty before you can say "Tin Drum" or "Basketball Diaries".
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I just called best buy and they said they are getting a converter that would allow hd-players to play blue-ray disks also. She said it was going to be pretty cheap. Anybody know any truth to this or did this salesperson not know what she was talking about?
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I called toshiba direct and they hadn't heard anythin about it. They did give me the phone number to universal though. I called them but they are on a different time zone, so I didn't get any answer. I know it's a lost cause, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't be able to give these greedy corporate folks an earful at least. May not do any good, but it might make me feel better for a minute.
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When a movie I love comes out, I want it on the day it's released (and judging by DVD sales, so do a ton of other people). I don't want to wait days for it, or even 6 hours. I want to go to the store, purchase it, and watch it. Rental is for curiousities; films I'm not going to buy and thus don't need to have right away.
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Apparently they had a clause in their contract with HD DVD to leave if Warners decided to go exclusive with Blue-Ray, so now they are exercising that clause.
Financial Times has the story:
http://tinyurl.com/24jpb6 -
downloads from some blurry cam phone.
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Real Deal is making the most sense here. I was just watching something on CNN the other day that was saying that the RIAA is now seriously considering going after people who buy a cd, rip it onto their computer, then put it on their ipod. They're claiming it violates copyright for moving between media devices. This is the kind of corporate greed we're talking about, people. It's about CONTROL. You strip all of this back and forth awat, and that's what you're left with. The studios will attempt to control it. So, what it may come down to is this. You download a movie. You can store it and watch it "x" number of allowable viewings at home. You attempt to burn it to a disk, you violate copyright. You try to make a cover for it with their artwork, you violate copyright. You take it to a friend's house to watch, even if it's not for monetary gain, you violate copyright. Basically, they'll gouge people into forking over thousands in cash out of guilt or fear of prosecution.
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When its a screener or dvd rip. Just buy the philips 3960 with HDMI. looks just fine.
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But the future is in the future, people. It's going to be 5-10 years before it's all ironed out, if then. Physical media will still have an appeal and an advantage, even then.
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It's a Toshiba. It plays HD DVDs. I got 10 with the unit. It upsamples regular DVDs. If I had known Warners and Paramount were likely to bolt in two weeks, I probably wouldn't have gone with HD DVD . . . but, I like it, the movies I've got look great, and I've got no regrets. Although I'm pretty sure next Christmas I'll be getting a Blu-Ray player. ;)I yak pointlessly about my recent HD DVD adventures here: http://tinyurl.com/22bu9d
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It came out of a clause in their agreement with Toshiba that if WB went exclusively Blu-Ray, Paramount can exercise an escape clause.
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...payola.
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A past time for the insane? The best thing about downloadable media is it's lack of taking up additional physical space. I throw away all my DVD packaging, except for really special edition stuff (LOTR extended cut, for example, I still have those boxes). The DVDs go in large CD wallet, and I enjoy a 10:1 ratio in DVD storage. If could download all the movies I wanted to my AppleTV, the last frickin' thing I would ever want to do is burn it to physical media and make a physical package for it! Sheesh.
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Jan 08, 2008 2:53:20 PM CST
While I'm a Little Wistful about my HD DVD Investment
by kevinwillis.net
I'll be glad to see a standard get set, so adoption will become more widespread and more classic titles will make their way to hi-def media.
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And here's why . . .
Because he's getting a blowjob from his hot wife while hob-knobbing with Bruce Willis and Sly Stallone while simultaneously laughing uproariously at us loser Talkbackers. -
in the third act!BLU-RAY is a SUPERHERO or is he not?And who is this SONY guy everybody is bitching about?A supervillain or something?I dont get it!
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I find that HD download rentals are FAR BETTER than ANY OTHER OPTION. Simple as that. It's easier on the checkbook with all that's involved...and it's more convenient too. It saves time AND money. Sure...I heartily admit that for those extra-special movies, a disk is REAL NICE to have. But the HD downloads take the cake!
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Hiya betamax2.
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give me close-to-quality of HD/BR? I have a 27 inch Sony Wega that I plan to upgrade to a reasonably priced 32 inch flat screen. As you can see super HD quality shouldn't be an issue with a relatively small screen size. Any thoughts..? Cuz I don't see standard DVD's riding off in the sunset anytime soon.
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I think Sony learned their lesson. First, they licensed it (they wouldn't license the Beta format! Idiots!) and they had an existing framework to sustain their proprietary format, even if they had to struggle to get a foothold in the larger market (the PS3). Also, the technology has a good 3rd purpose as optical media for computers, which was not an option with Betamax.Finally, they new titles make or break a consumer video format, so they've been breaking into their piggy banks and buying off the studios. Plus, they have their own gigantic movie library. I'm surprised at the sudden turn of HD DVD, but I knew Blu-Ray was here for the long term . . . even as I bought an HD DVD.
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32 inches is not a small screen for HD--if you've got decent vision, you'll see the difference. That being said, a low-cost upconverting DVD player will look a lot better than a regular old DVD player plugged in via RCA or S-video.
In addition to the cost of player, you'll have to buy an HDMI cable to run from your upconverting player to the screen . . . cheapest I've seen for a cable that will reach in a normal configuration is about $25. Still, an upconverting DVD player will look better than a regular DVD player on a Hi-Def screen. Keep in mind, though, an HD-DVD or Blu-Ray player will upconvert regular DVDs, too, so if you're upconvering DVD player costs $80 and you can get a HD-DVD for $170 or a Blu-Ray for $260, how much are you really saving? Just a thought, I considered the upconverter, too, but eventually we ended up getting the HD-DVD player. -
Its not a "war" its a "police action" cause its dragged on so long; No winners or losers, just fanboys who don't realize that both formats will be replaced, and whatever that format will be will make big bucks; Harry really jumped the shark in seemingly endorsing HD and then switching to BR...he should have sayed neutral. Not doing so was a real disservice to his readers. Final Thought: Why are BR supporters so mean spirited? I haven't seen a BR supporter post a comment without a sarcastic playground bully attitude...and I already hear the catcall like responses assuming I am in the HD camp...before you start, no, I did not buy a unit although I have one as a gift. I use it to upconvert my 1200 plus standard DVDs. Looks nice. Price was right.
