Gartner: The future is blu

yippers kinda figured

Seeing how Blu-ray has 5 of the 7 studios backing them exclusively, and Blu-ray sales are crushing the competition ... yeah I'd say Gartner knows what they're talking about!

Nice post Henning!

That's why I love this site. Eventhough Henning likes HDDVD he will still call it down the middle.

Thank you for stating the obvious Gartner.

same as it was last year...and before then....

Makes no difference to me, I own both formats. I just wish that Blu Ray would get their s**t together and finalize their standards. This profile 0, 1.0, 1.1, 2.0 stuff is ridiculous.

The only reason I bought Blu Ray as well as HD DVD was to get all the movies i wanted....but IMHO HD DVD is a superior format.

Quote:
That's why I love this site. Eventhough Henning likes HDDVD he will still call it down the middle.

u being sarcastic?

"u being sarcastic?" --kucoloco

I hope not. Henning has always provided news from both format fronts, and he personally owns both a Toshiba HD DVD player and a PS3.

John

John,

Too often I think people confuse the message boards with the major content of the site. I've always found DVDTOWN to be unbiased in their news, and reviews.

i think hennings has been pretty fair to both formats, i just think everyone is geting tired of all the trollish stuff, this site is getting filled with non sense, use to be friendier.

You know I'd like Blu-Ray to win just because I'd hope it would put an end to it but then we'd probably end up with posts like this.

"Blu-Ray gaining on SD-DVD"

"DVD dominance over future is Blu"

"DVD players on clearance"

"Warner drops support for SD-DVD"

"Bluray pays studios to drop DVD"

did sony use to back divx? cause i was reading somewhere that the ps3 pushed divx are something like that. but anyways if i do go blu it wont be until there format is standardize, thats really my only gripe with blu.

Nope - Sony did NOT back Divx.

Divx was a PPV DVD format, full-screen edition only, no extras, was supported primarily by Fox and Disney, and also Paramount and Dreamsworks. Retail support by Circuit City, and player support by Zenith and RCA. It started in Sept 1998, and was discontinued in July 1999.

From the beginning of standard DVD, Sony was one of the leading supporters of the format (along with Warner), and each company early on released most of their discs in 16x9 Anamorphic editions.

-LH (The Loverboy)
~ DUAL HI-DEF FORMAT SUPPORTER ~

At least the world will know that few stood against many and that even a god-king(sony) can bleed.



[Post edited by chemteam on Jan 29, 2008]

I've always preferred (and still do) HD DVD, and I'm willing to predict Blu-ray a winner. I said that the day WB made their announcement because I knew that's all it would take, and it did.

But admitting that doesn't make Blu-ray a good product. It's flat out bad all the way around. You watch. Build those pretty Blu libraries all you want. I'll rent 'em, but I'm not falling for this whole Blu-ray thing either...it's potentially the winner, but it's garbage.

I do wonder why Toshiba is going to bother with their Superbowl ads. They may as well go to the casino and put it all down on one hand of blackjack. At least that way they have a chance to double it. Well, no they wouldn't...casinos cheat too.

[Post edited by JPSofCA on Jan 29, 2008]

The only reason blu is winning is because Sony is using Money and Incentives to lure Company's to go Blu... This war is not going to be won by the consumer but by the monopolization of these Studios/Retailers (Blockbuster)rentals)...

Blu-ray isn't any more superior then HD... (Vid/Sound quality)
Tho, from exp. i think HD is better or more consumer friendly...
And whats with all the profiles 1.0/1.1 now 2.0 Sony hasn't even fixed the glitches in the first profile and now there talking about 2.0 ???
And everytime a new movie comes out, your going to have too wait for the new firmware to play it. So you cant watch it for a couple of months after it has come out... What the hell is that !!!

I have a blu-ray and HD player i have had a few problems with blue and none with HD.
HD has better support and far better players.
HD is cheaper to manufacture & players, and is a simpler format.

Video/Sound quality should be the same on blue and HD, but is based on how well the company's that do the hd transfer, i feel in most cases that HD does a better job at doing this.

So What that blue has more capacity, blue and HD don't use any more then 25-30g of space on their discs.
King Kong on HD is 182mins long...

HD has a nice feature with there HD-DVD combo disks.
HD has Ethernet connections.

Don`t get me wrong i like Sony and they do make good products (I own some), But it doesn't mean that their God... I just don't like the way they are going about winning this format war, forcing us to choose a format and not letting us make our own decision ???

motogp34, your post is so early 2007'ish!

