Blu-ray is here

[Huskerfan]

Noone has won or lost yet. In fact most reading I've done is that HD-DVD has the early lead. Their unit is less expensive than blue ray and is more reliable.

[Huskerfan]

Thanks for the kind words. I've researched a lot over at AVS forum and just trying to give back in whatever way I can.

[nwg]

I do realise there are two options in the HD race, but BLU-Ray is still HD isn't it, and yes I do know that sony chose to bring there Playstation 3 out with a BLU-RAY drive, that as far as I am aware will not play and normal dvd's or the new "OTHER" format of HD
But it is still HD, and this might sound stupid as well, but didn't Sony's Blu-Ray format win the race and be chosen as the standard for all FUTURE box office titles to be released on, and the "OTHER" format you are talking about LOST, even though it CAN play all current dvd formats !!!!

Huskerfan was asking about blank HD-DVD's. Blu Ray is HD but it different to HD-DVD. Blu Ray devices will not read or write HD-DVD. HD-DVD is the competition.

These are the only Blu Ray stuff I have seen.

Blu Ray Burner

Blu Ray-R

Blu Ray -RW

From what I have heard. Apart from only one $1000 Blu Ray player. The picture quality is not nearly as good as HD-DVD's.

Ricoh have come up with the first HD-DVD/Blu Ray/DVD and CD laser mechanism. It can also write and read both HD-DVD and Blu Ray.

[froggythrower]

Noone has won or lost yet. In fact most reading I've done is that HD-DVD has the early lead. Their unit is less expensive than blue ray and is more reliable.

But most manufacturers are eventually going to go with sony, just as there protection dvd protection is appearing on more and more titles every day, they cannot be beaten when there partners include PIONEER/PHILLIPS/MATSU****A/PANASONIC/SAMSUNG, compaired to the competitions BLU LASER HD made by TOSHIBA and NEC, ther is no competition, that is unless you live in JAPAN or TAIWAN this seems to be the only competition.

[nwg]

There is no reason why both HD-DVD and Blu Ray cannot co-exist. As I said, Ricoh has already devloped the first dual format laser. I bet dual format players will come and if they both get popular. Companies such as Sony can keep bringing out films on Blu Ray and companies such as Warner carry on with HD-DVD's.

At the moment, no film on HD-DVD will ever be on Blu Ray and vice versa. So, if you want Columbia Tristar films in HD then they will be only on Blu Ray.

[froggythrower]

I know what you are trying to say nwg, and I was not aware that Ricoh has developed a drive that is capable of playing all formats !!! Very Clever, The warner against tri-star goes a little further than that though, and i can imagine that warner will release a dvd version, and a hd version, and bow down to sony if their blu-ray becomes popular and have a deal to release the same title in blu-ray as well, and vise versa for sony and their owned subsiduaries.
I just have read more manufacturers seeming to like the fact that the companys behind blu-ray are undoubtedly forefront and HUGE, and are market leaders(we are all strugleing with ARRcoss now and again aren't we)
And Blu-Ray offers a brand new format that cannot be reverse engineered, and the protection for the titles will be the same, so you can see that WARNER may be tempted by Blu-Ray because of the PIRACY protection alone.

[floresdave]

It would seem like a lot of work to release movies in four different formats to accomdate people's drive preference. DVD HDDVD BLU-Ray UMD. My guess is that one format (DVD) will dominate and one other format will stick around as a higher quality alternative(HD-DVD) After all if anyone knows how to alienate their consumers it's SOny. I believe in 5 years DVD will still be the number one format by far.

[nwg]

HD-DVD and Blu Ray are only for people with equipment to make use of it. The average person won't care for it or even know what it is (in the UK at least). The HD picture will not even be that better than DVD if the TV is small (32" and less). If I got into it, I would need new equipment and I can't settle for a HDTV. I would need a HD projector as I got used to the big size of the picture now.

[anonymez]

@nwg: no HD broadcasts in the UK?

just this last sunday, one of our government funded networks started broadcasting 720p50 @ ~9.6mbps. a BBC program called Planet Earth

[nwg]

[QUOTE=anonymez]@nwg: no HD broadcasts in the UK?
QUOTE]

The BBC are doing some trials in parts of London. It is a HD version of Freeview (this is the UK free digital service which requires a set top box). It has shown several BBC programs such as Planet Earth in HD. They haven't got the standard version working ok so, I dread to think what the HD version is like.

Sky HD has just started but there are only a few HD channels (Nature channels, movie channels). During Wimbledon and World Cup matches, the BBC was in HD but not anymore. Other channels are stil in SD resolution. It is also £300 for the equipment and then a monthly subscription.

There has been a lot of misleading information. During the F1 races, a Panasonic HDTV is advertised with F1 showing in the advert. If anyone gets the TV and think they will get F1 in HD, they won't. It is still broadcasted in SD and nothing on that channel is HD.

HD is at least 5 years behind the US.

[froggythrower]

HD-DVD and Blu Ray are only for people with equipment to make use of it. The average person won't care for it or even know what it is (in the UK at least).

