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Blu-ray VS. HD DVD

Blu-ray or HD DVD?

  • Blu-ray

    Votes: 37 64.9%

  • HD DVD

    Votes: 20 35.1%
  • Total voters
    57
Stridder44

Stridder44

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Mar 24, 2003
3,973
198
California
So who do you think will win the format war? I know alot of people are opinionated on this (or could give a rip less/want both to fail) so Im interested to hear your opinion. I think Blu-ray is the real winner, what with having larger storage capacity, and also every PS3 sold will contribute to total Blu-ray owners.

I know Apple is backing Blu-ray and this is a Mac forum so Im sure Blu-ray will win the poll, but anyone who feels HD DVD is the real winner I'd like to hear your argument/point of view.
 
Blu-ray will win, but neither format will be adopted as quickly as DVDs were. DVD was long overdue and the market was hungry for the upgrade from the cassette format.

Neither of the next-gen formats packs the quantum leaps in form factor, interface and associated conveniences (not having to rewind, chapter skip, language selection, etc.) that we saw when DVD came along.

So we're left with 1080p being the only added benefit over DVD for the average consumer. That's not going to suck in much more than the geeks and early adopters. I'll have a Blu-ray player this year.
 
I have a feeling BD will win, but i know HD-DVD is the better format. I just think it will win because sony has more money and is paying Best Buy to say crap.
 
I feel Blu-Ray will win.

the ability to play movies in 1080p is awesome and it also has tons of room room for storage. I just dont see how HD Dvd can compete with that.
 
Both. I just saw news today that NEC will produce some hardware to handle both and someone else has the laser equipment to do the rest. It sounds like a lot in one box but I suppose that it doesn't take so much space.

If I correctly remember my videodisc wars of the early 1980s, Pioneer's Laserdisc and JVC/RCA's disc carried on for a few years. If memory serves, the JVC/RCA disc was vinyl with magnetic dust similar to a recording tape and was very easily disturbed.

Since both HD DVD and Blu-Ray are optical and we've overcome the combination of formats such as with DVD±R recently, I think we'll see combination players before the market really gets moving media.
 
taco2004 said:
I feel Blu-Ray will win.

the ability to play movies in 1080p is awesome and it also has tons of room room for storage. I just dont see how HD Dvd can compete with that.
Click to expand...


HD DVD source matierial is 1080p also, if you play it back on a 1080p capable TV, it will properly de interlace the 1080i signal to 1080p:)
 
I think they'll both flounder until something truly better comes along.
So far it looks something like this:

HD-DVD Pros:
1. Players cost about half as much as Blu-Ray
2. Launches so far haven't been delayed like Blu-Ray
3. Of the titles released so far the HD-DVD versions look better (IIRC, current HD-DVD release are using VC1 for compression while Blu-Ray is still using MPEG-2).

Blu-Ray Pros:
1. High storage capacity (good for computer usage, really doesn't matter for anything else).
2. PS3 (IMO, this isn't going to be the huge boon for Sony that some people think it will be).

HiDef in general:
1. Warner Home Video's projected HiDef sales are down by 50% (D'oh)
2. The PS3 has caused parts shortages so HiDef players are going to be in short supply until next year (who wants their products out in time for Xmas anyway?)
3. Hybrid players may never happen because of Blu-ray's license agreement (Thanks Sony).


Lethal
 
While I don't know which format will win, I prefer HD DVD. We can back up our movies thanks to MMC, plus I can play HD DVD-R right now using Apple's DVD player app (and create them with DVDSP).
 
Saying there are more HD DVD players/movies out there won't matter much once people start buying the PS3, and of course more BD movies, and soon after lower prices. Of course HD DVD is cheaper and there's more circulating around, it's been out longer.

Also how is HD DVD a "better" format? Give some evidence other than "it looks better".
 
Stridder44 said:
Saying there are more HD DVD players/movies out there won't matter much once people start buying the PS3, and of course more BD movies, and soon after lower prices. Of course HD DVD is cheaper and there's more circulating around, it's been out longer.

