HD vs Bluray.....Your speculation..

Bear · 24 Jun 2006 at 09:42

Tunney said:
Standards don't work like that, sadly. It's going to be GSM vs. CDMA, PAL vs. NTSC etc. all over again. Competing standards only lead to confussion, higher development costs and slow progresss.

Thats a nonsense comparison, those arent competing standards but differing standards around the world and arent in competition. Its also shows how the US chooses a poorer standard just to be different

AS_Platinum · 24 Jun 2006 at 11:21

Is it me or is it that blueray has the most major audio/visual electronics manufacturers behind it, where'as hd dvd has the major movie makers behind it.

Abooie · 24 Jun 2006 at 13:11

I think one of the reasons HD DVD could win is the fact you buy '1' disk, and if you put it in your HD DVD player it'll play in High Def, and if you put it in your, or your mates, or parents etc. normal DVD player it'll still play at standard def.

If you buy a blu-ray disk you can only play it in your blu-ray player.

For me this is a big selling point; Block Busters etc. can stock just the one disk and don't need to worry who it's rented out too; HD or SD.

HighlandeR · 24 Jun 2006 at 13:23

Isnt blueray backwards compatible with dvds?

Abooie · 24 Jun 2006 at 13:33

HighlandeR said:
Isnt blueray backwards compatible with dvds?

They're backwards compatible in so much as they play DVDs but it's the other way round that's the problem. A HD-DVD will play as a DVD in a DVD player but a blu-ray disk won't.

Edit: So I could start buying HD DVDs now and play them on my existing DVD player and heck, even if blu-ray wins I could still play them at standard def.

I wonder if HD-DVDs would play on a blu-ray player at standard definition? Interesting.

Edit again: Lol, after my last statement I'm wondering if I've the wrong of the stick completely, but I'm sure I read HD-DVDs carry the standard DVD film on them.

Saberu · 24 Jun 2006 at 15:35

Blu-ray is clearly much better but HD-DVD will get here sooner and so could potentially steal the market just by being available first. If they were released at the same time though it's pretty clear that blu-ray would win. Just look at the listed companies for Blu-ray, all the companies that matter.

Willowbark · 24 Jun 2006 at 16:43

No-one mentioned the killer app?!

PS3 with Blu-Ray will put a box in every home (well quite a few anyway).

Folks will be scrabbling around for HD content to show off their shiny new flat screen TVs bought for the footy.

Universal is a big player in the other tech and will drive film sales, but if you've already got a good looking HD media player (PS3) it's going to be hard to justify another hardware purchase just to watch the output of one film studio. Especially when you'll probably have a perfectly good DVD player - possibly from ASDA

that will already play a feature length film and "bonus features".

Time will tell, but I'll be putting both feet firmly in the Blu-Ray camp.

metallic · 24 Jun 2006 at 18:58

smcshaw said:
I'm sure I read HD-DVDs carry the standard DVD film on them.

HD DVD's can carry the standard definition DVD version of the film. However this feature is only available on designated hybrid discs. You cannot take any HD DVD and play it in a DVD player. As far as i know there are only around 2 or 3 hybrid discs that have been released so far.

MrM3 · 24 Jun 2006 at 19:16

Current plans are that you can and enabled to copy HD-DVD to your HDD. For those with media centres it is good news. Blu-ray will come with all sorts of protection.

Come on HD-DVD.

Saberu · 24 Jun 2006 at 21:40

MrM3 said:
Current plans are that you can and enabled to copy HD-DVD to your HDD. For those with media centres it is good news. Blu-ray will come with all sorts of protection.

Come on HD-DVD.

If this is true then I hope HD-DVD comes out on top. Although I seriously doubt it will considering the amount of support Blu-ray has.

Peg · 24 Jun 2006 at 22:35

Willowbark said:
No-one mentioned the killer app?!

PS3 with Blu-Ray will put a box in every home (well quite a few anyway).

