The "Format War": Over Before It Started?

[THWIP*]

THINGS COULD GET INTERESTING, TO SAY THE LEAST.

 

[lars573]

We can only hope.

 

[ProductionMusic]

LMAO

What a big kick in the ass for the PS3

 

[Benstamania]

Well, I just think this will be the way to go if you HAVE to have a BR or HDDVD, at least until the major "format" is decided. Me? I'll just wait.

 

[amazingfantasy15]

Betamax, Laserdisc, UMD, HD-DVD, Blu-Ray, they're all the same

 

[Benstamania]

I dunno man, UMD is pretty bad, lol.

 

[hippie_hunter]

UMD is good for PSP games, but sucks ass for movies. Blu-ray would be good for movies but it isn't a big enough technological leap to give it worth the investment. But for games it has potential.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Sony should have just used cartridges for the PSP.

 

[imdaly]

Betamax, Laserdisc, UMD, HD-DVD, Blu-Ray, they're all the same

No they're not.

HD-DVD is the only one there that Sony wasn't sure was going to win.

 

[hippie_hunter]

No they're not.

HD-DVD is the only one there that Sony wasn't sure was going to win.

Both HD-DVD and blu-ray are going to fail. It's too damn soon to replace DVDs and both are not a huge technological leap like DVDs and CDs were

 

[imdaly]

I think the difference now, though, is that more and more people are getting HD TVs now. It's not just as simple as people wanting a better picture and more space.

More and more people are now owning a nice new TV capable of showing better resolution than what DVD can offer now. And because of that, those people are wanting a format that doesn't hold their TVs back.

I know I'm one of those people.

I've got a new 44'' Panasonic HD TV, and while the picture is still nice with my regular DVDs, it's VERY noticable that there is much room for a better picture. And knowing that my TV is capable of showing a better resolution, I am more than ready to get that player and those discs that will allow me to take full advantage of my TV.

To me, it's almost like getting a brand-new color TV, but being stuck with nothing but Black&White movies to watch.

 

[darkdaz]

I will stick with my PC its got World of Warcraft. Thats the only game i really play anymore.

 

[Addendum]

I think both will go the way of Laserdisc.

 

[Joker]

as long as they're releasing the same exact disc on dvd as well, just without the quality of picture and sound, i'll stick with my dvds...at least until we have a clear winner on this

 

[THWIP*]

I think the difference now, though, is that more and more people are getting HD TVs now. It's not just as simple as people wanting a better picture and more space.

More and more people are now owning a nice new TV capable of showing better resolution than what DVD can offer now. And because of that, those people are wanting a format that doesn't hold their TVs back.

I know I'm one of those people.

I've got a new 44'' Panasonic HD TV, and while the picture is still nice with my regular DVDs, it's VERY noticable that there is much room for a better picture. And knowing that my TV is capable of showing a better resolution, I am more than ready to get that player and those discs that will allow me to take full advantage of my TV.

To me, it's almost like getting a brand-new color TV, but being stuck with nothing but Black&White movies to watch.

DUDE, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU MEAN (BOUGHT MY 55" SONY OVER A YEAR AGO), BUT IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T HEARD, THE QUALITY OF BLU-RAY AND HD-DVD HAS BEEN LESS THAN IMPRESSIVE, SO FAR. I'VE YET TO SEE A REVIEW THAT DOESN'T REMARK ON THE DODGEY IMAGE QUALITY (APPARENTLY THEY'RE JUST "FILTERING" MOVIES, AND SLAPPING THEM ON AN HD DISC).

 

[imdaly]

DUDE, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU MEAN (BOUGHT MY 55" SONY OVER A YEAR AGO), BUT IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T HEARD, THE QUALITY OF BLU-RAY AND HD-DVD HAS BEEN LESS THAN IMPRESSIVE, SO FAR. I'VE YET TO SEE A REVIEW THAT DOESN'T REMARK ON THE DODGEY IMAGE QUALITY (APPARENTLY THEY'RE JUST "FILTERING" MOVIES, AND SLAPPING THEM ON AN HD DISC).