Also how is HD DVD a "better" format? Give some evidence other than "it looks better".
Click to expand...
I'm not sure what you are asking. Are you asking what advantages HD-DVD has over Blu-Ray (besides the ones already mentioned)? Or are you asking for links to reports that the current Blu-Ray titles don't look as good as the current HD-DVD titles?


Lethal
 
i hope for both failing since i want a universal standard: i'm not going to buy either

sure blu-ray is suppoted by playstation 3 but on the other side hd dvd is backed by microsoft ... and we all know what that means


that aside the only advantage of the new format is the higher resolution which isn't gonna help either
by the time HD-tvs penetration around here is big enough the next format will be already coming along with higher capacity (austrian tv stations said that they ain't gonna switch to HD untill 2012-2015 .. so why upgrade the tv ?)
 
honestly, im there for blu-ray. going to get the PS3.

the movie selection is starting to get better. the bigger movies with extras need the bluray 50 disc, which is a dual layered disc. so now that these discs are coming and BR camp is switching over to VC1 standard over mpeg 2, the quality is getting defined better than the first bunch of discs out.

although the hd dvd seem to have a nice selection of movies. bluray is rapidly coming up with other quality movies. and studios which released hd dvd versions first, are now releasing bluray versions of those same movies. probably due to the late standards issues from bluray.

so im there for blu-ray.
 
The way I see it HD-DVD has already won. Bad reports from initial BluRay setups and the name+price don't sit well with customers.

EXAMPLE! a few days old now;

My dad was talking about getting a HDTV for the living room (but we decided against it for now with the tremendous lack of HD content), he said "how will DVD's look on it?", which I explained that they look fine but there are some disc players coming out that work with HDTV's, to which he said "Like a high definition DVD player?"

Bingo. I asked him if he knew what BluRay was "..." was the expression.

I don't think both drives are out in the UK yet but if the $500US for a HD-DVD and $1000US for a BluRay player translates to that over here, then bye bye BluRay. The general populous is not going to go for the more expensive model. Reason? One of them being the lack of 1080p TV sales. They exist and are touted as "True HD", but they cost double what a 720p/1080i TV cost. Why aren't people flocking to buy 1080p displays? Just as people aren't flocking to buy HDTV's in general - 480i LCDs are huge and cheap now and price dictates the market so bloody much.

Good luck to BluRay though. It's a geeks dream, just a pity the overwhelming majority of the population don't care about it.
 
BluRay will stuff HD-DVD unless Microsoft starts shipping XBox 360s with it as standard. I believe the Adult Entertainment industry has also fallen into the BluRay camp.
 
dynamicv said:
BluRay will stuff HD-DVD unless Microsoft starts shipping XBox 360s with it as standard. I believe the Adult Entertainment industry has also fallen into the BluRay camp.
Click to expand...

The adult industry changed camps not so long ago, basically its cheaper to produce and they can sell for cheaper.

BR is doomed, some may say its better quality wise but then again so was Beta...
 
Ed H said:
The adult industry changed camps not so long ago, basically its cheaper to produce and they can sell for cheaper.

BR is doomed, some may say its better quality wise but then again so was Beta...
Click to expand...

Just because it happened once doesn't mean it will happen again.

Also I'd say that having the Pr0n industry in the BD camp will make a pretty good impact in the long run.
 
I would say Blu-ray, but I think I'll make a decision when one standard wins.
I am pretty happy with DVD and downloadable content for the time being. :D
 
Stridder44 said:
Just because it happened once doesn't mean it will happen again.
Click to expand...

Sony has proven that wrong numerous times with their overly proprietary formats. Sony has a known track record for putting things out that are technologically more advanced but shunned by consumers usually for the price point being too high. BR will go the way of Beta, MD, and other Sony "innovations"

The Pr0n industy recently changed over to the HD-DVD camp.

BR discs are outlandishly overpriced, HD-DVD's are more but still similar in pricing to their DVD cousins. HD-DVD players are around the $500 range, BR players because of Sonys licensing and "we are Sony" attitude are around the $1000 mark. The average consumer won't use a PS3, doesnt care about the difference between the two and will ultimatley purchase the one that fits their budget better.

Ed
 
I do not know much about either but i think that BluRay will just because it has got more publicity than HD DVD so more people will have heard of it.
 
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