Folks will be scrabbling around for HD content to show off their shiny new flat screen TVs bought for the footy.

Universal is a big player in the other tech and will drive film sales, but if you've already got a good looking HD media player (PS3) it's going to be hard to justify another hardware purchase just to watch the output of one film studio. Especially when you'll probably have a perfectly good DVD player - possibly from ASDA that will already play a feature length film and "bonus features".

Time will tell, but I'll be putting both feet firmly in the Blu-Ray camp.

Blu Ray in a PS3 will be irrelevant as far as playing movies. Do you know anybody who actually use a PS2 to play a DVD (my PS2 was probably the worst DVD player I heve ever seen). The people who will be buying into the next generation of machine will probably buy dedicated players and be wary of the PS3 as far as movies are concerned.

I think content will decide which format is successfull. If all the best films are released on one format then that format will be the one to have wether it be Blu Ray or HD DVD. Thats what decided the VHS/BETAMAX war.

FrankJH · 24 Jun 2006 at 23:53

Willowbark said:
No-one mentioned the killer app?!

PS3 with Blu-Ray will put a box in every home (well quite a few anyway).

Folks will be scrabbling around for HD content to show off their shiny new flat screen TVs bought for the footy.

Universal is a big player in the other tech and will drive film sales, but if you've already got a good looking HD media player (PS3) it's going to be hard to justify another hardware purchase just to watch the output of one film studio. Especially when you'll probably have a perfectly good DVD player - possibly from ASDA that will already play a feature length film and "bonus features".

Time will tell, but I'll be putting both feet firmly in the Blu-Ray camp.

Look at post #24 on the 1st page mate , I mentioned the PS3 way back there lol

Peg - YOU have missed the point in imho, at the point when PS2 was released I think it was an original cd player and only in one of the revisions did dvd come into it and the whole unit wasnt developed around the new media like blu-ray with the PS3 - also think about the HUGE uptake in general of digital media

If a family buy a ps3 for a family memeber - of course they are going to connect it to the family setup so everyone can enjoy the benefits as much as possible (the high price practically gaurentees this)

HD-DVD coppying to hdd is a good point - this is a killer app if anyone uses it (I know some will but will it be widely used?) its a good thing to have dont get me wrong, but to have upto 25- 30GB stored locally even pretty large hdd would only allow for ten films contents to be saved before the hdd is full and I realise there are larger hdd's available but not yet particularly comman for the person on the street (and not many people would be comfy about opening a case to add a new /2nd / 3rd hdd) and how do the manu's make sure that a mate doesnt allow you to "borrow " the disc to copy it?

Eitehr way blu-ray has to find some method of allowing this also even if its for 2nd gen players etc

The few months difference isnt going to make that much odds i dont believe - as hd-dvd software isnt readily available so no huge sales (in this country) will happen before Xmas anyway by which time PS3 will be on sales as well as cheaper blu ray players

Sparky · 25 Jun 2006 at 00:21

Betamax v VHS springs to mind! Betamax was a way better format than VHS but VHS won due to the support of JVC etc.This will probably end up the same with the Companies prepared to throw the most cash at it winning.

zealot · 25 Jun 2006 at 03:01

CS||nuTs said:
Betamax v VHS springs to mind! Betamax was a way better format than VHS but VHS won due to the support of JVC etc.This will probably end up the same with the Companies prepared to throw the most cash at it winning.

That was due to the pron films more than anything sony had a closed format and wouldn't let pron film be released while vhs was open let and anything go.

Willowbark · 25 Jun 2006 at 04:57

hehe, maybe I skim read that post FrankJH - soz.

As to using PS2 as DVD player, well yes I did. Pennies were tight and someone gave me a disk; methinks: "ah shucks, I've got nothing to play it on... but wait, what's this...". I'm sure the same thing must've happened to many a PS2 owner.

Copying to HDD is all fine and dandy, but even with Sony's somewhat draconian copy-protection ways, it won't take long before content can be ripped to HDD.

