HD-DVD drives less than $200

i wouldnt. recent sales suggest that Hd-dvd is going to go extinct soon. Additionally, recently there have been more reports of a 360-blue-ray drive. so i would really just wait and see what happens before commiting.callen3

way to cheap to pay $30 or $40 for a movie

Sheesh... your sig is VERY distracting!!! :D

IMO neither format is winning right now, if you look at their combined overall sales against DVD neither format is taking off like wildfire.  To say Blu Ray is winning is a bit goofy because its not by much by any means, you will see HD-DVD players for under 200$ by christmas, then the game will be on.

Just because a format is technically better doesnt mean it will win especially when its driven by Sony *cough* beta max.

Hey cellien,

You may be right but i have just been looking at the trend of blueray sales. Prior to the ps3 release Hd-dvd was domniating. However, since the release of the ps3, every month the sales of blueray have increasing and in april the sales surpassed hd-dvd for the first time. So i predict that this trend will increase and eventually blueray will win. ps3 is going to have such a major influence on the outcome of this "war" since its an afforable and popular opition for blueray. But i don't think Hd-dvd has that same option. Stand alone players are expensive and i think most xbox owners are hesitant or don't care about hd-dvd. I really don't give a crap what platform wins this is just my speculation. I do have a ps3 but i don't have a hd-dvd drive so maybe iam subcosciencously bias.

IMO neither format is winning right now, if you look at their combined overall sales against DVD neither format is taking off like wildfire. To say Blu Ray is winning is a bit goofy because its not by much by any means, you will see HD-DVD players for under 200$ by christmas, then the game will be on.

Just because a format is technically better doesnt mean it will win especially when its driven by Sony *cough* beta max.

tkemory

Hey cellien,

You may be right but i have just been looking at the trend of blueray sales. Prior to the ps3 release Hd-dvd was domniating. However, since the release of the ps3, every month the sales of blueray have increasing and in april the sales surpassed hd-dvd for the first time. So i predict that this trend will increase and eventually blueray will win. ps3 is going to have such a major influence on the outcome of this "war" since its an afforable and popular opition for blueray. But i don't think Hd-dvd has that same option. Stand alone players are expensive and i think most xbox owners are hesitant or don't care about hd-dvd. I really don't give a crap what platform wins this is just my speculation. I do have a ps3 but i don't have a hd-dvd drive so maybe iam subcosciencously bias.

callen3

yea but a smart person would go out and buy a ps3 and not a stand alone blueray player. Ps3 sales are not included in those figurescallen3

I didnt even realize that they are $300; thats pretty cheap. I think the first format to release a stand along player at $150 or less is going to win. I think people are too content with dvds to switch at such a high price.callen3

when do you predict that there will be a switch to an HD format? 1 year? 5?

when do you predict that there will be a switch to an HD format? 1 year? 5?

callen3

The Mtrix Trilogy is coming out next week first on HD DVD. Blu-Ray can not get their In movie experience crap together. So that means everyone who bought a stand alone Blu-Ray player will have to replace their unit. Also I am sensing that Warner Bros. is getting really sick and tired of Blu-Ray not conforming to the IME and have shown it by going ahead and releasing movies on HD DVD before Blu-Ray. I think 300 will be out on HD before BR.

Also OP said he would never pay $200 for this add on. That is a steal. The difference over DVD is so huge. Sure people who have never seen an HD DVD before will say it is no big deal. I have not gone back to DVD. I am strictly purchasing HD now.

The Mtrix Trilogy is coming out next week first on HD DVD. Blu-Ray can not get their In movie experience crap together. So that means everyone who bought a stand alone Blu-Ray player will have to replace their unit. Also I am sensing that Warner Bros. is getting really sick and tired of Blu-Ray not conforming to the IME and have shown it by going ahead and releasing movies on HD DVD before Blu-Ray. I think 300 will be out on HD before BR.

 

Also OP said he would never pay $200 for this add on. That is a steal. The difference over DVD is so huge. Sure people who have never seen an HD DVD before will say it is no big deal. I have not gone back to DVD. I am strictly purchasing HD now.

Haphilli

Exactly correct about Warner Bros... Blu Ray doesn't have concrete specifications yet. The reason why Matrix Trilogy is HD-DVD only is because WB didn't know how to implement the features and have it be future-proof. There's no guarantee of 100% compatibility for future Blu Ray players because of this. It's absolutely ludicrous. HD-DVD had their standards set from the get-go and didn't release the product before it was completed like was done with the Blu Ray.

But ultimately, none of this matters. What matters isn't what early adopters latched onto this format. Whatever format your grandmother buys is the format that'll win. The people who walk into Best Buy and can't use "download" in a sentence correctly, or refer to the entire PC unit as a "hard drive". The people who reference internet sites by saying "w-w-dot", aparrently figuring that one of the "w"s wasn't important. THESE are the people that will decide who wins. And, as you may tell, they're not bright people. They'll go with what's safe and what's cheap. "HD-DVD" contains two acronyms that the buying public understands (or, in HD's case, is starting to understand). It also costs quite a bit less than Blu Ray, which makes a big difference as well. With HDTVs dropping in price and people wanting to get the most out of their sets, HD optical formats are going to catch on eventually. So long as players are available that are less than the cost of a PS3 -- this week (and this is kinda the norm these days) Best Buy is offering a decent Toshiba 1080p HDMI HD-DVD player at $500 (i.e. $100 less than PS3) with 4 free HD-DVD movies -- then HD-DVD is going to look preferable to grandma. And let's face it... grandma wants something simple anyhow, so she isn't going to be buying a PS3. She wants a standalone player and that drastically increases the savings she'll take from an HD-DVD player.

