Next Generation Dvd Players

[Jadaki 0]

Neither have completely taken off, but battle lines still seem to be getting drawn in the sand by studios.DreamWorks Animation, Paramount choose HD-DVDBlu-ray has had the best selling next gen title so far (Casino Royale), but even it's numbers are fairly pathetic. Considering it's been just over a year since DVD's are now in more homes than VHS is, was it too soon for the "next generation"?

[David_Nicoson 1]

I think the slower adoption rate is mostly due to the need for an HDTV. A standard definition DVD player was a drop-in for almost everybody. The format war doesn't help, of course, but I think it would be a no-brainer to buy one of these systems after plunking down the dough for a nice HDTV.

[Jadaki 0]

That's part of the reason I haven't purchased one yet, that and 30 bucks a piece for a disc is silly.Just found this too...Michael Bay won't do Transformers 2 because of Paramount's decision to go with HD-DVD

[Jadaki 0]

Bay drinks the HD-DVD Kool-Aid

[digitalmonkey 929]

Neither - regular DVD is just fine with me.

[Jennings7 0]

Blue Ray but right now it is just way to expensive.

[conor_mw 0]

....thats how i roll

[checkymcfold 0]

from what i know, blu-ray is the slightly better technology due to a higher cap on bitrate, but i'm sure the produced results are so barely different that it wouldn't really matter to anyone. either way, i'm absolutely set on waiting until one "beats" the other before i buy a player, especially if they cost over 400 bucks right now.

[LongLiveYorke 38]

from what i know, blu-ray is the slightly better technology due to a higher cap on bitrate, but i'm sure the produced results are so barely different that it wouldn't really matter to anyone. either way, i'm absolutely set on waiting until one "beats" the other before i buy a player, especially if they cost over 400 bucks right now.

My best friend is the biggest film buff in the entire world. He really knows everything there is to know about movies. I know, everybody has a friend who's "really into films" and likes Orsen Wells or saw 8 1/2 or something. I'm not talking about that. He owns (literally) thousands of DVD's and is beyond a buff when it comes to anything film.Anyway, he is adamant about blue rays and prays for the death of HD daily. Literally every other conversation is about how he wants HD to die. Yes, blue ray is a slightly better technology, and yes, most people probably won't notice the difference. He really supports blue ray because, right now, it's the leader in the market and he wants the whole format war to end and not to be purposely drawn out by certain companies just to earn an extra buck. It hurts the industry by not having a clear favorite, and people will never devote themselves to HD with both formats going at the same time. So, since blue ray is way ahead, we may as well all do our best to curse HD and end the format war. Otherwise Checky will never go HD, which would be a shame.

[checkymcfold 0]

My best friend is the biggest film buff in the entire world. He really knows everything there is to know about movies. I know, everybody has a friend who's "really into films" and likes Orsen Wells or saw 8 1/2 or something. I'm not talking about that. He owns (literally) thousands of DVD's and is beyond a buff when it comes to anything film.Anyway, he is adamant about blue rays and prays for the death of HD daily. Literally every other conversation is about how he wants HD to die. Yes, blue ray is a slightly better technology, and yes, most people probably won't notice the difference. He really supports blue ray because, right now, it's the leader in the market and he wants the whole format war to end and not to be purposely drawn out by certain companies just to earn an extra buck. It hurts the industry by not having a clear favorite, and people will never devote themselves to HD with both formats going at the same time. So, since blue ray is way ahead, we may as well all do our best to curse HD and end the format war. Otherwise Checky will never go HD, which would be a shame.

my wii is HD, as is my plasma. SHIPPLES, and **** the movie industry.

[dereeekho 0]

wii is not HD, but it can display 16:9. ps3 is blu-ray, and is perhaps the best valued blu-ray player.

[checkymcfold 0]

wii is not HD, but it can display 16:9. ps3 is blu-ray, and is perhaps the best valued blu-ray player.

i've decided my wii is HD. so there. :)i know that using the ps2 as a dvd player made it wear out significantly faster. is the same true of ps3 and blu-ray?

[LongLiveYorke 38]

i know that using the ps2 as a dvd player made it wear out significantly faster. is the same true of ps3 and blu-ray?

I'm not sure, but it would almost be worth it because blue ray is pretty much the bee's knees. If you happen to get a ps3 or another BR player, be sure to pick up Planet Earth on blue ray. It's really too beautiful to describe. They should have sent a poet.

[florent38 0]

Please stop giving me the opportunity to answer some stupid thing to your polls.I can't help myself but take the only one answer that is really dumb.But FYI, I'll go with blue-ray, because blue's my favorite color.See ??

[Jadaki 0]

Anyway, he is adamant about blue rays and prays for the death of HD daily. Literally every other conversation is about how he wants HD to die. Yes, blue ray is a slightly better technology, and yes, most people probably won't notice the difference. He really supports blue ray because, right now, it's the leader in the market and he wants the whole format war to end and not to be purposely drawn out by certain companies just to earn an extra buck. It hurts the industry by not having a clear favorite, and people will never devote themselves to HD with both formats going at the same time. So, since blue ray is way ahead, we may as well all do our best to curse HD and end the format war. Otherwise Checky will never go HD, which would be a shame.