I've seen this myself, actullay already.

I posted it somewhere on this board a couple days ago, but I'll give you the jist of it.

I work at Circuit City, where we have BluRay set up and demoing. They were playing House of the Flying Daggers on it a few days ago, and everyone was saying (including me) how surprisingly unimpressive the video was. It really did not look any different than regular DVD picture.

My GUESS is that it's because the movie is not native to HD resolution? I KNOW that when we see something that was natively filmed in HD that it'll look great on both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. But with the initial string of Blu-Ray movies that are out so far, they really aren't any movies that are the best choices to say to potential consumers "Hey, look how AWESOME this looks!"

Sony had a tractor-trailer go around last year, all around the country. The trailer was set up like a living room inside with a huge 72" HDTV, and the purpose of the trailer was to show off HD media. Well on this 72" TV they showed two different demos.

First was the Spider-Man 2 Trailer in HD....wow...I'm telling you, it was such a great picture that it practically looked 3D...seriously.

Second was a cool set-up thingy where the screen was split in half down the middle, and they played Lawrence of Arabia...I think. Anyway, the left half was the movie in regular DVD format, and it really didn't look too bad...it was what we're used to. But the right side was in HD, and it was amazing.

The scene was out in the desert with a big group of people on horses riding from the left side of the screen to the right, off in the distance. It wasn't until they passed the halfway point on the screen when suddenly the cloud of people/horses/dust cleared up to where you could actually see individual people, individual legs, etc. EVERYTHING was SOOOOO much clearer on the HD side.

I hope that a demo like this will soon be available for everyone to see. Because you really don't know how much difference there is between DVD and HD-DVD/Blu-Ray until you see this. It is nothing short of amazing.


So yeah, I'm more than ready for the HD video...I just won't buy either until I know which is the clear winner (no pun intended, lol)

My bets are all on HD-DVD winning out.

 

[THWIP*]

I've seen this myself, actullay already.

I posted it somewhere on this board a couple days ago, but I'll give you the jist of it.

I work at Circuit City, where we have BluRay set up and demoing. They were playing House of the Flying Daggers on it a few days ago, and everyone was saying (including me) how surprisingly unimpressive the video was. It really did not look any different than regular DVD picture.

My GUESS is that it's because the movie is not native to HD resolution? I KNOW that when we see something that was natively filmed in HD that it'll look great on both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. But with the initial string of Blu-Ray movies that are out so far, they really aren't any movies that are the best choices to say to potential consumers "Hey, look how AWESOME this looks!"

Sony had a tractor-trailer go around last year, all around the country. The trailer was set up like a living room inside with a huge 72" HDTV, and the purpose of the trailer was to show off HD media. Well on this 72" TV they showed two different demos.

First was the Spider-Man 2 Trailer in HD....wow...I'm telling you, it was such a great picture that it practically looked 3D...seriously.

Second was a cool set-up thingy where the screen was split in half down the middle, and they played Lawrence of Arabia...I think. Anyway, the left half was the movie in regular DVD format, and it really didn't look too bad...it was what we're used to. But the right side was in HD, and it was amazing.

The scene was out in the desert with a big group of people on horses riding from the left side of the screen to the right, off in the distance. It wasn't until they passed the halfway point on the screen when suddenly the cloud of people/horses/dust cleared up to where you could actually see individual people, individual legs, etc. EVERYTHING was SOOOOO much clearer on the HD side.

I hope that a demo like this will soon be available for everyone to see. Because you really don't know how much difference there is between DVD and HD-DVD/Blu-Ray until you see this. It is nothing short of amazing.


So yeah, I'm more than ready for the HD video...I just won't buy either until I know which is the clear winner (no pun intended, lol)

My bets are all on HD-DVD winning out.

