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Readers have reported that this story contains information that may not be accurate.Universal Studios Boss Deals Blu-ray death Blow
itwire.com.au — In what could be a telling moment in the high definition format war, a high level executive from a major movie studio has publicly come out in favour of the HD DVD format, developed by Toshiba and backed by Microsoft.
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- tenenbaum, on 10/12/2007, -8/+51Universal is the only studio which exclusively backs HD DVD, so what a surprise that they say nice things about the format. I am not taking sides with either format, I am just saying this is no news.
- ahatter, on 10/12/2007, -40/+2"Universal is the only studio which exclusively backs HD DVD, so what a surprise that they say nice things about the format"
no surprise but still a death blow. - negativenancy, on 10/12/2007, -5/+47HEADLINE: Sony Pictures Boss Deals HD-DVD Death blow.
DESCRIPTION: In what could be a telling moment in the high definition format war, a high level executive from a major movie studio has publicly come out in favour of the Blu Ray format, developed by Sony and backed by the Blu Ray Disc Assosciation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc_Association - ReCkLeSsX, on 10/12/2007, -1/+20I don't get how people are just figuring this out now...
They've been supporting them for the last few months.
They're vastly outnumbered though, by all of the other major studios supporting Blu-Ray. - saisumimen2, on 10/12/2007, -17/+4I'm not a Sony fanboy, I'm not a Microsoft fanboy, I'm not a fanboy of any company, period.
So from all of us: FOR *****'S SAKE PLEASE DECIDE ON ONE FORMAT ALREADY!
We've had enough of this childish greedy *****. You expect this kind of thing from the Chinese government, who is already working on their own HD format in order to not pay royalties to Japanese and American companies. But come on, already. This is getting out of hand. Are we not better than the oppressive Chinese regime? - brownb2, on 10/12/2007, -8/+3@saisumimen2
WTF?! What the Chinese are doing isn't about oppression but about national pride and not being dependent on another country for consumer level high tech. Most countries do this, e.g. on a larger scale, American cars, French planes, British submarines etc etc. Would your country depend on Chinese tech standards do you think?
As far as oppression goes please don't go around willy waving when its likely your own country is corrupt in some way, such as an oppresive foreign policy, corrupt legal system etc etc.
"We've had enough of this childish greedy *****. You expect this kind of thing from the Chinese government, who is already working on their own HD format in order to not pay royalties to Japanese and American companies. But come on, already. This is getting out of hand. Are we not better than the oppressive Chinese regime?" - rm999, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7That article has to be the most biased article I have read in a very long time. The writer of it has clearly already made up his mind.
- Paroparo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Revolution for the Japanese would just be reborushon. It's not that bad, you might've heard of a rather popular device around there called the Pureishuteeshon. =P
- EatingPie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"HDMI is NOT needed for 1080p output."
Find me a TV, other than the Mitsubishi Alpha (no longer available), that accepts 1080p via component video. Now, find me a Set-Top-Box that can produce 1080p over component video to use with said (non longer available) Mitsubishi Alpha.
Indeed, HDMI is required for 1080p playback.
-Pie - diggerbone, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2"HD-DVD:
Universal
Paramount
Warner Bros
Blu-ray:
Sony Pictures
Paramount
Warner Bros
MGM
Disney
20th Century Fox
basically hd-dvd got 50% support while blu-ray have 90% support
this is not news "
(from the post immediately following the story) SO - who to believe?
- ahatter, on 10/12/2007, -40/+2"Universal is the only studio which exclusively backs HD DVD, so what a surprise that they say nice things about the format"
- BrowncoatJedi, on 10/12/2007, -52/+9HDDVD = 30GB limit.
Blu Ray = 200GB limit.
Guess which should win. Once again, Microsoft is on the dumbass side.- blast_flame, on 10/12/2007, -19/+25Blu ray only has a 50gb limit.
- gavroche, on 10/12/2007, -28/+18but they already announced 200gb bluray dicsc
- BBX25, on 10/12/2007, -10/+49Beta was technically superior to VHS, and we all know how well that did.