Glad you were able to read it

motogp34, seriously. It was a great post... errr, if it were April of 2007. But time moves on...

Skyhawk, MotoGP's post may be so '2007ish' as you put it, but his points are just as valid now as they were a year ago when we were talking about this. I own both formats, but I think HD DVD is superior for all the reasons he mentioned.

Hmmm, sounds like the same old HD fanboy gripe I've heard over the past +year. Strange how the people I work with all claim they like their Blu player more than their HD player. It would appear it's all a matter of opinion in my . . . opinion

Well, speaking from the point of view of someone who owns BOTH formats I can tell you this.

1) HD DVD format has cheaper players
2) HD DVD format is finalized
3) I have had almost no problems with my HD discs since I first bought my A1.
4) HD DVD has a nicer user interface on the disc menus
5) Blu Ray is on their bazillionth profile...still not finalized
6) I have had more problems with Blu Ray discs than HD DVD (although this could be due to crappy Samsung player Up-5000)

So, people might like Blu Ray better, but I would wonder why. When the image quality is basically the same why pay more for a format that is still not standardized?? The only thing Blu Ray has going for it over HD DVD is studio support...but that's a big one...and the only reason I bought a Blu Ray deck.

[Post edited by Bosshog7 on Jan 30, 2008]

Quote:
Hmmm, sounds like the same old HD fanboy gripe I've heard over the past +year. Strange how the people I work with all claim they like their Blu player more than their HD player. It would appear it's all a matter of opinion in my . . . opinion

T --- People lie they say they give a fair chance.. but is all crap. double check these peeps at work. I see that blu now has matured a little, ps3 is a solid player.... thats now. Most players, still have a list of things wrong.. and blu issues with alot of catalog titles being re-done. i wouldnt wanna know performance a year ago.....

sorry dude i gotta say it....hddvd has been superior... and thats after owning 40 titles in each format

You say a true HD Fanboy ? But i have tested both formats for almost a yr. and have to say HD is more consumer friendly/reliable and care more about the quality of their products ?
I think most of these Sony fanatics, if Sony had told them to jump off a bridge because it would be benefit them they would do it...
The only good player Sony has is the PS3 but i don't think most people who buy one are in it for the movies.

Quote:
1) HD DVD format has cheaper players
2) HD DVD format is finalized
3) I have had almost no problems with my HD discs since I first bought my A1.
4) HD DVD has a nicer user interface on the disc menus
5) Blu Ray is on their bazillionth profile...still not finalized
6) I have had more problems with Blu Ray discs than HD DVD (although this could be due to crappy Samsung player Up-5000)

No offense, but again your post is the same old song and dance I've seen in thread after thread (day after day for that matter) from any given HD fanboy since day one! Strange how the peeps I work with that own both formats have never complained about any issues that apparently seem to plague Blu-ray. Two of these peeps even make the outrageous claim that their Blu has a better picture quality. Now keep in mind, I'm not taking a side, I'm just passing on the opinion of others I work with. It would appear to me that it truly is a matter of opinion regardless if one format truly is better in technical terms than the other.

Tim, theres right, and wrong. simple.

even pros say picture is equal, not trying to argue the same old song... but some people are just not meant for certain things.

ps: not calling your co- workers stupid or anything. This would be when personal experience would remove this nonsense from your head.. and save you all these useless posts.


Fanboys, are basically long time followers, of a brand and its products, hence sony fanboys. --But what do we follow in hddvd besides a format that seemed to work?? .

The main reason i joined HD media, is because i love HD content.. and got sick of being fed crap.. from people who dont know jack. Just like mechanics lie to you when they know you dont know jack. and just like your local IT guy knows your spending 'limits'.

[Post edited by kucoloco on Jan 30, 2008]

Quote:
and got sick of being fed crap.. from people who dont know jack.

And there in lies the problem as the people I work with do know jack. I work with computer geek, multimedia, hi-def loving freaks that have the money and the knowledge to know their toys better than the average joe. It isn't like I was feed the opinion and info from Ma Kettle and Papa Joe, these are people that are far above the knowledge of your average consumer.

"Two of these peeps even make the outrageous claim that their Blu has a better picture quality." --Tim Raynor

Of course, you have to realize that Tim works at the National Institute for the Blind.

Yeah, you knew I was going to use that line no matter what format the peeps favored.

John

by the time you buy into a format.. this will all be irrelevant. otherwise i would ask in the future, but who cares.

Im happy, and so are you.