THAT'S ALL I'M SAYING.......NEITHER FORMAT IS WORTH THE $$$ YET. BY X-MAS 2007, I'LL LIKELY BE READY TO GET A 'PS3'.......EVEN IF THE "FORMAT WAR" HAS DIED, OR ONE OF THEM HAS WON OUT). BUT, I'M IN NO HURRY TO PAY $500+ FOR AN HD PLAYER, WHEN THE CONTENT IS A LONG WAYS FROM CATCHING UP TO THE TECH. HELL, I'M STILL WAITING FOR HD PROGRAMMING, WHERE I LIVE.

 

[lars573]

THAT'S ALL I'M SAYING.......NEITHER FORMAT IS WORTH THE $$$ YET. BY X-MAS 2007, I'LL LIKELY BE READY TO GET A 'PS3'.......EVEN IF THE "FORMAT WAR" HAS DIED, OR ONE OF THEM HAS WON OUT). BUT, I'M IN NO HURRY TO PAY $500+ FOR AN HD PLAYER, WHEN THE CONTENT IS A LONG WAYS FROM CATCHING UP TO THE TECH. HELL, I'M STILL WAITING FOR HD PROGRAMMING, WHERE I LIVE.

lmao! Your getting owned by the telecom giants. Out here in eastern Canada we've had HD satellite and HD digital cable for year and a half 2 years now.

 

[THWIP*]

lmao! Your getting owned by the telecom giants. Out here in eastern Canada we've had HD satellite and HD digital cable for year and a half 2 years now.

NO, I'M NOT GETTING "OWNED" BY ANYBODY........THERE'S JUST NOT MUCH HD PROGRAMMING AVAILABLE YET. I DON'T REALLY CARE TO WATCH 'ESPN' IN HD.
YOU HAVE TO PAY AN EXTRA $10-$15/MONTH FOR HD AND DIGITAL CHANNELS, AND THERE AREN'T ANY WORTH WATCHING.

 

[lars573]

No you are if your just getting programs in HD. If I went out and got HD DC or sat it would be channels in HD. And more than just TSN. Most of the major networks can be ordered in HD over D.C.

 

[THWIP*]

No you are if your just getting programs in HD. If I went out and got HD DC or sat it would be channels in HD. And more than just TSN. Most of the major networks can be ordered in HD over D.C.

YOU CAN'T PICK AND CHOOSE THOUGH......AT LEAST NOT HERE. IF YOU WANT DIGITAL, YOU HAVE TO BUY THEM ALL.........SAME WITH HD. PROBLEM IS, ALOT OF THE ACTUAL PROGRAMS AREN'T NATIVELY IN THOSE FORMATS YET, SO THE QUALITY DIFFERENCE IS STILL NOT WORTH IT. I'M WAITING FOR DIGITAL AND HD TO BECOME "STANDARD", SO I DON'T HAVE TO PAY FOR IT.

 

[lars573]

Here that will be by 2012 or there abouts. CRTC mandated that by then all cable companies must have ""on-air" HD programming. Also you can pick and choose whether you have HD channels or not if you buy a digital cable box. They also said that it was unfair to the consumer to have to buy channels they don't want in digital cable packages so now you can buy them seperately for like $1.50 each.

 

[THWIP*]

Here that will be by 2012 or there abouts. CRTC mandated that by then all cable companies must have ""on-air" HD programming. Also you can pick and choose whether you have HD channels or not if you buy a digital cable box. They also said that it was unfair to the consumer to have to buy channels they don't want in digital cable packages so now you can buy them seperately for like $1.50 each.

MAYBE THAT'S AVAILABLE HERE NOW.......IT'S BEEN SEVERAL MONTHS SINCE I BOTHERED TO LOOK INTO IT, BECAUSE THEY F***ING PISSED ME OFF BEFORE. IT'S NOT A BIG DEAL, THOUGH; WE DON'T WATCH MUCH T.V. ANYWAY, AND NEVER WATCH MOVIES VIA CABLE/PPV.

 

[lars573]

Well I do watch a lot of TV. So HD and/or a clear signal are important things to me. So I look into sat or digital cable every now and then.

 

[Addendum]

If the stations cut back on the hype about HD, I might be interested.

The incessant overhype has killed any interest I once had in it