The essential jist of the article is that HD-DVD has won the format war. That may be, but is HD-DVD going to take-off? Speaking as a consumer, I'm not ready to invest in the format (still a bit pricy for me -- but once Lawrence of Arabia and Blade Runner are available it might tip the scales!). I honestly would like to see it take-off, and my feeling is its innevitable. Yet...when I recall the refusal of John Q. Public to embrace S-VHS it does give me pause.
Another thing I did not know -- but Blue-Ray discs are region-coded (tho the regional divisions are *different* from those for conventional DVD ) but, apparently HD-DVD are NOT region coded (at least yet)?
Well, I think HD-DVD may be winning the battle, but they're a long way from winning the war. Until one of the formats finds true mainstream acceptance, I think Blu-ray has a chance of making a comeback.
I bought a Toshiba HD-DVD player last summer. After trying it out for a couple of weeks, I decided to return it. I was impressed with the quality of the HD picture and the SD upconversion, but I was frustrated with the slow start-up and reaction times, as well as some awkward design problems.
At that time, there were only a couple of HD-DVD titles I was interested in. The final straw came about twenty minutes into VAN HELSING when I realized that the ONLY reason I was still watching it was because it was in HD. I boxed up the player and returned it the next day.
I'm tempted to buy one of the second-generation units, the Toshiba HD-XA2, but I'm still holding off because of the format-exclusive deals with the movie companies. There are a lot of titles I want that will only be available on Blu-Ray. I'm not sure that either format can win as long as the "war" continues, and both may end up dying a slow death as a result.
MarkB wrote:
The final straw came about twenty minutes into VAN HELSING when I realized that the ONLY reason I was still watching it was because it was in HD. I boxed up the player and returned it the next day.
Yeah, availability of titles is always the primary issue. I'm reminded of this 1980 laserdisc demo Andy showed me for "Magnavision", hosted by Leonard Nimoy(!), where he extolls the virtues of laserdisc. I mean laserdisc WAS an impressive format, but the problem was a the only titles available at the time of this demo seemed to be The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau, a Tour of the National Gallery and a disc of ABBA videos!
But Laserdisc did in time manage to become quite a format.
Next week's CES is supposed to be big as Toshiba and others are going to announce new HD-DVD machines at SRP's around $399 (maybe even lower as they're already talking about lowering the price tag). Mark noted the issues with Toshiba's first player but the second one is supposed to be improved and I can only imagine this year's will be improved too in those regards.
I haven't invested "head first" into the format, though I did buy the Xbox 360's HD-DVD add-on as kind of a compromise on spending real money (over $200) for a dedicated player. The 360's add-on drive lets you experience the high quality visuals of HD but only outputs 5.1 Dolby Digital, so it does not really enable you to take advantage of the high definition sound of the new discs. I figure I'll get that when I buy a dedicated player -- if/when it seems apparent HD-DVD will be around for the long term.
Right now HD-DVD is winning the war big time between these formats and the PS3 is too early in its infancy to declare it the big trojan horse for Blu Ray. At this point there's little doubt that Sony completely botched the launch of the system and its high price tag have generated enormously negative word of mouth and press articles all over the place, and it's been outsold hugely by Nintendo's less expensive Wii both in the US and Japan.
As I've written from the very beginning: if these two formats boast ROUGHLY EQUIVALENT PICTURE QUALITY the format that is less money to produce and market is going to win. Period. It's as simple as that. And not only are HD-DVD players less expensive, but so far you have to give HD-DVD the edge on picture quality as well. If you go into forums and read folks with high-end equipment, it's all HD-DVD
The Sony defenders will again talk about storage space and capacity of their Blu Ray discs, but here's the problem: does it really result in a better picture? So far the answer is no. So far the answer is it doesn't translate to more materials on their discs either. They keep saying they're working on the technical glitches and what not but it's been implied recently that the Blu Ray functionality is what might kill Sony's lead in the console wars this time out, with Sony having problems cranking out units in numbers and the machine being so obscenely expensive in relation to any game console before it.
I like what I've seen out of HD-DVD. The ease of use, the quality of many of the transfers I've seen (DUNE looks gorgeous), and the fact that there's less at stake with manufacturing and tech costs because it's inherently less expensive are all plusses.
The big issue is what Paul asks, and thats whether people will care. I'd say if you are into HDTV you will care, especially if you have a huge TV set. But the reality is HD is still only in a small percentage of homes.
The other issue is in many instances the enhancements of HD really become apparent the larger your TV is -- and going from a really well-authored and transferred standard DVD (via an upscaled player) to an HD DVD is NOT like going from VHS to DVD. There just isn't that leap. In some cases the differences are negligible, and then there are other times when you DO go, "wow, high definition!" It just depends on the movie and your TV.