I hear that in Japan they have invented a new format call Super HD which is 16x better the blu or HD, soooo really all this stuff is past tense... LOL

7680x4320-pixel resolution

[Post edited by motogp34 on Jan 30, 2008]

kucoloco said,

Quote:
u being sarcastic?

No, I was serious.

Quote:
I hear that in Japan they have invented a new format call Super HD which is 16x better the blu or HD, soooo really all this stuff is past tense... LOL

7680x4320-pixel resolution

I guess i need a newer TV

I will likely buy a combo player next year if I can find a cheap one. It is IMO not worth to buy a PS3. The X360 is so much better than it, it would be waste for me.

It is a shame that Blu will probably win, but I am not switching over until next year. I only bought HD DVD in the first place because of it's cheapness and it's xbox 360 compatibility.

Quote:
Well, speaking from the point of view of someone who owns BOTH formats I can tell you this.

1) HD DVD format has cheaper players
2) HD DVD format is finalized
3) I have had almost no problems with my HD discs since I first bought my A1.
4) HD DVD has a nicer user interface on the disc menus
5) Blu Ray is on their bazillionth profile...still not finalized
6) I have had more problems with Blu Ray discs than HD DVD (although this could be due to crappy Samsung player Up-5000)

Why do blu-ray fanboys keep themselves in denial? Their format IS NOT YET superior to HD DVD, and it will take a while...we should bet on which 'profile' blu-ray will be fully functional...I say 3.0...

mvckalel... apart from the current spotty "glitches" with a few Samsung players (and some of the newer BD releases / awaiting Feb firmware update), ALL Blu-ray players can play BD movie content.

Some 1st/2nd generation players may not be able to access or use all of the interactive/web-enabled special features (now being added to select titles) without a possible firmware update, but Blu-ray movies/concerts/TV shows can be viewed using any Blu-ray player (for that region), including the original Samsung unit released in the summer of 2006.

-LH (the Loverboy)
~ HI-DEF DUAL FORMAT SUPPORTER ~

[Post edited by Love Hendrix! on Jan 30, 2008]

Quote:
Yeah, you knew I was going to use that line no matter what format the peeps favored.

John,

I just hate that we all have to use the word "peeps"! The whole hip-hop culture is destroying the English language as we know it. What the heck is wrong with saying "people"? I mean, is it just so hard having to type just one more letter? However, I feel if I don't say "peeps" that all the hip-hop "people" out there are pointing their finger at me and laughing saying "look at the old timer, he still uses the word people!"

Oh, well, just a grammar rant.

Tim

Good thing that was the only thing you could defend, AGAIN...

Quote:
No offense, but again your post is the same old song and dance I've seen in thread after thread (day after day for that matter) from any given HD fanboy since day one! Strange how the peeps I work with that own both formats have never complained about any issues that apparently seem to plague Blu-ray.

Tim you can think what you like, I'm just stating my experience as someone who actually OWNS both formats. As for Blu Ray, it is a FACT that the players are not yet standardized (try and buy profile 2.0 player TODAY). Personally I could not give a rat's ass about online interactivity, but some people consider that an important part of the hi def game.

Also, MY experience is that I have had fewer problems with HD DVD discs not playing (never happened to me on the A1) compared to Blu Ray disc issues.

As for picture quality, anyone that says that one format looks better than the other is full of crap.

Quote:
Blu-ray movies/concerts/TV shows can be viewed using any Blu-ray player

Ok now I'm confused. In another thread people stated that not even the bluray movie itself worked, not just the interactive features. Which one is it?

No confusion Falcon... read what I said again about some current glitches...

"apart from the current spotty "glitches" with a few Samsung players (and some of the newer BD releases / awaiting Feb firmware update), ALL Blu-ray players can play BD movie content."

So, after the firmware updates to clear up the glitches (like Toshiba did last year when Children of Men and a few others wouldn't play either), well, then any Blu-ray movie can be viewed on any Blu-ray player - just not all of the web-enabled/interactive features (depends on the player's capability).

-LH (The Loverboy)

Quote:
"Two of these peeps even make the outrageous claim that their Blu has a better picture quality." --Tim Raynor

Of course, you have to realize that Tim works at the National Institute for the Blind.

Yeah, you knew I was going to use that line no matter what format the peeps favored.

John

Thanks J.

Tim I love you, and your blind co workers.

Quote:
As for picture quality, anyone that says that one format looks better than the other is full of crap.