Logic indicates that HD-DVD is the safer bet... but, much like the world itself, the market doesn't function on logic. It functions on absurdity.

To answer the TCs question, I've seen Xbox's HD-DVD attachments going for $100 on eBay. I considered picking one up, but I think I might want a standalone unit instead. Particularly with HDMI and all the right features... especially a good DVD upconverter. 

[QUOTE="Haphilli"]

The Mtrix Trilogy is coming out next week first on HD DVD. Blu-Ray can not get their In movie experience crap together. So that means everyone who bought a stand alone Blu-Ray player will have to replace their unit. Also I am sensing that Warner Bros. is getting really sick and tired of Blu-Ray not conforming to the IME and have shown it by going ahead and releasing movies on HD DVD before Blu-Ray. I think 300 will be out on HD before BR.

Also OP said he would never pay $200 for this add on. That is a steal. The difference over DVD is so huge. Sure people who have never seen an HD DVD before will say it is no big deal. I have not gone back to DVD. I am strictly purchasing HD now.

Generic_Dude

Exactly correct about Warner Bros... Blu Ray doesn't have concrete specifications yet. The reason why Matrix Trilogy is HD-DVD only is because WB didn't know how to implement the features and have it be future-proof. There's no guarantee of 100% compatibility for future Blu Ray players because of this. It's absolutely ludicrous. HD-DVD had their standards set from the get-go and didn't release the product before it was completed like was done with the Blu Ray.

But ultimately, none of this matters. What matters isn't what early adopters latched onto this format. Whatever format your grandmother buys is the format that'll win. The people who walk into Best Buy and can't use "download" in a sentence correctly, or refer to the entire PC unit as a "hard drive". The people who reference internet sites by saying "w-w-dot", aparrently figuring that one of the "w"s wasn't important. THESE are the people that will decide who wins. And, as you may tell, they're not bright people. They'll go with what's safe and what's cheap. "HD-DVD" contains two acronyms that the buying public understands (or, in HD's case, is starting to understand). It also costs quite a bit less than Blu Ray, which makes a big difference as well. With HDTVs dropping in price and people wanting to get the most out of their sets, HD optical formats are going to catch on eventually. So long as players are available that are less than the cost of a PS3 -- this week (and this is kinda the norm these days) Best Buy is offering a decent Toshiba 1080p HDMI HD-DVD player at $500 (i.e. $100 less than PS3) with 4 free HD-DVD movies -- then HD-DVD is going to look preferable to grandma. And let's face it... grandma wants something simple anyhow, so she isn't going to be buying a PS3. She wants a standalone player and that drastically increases the savings she'll take from an HD-DVD player.

Logic indicates that HD-DVD is the safer bet... but, much like the world itself, the market doesn't function on logic. It functions on absurdity.

To answer the TCs question, I've seen Xbox's HD-DVD attachments going for $100 on eBay. I considered picking one up, but I think I might want a standalone unit instead. Particularly with HDMI and all the right features... especially a good DVD upconverter.

[QUOTE="Cellien"] Sheesh... your sig is VERY distracting!!! :D msjr78

lol

Not to start a format war (seeing I don't care who wins just do it quick so I can buy the "top dog") but if 300 (the movie) comes out to Blu-Ray (thats if they don't go dual format) then that will be a huge blow to the HD-DVD market.DeltoidRecon

Not to start a format war (seeing I don't care who wins just do it quick so I can buy the "top dog") but if 300 (the movie) comes out to Blu-Ray (thats if they don't go dual format) then that will be a huge blow to the HD-DVD market.DeltoidRecon

Why would Warner Bros. do that, 300 will be released in both formats. VC1 FTW!

300 is due on BD in July (no word if its on BD or BD-J tho), there is no current release date for 300 on HDDVD.teebeenz

Yeah it is coming out same day: http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Announcements/Warner/300_to_Conquer_Blu-ray,_HD_DVD_This_July/631

What I was trying to say in my earlier post is that the current market Blu-Ray stand alones do not have the hardware capable to utilize BD-J. So those people that paid $1,000 for a Blu-Ray player are screwed royally if they wanted to get the IME crap.  

Studios are going to keep pumping out movies in both formats. msjr78

Gotta say, when you're buying a new format this early on you gotta expect that things will change, wont be supported etc.teebeenz

The point is that -- for better or worse -- HD-DVDs specifications are set in stone. They just simply planned it all out better. The only technical advantage BD-ROM has is its storage capabilities, which aren't as relevant as many that belong to the Church Of BluRay may want you to believe.

Like another poster here, I don't care which wins really but would prefer whoever does does so swiftly. All the same, I just don't see what BluRay has going for it apart from the sales bump that PS3 gave them.