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I decided to go HD DVD based on a few things (and no, Jett, Harry's diatribe was not one of them):
1) I am the proud owner of a MiniDisc deck.
2) I've heard about Beta, UMD, etc.
3) Paramount went HD (Trek fan here).
4) $99 players at WalMart.
So, I don't think we are all idiots. Since the tech specs were very similar, I made a decision based on Sony's past, which movies I wanted to see more, and price point. I thought I'd at least get all the Trek movies. Had I known about the escape clause, I might have waited longer. -
http://tinyurl.com/2lorj6
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http://www.thedigitalbits.com/
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http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/DreamWorks/Paramount/CES_2008/Paramount/DreamWorks:__Still_Supporting_HD_DVD_%5BUPDATED%5D/1345
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Is gonna drop like a rock. I'm going to pick it up for a song!
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"UPDATE: We have received word from Paramount/DreamWorks that although they continue to support HD DVD, they will not be making any new high-def title announcements at CES 2008." That sounds like pretty anemic HD-DVD support from Paramount, to me.
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... when he just barely made it through the blast doors before they closed. Bought the thing the day after Christmas like a fool, having no idea what was coming. Thank God those horrifically stupid bastards at the return desk accepted my return. I didn't even have my original receipt. Now I will spend the money I got back on whores and vennison. YES!!!
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http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN0851332620080108Remove the space from the link.
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... if you're still out there.
Chumpy, yeah I see what you're saying about your main point, but as you were replying directly to Allan at the time (whose main point WAS HD) I think it's fair to say that that didn't come through quite clearly enough (or I wouldn't have misconstrued one argument for the other would I?). Anyway, that's not to say I don't enjoy your posts and the fact you actually apply levelheaded (for here) reasoning. So thanks mate.
Eon, nope. I'm a convict from Oz. Mate. Oh and I'm not saying the Financial Times could be wrong, just trying to be objective about an instance of lousy/lazy journalism, regardless of where it came from. Sorta like Wadi jumping the gun in the post above. -
Why do you keep posting misinformation? Read the article again. It doesn't say they 'are' going Blu-Ray.
Man do I hate fan-boys. -
www.aintitcool.com
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And I download them onto my 720p LCD from SHARP, which I consider better than a number of 1080p sets. If you shop for a tv by numbers alone, then I feel sorry for you. And I've yet to see a motion picture that surpasses what I can watch via Xbox LIVE, on my 720p SHARP. I have seen Blu-ray on 1080p sets...and I could not see an improvement over the way I chose to watch (and, in fact, some such set-ups I would consider to be obviously inferior, based on eyesight). But hey,...maybe with the best of examples, with the sets side-by-side???
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People like you made me drag my ass all over the place this past two days since I'm a tech geek and I'll say this -- just because you enjoy compressed video and can't discern the difference doesn't mean we want to.
The difference between 720p and 1080p is astounding on my friends 52 inch Sony XBR5 with his PS3. I have another who wanted to see BluRay on his 60 inch Pioneer Kuro so I brought it over and put it next to his 360 -- and it was amazing the difference between his downloaded HD picture and the BluRay in 1080p. The more we watched, the more we were shocked. Lack of detail in shadows, artifacts, muddled audio -- the Xbox Live downloads were markedly down compared to the BluRay. They were, to note, also worse than his Comcast HD movie channels in regards to picture quality. We both felt COD4 looked the wash between the 360 and PS3 (which I had heard looked better than the 360 version), but found Oblivion to be markedly better on the PS3. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune was simply stunning on the Kuro. Absolutely stunning. And after seeing that game, he set out to find a deal on a PS3. -
I feel that I can help you. For one, keep in mind that even as you shop,...even as you look at those moving images on the various brands of televisions WITH YOUR OWN EYES,...it is most likely that you are NOT seeing the finest examples of what each tv can do. The individual adjustments can be subtle or even far from the mark, sometimes just to push specific brands from the retailer. (And the content displayed could be via low-end cables and of a lessor resolution.) We chose a 720p SHARP LCD because we considered it best overall (despite the store settings, as it was displayed on the sales floor). The smoothness of movement (on screen) was a big factor. You can make picture adjustments (perhaps even in the store) as with brightness and color,...but keep watch for subtle visual-stuttering and pixelation when deciding on a tv. (We felt that the SHARP had the smoothest movement and the least pixelation, based on the movie being played on all brands.) And keep in mind that when you do pump in HD content via the right cables, you WILL be stunned. (STAR WARS looks real nice via upscaled dvd with HDMI cord, as should all your dvds.) It's no wonder that retailers hardly ever show such 720p sets at their best, as it would effect sales of larger and more expensive televisions (such as those that display in 1080p). I'm sure of it. But that's just my opinion. Though if you decide to go 40" or larger, I do recommend 1080p.
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You just don't get what I'm saying, Mindworm22. If you can watch in HD 1080p because you have a 1080p tv, then I recommend that...THAT...is EXACTLY what you should do (and upscale your dvds). You will, quite obviously, see the difference of 1080p and 720p on the same tv. I have seen Blu-ray on huge 1080p sets. If you have the right cables (HDMI) and the right 1080p tv, even at a huge size,...YOU WILL GET AN ASTOUNDING PICTURE (Equal or possibly even a little better than the smoothness of my 720p SHARP, at 32 inches.). Details look sharper at smaller sizes. The larger the set, the higher the resolution needs to be. In my opinion, 1080p begins at 40 inches. (I don't think 1080p is even available at sizes below 40".) But some 720p set-ups will look better than some 1080p set-ups, depending on all that is involved. That includes cables, media, resolution, and quality of all equipment. You've got to have the right combination of things, not to make this issue more complex.
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Your link doesn't work no matter what you do. Also I can't find the story anywhere.