The format war isn't bad for the consumer in that it drives down prices. You think there would be any HD players out there for less than 1500 if there wasn't competition?Also, HD-DVD can do some things with interactivity apparently Blu-Ray can't. I'll have to look around and find the article, but I know for example the Heroes HD-DVD has some stuff on it that could not be done on blu-ray.*Edit*Example found... blu-ray is not capable of doing picture in picture commentary tracks. Blu-ray should have been able to do such things, but the BR-Java environment was late getting finalized and some BR players have either a poor implementation or none at all, causing crashes when BR discs use some functions. So rather than have another movie come out like The Descent and cause all sorts of problems, they're currently stuck using nothing more complicated than standard DVD authoring features.300 HD-DVD features not available on Blu-ray

As if all of the above cross-format goodies were not enough, Warner has served up quite a treat for HD DVD fans with a cutting-edge assortment of high-def exclusives.Easily the most anticipated bonus is the "Bluescreen Picture-in-Picture Version" of the film. A true first for any home video format, Warner has encoded the entire feature in its bluescreen, pre-post-produced version. Like your typical In-Movie Experience track, just activate the feature and a large picture box will appear in the bottom left of the screen, allowing you to watch the before-and-after versions of the film along with audio commentary by director Zack Snyder.The first few minutes of this one in particular are way cool -- it's really a kick to both see and hear, shot-by-shot, how each effect was done. Everything about the film looks so different -- not just the bluescreen elements that were eventually added in later, but also the entire tone, mood and appearance of the live-action footage. I suspect this will be an instant classic at film schools everywhere.Having said that, and as truly trend-setting as this feature is, a certain sameness does start to creep in after a while. Sure, CGI geeks will swoon, but 30 minutes on in or so, you get the basic idea of the process Snyder used in creating his visual wizardry, and some may find it overkill to sit through this one in its entirety. Still, this is certainly the kind of pioneering bonus feature that has propelled Warner to the forefront of studios supporting high-def, so far be it from me to complain. Please keep this stuff coming!The bluscreen feature alone would have earned '300' its place in next-gen history, but Warner has also included some groundbreaking web-enabled extras, too.The most intriguing among the web-enabled extras is a feature called "Pick Your Favorite Scenes." Here, you can assemble and re-organize your favorite bits of '300,' and then store the line-up to your player's internal accessible memory and/or put it online to share with others. Warner will even let you review and rate other fan-made cuts. While I'm not sure how many of "'300's Greatest Hits" I'd want to watch, the technology here is undeniably exciting.There is also a fresh interactive game, "Vengeance and Valor." Think Risk meets Checkers, only using iconography from the movie. Gameplay is pretty basic: you can select a few components (such as the type of infantrymen you want to fight your opponent with, and your plan of attack), but it's not all that involving. Plus, without a worthy online opponent you're kinda out of luck. Still, I suspect Warner is just testing the waters with this one -- depending on the reaction from early adopters, here's betting that future applications will be more sophisticated and complex.Finally, in a nod to unabashed capitalism, '300' is also the first next-gen title ever to provide viewers with one-click access to buy film-specific merchandise. Thanks to the miracle of HD DVD, you can now "take '300' with you wherever you go!" by using the disc's web interface to purchase custom wallpaper and ringtones for your mobile phone. Of course, you could do this on any old PC, too, so aside from the novelty factor this is hardly much of a "feature." Still, I can't wait until my HD DVD player starts to try selling me Harry Potter plush toys...

[Jadaki 0]

Also, the PS3 only meets BR1.0 specs, new specs are going to be finalized this fall and once that happens there is a chance current gen PS3's will not play some future blu-ray discs and Sony isn't being clear about what they will do to fix that issue. There are also concerns about the PS3 not being able to handle two streams of HD feeds which it would be required to do in the next set of specs.After doing a ton of reading on it, I'm thinking of both of these as the new laserdisc's.

[JoeyJoJo 18]

The most intriguing among the web-enabled extras is a feature called "Pick Your Favorite Scenes." Here, you can assemble and re-organize your favorite bits of '300,' and then store the line-up to your player's internal accessible memoryDoes this mean you can basically edit the movie as you see fit? Or is it just like picking out the chapters that you like?If it's the former, then it is very, very awesome. If it's the latter, it's just meh.

[LongLiveYorke 38]

The most intriguing among the web-enabled extras is a feature called "Pick Your Favorite Scenes." Here, you can assemble and re-organize your favorite bits of '300,' and then store the line-up to your player's internal accessible memoryDoes this mean you can basically edit the movie as you see fit? Or is it just like picking out the chapters that you like?If it's the former, then it is very, very awesome. If it's the latter, it's just meh.

That would be sweet. Here would be my version of my favorite scenes from 300:Opening creditsEnding creditsYou should see my version of Transformers.

[JoeyJoJo 18]

You should see my version of Transformers.

I think I have.(The cable went out last night.)Also, I was referring to editing movies in general, not specifically 300.