But in no instances -- even with HD DVD -- will I sit down and refuse to watch a regular DVD again...it's not like going back to VHS at all.
However, I think as long as HDTV is there, an HD DVD format WILL definitely be around, and for the cost/manufacturing issues and all that, I see HD-DVD winning the long term battle.
Blu-Ray aren't just losing the battles, they're practically giving away ammunition to the competition...
Sony Encounters New Blu-ray Glitches
The Sony Blu-ray high-definition version of Lionsgate's horror flick The Descent plays fine on Sony's new PlayStation3 game device, but those who attempt to watch it on an ordinary Sony Blu-ray player will see only a blank screen, according to reports that have emerged over the past few days on several websites devoted to high-definition video formats. A similar problem was reported with Pioneer Blu-ray players. The Descent disc features numerous "extras" produced exclusively for the Blu-ray format, including a picture-in-picture video commentary. And therein lies the problem, according to the HD websites. Lionsgate used BD-Java technology for the extras, which is not compatible with the Sony BDP-S1 and Pioneer Elite Blu-ray players. Sony says it is aware of the problem and is working to provide an update to the operating system of its players by early this year.
While Blu Ray continues its struggles, I received my HD-DVD copy of Ridley Scott's BLACK RAIN the other day.
All I could think of was -- WOW. What a transfer! And what a director whose works stand to benefit more than anyone from the HD format. This movie looks entirely, completely different in high-definition than any video transfer I've seen...eye-popping colors and details you simply could never see on laser, and only to a degree on standard DVD.
After this I'm more convinced than ever that this is a viable format -- but obviously something like a Ridley Scott movie stands to gain more than, say, CHRISTMAS VACATION (which barely looked better than its standard-def release).
I can't wait to see if BLADE RUNNER makes it in HD this year -- I'd put in a pre-order whether I receive a review copy or not!
The only thing that has stood out to me in this entire so called format war is the complete lack of killer deathblows and shock and awe from either side.
CES is next week, but if the following stories I'm about to show you indeed get confirmed and come to pass, then I, for one, am feeling less than enthused and I'll explain why:
LG Electronics to sell first dual-format high-def DVD player
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES - LG Electronics has announced plans to sell a DVD player that will play both warring high-definition DVD formats.
The first dual-format high-def player will play discs in the HD DVD format, which is backed by a consortium headed by Toshiba Corp., as well as the rival Blu-ray format, backed by a group led by Sony Corp.
The LG unit will be unveiled at next week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, LG said Wednesday. Details, including pricing and availability, will become available then, the company said.
The two DVD formats have been battling for market share since being introduced last year. Both are expected to get a boost this year as more studios release films in the formats and more players become available.
But the formats are incompatible, forcing consumers to choose. Studios and electronics makers have said the resulting format war would delay widespread adoption of high-def DVDs, which contain sharper images and extra features not possible with standard definition disc.
LG, based in South Korea, said it expects its dual-format player to "end the confusion and inconvenience of competing high-definition disc formats."
Warner Bros., which helped popularize the DVD more than a decade ago, plans to announce next week a single videodisc that can play films and television programs in both Blu-ray and HD DVD, the rival DVD technologies.
Warner Bros., a division of Time Warner, plans to formally announce the new disc, which it is calling a Total HD disc, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
We're well on our way to SACD vs. DVD-A II from where I sit, but maybe I'm being too pessimistic.
This is all still first gen stuff and protypes and glorified experiment fodder.
The real trick will be to see if anyone else follows suit with any of the above.
The combo format sounds fine to me...provided the Blu Ray portion doesn't drive the prices up.
What I'm still waiting for an answer for is why anyone needs to spend 2X as much for a Blu Ray player.
Anyone??
The only thing that has stood out to me in this entire so called format war is the complete lack of killer deathblows and shock and awe from either side.
I guess I have to disagree with you there. The HD-DVD consumers, at least on the AVS Forum and HTF, seem to outnumber the Blu Ray people by a 3:1 margin. There also seem to be a LOT more disappointed consumers in transfers in the Blu Ray camp (THE FIFTH ELEMENT supposedly looks better in Superbit DVD). For a format that was supposed to be clearly superior and offer all these advantages over the other that seems to be unacceptable to say the least.
Of course it may all still be a comparatively small pool of consumers, but there is no question HD-DVD outsold Blu Ray titles and has generated a lot more interest of the two groups over the last couple of months.
The discs I've seen have been routinely well-authored, sport plenty of extras (something almost TOTALLY absent from most Blu Ray discs!), and for the most part seem to be quite satisfying for most HD consumers.