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destroy them! just get rid of them. It's a dead technology. Don't listen to Harry or Mori or herc. HD-DVD is over! The Blu-Ray era has begun.
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http://www.reuters.com/article /technologyNews/idUSN085133262 0080108
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Hell yeah. KING KONG, check. Bourne trilogy, check. BLADE RUNNER director's cut, check. These titles alone, with the ability to upscale dvd, is reason enough to have an HD-DVD player.
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Thanks for the advice. Just wondering what model number is the Sharp. Whats the contrast ratio, and response time? Have any opinion on Vizio?
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PUHLEASE tell me you are referring to the original Kong. The only Kong. Not the PJ overextended piece of shit from a couple of years back. I wouldn't watch that again in standard def or high def. I'll back you on the Bourne and Blade Runner though.
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Specifically, I've got the SHARP "AQUOS" model number LC-32D43U, not to be confused with the slightly cheaper model of the same size, that's also from Sharp. Be sure it's from the AQUOS line, or check for model number to be sure. Also, check out BestBuy.com, where you can not only find the exact model, but you can read comments from extremely happy customers. Beautiful picture, if you take advantage of it. Believe it.
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I love how Blu-ites post these old, vague articles and take them as fact.
You know, in all honesty, Blu-Ray winning wouldn't bother nearly as much if these guys weren't such complete and total assholes. -
Give me another month and I may be able to comment on the Vizio. Coincidently, two of my friends have picked up the Vizio 32", mostly for the price. (And I can't knock a person for that.) I've yet to see a movie on either Vizio, HD or otherwise, to form an opinion. And actually, my wife was originally leaning towards the Vizio, when we were looking. But I was pushing for something larger. The compromise was that in going smaller, I wasn't going to be happy unless we got something with a knockout picture. So the Sharp had the qualities I was looking for, despite how it appeared on the store showroom. You'll discover that this (model of) Sharp Aquos also has a light-sensor that you can turn on or off (via the menu), to adjust the brightness according to the light in the room. I usually have it on during the time my young son watches...and also during the evening. (And I have tweaked the individual settings, just a bit.) If you purchase this tv, I'd love to know what you think,...especially if you display HD content on it. And as I've said, Xbox LIVE HD movie downloads look beautiful on it. I prefer it to going to the movie theatre.
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...would not be at the top of my list of Hi-Def films to purchase. They spent more time on the fucking island than the entire length of the original film! And what the hell was going on with Jimmy and the first mate? Creepy shit.
Is the original available yet in HD? That is one of my favourite DVDs. The photography is gorgeous. -
As to "KING KONG", I was referring to Peter Jackson's artistry, during movement or otherwise. His KING KONG flick contains so many beautiful shots...that you could have an enormous number of still-frames enlarged as gorgeous movie-posters. I was so impressed with his artistic eye, it's like watching the works of an incredibly gifted (master)artist come to life. As an artist, myself, I find it stunning to look at. And the movie is good, too. I know quite a number of people like to rip it, here in the posts of AICN. But it's a personal favorite of mine, for artistic reasons.
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I got mine from Costco for $749, and they have a 90 day return policy and a FREE 2 year extended warranty! (best warranty around. PERIOD!) The TV rocks, and I agree about response time and rapid-action image distortion: I found it's minimized by 720p. 1080 actually makes certain images WORSE, IMO. (Worst offenders for image distortion: rain and lightning.) Oh, and I made my own "Cheeky Monkey" version of the '05 King Kong. I edited it down to 2 hrs and 15 minutes, making it a whole hour shorter. (I could easily take out another 15 minutes, if I wanted to) Now there's only a minimal amount of "fluff": hardly any "Jimmy" or any other non-essential plot item. I mostly eliminated the boat voyage. Take that stuff out and you eliminate like 30 minutes from the film right there. Maybe I'll release my version on the internet...
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I think that ANYONE who is seriously looking for a 32" LCD needs to look at that Sharp "Aquos", model number LC-32D43U. I apologize for mentioning it so many times, here. But we, the people who see it pushed to the limit, know the difference. And as far as Jackson's "KING KONG" goes, I'd love to see them release a DYNAMITE EDITION or something, newly edited as a crowd pleaser...like you're saying, Zardoz. And I'd certainly have to check that out if such a version existed as an HD Xbox LIVE download. THAT would be a MUST-see.
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...that part of this may have to do with the Hobbit? If Sony owns MGM (partial rights), and Warners owns New Line (partial rights), this seems like the second stage of a behind the scenes deal. I mean, a couple weeks ago it is announced that Shaye has magically had a change of heart and has agreed to bring Jackson back for the prequel (obviously Jackson got his way with the books for Fellowship). This obviously means MGM and New Line reached some sort of agreement, right? Flash forward, mere days before CES, Warners announces they are going Blu-Ray even though the two highest selling Hi-def titles on Amazon at least were in HD-DVD?. The Hobbit is a valuable enough property to have had some kind of influence in this, and I wouldn't be shocked if Sony would be picking up much of the tab for the two picture project. Regardless, Blu-Ray in my opinion is a much better investment regardless and it's potential due to PS3 involvement has yet to be fully unleashed. Tough break, HD-DVD. There's always FUBU.
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It Saves Me A Fortune. I Will Stay Away From B-R and HD-DVD Until The Next-Best-Format Appears On The Horizon To Lure Away The Big Spenders And De-Value HD. Importantly, I Only Buy Quality Tech, Such As Panasonic Or Sony And Then Only After "The Trendy" Has Worn Off. I Now Own 6 Standard DVD Units And Several Hundred Standard DVDs, Averaging $5 Dollars Per Disk. And They Look Marvelous. I Do Enjoy Reading All The Nerd-Angst On Here Though. P.S. I Just Recently Enjoyed My $1 El-Cheapo DVD Of "Captain Kidd" (1945) Much More Than My Johnny Depp Pirate Movies On DVD.