- RazorElite, on 10/12/2007, -10/+32Space is meaningless if you don't use it properly. What movie content are you going to full a 200GB disc with anyway? Until Blu-ray's overall quality is up to par with HD-DVD, they will lag, no matter how big the discs are.
- ahatter, on 10/12/2007, -9/+15does size really matter?
- elnerdo, on 10/12/2007, -5/+18There's other things to factor in, too. DRM spewing from every orifice, for example?
- elf586, on 10/12/2007, -6/+14well it depends....
for you people that only think of movies then no....
but for those of us with 250GB hard drives that need to be backed up then yeah, yeah it does....
if you think about the multipul uses of each disc blueray has more overall uses
unless i am missing something that is.... - Ray_Justice, on 10/12/2007, -6/+14When you say overall quality are you talking about how HD DVD movies look sharper then Blue Ray? if so that has nothing to do with the disc technology itself, but rather the quality of the transfers from film to digital. If they wanted to the could take the original film frame by frame and clean up all the nicks and restore it to perfect quality, but that takes time. All of the current film transfers for blue-ray and HD DVD look like ass. They can get way better.
If a clear winner doesn't emerge soon, it's going to be SACD, DVD-Audio all over again, no one is going to care. - JeffH, on 10/12/2007, -12/+7Any disc above 50GB is pure alpha stage. 200GB is the theoretical limit of Blu-Ray discs, but there have been zero successful attempts at making them (and it has been attempted multiple times). There has been no movie thus far that could use the extra space Blu-Ray has over HD-DVD. The only thing I could even think of that could would be anime/TV series. With anime, they want to keep as little episodes per disc as possible, so they make more money off the series as a whole, so I doubt they would choose to use Blu-Ray's higher capacity discs. And at the moment, high capacity Blu-Ray discs cost a lot more than multiple DVDs, or multiple HD-DVD, so I doubt TV series would jump on them either.
- BrowncoatJedi, on 10/12/2007, -19/+5Haha, you are all proving yourselves to be Microsoft toadies. What has Digg become.
- mturn, on 10/12/2007, -8/+10if microsoft is always on the "dumbass" side, then why is it that they always seem to come out on top? sony, on the other hand, ...
- masamunecyrus, on 10/12/2007, -9/+17Beta > VHS. However, Sony was draconian in their policies of what to allow and what not to allow on their format (so what else is new?).
Blu-ray > HD-DVD. However, Sony is draconian in their use of DRMs and are strict about what you can and can't do with Blu-ray (for instance, no HD without mega-expensive HDMI).
Also, while Blu-ray may be superior to HD-DVD, it has some serious faults. For one, it is vastly more expensive for the manufacturers. HD-DVDs can be produced with modifications to a normal DVD line. Blu-ray requires all new machines.
Also, something that most of us techno-nerds never think about is NAME. Back in the 80s, when peope went to a store, they could either buy something called a Video Home System, or a Betamax videocassette. Video Home System is a lot easier for Mr. John Doe to understand than a "Betamax" tape. Moreover, it sounds less hip and more friendly.
Likewise, in two or so years when Mr. John Doe heads out to buy his new HDTV, he can get an HD-DVD or a Blu-ray disc. Well, HD-DVD is instantly recognizable, as he's just purchased an HDTV. Also, 'Blu-ray' sounds like some hip, new-fangled device that he'd spend hours surfing through the manual just to understand. With an HD-DVD, it's just a DVD, except it's HD!
People don't often think about the names of products, but names are very, very important in marketing things. It's the reason that Nintendo made the radical shift from 'Revolution' to 'Wii,' It's the reason that Microsoft went against their usual 'Windows [year]' or 'Windows XP' to a more warm, friendly (or in my opinion, uglier-sounding) 'Vista.'