Again, I think this really boils down to a matter of opinion. I'm certainly not going to tell my co-workers they are full of crap. I might disagree with them but I'm not going belittle them by telling them they're full of crap, especially when it's all a matter of opinion in the first place.

Actually Tim it isn't opinion...it's fact. I guarantee that if you placed two identical screens in front of those guys, showing identical movies using the same codecs.....they would not be able to choose which was Blu Ray and which was HD DVD.

Love Hendrix wrote:

Quote:
So, after the firmware updates to clear up the glitches (like Toshiba did last year when Children of Men and a few others wouldn't play either), well, then any Blu-ray movie can be viewed on any Blu-ray player - just not all of the web-enabled/interactive features (depends on the player's capability).

Ah ok, now it makes sense. Thanks Love.

Show the same movie to the same pool of viewers, one in 1080p & the other on 1080i resolution.... GUARANTEED you will get very mixed results in preference.

The 1080p number does not determine choice... it's independent viewing for each individual.

I totally agree xplaytendo...but you make it sound like the 1080i is an HD DVD issue. As you know only Toshiba's cheaper player is 1080i, the rest are all 1080p. However, as it has been discussed before...if you have a decent TV you will never see a difference between 1080i/1080p.

http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/features/2725/1080i-vs-1080p.html

Still sounds like a matter of opinion to me.

Well Tim, if it is 'a matter of opinion' than you just reinforce my first statement, there is no discernable difference in image quality between Blu Ray and HD DVD given the same movie, using the same codec on the same display. If there WAS a difference, it wouldn't be a matter of opinion, we would all see it.

Are these friends of yours the same ones who buy $700 speaker cables

[Post edited by Bosshog7 on Jan 30, 2008]

Quote:
Well Tim, if it is 'a matter of opinion' than you just reinforce my first statement, there is no discernable difference in image quality between Blu Ray and HD DVD given the same movie, using the same codec on the same display.

Hey Boss, whatever floats your boat is fine by me.

I have yet to have a single problem with my Blu-ray player, and I have yet to see a single difference between HD and Blu-ray. I use to have the the 360 add on, and both formats looked the same. If there was a difference, the reviews would say so. And no, the reviews from this website do not count seeing as how they've been hd-dvd fanboys from the start. Nothing wrong with that though.

As an owner of the Panasonic DMP BD30 and Toshiba A35 players with Yamaha RX-V3800 receiver and Mitsubishi 73 inch DLP TV with a library of 541 titles in both Blu-ray and HD-DVD the following observations are "my opinion" supported by real experience.
By the way though I have a larger number of HD-DVD discs, Amazon's recent sales have made an increase in the Blu-ray titles, and Warner's abandoning of HD-DVD caused me to change a few titles because of the reversal of title dates (they used to get the Blu-ray out several weeks to months after the HD-DVD version). [Blu-ray 233 titles HD-DVD 307 titles]
My first players I bought in May 2006 and have updated players, so have experience with all except the Playstation since I am not a gamer.
1. I have had to return for replacement 9 Blu-ray titles the totally did not play I had to return one HD-DVD title that did not play all the way through. (I have never had a combo HD-DVD disc not play though I have never liked that form just as I disliked the early DVDs with one side widescreen and the other side 'formatted for your TV' - incidently I have had widescreen TVs through most of that time!
2. Since I collect classical music, operas and ballets, I can play those HD-DVDs on my player though they are only available or produced outside the USA. The latest version of Vivaldi's Four Seasons has a sound track in DTS 96/48 sound just like the DVD-Audio discs.
3. When will the blu camp sinally get a stable prodile for the format? When I attempted to upgrade my Panasonic, the disc would not work with my player though the discs I have made from downloads the Toshiba have worked flawlessly. Calling Panasonic they had me go through hoops to get a disc from them for the update to 1.3 including sending them my store receipt even though like all other companies I registered when I first bought the player.
4. Now that I have good players for both formats, the picture and sound is excellent with either format,
5. The menus for Blu-ray seem to be set up for gamers. A larger number of them are now coming with menus that one has to look for the correct "play" button. On HD-DVD the menus are clear and easy to navigate.
6. When with they change from that verbose BD Java that takes no less thenseventy seconds to load? A person that a friend of mine wanted to show Blu-ray for with my system played "Ratatouille" and her friend was dismayed by the black screen for the loading the things two times during the playing of the disc. Will the ordinary person want this? He certainly did not like it and said he will wait to get anything.
As I said at the beginning, these are PERSONAL observations with the equipment I have.
But at least I actually have the equipment, contrary to some who post comments.