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Lucasfilm finally chose Blu-ray.Now, Star Wars, Indy trilogy, LOTR trilogy, anybody still want to stay HD-DUD exclusive?"Another interesting tidbit of information is about the upcoming Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. As we all know, Paramount's deal does not cover Steven Spielberg films, and so Indy 4 is being prepped for Blu-ray Disc for release sometime late this year. Apparently, Paramount is reluctant to pony up the additional cost for the disc to be certified, so it may take George Lucas to personally step in and make it happen. Be sure to let Paramount know we want this!"Link:http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=846
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We can't all just go around burning our money the way you do, you sausage-smelling fat-fuck sellout.
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None of your links work no matter what. And from the poster above I wonder about the truthfulness. You seem to be posting alot.
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'cause it sure as hell doesn't say that in the article you linked. It just says that Indy 4, when it is released on blu-ray, will be THX. There's NOTHING about Lucasfilm declaring for either format...
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Is it so hard to remove the space and close the gap in the link?http://tinyurl.com/2rnbqaLucasfilm has said that they not going to release on either HD format, until the HD format is over. Everybody knows this.Now, it is clearly said in the article that they are prepping Indy 4 for Blu-ray, what does that mean?The part about whether or not it's THX certified is irrelevant.
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I just presented you information.It's up to you how you want to interpret it.
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Try that...
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his films aren't included on Paramount's HD-DVD pact, so he can go blu-ray. When Indy goes to blu-ray, it will be THX certified. NOTHING about Lucasfilm going blu. "it's up to you how you want to interpret it"? You can read whatever you want into that, but you really can't be THAT obtuse, can you Wadi? And I'm not saying Lucasfilm won't go blu, it just hasn't happened, yet...
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So Spielberg can do whatever he wants without Lucasfilm's agreement eh? I agree that he own creative rights, but Lucasfilm owns the Indy movies. Go and check the facts. Paramount just distribute the movies. Paramount HD-DVD deal with Spielberg is irrelevant here. Yeah, you win, genius. I'm done here.
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http://www.trektoday.com/news/090108_02.shtml
Ahem! Hehe! -
All you're talking about is sound "approval" and mastering in THX. There are blu-ray discs that are already in THX. (Actually, T2 is the only one, I think) It has absolutely NOTHING to do with what format future discs will be produced in, blu-ray OR HD-DVD. Go spew your propaganda elsewhere, blockhead...
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"... so Indy 4 is being prepped for Blu-ray Disc for release sometime late this year." It's obvious that your IQ is lower than Forrest Gump.
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Look, I'm tired of saying the same thing over and over, but here we go again: YES, Indy will be on blu-ray. (the only thing you're right on) No, Lucasfilm has NOT stated that they will be making the jump to blu-ray or HD-DVD, PERIOD! (Although, I admit, the handwriting is on the wall for the demise of HD-DVD, and Lucasfilm will probably eventually release Star Wars, etc., to blu-ray, THEY HAVE NOT STATED THAT THEY ARE DOING SO NOW, YOU FUCKING MORON!) Please God almighty in heaven, do you understand NOW? It's obvious that you are trying to manipulate this conversation to your advantage, contrary to all facts that might be staring you in the face, and drive me up the wall with your apparent stupidity, so I will now, officially cede this argument to you, you fuck-wit! (burn in hell!)
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The technologically superior format has one. Good riddance HD-DVD. Now, hopefully, we'll get a greater variety of releases on Blu-ray besides mainstream crap. Criterion are you listening?????
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Still going on about this? I think you'll find that it'll be the distributor who decides what Lucasfilm distributes their stuff on. Unless Lucasfilm have suddenly gotten into the distribution game, fanboys. And frankly, why would they write off a huge section of their revenues by going only HD DVD, a dead format as of Monday? Of course Indy etc will be on Blu ray. It's a no brain argument.
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Until Blu Ray becomes affordable , it won't matter. Once Blu players are at $100 and dics are $15, the public won't care. I don't.
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It is not healthy.
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The ONLY reason I care is because I got a PS3 for Christmas. I can't afford any Blu Ray discs, check Amazon.co.uk out, they are £22.99 ($45 ish?) each etc. One day I hope that I am in a position to buy some but sadly, today is not that day. I could splash out if they would sort their shit out and release LOTR on Blu Ray, anyone know if this is going to happen?
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That's probably what makes this "war" hard to stomach, not that the more affordable and mature format lost, but the PS3 turds chirping up again, like when they first saw the rendered video for Killzone "OMG, teh PS3 will pwnz the 360!!1!11!one!!"
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I disagree. I think it's fucking superb that one can string together multiple profanity laced retorts in the great freedom known as talkbacks.
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...well, no, there are two. First, there is a finite amount of really plausible combinations of quality, well thought out profanity, so, after a while it becomes as repetitive as a James Horner soundtrack. Second, if you assume that this is the standard for acceptable behaviour on an internet forum, and go and post somewhere else. That can cause many awkward moments.
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Try reading some of the CONTENT on this site. "Chocolate covered P***Y juice?"
This site needs a six pack of GROWUP before it can start taking the talkbackers to task for their 'uncreative' use of profanity, ding-dang it. -
Doesn't matter about the number of beautiful "poster" moments you have in a film, if the editing and narrative process don't work. Ask M. Night Shymanillui. Nearly an hour to get to the island? Over an hour ON the island. Just because PJ won an oscar, desn't mean any studio should give the man creative license to overendulge himself at their expense. That's all I'm saying. You have SOOOO many more options of great films to watch in HD, I wouldn't even know where to begin, except to mention that Close Encounters is now available. In BR, BTW....
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to curse at anything and anyone,makes a good cursing obsolete because nobody gives a SHIT!That is the sad truth.