The name can make or break a product, so only time will tell whether or not this will end up being Sony's first success, or if it will end up like the rest of their formats -- inferior and permanently $10 more expensive than any equivalent alternate format. - saisumimen2, on 10/12/2007, -11/+4@masamunecyrusi: You were on a roll until this part:
"People don't often think about the names of products, but names are very, very important in marketing things. It's the reason that Nintendo made the radical shift from 'Revolution' to 'Wii,"
Do you know any (native) Japanese people? If you do, ask them to say "revolution" for you, and tell me what you think. Not because of "marketing", but because that word is just too long and complicated to say in Japanese. - popfrogs, on 10/12/2007, -6/+2@sasumui:
It'd sound like 'revorution' and they could still pronounce it. Trust me, any culture that can take the letter H and turn it into 'ecchi' can pronounce anything. - MikeCampo, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2@saisumimen2
So what is your point? They changed the name to something much simpler...Isn't that a good thing? lol - isayx3, on 10/12/2007, -10/+4HD-DVD = 30gb
Blu-ray =25gb
50gb blu ray is still in development..as is the 45GB triple layer HD-DVD.
"Blu-ray > HD-DVD. However, Sony is draconian in their use of DRMs and are strict about what you can and can't do with Blu-ray (for instance, no HD without mega-expensive HDMI)."
How is blu-ray better than HD-DVD? The inferior picture quality? - EatingPie, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16Lots of misinformation in this thread, and I would like to clarify.
- As already pointed out Universal is an HD-DVD only studios. Have been from the get-go, so this is either (a) non-news, and/or (b) studio propaganda.
- Blu-Ray has a 50GB limit for video content. The players are desigend for dual-layer 50GB, and have not been tested -- or afaik intended -- for anything more.
- Blu-Ray has been demonstrated at up to 200GB for data, as noted. This is for data storage only, not for video playback. It has no bearing on the "format war" per se, unless someone designs a player to support them. It will, however, make it easier to make back ups.
- Blu-Ray and HD-DVD use the SAME DRM standard. That's right, THE SAME! Okay, Sony added one additional layer on top of that, but I haven't read any specific reports on whether it's fully implemented or even required. The point is, Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are equally draconian.
- BOTH HD-DVD and BD have THE EXACT SAME HDMI REQIREMENT FOR HD. Again, the EXACT SAME... it's part of the aforementioned DRM shared between formats. Right now, NO DISCS in either format have this HDMI-requirement enabled... they are, after all, trying to win a format war. But in 2010 (or 2012, can't remember) all discs will be required to have the flag on, so HD will only flow over HDMI, and a downsampled version will go out over component.
- Both formats require HDMI to do 1080p... it's the only way to get 1080p. AND, the only players in either format that do 1080p cost the exact same price: $1000. The $500 HD-DVD player, and its successor coming out in October, can only ouput 1080i even over HDMI.
- HD-DVD has had much better reviews in terms of content quality so far. Sony plans to introduce their 50GB discs in a few months as they JUST solved production problems.
- HD-DVD has about 2x as much content, and a wider range of more "popular" films (eg Batman Begins coming next month).
- Exaclty one year ago, both formats made huge announcements for LAUNCH TITLES. Almost none of those have yet been released (eg. The Matrix Trilogy, Batman Begins, Star Trek: First Contact, etc.,etc.).
- HDTV looks far better than standard DVD, and EITHER FORMAT will produce comprable quality once the bugs are worked out (HD-DVD 1 Minute player boot, 30 Second Disc Load. BD poor quality encoding of current discs.)
That's the stuff I've seen so far as mis-information in this tread.
-Pie - NeoTechni, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7"However, Sony is draconian in their use of DRMs"
By using the same DRM as HDDVD - P5ycHo, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3HDMI is NOT needed for 1080p output.
The flag that prohibits 1080p output on something else then HDMI will stay off until 2011. - nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3The picture quality problems with the first batch of Blu-Ray movies has been solved. They were using MPEG2 instead of VC1 whereas HD-DVD was using VC1 from the beginning. Most studios have now switched to VC1 and reports are that Blu-Ray looks better than HD-DVD. Also, Blu-Ray with Java players are coming out soon so that should make the extra content way more fun.
- iamskew, on 10/12/2007, -15/+4It doesn't seem too bright to alienate half of your potential market. Why not make both until one wins, then be happy when the losing format has to rebuy all its discs?
- killerofkiller, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2...
- lazydrumhead, on 10/12/2007, -23/+5normal DVD + upconversion = 99% of the quality of both
so neither should win.- MJBurnsy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+13Ummm no. Obviously you have never seen the difference between the two. DVD up-scaling is nice but is no comparison to the real thing. Night and day difference.
