Just got HD-DVD for the 360.

[VIAN]

Idk what people are talking about that it aint worth it for consumers to purchase this. There is a pronounced difference between DVD and HD-DVD.

HD-DVD is so much cleaner and detail galore. Everything looks more 3d - it's just amazing. Even on a POS HDTV @ 720p. Wonder what it would look like at 1080p on a good HDTV.

Accessing menus in HD-DVD is also very cool and much more intuitive.

 

[Kappo]

Its not worth paying 800 for. The addon for the 360 is affordable and YES it makes a big difference I like the BluRay stuff, but both look amazing even @ 720P.

 

[Schadenfroh]

I am waiting for when my Sony Trinitron breaks to buy a Sony Bravia, by the time that happens, bluray will have won the format wars and I will get a cheap(er) bluray player in the form of the PS3.

 

[secretanchitman]

im looking to get the 360 HD-DVD addon so i can potentially use it on the PC. maybe even get a blu-ray player/writer once those prices start coming down. both damn formats have movies that i love.

 

[TallBill]

I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

 

[EarthwormJim]

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: EarthwormJim

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

Yep. We don't need competition. We need a single player that can play both formats...

 

[VIAN]

I've been so excited about HD-DVD, that I had to buy me some more movies to see them this way. Hi-def video is truly amazing. So far I've got four movies:

King Kong
The Polar Express
Enter the Dragon
The Thing

King Kong looks the best. The tree branch detail is amazing. Especially in the jungle section - you can make out practically every leaf. And of course, the hair on King Kong looks super realistic.

The Polar Express doesn't really look too impressive. Probably because the CG wasn't too detailed anyway.

Initially, I didn't think Enter the Dragon looked improved at all, since it doesn't have the crispness of King Kong (being that it's an older movie). But after checking with the DVD version, WOW! It almost seems like the difference between an overused VHS and DVD. It almost looks like the DVD was never remastered. The film looks cleaned up. All the graininess from the DVD version is gone. You can make out pimples on Bruce Lee's face at times and the film looks more 3d. This one was a good buy.

I haven't watched The Thing yet. But if Enter the Dragon and King Kong are any indication, The Thing will be scarier to watch.

 

[Feneant2]

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That is false currently because 80% of HD movies are on one format or the other so there isn't any competition. The majority of movies are overpriced and you have to buy 2 players to be able to play everything.

Personnally, I am waiting for a dual format player, I don't care who wins the format war as long as the price goes down from what it is now! I am waiting to get Fearless in HD, but it's around 44$ with taxes here which is friggin ridiculous!

 

[Suture]

Originally posted by: Kappo
Its not worth paying 800 for. The addon for the 360 is affordable and YES it makes a big difference I like the BluRay stuff, but both look amazing even @ 720P.

$800?

I've been trying to pick up the HD DVD drive, but the two times I went to my local Circuit City, even though the website said they were in-stock, the store did not have them. I haven't been in a huge rush so I haven't bothered going elsewhere. I'll eventually pick one up, but I really hope they made an HDMI cable eventually since my TV doesn't have VGA. Until then I'm using my Toshiba upconverting DVD player.

 

[AgentJean]

Originally posted by: EarthwormJim

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

Yup just like the VHS vs Beta Max.

I hope Blue-Ray goes the way of Beta max.

DOWN WITH SONY!

 

[HDLover]

I'm thinking about getting one but I heard there are some things that the addon can't do, mostly regarding audio. Anyone know more?

 

[EarthwormJim]

Originally posted by: HDLover
I'm thinking about getting one but I heard there are some things that the addon can't do, mostly regarding audio. Anyone know more?

Maybe it is limited on audio outputs? As long as it has HDMI you should be set.

 

[getbush]

The only reason I give an edge to blu-ray is for higher capacity backups for my photos.

 

[Suture]

The throughput for audio is not that high. However everyone is saying Microsoft will address it with another patch.

 

[Kappo]

Originally posted by: AgentJean

Originally posted by: EarthwormJim

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

Yup just like the VHS vs Beta Max.

I hope Blue-Ray goes the way of Beta max.

DOWN WITH SONY!

You should probably start trying to look at the technology instead of hating a company.

I dont care who wins the format (personally I think it will be HD simply because HD-DVD is familiar terminology for consumers and the logo is very similar to the DVD logo), but holding more = better.