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I don't know any of this for sure, so I'm probably talking out of my ass, but I think Fox just does distribution of Star Wars in theaters. Lucas actually owns the films himself, so he gets to dictate all the terms: when and how and what format Star Wars is released on. I think it's the same for Spielberg, which is why he gets a separate deal for his films at Universal and Paramount. There are only a handful of directors that everyone in the world knows by name, and Spielberg and Lucas are two of them. And whatever they say, goes. So, theoretically, Lucas could say, "Release Star Wars in HD-DVD!" (I'm not saying that will happen, but he has the power to do it)
Oh, and sorry about my potty-mouth; sometimes, I just get so frustrated. Other times, I use curse words as "spice in the gumbo". Just call me the "Norman Mailer of the talkbacks". (no, don't really call me that!) -
I understand how and why...the way that you feel, about Jackson's KING KONG. Personally, I also think some editing would help it. However, I don't feel quite as strongly (about it) as most people (such as yourself) seem to. And maybe that's only the artist in me that's saying that. As someone who always desired to be a filmmaker, when considering that mindset, it is much easier (for me) to make those decisions. If I was editing it for crowd consumption, there would definitely be some footage hitting the cutting room floor. For me, what would be most difficult to cut,...would be those lingering moments between Kong and the woman, even if it amounted to only a few seconds (from such moments). Realistically, I'd likely cut only a few seconds from those scenes, in helping push the movie along...because within the story, there is an emphasis on this unlikely relationship. And I would think that Jackson would feel much as I do, in struggling to cut anything that emphasizes this relationship between Kong and the woman, even if cutting his "KING KONG" to please the masses. But there's nothing wrong with having one more version of the flick. I'd most certainly watch it. In fact, I'd pay for it.
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I forgot, HBO and Cinemax were playing all 6 Star Wars films in HD for a few months around the 30th anniversary and I saw 'em all. (even recorded them to my HD-DVR, but couldn't output them to HD, dammit!) And JDaniel, I made a shorter version of Kong already; see my above posts for more info. And as to the length of the old Kong vs the new one: it takes an hour+ for the boat to even reach Skull Island in the new version; the original's run-time was like 82 mins! PJ was out to make an "art-house" version of Kong, with popcorn elements thrown in. It was overkill, pure and simple. He needs someone who can tell him: "It's too much, man. Reign it in."
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No doubt.
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More news from the format war today, and it isn't good for the red camp. Daily Variety has confirmed that Universal's agreement to stick with HD DVD has ended and has not been renewed. Additionally, Paramount has an escape clause in its contract that can be exercised following Warner's departure from the (now dwindling) HD DVD ranks. The article highlights various ongoing commitments both companies have to the format, but we've heard these kind of promises before from studios. It's feeling like a party where everyone leaves at once; nobody wants to be the first out the door, but everyone's looking in that direction.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/universal-hd-dvd-exclusivity-contract-has-expired-sits-non-rene/ -
Sorry fella... you are talking out of your ass :) I do know a thing or two about this business and Mr Lucas saying 'I want it releasing on toilet roll' wouldn't make it 'happen'. Lucasfilm do not distribute their own films either on DVD or DVD/tape. Never have. Oh and that PJ 'King Kong' was a royally awful movie.
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Bluray and HD-DVD currently only hold 1.6% of the entire video disc market. Time will tell when HD video will be the norm.
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PJ's Kong was crap.
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to distribute the movies, they don't own them. Lucasfilm tell them what to do, and pay (at least I can confirm that that's how it works with Fox).OK, whether or not they've chosen sides, maybe I was wrong. But my point was the article did clearly say they're prepping Lucasfilm's Indy 4 for Blu-ray.I just want superior technology to prevail, what's so wrong about that? And, while at that, why not make some money? LOL, just kidding...http://www.starwars.com/community/fun/polls/
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Yes, maybe you're right there.That's because they haven't been really pushing HD into the market yet. They were busy fighting each other, and so the people is confused about the formats.With recent announcement by Warners, BDA (Blu-ray Disc Association) has started talking about pushing the HD media over standard DVDs now. No longer to focus on the format war.
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There will be no HD-DVD release. The war is over... if HD-DVD continues to fight, it will make for bad PR for organizations who support it.
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http://www.starwars.com/community/fun/polls/Blu-ray (BD) is leading at 69%!
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But I'm definitely not talking out of my ass when I say that Lucas owns the Star Wars films, lock, stock and barrel. Meaning, he can dictate ALL terms about when the films are released to HD and what format they will be on when they are released. Lucas has the keys to the kingdom when it comes to Star Wars, and not many other filmmakers, Spielberg included, can say the same about the ownership of their films...
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At least, I think so. Same with Spielberg and Lucas for Indiana Jones. Anyone else with this much ownership of their films? James Cameron? (Maybe)
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Unless Square-Enix jumps ship from Sony.
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...in that it would help push the HD market, I wasn't specifically referring to HD-DVD. I was trying to say that there would be more interest in upgrading from dvd, as a result. I mean, who wouldn't have a desire to watch the original trilogy in "high definition", when you're already a fan?
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The idea of having to download an upgrade to your Blu-ray player, just to watch an expensive Blu-ray disk (that you purchased or rented), does NOT appeal to me. What happens when the format goes bye-bye? Shouldn't that be an element that is more worry-free? I have to download to watch my Blu-ray movies (even if only some)???
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I think BD rushed to get it out on the market to compete with HDDVD (understandable). The lack of upgrading/silly profiles (1.x, 2.0), cost of players, and lack of interactive features made me choose HD-DVD (also, I wanted to watch HD "Dune"). I stand by decision, and have no regrets...Amazon is blowing out some HDDVDs, so I just ordered more. I didn't pay much for my A30 with all the free moobies, so: *shrug*....to quote Hulk Hogan: "WHATCHA GONNA DO????"
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I can't believe we're doing this all over again. How long did we have to wait for Star Wars on DVD? Anyone? Lucasfilm wont release them until the market has widespread acceptance of ANY format, regardless which format that will be. When they're damn good and ready. They will always be released by FOX, who appears to be firmly camped with Blu-ray. Something very drastic would have to happen at this point for the pendulum to swing back to HD-DVD at this point. Sorry kids, but that's the truth of it. As far as Indy, contracted with Paramount only, which has HD-DVD. Until we hear otherwise, don't start getting excited about Indy Blu yet either. Would I buy a blu ray player tomorrow if SW got released? Hell yes. But I wouldn't be suprised if we had to wait another eight years after format launch before we get to see it.