- Ray_Justice, on 10/12/2007, -5/+12Wrong, there is a HUGE difference between real HD resolution and something upconverted to HD resolution. You know whats funny is that most people think that there progressive scan or up converting HDMI dvd player makes their DVD's look better when in fact their HDTV already converts everything to its native resolution before it displays it. So it just comes down to which has the better video de-interlacer / scaler. Do you think your $200 DVD player or your $2000 TV has a better video processor in it?
- socket, on 10/12/2007, -5/+15Whoever sold you that line of garbage needs to be kicked in the teeth. Up-conversion is NOT magic and can not compensate for data that just doesn't exist on DVD. HD-DVD and Blu-Ray pictures are retransferred from studio masters encoded at higher quality and with a better codec (e.g. VC-1 in some cases). Go back to school and learn something before you open your mouth and misinform.
- killerofkiller, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2but the new denon dvd players say that they can get >= quality of HD DVD out of a normal dvd by using technology from cruise missiles
http://digg.com/tech_news/Two_New_Denon_DVD_players_upscale_DVD_s_to_quality_of_HDDVD_and_Blu_ray - popfrogs, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Spoken like someone who either A. doesn't have access to true HD quality broadcasts or B. has never seen true HD compared to upscaled DVDs.
- zybch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Theres absolutley still no way you can get a more detailed image from a DVD than one of the HD variants. Creating detail from a source where none exists means that you just won't get an accurate image.
Their example of the Fifth Element is strange, as there are 5 or so very different versions available. I have 3 copies of that film (from regions 1, 2 & 4) and each looks very different from the others with wildly varying color casts and differeing ammounts of grain and edge enhancement. I can only guess they used this movie as the highdef version is a pretty crappy example of what the HD format is capable of offering, and no doubt it was compared to the superbit verison of the regular Fifth Element DVD. - lazydrumhead, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1from reviews I have read, they are as I stated.
you are just making things up from your head. I read.
- sfly510, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8Death Blow... When someone tries to blow you up, not because of who you are, but for different reasons altogether.
- jkoke, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3Kramer rocks!
- nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1who delivered the final death blow?
- TrevorBradley, on 10/12/2007, -7/+8Executive dudes, we've moved beyond "HD DVD sucks, Blu-Ray is Better" or "Blu-Ray sucks, HD DVD is better", to "Both suck, DVD's are just fine for now"
Get back to us when your burnable media is down to 50 cents a gigabyte, your burners down to $500 or less, and you start placing more *content* instead of barely noticable quality on your highly toted "Media Of The Future!" (TM).- iamskew, on 10/12/2007, -7/+550 cents a gigabyte? $15 and $25? Try more like calling me at 10 cents/gig.
- popfrogs, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5DVDs are just fine until you buy an HD television/monitor. Then you really, really wish you had something better.
- Kelmon, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4@popfrogs
If this is the case then I won't bother buying an HD television. DVD has cost be enough already so if Hollywood thinks that I'm going to re-buy my collection on HD-DVD/Blu-Ray then they've got another thing coming. Personally, I'm very happy with the quality of current DVD discs and their price so these two formats can take a hike. I don't see a significant market for either formats and predict that they'll both go the way of Laser Disc, i.e. ahead of their time. Whatever comes next will likely beat both of the new formats since by that time the market will be ready to upgrade and the newer format will likely be more attractive. - onidraky, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1That's very true, but I remember when DVD came out, I didn't think it was worth it either, but it managed to last until it was affordable enough that the general public thought it was worth it. It all depends on what comes next, and it's very possible that something better could come along in the time it takes them to be worth paying money for. I'm in the same boat as many here, as much as I love HD content, it's just not worth the money or the hassle right now, and probably won't be for at least another year or two, as long as something better doesn't come along.
- kanavulator, on 10/12/2007, -13/+7Unfortunately, Microsoft backing a standard is almost analogous to the United States backing a nation's status.
- YourDoom123, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10Why does anyone want either to reign? With so much drm crap piled on to the point that you don't really own anything that you buy, it's crazy to support either. Thanks, but i'll wait for an open replacement...
