WWTBAM Bored

The two competing and mutually-incompatible high definition DVD formats have fought it out and Blu-ray is the winner. Toshiba Corporation, which manufactured the competing HD DVD format, announced that it will no longer produce DVD players using this format, meaning that Sony's Blu-ray has triumphed. Similar to the Beta vs. VHS format in the 80s, the struggle between the two DVD formats was intense, but as more and more studios announced their backing for the Blu-ray format, the handwriting was on the wall. This weekend Best Buy announced that its sales personnel would recommend only the Blu-ray format, and Wal-Mart announced that it would no longer sell anything but Blu-ray players. Netflix also announced that it would not carry movies in the HD DVD format. As a result, only Universal, Paramount and DreamWorks are still signed to produce HD DVD movies; this may change in the near future, however. Sony's victory was undoubtedly aided by the fact that its popular PS3 game system is built around a Blu-ray DVD player (the game box can play movies also); Microsoft's XBox can play the HD DVD format, but the player had to be purchased separately.

I will not pretend to understand this. I will say that I am glad I have not bought a DVD recorder or player yet.

I was waiting for the Blu-Ray, HD DVD cage match to be decided before I upgraded our DVD player.

I feel bad for the people who made the HD investment.

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:I was waiting for the Blu-Ray, HD DVD cage match to be decided before I upgraded our DVD player.

I feel bad for the people who made the HD investment.

I wonder if they are the BetaPeople.

peacock2121 wrote:

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:I was waiting for the Blu-Ray, HD DVD cage match to be decided before I upgraded our DVD player.

I feel bad for the people who made the HD investment.

I wonder if they are the BetaPeople.

I know somebody who still uses her BetaMax to tape soaps, because the quality is better.

I didn't even know you could still get tapes for it.

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:I was waiting for the Blu-Ray, HD DVD cage match to be decided before I upgraded our DVD player.

I feel bad for the people who made the HD investment.

I have both and prefer the HD software over Sony's, but I understand the Blu-Ray DVDs are designed to have a much longer lifespan.

Bob Juch wrote:I have both and prefer the HD software over Sony's, but I understand the Blu-Ray DVDs are designed to have a much longer lifespan.

What's the diff when there will be some better technology within ten years that will supercede both?

Kay: This is gonna replace CD's soon; guess I'll have to buy the White Album again..

gsabc wrote:

Bob Juch wrote:I have both and prefer the HD software over Sony's, but I understand the Blu-Ray DVDs are designed to have a much longer lifespan.

What's the diff when there will be some better technology within ten years that will supercede both?

Kay: This is gonna replace CD's soon; guess I'll have to buy the White Album again..

Yeah, but some say regular DVDs won't last that long.

Why would anyone want to use a high-density DVD for music?

Downloads are replacing media anyway.

Bob Juch wrote:

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:I was waiting for the Blu-Ray, HD DVD cage match to be decided before I upgraded our DVD player.

I feel bad for the people who made the HD investment.

I have both and prefer the HD software over Sony's, but I understand the Blu-Ray DVDs are designed to have a much longer lifespan.

Supposedly the Blu-ray format allows for a larger recording capacity also.

hooray.

We got the blu-ray so we guessed right.

gsabc wrote: I'll have to buy the White Album again..

Weird coincidence. I'm listening to the White Album right now. Blackbird, fly....

peacock2121 wrote: I wonder if they are the BetaPeople.

We were a BetaFamily. My father was convinced that it was so much better quality that it would eventually prevail. I can still remember going to the local Erol's and browsing the four sections of Beta movies, then the three sections, then the five shelves, etc.

starfish1113 wrote:My father was convinced that it was so much better quality that it would eventually prevail.

Quality isn't what wins technology battles. Marketing wins it. Anyone who uses a Microsoft product will agree.

Won't the price for Blu-Ray machines go up in price now that there is no competition. (Toshiba says "Uncle!".)

Finally I have my revenge, now I can die in peace.

ne1410s wrote:Won't the price for Blu-Ray machines go up in price now that there is no competition. (Toshiba says "Uncle!".)

There will still be some downward pressure on the price but not nearly as much as there was before. What you won't be seeing as much of are specials on Blu-ray discs (there were a lot of buy one, get one free deals out there).

Warner has announced, and I expect the other studios to follow, that every time in the future that they reissue a catalogue title, they will be same day releasing it in Blu Ray as well as standard DVD. There are still a lot of catalogue titles that won't be released in a high def format.

Plus, people who have DVD recorders or who have low end home theater systems with a built in receiver in the DVD player unit or who don't want to spend more that $50 on a DVD player won't be buying Blu Ray any time in the forseeable future.

silverscreenselect wrote:Plus, people who have DVD recorders or who have low end home theater systems with a built in receiver in the DVD player unit or who don't want to spend more that $50 on a DVD player won't be buying Blu Ray any time in the forseeable future.

You can count me in that number - I'm not so much of a TV-phile that I have to have high-def DVDs to watch.

silverscreenselect wrote:Plus, people who have DVD recorders or who have low end home theater systems with a built in receiver in the DVD player unit or who don't want to spend more that $50 on a DVD player won't be buying Blu Ray any time in the forseeable future.

I'm in this group, too, along with restricting our discretionary purchases due to other budgetary concerns.

Naive question: do the Blu-Ray players also play the regular-definition DVD's?

gsabc wrote:

silverscreenselect wrote:Plus, people who have DVD recorders or who have low end home theater systems with a built in receiver in the DVD player unit or who don't want to spend more that $50 on a DVD player won't be buying Blu Ray any time in the forseeable future.

I'm in this group, too, along with restricting our discretionary purchases due to other budgetary concerns.

Naive question: do the Blu-Ray players also play the regular-definition DVD's?

Yes, and upscale them too.

Naiver question:

Will Blu-Ray dvds play on my dvd player--just not in hi def??
Same for my laptop??

Thanks.

ne1410s wrote:Naiver question:

Will Blu-Ray dvds play on my dvd player--just not in hi def??
Same for my laptop??

Thanks.

No, stuff like this is rarely backwards-compatible. To read a Blu-Ray disc, you need a Blu-Ray player.

Think of it like DVD vs. CD. You may be able to read a CD in a DVD player, but you can't read a DVD in a CD player.


FWIW, I think it's kind of amusing that what most "experts" believe is the inferior technology won both the VHS/Beta and Blu-Ray/HD DVD battles. Nearly every tech columnist I've read has said that HD DVD is loads better than Blu-Ray...

But at least now I know what I'm getting once my home theater dies (as it will in the next 6 months, since the warranty ran out. It's also a very very very cheap system (I paid a whole $79 for it 2 years ago). Now that I can afford it, I'm probably gonna go the component route, with a good tuner/amp, Blu-Ray and kick-ass speakers.

Thanks, KT. I appreciate it.

KillerTomato wrote:FWIW, I think it's kind of amusing that what most "experts" believe is the inferior technology won both the VHS/Beta and Blu-Ray/HD DVD battles.

And the computer operating system wars ...