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....read the article over your head for chrissakes.
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...and...? Your point???
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Who fucking cares? Gawd... there are a million other great movies that should come before Star Wars comes out...
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You're absolutely right, Judge. Now, if we could only get the studios that are releasing on Blu to grow a pair and start releasing the "event" titles on DVD and put an end to the endless bickering we can finally get back to snipping back and forth at each other about how long it'll be before that format is obsolete.
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um...yeah. I meant Blu. Sorry.
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(sigh)... you have a fan boys understanding of film and dvd distribution. Trust me, it really doesn't work that way. Lucas signed a contract a long time ago to distribute the star wars series. He has no say whatsoever in what format it goes on. And like the previous poster said, there are way better films to come out before we can see jar jar binks in HD. Like the whole world is waiting for THAT fer chrissakes.
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Got a great home set up, recently got a Xbox HD Player and guess what...the black bars are as big as the picture! I've tried everything (and no it's not my brand new Sony 1080p). But are Blu Ray disks Anamorphic? That to me is the big question no-one has answered!
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That better?
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HD TV's aspect ratio 1.85:1, whereas some movies, for example, Star Wars are 2.35:1, so there will always be "black bars" at the top and bottom of your screen. The only image that will perfectly fill your HD TV screen is one that was shot specifically in HD, 16:9 ratio, or in 1.85:1. And of course, "normal" TV aspect ratio is 4:3, or the "Academy Ratio", (also 1.33:1. Think "Classic" films, like "Casablanca") so you will have black bars on the sides of the image. And you can change the ratio manually with your set, but I don't advise that, as it will not be the true ratio and will, more often than not, alter or cut-off images from the original aspect ratio. And metaluna, (sigh), George Lucas owns the Star Wars movies. PERIOD. (virtually no other director can say this) Fox distributes them for him, for a fee, but Lucas is the king. (Fox actually had to make a deal with Lucas to continue to distribute the prequels back in '99) If he wanted to, he could tell Sony and Toshiba and Fox to take a flying fuck at a rolling donut, and not release Star Wars on ANY HD format. Why do you think it took so long for any of the Star Wars series to come out on DVD in the first place? It wasn't because Fox didn't want to release them, it was because Lucas was holding ALL the cards...(and I may be a fanboy, but I do know a little bit about the biz)
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Well I think it's kind of funny that none of the changes " The Digital Bits " listed on their site for Best Buy have happened at my local store. There is still an fully stocked equal amount of HD DVD titles available and people are still buying like nothing's happened. As a matter of fact I bought two. Well just more proof that what you read on the internet isn't exactly relflected in reality.
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I always see a very small black bars at the top and bottom of my widescreen HD TV screen for movies with 1.85:1 aspect ratio.FYI, 1.85:1 doesn't mean it's shot in HD, there are many movies were shot at 1.85:1 in 1980s, like "Gremlins", "Empire of the Sun", etc. There are few ratios we see in movie theaters, 1.85:1, 2.35:1, 2.40:1 (most common nowadays) and also 1.66:1 and 2.20:1 (like "2001: A Space Odyssey"). More to this is how the movie was shot, like Super 35 and Anamorphic. Super 35 are actually cropped version of 1.33:1 film stock, so that’s why for films like “The Shining” when you see 1.33:1 on TV, you’ll notice images on top and bottom that you didn’t see in theaters. This is because the movie is un-cropped or “opened” for the TV ratio.For anamorphic lenses, the movie is shot in 2.35:1 ratio, but is stretched vertically in the 1.33:1 film stock. In theaters, using anamorphic projector, the image is vertically shrunk back to the correct ratio. For this method, when shown on 1.33:1 TV, the image will be shrunk vertically and cropped left or right or both (“Star Wars”, “Indiana Jones”). This is called “pan & scan”.Some animated movies, like "Chicken Little" has aspect ratio of 1.78:1, which fills my TV screen perfectly, but "Ratatouille is framed at 2.40:1 though.
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at the moment, there is no tv that will show us 100% "free of black bar" movies...as others stated, only 1:78 movies take up the whole screen (on widescreen tvs). but movies at 2:35 will always still leave small black bars. and considering most movies made these days are 2:35, its something you gotta realize and be used to. i'm sure there will be tvs in the near future that will perfectly fit the image but til then, this is what u gotta deal with.
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I get confused about aspect ratios, myself. "Pan and scan" is the WORST way to watch ANY movie, especially a movie shot in 2.35:1 ratio. Some P&S films are VERY different from the 'boxed versions: artificial pans, zooms, edits, crops. It's awful! I haven't watched a P&S movie since like 1996, and I will not watch ANY theatrical movie on regular TV anymore. I thank the video-gods for anamorphic DVD's and letterboxing, giving us the REAL version of a theatrical film. (I can't believe people still watch P&S movies, anymore...)
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Jan 13, 2008 9:31:05 PM CST
Yeah how come SW films can never fill the entire TV screen?
by orionsangels
I mean I could strech it on my Sharp Aquos, but its not the same. Why always letterboxed?
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Haven't you been reading? Most HDTVs have a ratio of 16:9. When SW came out it was in 70mm with a very wide ratio. So while you're getting the whole picture the director intended the frames proportions are greater than your tv's. You run into this alot in film. For instance 2001 was in what was called Cinerama which was ultra wide.