- elf586, on 10/12/2007, -7/+6the drms will be cracked in a few days of an affordable release....drms just dont work no matter what they do it will not stop people....only make more people not want to by the drmed material....
- blankman2g, on 10/12/2007, -12/+10Why people are so anxious to see blu-ray fail is a mystery to me. If HD-DVD had greater storage capacity, those in favor of it would tout that as a benefit but because storage is on Blu-ray's side, it doesn't matter. The whole debate is silly.
- DokWho, on 10/12/2007, -18/+9Simple, $ony backs BluRay, I don't like $ony and the way they operated. On, not to mention all the lies about BluRay.....and PS3....and payola....and fake movie reviewers...and DRM and....
- blankman2g, on 10/12/2007, -7/+16you say $ony like they're in it only for the money and Toshiba has no interest in turning a profit.
- DokWho, on 10/12/2007, -17/+1then say To$hiba if your are an emotional wreck after you see $ony
- blankman2g, on 10/12/2007, -4/+8well then i'd be making the same rediculous comment you're making.
- zybch, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3The main reason I'd prefer to see HD win is that the DRM is less analy retentive, and things like a flipdisk with HD on one side and regular DVD on the other are possible, on bluray this can't be done.
Were Toshy specify that all HD movies must be of the flipdisk format then the war will be totally won! You only have to buy 1 disk but get current DVD quality as well as HD futureproofing. Toshy can do this because they aren't a greedy movie company relying on repeat sales of the same movie but in different formats to turn a buck. They're still greedy, but not as much as sony, nowhere near a much as sony who have forced all bluray players to be priced at stupidly high levels so that when the PS3 is released (probably in 2008) peoplw will buy it rather than a standalone bluray player. - nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2except that those "flipdisks" are way more expensive to produce, would cost much more, and no one would buy them.
- MJBurnsy, on 10/12/2007, -6/+20How is this a death blow? Universal is already backing HD DVD and hasn't backed Blu-ray in a long time. They didn't pull out of Blu-ray and join HD DVD, they already was part of the HD DVD Forum.
No Digg - Inaccurate - DokWho, on 10/12/2007, -14/+2Microsoft does not back HDDVD. They back their VC-1 codec which is superior to MPEG-2 which BluRay is currently using.
MS backs neither format, cause they win with the VC-1 Codec, which HDDVD uses no, and BluRay MUST use later.- YoHowdy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12Of course Microsoft backs HD-DVD. They wouldn't be coming out with a 360 external drive if they didn't.
- crashingechelon, on 10/12/2007, -10/+1ok then explain why HD-DVD displays at 1080i and Bluray displays at 1080p.
- yabos, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8BOTH Blueray ad HDDVD support the same codecs.
- teamparadox, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8"ok then explain why HD-DVD displays at 1080i and Bluray displays at 1080p."
The 2nd Gen HD-DVD players which are coming out any day now support 1080p resolution. Oh might I add it doesnt really matter because most people with TV's big enough to use 1080 properly are those with LCD's which cant display Interlaced signals and will convert a 1080i signal into 1080p anyways and it looks idenitcal to a NATIVE 1080p signal. - DokWho, on 10/12/2007, -9/+2Let's repeat. MS does not support either BluRay or HDDVD.
They are in this to sell a codec.
Wow, digg users are ingnorant on this subject. - zybch, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Comparing releases on bluray to HD, its very clear tha the MS codec used in HD is one hell of a lot better than the ***** MPEG2 codec thats being used in every bluray title to date.
Did sony actually want their format to look ***** or what?
If buying the format that uses MS tech gets me a better looking image then its a no-brainer as to which I'll end up buying, MS or not! - isayx3, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8"ok then explain why HD-DVD displays at 1080i and Bluray displays at 1080p."
You got to hand it to sony's marketing, they really have people believing a lot of things that are untrue. - nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2@ darkwho
you still don't get it. Blu-Ray and HD-DVD now BOTH use VC-1 for their video codec. Simple as that. You're wrong.
- Nelson69, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7what was the blow they dealt? Just a press release? Or is 150 titles by end of year for the no HD-DVD players on the market the blow? The more I look at this, it's a non-issue. Both have DRM, both have great looking HD content...
