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January 19, 2008
Filed Under (Technology) by Morten Rand-Hendriksen
Let me explain: There are two mutually exclusive HD disc formats available on the market today. One is called HD-DVD, the other one Blu-Ray. They use different discs, different lasers and different compressions. Two entirely different animals. This means that an HD-DVD disc (in the red boxes in the stores) will only play in an HD-DVD player while a Blu-Ray disc (in the blue boxes at the stores) will only play in a Blu-Ray player. At present, there are two dual-format players available, the BD-UP5500 from Samsung and the LG BH200 Super Blu from LG, that retail for around $800. Unless you have either one of these, you are stuck with just one format. The names are confusing. Many people think that only HD-DVD gives HD quality video, but in fact, there is no discernible difference in the image or audio quality between the two. The major difference is how much data the discs contain (Blu-Ray has over twice as much storage space as HD-DVD) and what companies support them. When the two formats were launched a couple of years ago, the distribution companies were split pretty much evenly between the two formats. Over the last few months however, the majority of them have switched to Blu-Ray, leaving HD-DVD with few new releases on the horizon. What will probably go down in the history books as the final blow was when Warner Bros. just two days before the major Consumer Electronics Summit (CES) in Las Vegas announced they were going exclusively with Blue-Ray. The announcement was quickly followed by other defections as the HD-DVD supporters started leaving what suddenly became a badly listing ship. And with that, it seems that the format war which has been raging for 2 years is quickly coming to a final bloody end. In a final desperate gesture, the backers of the HD-DVD format are now dumping the prices on their players in the hopes that people will buy them in droves and then demand that the distributors start publishing movies in the format again. Unfortunately, this strategy is doomed to failure and will just result in a lot of angry customers. So take my advice: Don’t buy an HD-DVD player. If you are going to buy something right now, get either a Blu-Ray player or a dual format player. Although the HD-DVD players are cheap, they are going to go the way of LaserDisc within the next 6-8 months and you’ll be stuck with another machine you can’t use. 4 Responses to “Tech Sec: Don’t Buy an HD-DVD Player!”Leave a Reply |
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If you are one of the many people who got a new fancy flat-screen TV for Christmas, or you are planning on getting one for Super Bowl, you are undoubtedly going to be inundated with suggestions to buy a “next gen DVD player” that will give you full HD quality. The players in question come in two formats: 
January 20th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
[...] mrkiller wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptThe players in question come in two formats: HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. You’ll notice that the HD-DVD players are much cheaper and that might be the deciding factor. It shouldn’t be, and here’s why: In 6 months time, HD-DVD will probably be … [...]
January 21st, 2008 at 1:00 am
What Crappy Advise! You offer no real fact about your 6 month prediction for HD DVD, you offer nothing to the reader about the benefits and draw backs of each format and players! Basically all you offer is a biased opinion! What should matter here is value. Not which format will survive until the next great thing comes along! If a person can get into HD media at a price that does not break their budget, plus gets some REALLY cool capabilities, then I see no reason to NOT recommend HD DVD to them. If HD DVD does indeed fall to Blu-Ray, so what!?! These people would not have invested much money to begin with, would have had exposure to HD media and the available content, would have great up-converting DVD play back capability for as long as the players work! WIN! WIN! WIN! So now when they and Blu-Ray players are actually ready, they could move to them at their leisure and already know what to expect from HD Media!
January 21st, 2008 at 1:19 am
Sorry Omega Man, I most wholeheartedly disagree: To buy an HD-DVD player now would be like buying a MiniDisc player in the time of the iPod and MP3. Sure some companies actually sell music on MD but you’ll be hard pressed to find anything you actually want in that format.
The reality is that regardless of what format is better all that really matters in the end is what format is going to have the titles you want to watch. And right now it’s pretty clear that you’re not going to find any of your favourite movies on HD-DVD one year from now. Which means that anyone who invests in an HD-DVD player now will be stuck with the equivalent of a BetaMax tape deck when everyone else has VHS.
This article is written to inform people who know little or nothing about the topic that this is not the time to get an HD-DVD player simply because it’s a bad investment. It’s not biased, it’s common sense. Actually, the smartest thing anyone can do right now is just sit back and wait to see what happens. But if you insist on buying a player right now, go with Blu-Ray.
February 19th, 2008 at 1:05 am
[...] reported it a month ago and now it’s pretty much official: Blu-Ray is the winner of the High Definition format war. [...]