Last edited by AndyDursin on Thu Jan 04, 2007 10:43 am, edited 7 times in total.
I should follow that up with -- I don't see standard DVD going anywhere either.
That doesn't mean that HD-DVD won't be around, though. There's going to be a market for it, so long as there's a market for HD.
Right now Sony looks to be the big loser, because frankly if nobody cares about either format and sales are tepid in general (even if HD-DVD's are selling much, much better right now), or they produce these hybrid discs, they've invested so much in Blu Ray that they stand to gain/lose far more than HD-DVD.
They're the ones who wanted a $600 game console and Blu Ray as the trojan horse. They're the ones who proclaimed the problems with HD-DVD to no end. Unfortunately they seem to have done a lot of talking and not much delivering in terms of product for the consumer (is there a game anyone needs to buy the PS3 for right now??).
If nobody cares about Blu Ray and the HD-DVD market is a comparatively small pool of consumers -- and they lose market share because of the tech delays and expense of the format (which analysts are already predicting they will/have, even if it's just to a small degree eventually) -- this will totally go down as one of the biggest blunders in tech history. Seems to me they've already made a huge mistake assuming the market for high-definition DVD would be as accessible as the one that helped launch regular DVD years back.
Not only that but they wanted Blu Ray to kill off HD-DVD entirely. Obviously if they're talking combo players/discs they've already lost that battle.
I just don't understand AT ALL why people are surprised that neither are selling out like hotcakes: Until HDTV becomes a truly MASS MEDIUM and everyone has it, any high definition DVD format is going to be a NICHE one. It's like laserdisc, and will be until more and more people have high definition available to them.
Which is why the format that costs less to the manufacturer and the consumer is going to win -- hybrid discs scare me because all they'll end up doing is driving the price up, which isn't good for any consumer.
They've been doing their best of the year in HD-DVD and Blu Ray by category -- here's what topped the Blu Ray Extras of the Year category
They also chose THE SEARCHERS as HD DVD disc of the year, and I would agree: the transfer is utterly amazing.
Best HD Bonus Features: Blu-ray Exclusive
None - That's right, none. Since the format was first announced, the Blu-ray camp has been boasting of the amazing interactive abilities their discs can provide, features that would go well above and beyond anything available on the competing HD DVD format. Yet to date we've seen precisely nothing of the sort. In fact, the majority of Blu-ray discs have been bereft of any bonus features at all, usually dropping featurettes, documentaries, and commentaries available on the old DVD editions. Those discs with any High Definition extras have been primarily dual-format releases, with the same or better supplements on the corresponding HD DVD. And as for interactive features, forget it. Warner's In Movie Experiences haven't made the transition to BD. The closest thing to an exclusive interactive feature on a Blu-ray disc has been the "Search Content" option on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which allows you to jump to a pre-selected spot in the movie related to an alphabetical list of topics. Whoop-de-doo. Guess what, Blu-ray? The Chronos HD DVD can do the same thing. So much for the innovative capabilities of BD-Java. Better luck next year.
Well, so much for Blu-Ray. And I really think HD-DVD is going to eclipse regular DVD.
People can point to superior audio formats -- DAT, SACD -- which failed to excite the public, but people tend to be more discriminating about what they SEE as opposed to what they hear.
HD-DVD may not be selling big right now, but with the diminishing availability of SD TVs, and the expansion of HD programming from your cable and satellite provider, its only a matter of time before everyone is watching HD broadcasts.
After that, its only a matter of time before people start thinking "I wish my DVDs looked as good as that show I just watched." I'm certainly starting to feel that way...
I'm still not interested in buying any of the new formats- I thinkt he DVDs I have look fine and am not convinced that the new formats are going to make me enjoy what I'm seeing more than what I am already seeing. I'm not jumping on this for a long while.
Pay attention to this week's CES. Toshiba is rumored to be possibly launching a new HD-DVD player for possibly $199!! Even if it's $299 that is major news for the format.
Someone wrote that the format war wasn't going to deter him from buying the movies that he wanted in hi-def. His reasoning was that even if the format he picked was discontinued he would still be able to play the disks he had bought on his player. Players break down and wear out. How easy is it to get an affordable Betamax player nowadays? LP turntables tend to be at the extremes of the price and quality spectrum, very cheap or horribly expensive. I guess LD players (I never had one) were always expensive, but is it easy to get a new one now? Frankly you will probably be able to get working players for all these formats for years to come but you won't be spoiled for choice and may have to pay out the nose. Too early to worry about but never too early to think ahead...
) but, apparently HD-DVD are NOT region coded (at least yet)?