- jkoke, on 10/12/2007, -8/+6IMO Both formats will lose, because the majority of consumers think DVD is good enough. The improvement in video quality just isn't high enough to justify the purchase of a new, expensive player. Without a critical mass of early adopters, the devices will never get cheap enough to establish a foothold in the market.
- oogee, on 10/12/2007, -13/+2All I want to know is which one is easier to rip and upload in bittorrent format. I'm not spending another dime on movies or music and I've become accustomed to the lesser quality of my downloaded movies. I'm really not interested in the outcome of this "war".
P.S. do you know how many cassettes I bought and don't listen to?!?- jkoke, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9So, do you leech everything in life off someone's else's hard work, or is it just movies and music?
- zybch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Well then oogee, you want HD DVD, not BluRay.
Bluray uses the SAME DRM as HD, but then adds another layer of unwanted 'protection' to screw us consumers just that little bit moe! - oogee, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1I leech everything. in fact, i download my torrents off of my neighbours wireless connection.
Everyone works hard. I've purchased more than the average amount of movies and music. I did it when it was $25 for a cassette and there was no way of listening to the content ahead of time to see if it was worth it (it often wasn't). I bought DVDs when they were $50 and the players were $300. I wasn't always a leech. Besides, most of the music I download is not easy to get through the usual channels because of where I live and the unwillingness of the media giants (the ones you apparently feel sorry for) to support artists who do not generate $$ from the mass market.
But now I'm supposed to join a debate about which new media format should be next to live and then die? Please.
These media empires are trying to convince you to buy movies filmed in a ***** format than the HD or blu-ray is capable of playing. The best movies shouldn't look any different on a blu-ray than a DVD because they weren't filmed in HD. Why don't you go out and buy the best speakers on the market and then hook it up to a transistor radio from the 50s and see if you are satisfied with the result. - HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2zybch:
BluRay and HD-DVD use the same DRM, AACS.
BluRay does not go the extra mile to screw the customer any more than HD-DVD does.
- bgoodknight, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3This ***** is going the same way the "dual layer" dvd's went. I still love how, at places like BB and others, when buying a PC, they still push the "Includes Dual Layer Burner!!"
It's like ok, where can I actually buy dual layer dvd's? Oh that's right, I cant, because nobody wants the *****.- crashingechelon, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8Umm apparently you don't look through the blank DVDs or bother to read the labels. You can get DL discs anywhere, heck even Wal-Mart sells them. You'd probably be one of those people that doesn't know the difference between +- DVDs.
- yabos, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2@crashingechelon
Yes you can buy DL disks but they are so much more expensive it's cheaper to buy 2 SL DVD-Rs than it is to buy one DL DVD-R. - popfrogs, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Dual layer = slower burns and more expensive media. Sure, it's cool tech, fitting 9gb on a disc instead of 4.5, but until the media is as cheap as single layer, nobody cares.
- baxtermadux, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7this title is misleading. and part of a trend here on digg, where some users only seem to care about getting their story on the front page. so they write titles and descriptions that are factually misleading. this is just as bad as Fox News. a news company that could care less about getting down to the truth, and only about how many people are watching.
- daeyeth, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5"one" high level exec a death blow?? stupid. do you have any idea how big of a chunk sony owns of the movie biz?
- zybch, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Hence why we should be VERY wary of supporting the bluray format.
- gxcdesign, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1He just stated an opinion...big deal
- pixelpimp, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3Universal is just backing HD-DVD because it is part of there deal with Microsoft to make Halo the movie! Exec at Universal can't tell the difference between Blu-Ray or VHS! Welcome to Hollywood!
- mb3581, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4Blu-Ray's will apparently have a problem with disk warping becuase of a basic design flaw (if you could call it that)
http://lifestyle.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=6639&page=2 (direct link)
also submitted as a story http://digg.com/hardware/Blu_Ray_s_Built_in_flaw - mmyoungmm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I read all the comments down to here and now think I got it.
Blu-ray is for Republicans. HDTV is for Democrats.