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Erm... except for when it wasn't. It was shot on 35mm anamorphic. At the time I do believe a 70mm print was struck from the 35mm original, but that won't make a difference to your HD sets anyway. The only way you'll get 2.35 on a TV is with black bars at the top and bottom, which imho is no big deal, I'd rather have that. You could always buy that alienware monitor I saw on gizmodo the other day though ;)
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(I realize that this idea may sound a bit nutty...but I'm just that way.) First off, I think we can all agree that we don't like the "black bars" (when watching a movie on video), though it allows us to watch movies in the proper aspect ratio. Having a 32" widescreen LCD within a tv cabinet, I actually considered making an adjustable frame to fit within, surrounding the tv with miniature theatre-like curtains. For the sides of the picture, that wouldn't be a problem,...as these minature theatre-like curtains could be permanently positioned on the left and right. The ability to easily adjust the top and bottom curtains (above and below the movie image, for proper aspect ratio) is crucial. (And I also considered how to apply a very narrow, adjustable, black frame along the curtain inside-edges,...around the movie frame.) Anyway, to me, this sounds like something that could be cheaply manufactured. It could be available in various sizes, with each size adjustable for a given spectrum of tv sizes. It would be cool if such a thing hit the market. And I'll take my curtains in maroon or a dark forest green,...though since it would be within the tv cabinet, the color isn't quite as important as it would otherwise be. Does that sound like a crazy idea? Whatever the case, I'd like to have one. And maybe I'll make one after all. (And I suppose it might make good training for when we do purchase a much larger tv, someday.)
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That's a little disturbing the amount of effort you'd go through to avoid looking at the black bars. I'm just sayin'
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Yeah, the thought of that...is...disturbing. (I did refer to the idea being a bit nutty.) And that's why I haven't done it. But ya gotta admit,...it sure would BEaT the hECk out of having to see those black bars, time and time again.
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It's a better alternative to chopping the ends off of the frame. The are so many ways a film is shot and in extreme examples like 2001 or say Ben Hur that your TV will do the best it can to accomodate also when they transfer from film to video they do the best to accomodate. It helps when the original director is part of the transfer process. And yes I think you're right metaluna about SW being transfered from 35 mm. As far as your TV goes it's up to whoever is supervising the transfer and of course the way it was originally shot. If only they had made TVs rectangular years ago. I have a 53 " Hitachi Widescreen and I still get black bars on most movies. There are a few exceptions. I'd much rather have it that way than say miss one of the imperial officers getting dressed down by Vader and then wipped out by an asteriod ( Empire Strikes Back ).
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This is classic (remove any spaces from URL)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=friS4OOcdgQ -
Best Buy or Circuit City sell them for $80 a pop. But I suspect that by then, studios will be trying to move us all along to the next hot new thing. The lesson: there's no such thing as future proofing. Besides I still have a 36 inch Sony Trinitron CRT that still works fine, so an HD player would be pointless. Anyway, I have more important things to spend thousands of dollars on. Like rent and student loans.
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Very clever. Someone's been watching "Downfall" a lot, to get that just right...
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In the past I have strongly recommended the HD DVD format as the best choice for consumers. Surprising developments this month led Warner Bros. to drop support for the format, which likely will lead to a Blu-ray victory in the format war. I started receiving inside information about a week before it happened and will recount the story here.
Warner Bros. publishes on both HD DVD and Blu-ray and found the "format war" was not only slowing the adoption of high-definition discs, but also hurting their regular DVD sales -- clearly an untenable situation for them. They wanted to bring the format war to a quick close by picking a side.
If they chose HD DVD, studio support would be roughly equal but would likely go HD DVD's way eventually, as Warner is the biggest producer of high-definition discs. If they chose Blu-ray, studio support for Blu-ray would be lopsided and the war would end more quickly.
When rumors started flying publicly, I e-mailed Jim Noonan, a Warner Bros. vice president, who immediately replied that they had not decided to change their policy. A WB executive in New Zealand issued an even stronger public statement denying imminent changes.
Obviously, they had decided to change -- they just didn't know the direction. Given their long partnership, Warner gave Toshiba an opportunity to lure a Blu-ray studio to HD DVD, in which case they would go HD DVD exclusive and give HD DVD a clear studio advantage. A deal was nearly secured with Fox, which had been having trouble with Blu-ray disc production due to the lack of manufacturing infrastructure. At the 11th hour, Fox went to Sony with its concerns and received a reported $120 million payout to stay with Blu-ray.
With no studio joining them on the HD DVD side, Warner's hand was forced and it went with Blu-ray, receiving a reported $500 million for doing so.
Obviously I am saddened by the implications for my readers, the industry and consumers, but still believe I recommended the better, more solid format, which was much more affordable, as well.
I was at their booth at the Consumer Electronics Show and regretted I could not find a single stand-alone player worthy of recommendation -- and if HD DVD goes away, the cost of entry to high-definition movies will be doubled. It's sad for the consumer, really.
My mind and my heart were in agreement that HD DVD was the way to go. To not recommend HD DVD would not be true to my own convictions, and it would be unfair of me to not recognize Toshiba's accomplishment in bringing an affordable, fully developed product to market.
Many in the industry agreed with me, and no one in the media expected Warner to pull the plug so quickly when HD DVD stand-alones were selling so well this holiday season. As for my future course, I will recommend the Playstation 3 to people who want Blu-ray until fully specified Blu-ray Profile 2.0 players are available and their performance matches the PS3.
http://tinyurl.com/yocyef
Looks like Harry was right that HD-DVD was the way to go. Until Sony paid Half a Billion Dollars to win the war.
F-Sony
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Think the fallout from the Warner Bros. Blu-Ray defection has settled down yet? Think again.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has published a startling story today that claims that not only did money change hands in regards to the Warner/Blu-ray deal, but that 20th Century Fox was also paid off to stay with Blu.
According to the report, Warner actually wanted to go HD DVD but would only do it if another studio were brought in and gave HD-DVD backers time to come up with that arrangement. Once done they would have had four of the major six studios behind it, leading it to likely win the format war.
That other studio was Fox, the least reliable and prodigious of Blu-ray's exclusive backers who has frequently delayed their title releases. What ones the studio has put out have been mostly catalog releases that have had several problems.
Fox was apparently lined up, and told the HD DVD camp it was going to switch to HD DVD, but nixed the deal at the last possible minute as Fox apparently received a reported $US120 million payout from Sony to stay Blu-ray.