So why has my 74 year old father in law, that worked as a mail sorter in Royal Mail for most of his working life, that buy's all his clothes from charity shops, (so he is not rich and does not have a high private pension) buy a Sky HD box, a HD DVD recorder, and a 50" Sony Bravia LCD TV !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When I asked him upon falling over it unawares he had even bought it, he told me quite bluntly "Well, you have to keep up with the times don't you"

And all this from a man that drives a FORD MONDEO 1.6 (1994) worth about £300

So no, I disagree with you, and the average person will upgrade to bigger and better tv's as they start turning off the analogue signal in britain and turning on digital transmitters, and the BBC's new digital service is going to be a rival on par with SKY, also as far as I am aware, the BBC are only going to charge a nominal £10 for their DIGITAL set top box, and you just keep paying your TV license to enable viewing, with extra pay per view channels, but they will be broadcasting in HD as STANDARD.

[nwg]

Well your father in law is the exception. I still believe most people will not bother. Also, how many people will buy HD compatible TV's and realise they are not actually HD (the the TV has to be HD ready).

Of course Sky HD will be popular (even if ony a few channels are HD atm). What you will get is people not bothering with HD-DVD or Blu RAy. I know plenty of people who have only just got into DVD and will certainly not bother upgrading anytime soon. They have spent too much money on current DVD hardware.

Sky HD is a waste of money atm. It will only be bothering when all channels are HD. all the ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 are not HD anytime soon.

So no, I disagree with you, and the average person will upgrade to bigger and better tv's as they start turning off the analogue signal in britain and turning on digital transmitters, and the BBC's new digital service is going to be a rival on par with SKY, also as far as I am aware, the BBC are only going to charge a nominal £10 for their DIGITAL set top box, and you just keep paying your TV license to enable viewing, with extra pay per view channels, but they will be broadcasting in HD as STANDARD.[

My point is that is still up to six years away when all tranmitters are digital only. My transmitter is supposed to be made digital only in 2011. Then, you will have people who have upgraded to SD STB's and will not pay again for HD STB's. Also, where did you hear about the BBC? At the moment, only trials are happening in very restricted numbers. Proper HD around the country is years away. I can't see how they have already decided on the price structure already.

[RFBurns]

It would seem like a lot of work to release movies in four different formats to accomdate people's drive preference. DVD HDDVD BLU-Ray UMD. My guess is that one format (DVD) will dominate and one other format will stick around as a higher quality alternative(HD-DVD) After all if anyone knows how to alienate their consumers it's SOny. I believe in 5 years DVD will still be the number one format by far.

Yet another format confusion scenario. Your average person wishing to watch a movie.....and that is all they want to do......really does not care how that movie is stamped on that disc, they care about watching the movie. Sure they probably expect HD if they have an HD monitor/tv and a DVD player capable of reading the higher resolution disc, but in reality.....there is only one and one single point in sticking that disc into the drive.....to watch the movie.

This format brew-ha-ha is no different from the brew-ha-ha wars between the old VHS and Beta. And back then, folks only cared about one thing.....watching the movie.

Having so many formats at the same time carrying the same title is not only rediculous....but costly to the end user, and costly to manufacturers of both discs and machines to run them. Instead of having to make discs and drives that follow a STANDARD.....OMG a nasty word!!!......they have to make these things capable of reading all these different formats, and in turn makes the price go up.

There was a time when stuff was made that followed a standard. That is why a VHS-Hi-Fi tape could be played in a mono machine and vise versa, and how a black and white tv could pick up a color transmission and vise versa, how a mono recording, tape or vinyl record, could be played back on a stereo player and vise versa.

The goal was to make devices and media be somewhat cross-compatiable, except for things like VHS and Beta, two different styles of tape cases and machine mechanics, but used the same 1/2 inch tape.

I believe that this Blu-Ray format and all this other is pointless at this time in the game. HDTV is not even in full swing yet, only about 20 percent of homes across the world sport a television that is in fact HD compliant, and there are still broadcast stations playing catch up to get their HD signals on the air before that big deadline.

So what is the big rush for this HD DVD format?

To get you to spend big bucks now and go through the initial bugs and quirks and get all frustrated and start using those blu-ray discs as buck shot targets.

My advice from a Sony engineer/tech to everyone out there....is to not get grabbed by the early bird syndrome and just sit tight while these idiots who decide what you buy get their heads out of ther rumps and start making things that people can use at a reasonable price and support it fully, like they used to when STANDARDs were adhered to.

[LT. Columbo]

My advice from a Sony engineer/tech to everyone out there....is to not get grabbed by the early bird syndrome and just sit tight while these idiots who decide what you buy get their heads out of ther rumps and start making things that people can use at a reasonable price and support it fully, like they used to when STANDARDs were adhered to.

[Huskerfan]

Having so many formats at the same time carrying the same title is not only rediculous....but costly to the end user, and costly to manufacturers of both discs and machines to run them. Instead of having to make discs and drives that follow a STANDARD.....OMG a nasty word!!!......they have to make these things capable of reading all these different formats, and in turn makes the price go up.

If the only point was to "watch a movie" then why is most of the civilized world watching DVD's vs. VHS and that only took a "short" 10 years to accomplish. True, you didn't need to go out and buy any different equipment (other than the DVD player itself). I would think as more and more people's televisions hit the crapper and they buy into the HD philosophy you will see HD DVD and Blu Ray flourish just like DVD did.

And on HD DVD vs. Blu Ray? Microsoft and Apple coexist don't they?