Or is it Blu-Ray is for Dem....
never mind.- cquinnd, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Wouldn't it be nice if they put the format standard up for a vote, though?
- g4dualie, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1These arguments always devolve into an Either/Or process and someone is always dragging the Beta vs. VHS argument out as an example.
The fact is, Beta is superior to VHS (resolution-wise) but when it first appeared, Beta tapes were only 60 minutes in length, whereas VHS tapes were 3-hours, and when you're recording movies from television a 3-hour tape fit the bill nicely. It was a no-brainer for consumers.
Beta didn't die, it evolved. It was adopted by the corporate world of television studios and advertising agencies, who live in a world of the thirty-second sound byte and six-minute news segments.
TDK has pushed the limit of Sony's Blu-Ray disc storage capacity, using six-layer discs and have achieved — albeit in the lab — 200 GBs of storage. This behind-the-scenes-work doesn't always translate into consumer-friendly pricing.
In fact, price will become the great leveler and consumers will vote with their wallets, just as they did in the Beta-max/VHS wars. Who will be rewarded?
Currently, both camps offer -R discs for 20 dollars. However, Blu-Ray also offers dual-layer discs, BD-R 50 GB for $48 and a re-writable 50 GB disc for $60 and it's just a matter of time before TDK releases 100 or 200 GB storage discs.
I say push the envelope. I want 500 GB holographic storage, something which will be commonplace in 2015. We need these companies and their competing standards, exploring all of the possibilities if we are to push past the technological boundaries set before us.
I live in a world where Blu-Ray and HD-DVD can coexist nicely. It's good to have choice. Universal will produce content on HD-DVD and Sony will produce a player that is capable of playing Universal's disc format. So, what's the big deal?
It's a win-win for consumers.- Optimus, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6>>I say push the envelope. I want 500 GB holographic storage, something which will be commonplace in 2015.
Along with flying cars, hoverboards, 'Mr. Fusion' and power shoelaces! - subject117, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3That's fine for you and me- people with enough money to buy the players without sweating. You must remember that there are lots of people where 300 dollars is a huge investment, let alone 500 or more.
- Optimus, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6>>I say push the envelope. I want 500 GB holographic storage, something which will be commonplace in 2015.
- contrlkaos, on 10/12/2007, -5/+0You guys need to remember... back when Beta came out, there was not Internet, no tech oriented blogs, no 500 TV channels, no Best Buys/Circuit City's/Fry's/etc on every other street corner. Call it evolution, survival of the fittest, whatever...
All this means is that people are wiser, and they're going to make choices that appeal to them, instead of having the industry tell them what to choose...
Let people and time decide... Stop worrying people!- onidraky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"All this means is that people are wiser, and they're going to make choices that appeal to them, instead of having the industry tell them what to choose..."
And how many people every time you go to Best Buy do you see asking the workers what to buy? People aren't much better informed then they were 5 years ago. It's much easier to become informed, but no one seems to realize that is a good idea to research before you buy.
- onidraky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"All this means is that people are wiser, and they're going to make choices that appeal to them, instead of having the industry tell them what to choose..."
- Hyprtime, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3The title of this is so grossly inaccurate, I'm embarrassed for every moron that dugg it.
- BleedingHollow, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1what ever it takes to take out Sony do it! I can't trust them anymore there has been nothing but bad news all year with them i.e. the whole root kit thing, exploding batteries and others.
- HeatVision, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Wow, another inaccurate iTWire/Stan Beer story. Anybody else notice that this guy constantly gets his facts wrong? Check out his other "news" stories:
- "Apple iTV a stab in the heart for Microsoft"
- "Zune plus Xbox 360 may give Microsoft the edge"
- "YouTube to take on iTunes and change business model of music".
You can pretty much find comments pointing out factual errors in most of his stories. I'm pretty sure the "Australia's #1 technology website" is inaccurate too. If this guy wasn't self-employed, he should be fired. Mod up if you agree. - oogee, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1If this debate is resolved in the usual way, it will not be Universal, Paramount, Disney, Microsoft who decide. It will be the porno industry. They chose VHS over Beta and made DVDs fly (for the angles and zoom, i assume). If there is any advantage of HD over blu-ray (or vice versa) that can be exploited by the adult film industry - that will be the real death blow.