I agree content is king. I'm thinking that Universal are wearing the wrong coloured hat at the moment to add a lil' suspense and intrigue. If say a pre-aligned distributor were to jump ship or open up to both sides, they would be able to lever their market position significantly.

Maybe I'll be playing blu-ray on my PS3 and popping down ASDA for a cheapie HD-DVD /shrug

HighlandeR · 25 Jun 2006 at 17:02

zealot said:
That was due to the pron films more than anything sony had a closed format and wouldn't let pron film be released while vhs was open let and anything go.

lol so Pron + VHS = For da Win !

no wonder why it won so easily....

Mr Latte · 27 Jun 2006 at 23:02

CS||nuTs said:
Betamax v VHS springs to mind! Betamax was a way better format than VHS but VHS won due to the support of JVC etc.This will probably end up the same with the Companies prepared to throw the most cash at it winning.

The reason VHS won was the technology was licencessed to other manufacturers with JVC (victor) getting royalities. As more companies manufactured VHS the rental market also exploded almost overnight supporting it more than Betamax. It was the rental market that really helped sway it.

You had Sony a high quality brand name who had a good head start (had the original piano key style machine) but these were very expensive. Along comes VHS from several manufacturers and at a lower cost, hey presto. Err not everyone was into pron in the 80s, were your parents?

Regards HD formats MANAGABLE COPIES is part of the blu ray spec but it will depend on each studio/release if they allow it to be a feature.

These players also have much more possibilities with interactivity, not just menus and i think blu ray supports java so expect a combination of games/graphics with video footage in special features etc.

Informative site

Nice to see this is still a great forum for arguing...

pinkaardvark · 28 Jun 2006 at 03:13

Mr Latte said:
The reason VHS won was the technology was licencessed to other manufacturers with JVC (victor) getting royalities. As more companies manufactured VHS the rental market also exploded almost overnight supporting it more than Betamax. It was the rental market that really helped sway it.

You had Sony a high quality brand name who had a good head start (had the original piano key style machine) but these were very expensive. Along comes VHS from several manufacturers and at a lower cost, hey presto. Err not everyone was into pron in the 80s, were your parents?

Regards HD formats MANAGABLE COPIES is part of the blu ray spec but it will depend on each studio/release if they allow it to be a feature.

These players also have much more possibilities with interactivity, not just menus and i think blu ray supports java so expect a combination of games/graphics with video footage in special features etc.

Informative site

Nice to see this is still a great forum for arguing...

Sony? I always thought it was someone like philips that came up with the betamax.

Richiev4 · 28 Jun 2006 at 03:19

sparemips said:
I speculate that I shall not bother with either until one bunch of corporate kiddies has beaten up the other bunch.

I agree, shall we get the pocorn in a watch the fight?

Rich

zealot · 28 Jun 2006 at 03:20

Mr Latte said:
The reason VHS won was the technology was licencessed to other manufacturers with JVC (victor) getting royalities. As more companies manufactured VHS the rental market also exploded almost overnight supporting it more than Betamax. It was the rental market that really helped sway it.

You had Sony a high quality brand name who had a good head start (had the original piano key style machine) but these were very expensive. Along comes VHS from several manufacturers and at a lower cost, hey presto. Err not everyone was into pron in the 80s, were your parents?

its just well known fact just google for it.

DirecTV is obviously familiar with porn's track record as a driver of nascent technologies. The adult industry's decision to embrace VHS in the early 1980s, for example, helped kill Sony's Betamax, despite the latter format's superior quality. The infant Internet grew quickly thanks to erotic chat rooms and bulletin boards to the chagrin of AOL, which sought to sell the online world as family-friendly. Since fewer than 6 percent of American living rooms boast HDTV sets and many of the most popular network shows (e.g., The Simple Life) still don't use HD cameras, the industry understands that viewers need a nudge to join the revolution.