 

[blurredvision]

I picked up my HD-DVD 360 add-on the weekend following it's release, and I'm extremely happy with my purchase. I'm using it with a 3 year-old RCA 52" rear projection 1080i-only set, so it's nothing top of the line, but still looks fantastic. They did good by including King Kong with it, as it's great reference material to see what this thing can do. I've picked up no less than 4 other movies, with Mission Impossible 3 being the most absolutely gorgeous, mind-blowing picture I've ever seen. The color and detail is fantastic, and I can only imagine how much better it'd look on a better TV.

I wasn't at all concerned with the inability to output the newest sound standards from Dolby and DTS with this add-on (TrueHD and the like), as I just upgraded my receiver over the summer (doesn't support those new standards), and by the time I need to upgrade again, the players will be MUCH cheaper.

 

[AgentJean]

Originally posted by: Kappo

You should probably start trying to look at the technology instead of hating a company.

I dont care who wins the format (personally I think it will be HD simply because HD-DVD is familiar terminology for consumers and the logo is very similar to the DVD logo), but holding more = better.

Then explain why BetaMax lost? Beta has a better picture quality than VHS but VHS won?

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: AgentJean

Originally posted by: Kappo

You should probably start trying to look at the technology instead of hating a company.

I dont care who wins the format (personally I think it will be HD simply because HD-DVD is familiar terminology for consumers and the logo is very similar to the DVD logo), but holding more = better.

Then explain why BetaMax lost? Beta has a better picture quality than VHS but VHS won?

VHS had a good deal longer play time IIRC (this was before my time).

 

[Kromis]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh

Originally posted by: AgentJean

Originally posted by: Kappo

You should probably start trying to look at the technology instead of hating a company.

I dont care who wins the format (personally I think it will be HD simply because HD-DVD is familiar terminology for consumers and the logo is very similar to the DVD logo), but holding more = better.

Then explain why BetaMax lost? Beta has a better picture quality than VHS but VHS won?

VHS had a good deal longer play time IIRC (this was before my time).

Its all about the money!

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: VIAN
Idk what people are talking about that it aint worth it for consumers to purchase this. There is a pronounced difference between DVD and HD-DVD.

HD-DVD is so much cleaner and detail galore. Everything looks more 3d - it's just amazing. Even on a POS HDTV @ 720p. Wonder what it would look like at 1080p on a good HDTV.

Accessing menus in HD-DVD is also very cool and much more intuitive.

If only you realized what you are saying. Go look up what DVD resolution is and what 720P is. The jump to HD-DVD isn't that great of an improvement over DVD if you are using 720P.

And it's still an issue of cost. Want a 42"+ plasma now ... you are getting a 720P model unless:
1) you are stupid.
2) have more money than brains

HD-DVD and BLue Ray both need to have stand alone players for $100 and 1080P plasmas in the 42" variety need to hit a price of about $1200 befroe it will be worth while.

This is what people are referrring to in response to "what people are talking about that it aint worth it for consumers to purchase this"

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Originally posted by: Queasy

Originally posted by: EarthwormJim

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

Yep. We don't need competition. We need a single player that can play both formats...

Coming soon!

 

[GundamSonicZeroX]

Originally posted by: IHateMyJob2004

Originally posted by: Queasy

Originally posted by: EarthwormJim

Originally posted by: TallBill
I hope both formats survive. More competetion is always better for the consumer.

That's a really bad idea. It would not lead to more competition, it would lead to confusion and people having to buy two drives to play movies.

Yep. We don't need competition. We need a single player that can play both formats...

Coming soon!

DIDn't anandtech have an article about one? I think it was made by Pioneer.

 

[hans030390]

I <3 Blu-Ray...mostly because I have a PS3.

Hopefully it wins, but if not...oh well, the PS3 still benefits from extra game space.

And I got the PS3 for free, so price wasn't an issue.

 

[VIAN]

Originally posted by: Kappo
You should probably start trying to look at the technology instead of hating a company.

I dont care who wins the format (personally I think it will be HD simply because HD-DVD is familiar terminology for consumers and the logo is very similar to the DVD logo), but holding more = better.

I think Blu-Ray is crap. But before you kill let me give you my reasons.

If King Kong, a 3.5 hour movie, and a lot of special features can fit on one HD-DVD disc, then what good is Blu-Ray. That's practically a worst case scenario for movies. Even if there was more content, we're not even talking about the capacity of dual layer HD-DVD which will eventually roll out.

Now for the statement that makes the previous paragraph stronger. A HD-DVD players are half the cost of Blu-Ray players.

So... why Blu-Ray?