- tastypastry, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'm all for Blu-Ray. If I am able to buy 200GB disc within the next 3 to 4 years I will be happy, even if they are a little costly. Just imagine backing up an entire hard drives on just a few of those disc.
And BTW, the porn industry backs Blu-Ray. So most likely Blu-Ray will win this war if there is even a victor. - HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Universal has backed HD-DVD and rejected BluRay all along. So this isn't news at all. It's just a fanboy (I guess) latching onto a press release.
Burying as inaccurate because of the "death blow" summary. - P5ycHo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2This is the most biased article I've ever read.
- bufbarnaby, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1MSFT is smart to back HD-DVD , the porn industry is backing and using it. Low-cost drives will be available for Xbox 360 owners also.Porn is what helped VHS win over Beta.
- HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Search for "porn HD-dvd" and "porn BluRay" and rethink your comments.
But I think this porn thing is way overblown.
VHS beat beta because JVC had better licensing terms than Sony did (IIRC, Sony didn't license beta out at all at the start).
- HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Search for "porn HD-dvd" and "porn BluRay" and rethink your comments.
- totorototoro, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1death blow? yeah, right. both formats are doing just fine killing each other at this point, one studio won't make a difference.
- TheRealDj, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2This is a BS article, Universal has never been in support of Blu-ray,but every other company has been. I think its like 5 or 7 companies that aren't in support of HD-DVD. The "news" that Universal isn't going to support Blu-ray is months old. So this article saying its a "Death Blow" coming out now is nonsense.
- totorototoro, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I just noticed this is another ITWire story on Digg-that author seems to be tailoring his sensationalistic headlines to attract the most controversy for especially for Digg.
- RomeyRome, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Doesn't matter what Universal thinks. It's going to be what the porn industry decides.
- Pharaoh777, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1So, when Blu-Ray has 6 million installed players and HD-DVD is struggling for 1 million next year (these are analyst predictions - I am not making this up), I'm pretty sure the studio will come around.
- jousting, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Who wants their porn in HD anyway? A little blur covers a lot of wrinkles and butt pimples.
With the best codecs and careful mastering, HD-DVD and Blu-ray are just about the same. There was never any reason to expect otherwise. If done well and viewed on a high quality screen, especially close up, they look a lot sharper than DVD. And artifacts are reduced (although a very small percentage of people ever notice artifacting). For some people, it is enough to pay more for.
But the reason DVD caught on over VHS was not only because of quality. It was because it became cheap, and it offered no-rewinding before returning or storing movies, as well as instant access to scenes and special features like commentary, deleted scenes and alternate endings. DVD already has all that. HD formats offer little other than higher resolution. And very few people have a screen of the quality that really highlights the difference.
Neither will take over the mainstream until prices fall a lot. This war will be decided by ability to manufacture players + disks cheaply, and having the marketing savvy to know to cut prices. It appears that Sony has designed a system which is essentially equal, but costs a lot more to make players and disks. Even with the huge advantage that forced bundling with the PS3 gives, if they can't find a way to make them cheap they have no chance. On the other hand, if they have built a good enough factory and can lower costs to be comparable to HD DVD, the PS3 will give them the victory.
Based on the reports of skyrocketing costs to build the PS3, I predict Sony will flush their advantage, fail to bring down manufacturing and retail costs fast enough, and will lose, just like with Beta. - kiddsickuras, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0zybch:
"BluRay and HD-DVD use the same DRM, AACS."
HappyScrappy
"BluRay does not go the extra mile to screw the customer any more than HD-DVD does."
Wrong, Blu-ray has extra drm. Its the only reason the soul-less companies Fox and Disney joined, God I hate the moronic ***** that has been posted on this board. Many of the users here need to go over to avs.forums and get educated on the subject rather then get their info from sony's bs marketing strat.- Philodox, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1source? I have yet to see any information saying that Blu-Ray uses more DRM.
- HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2kiddsuckuras:
I wrote it because it's the truth. BluRay doesn't have extra DRM. Just extra haters.
I read avsforums from time to time. But if I want actual info, I don't go to internet chat rooms, including avsforums.
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