Warner then switched and apparently received between $US400 and $500 million for its defection. WHV home video reps have denied claims of a payout, but right up til their defection last week they repeatedly denied any plans to change either - rendering their credibility dubious at this point.
The Blu-ray move by Warners continues to have impact on the high-definition field with dual format adult studo Digital Playground revealing that they plan to stop releasing porn on HD DVD probably by the end of 2008
http://tinyurl.com/2vjjfd
From our friends at Dark Horizons.
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To quote an old AICN hero of mine: "Fuck Sony, fuck them up their stupid asses."
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Until they come down in price alot.
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I just posted the WB-Sony bribe story on Herc's DVD sellathon; can we talk about these issues (6 studios firing showrunners)that will affect TV for this season instead of hawking products?
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I guess everyone is well aware of the price-drops on all HD-DVD hardware, from Toshiba. If I'm not mistaken, $149.99 for the HD-A3, plus 7 free HD movies ("300" and "THE BOURNE IDENTITY" in the box, plus choice of 5 from a limited selection until 2/26/08). When you combine that with the fact that it upconverts dvd, this is an awesome deal. All models have dropped in price. And at these bargains, have we REALLY seen the end of HD-DVD? Consumers may say otherwise, especially at these prices.
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You conveniently ignore the fact that Toshiba and Microsoft bought off Paramount's exclusivity well before Warner's decision. Once the studios realized that they could prostitute themselves to both camps for hundreds of millions of dollars, every change of allegiance would be met with wads of cash. Toshiba resorted to bribery in an effort to win the war with an inferior product, Sony won the war because it had deeper pockets. Get over it. Heck, according to thedigitalbits, Toshiba's now trying to increase the HD-DVD market share solely to enhance its payout from the Blu-Ray consortium when the two sides finally call it quits. How does it feel to be used as a pawn so that Toshiba can recoup a couple million dollars?
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this probably has as much of a chance as "Angel" or "Veronica Mars" being saved, but here's a link for anyone interested in signing...(about 5,400 signatures, so far)
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/SAVEHDD/petition.html
(remove the gaps)
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Who knew Hitler was pulling the strings?
http://tinyurl.com/2n3hrr -
Don't believe everything you hear at " The Digital Bits ". I used to have a lot more respect for that site until they showed a clear bias for BR. I even used to think the BR camp was more logical and truthful than the other side until the the war got dirty. Now you hear the same rhetoric from BR fans. Anyway DB reported that Best Buy was going top shrink their shelf space for HD DVD. Well as I've said in a earlier post that just hasn't happened at my local store. Last Saturday I went out to BB and their HD titles were restocked from Xmas ( they were selling out there quite well and the shelves were looking bare ) and people were buying like nothing had happened. As I also said I bought two titles while there. So what you read on the internet doesn't always perfectly reflect reality.
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Do yourself a favor
Click on your web browser
type in www.google.com
in the search box, type in the words
toshiba + bribe
Marvel at the 10,000 results you get.
now repeat the same excercise but this type delete the word toshiba and replace it with sony
tell me how many more results you get.
Enjoy upgrading the firmware on your Playstation 3 or Blue_Ray player every week, and buying movies for double what they cost on regular dvd.
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1.) A large percentage of people feel that dvd is good enough, especially when upconverted to "near HD level" ...and 2.) The price for the average consumer to upgrade to a new format is crucial (see factor #1), otherwise a new format will never be the runaway success it could be.
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I know some inside stuff.
Warners wanted to choose a side and so they decided to do so by seeing how their next release sold.
It just so happened that it was Harry Potter Order of the Pheonix.
It ended up selling something like 60%Blu and 40%HD so they went Blu -
Truly, what an objective way to discover the truth. So I take it that you fished around among the tens of thousands of hits you got from Google and decided to post only the two that most clearly supported your agenda? By the way, the reporter from the Pittsburgh Press Gazette reposted the article you copied on his personal blog. Guess what he dropped from the story, after consulting with sources from Fox? You guessed it - he makes no reference to a bribe, in any shape or form. http://www.soundadviceblog.com/?p=758. It's always better to get the facts than to spout crap you know nothing about.
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The fact remains that there has been objective confirmation that Paramount was bribed by Toshiba/Microsoft to become HD-DVD exclusive, which occurred many months ago. At worst, any payment to Warners and/or Fox by Sony does nothing more than even the playing field. The fact that some people are using this to slam Sony simply betrays a clear agenda on their part.
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Yes. What I'm saying is both approaches are wrong. There is no " Nice Guy " in this scenerio. Only companies that will do anything for money. Regardless of the consumer. What they should have done is release even movie lists on both sides and let the consumer decide.
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http://www.mcvuk.com/news/29361/Now-HD-DVD-is-losing-the-porn-war
Because we all need to see the bruising and needle marks in high-def! -
As a Sound and Vision subscriber, the best statement they made about all the allegations is that, simply put, 500 million bucks in a MULTI-BILLION dollar venture is nothing. HD-DVD folks can say whatever they like, but in the end, there simply isn't enough support.
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Haven't we had enough comments from fan boys?
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Like we didnt know they would side with sony!!!
They can both go suck on my salty balls for I will never bow to them - NEVER -
Please. Unless you are a cheapskate, do not buy a HD-DVD player. Check this out:
Blu Ray studios:
Disney
Columbia Tristar
Sony Pictures
MGM
Warner Bros
Newline Cinema
Fox
And in 2009, Paramount.
HD DVD studios:
Paramount.
Universal.
That's it.
Oh, you can throw in the BBC for both formats if it helps...
The format war is over. Toshiba, you didn't try hard enough, and gave us a half-measure product. Tough shit, you have LOST.
Shalom... -
God! Another little fan boy! Well BR hasn't one anything really yet. It still has to become more than the Laser Disc of the 21rst century. And will this whole thing help or damage the image of HD on home video?
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Oops! I really must have been tired! That's won anything yet!
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This really sucks. Good thing I got my player free and only have 20 movies.
http://www.aintitcool.com/user/reset/17039/1202859504/313ad27400ef4ff148ffa98660d3cee1
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