Any HD DVD owners on here?

[Dark_Prince]

I went over to the dark side this week and bought a HD-DVD player, I've got a bit fed up with the format war, and there are quite a lot of great movies out that I want on HD. I can actually see Universal holding out for a long time with this, and can even see both sides co-existing for quite some time. There are some high profile exclusives on both sides, and admittedly, some may be coming to Blu Ray like The Matrix, there are some which are going to be a long time in coming.

I bought King Kong as my first disc on HD-DVD - have a bunch of other discs pre-ordered. I have to say, I was astounded with the picture quality, this is easily as good as any of the Blu Ray discs I've seen. I'm not intending to get into an argument about which format is better, I know that the technical specs of Blu Ray beat HD-DVD and in all likelihood, if a film is available on both formats, I will probably opt for the Blu Ray. I'd already ordered 300 on Blu Ray before I decided to get a HD player, don't know which one I'd have gone for to be honest with the added functionality on the HD version.

It will be interesting to see whether combo players become the way forward, and both sides will co-exist. I saw an article which suggested that both sides would enjoy a share of the market for some time to come online recently.



I'll probably get flamed for prolonging the format war here and supporting HD-DVD.

[FilmmakingFiasco]

I have the 360 add-on drive and several movies. Children of Men is worth the purchase alone. I plan on picking up Hot Fuzz this week some time and maybe Shaun of the Dead depending on the transfer quality.

[Xerious]

good for you. no really. i can't see myself doing the same although the thought has crossed my mind, i really would rather see this through the end. good movies like children of men and king kong can wait... i can upconvert on my ps3 so i'm not in that big of a rush. the stubborness of universal irks me so i'm not going to prolong the said "war" any longer. hopefully their exclusitivity is "timed" and "contractual" rather than anything else.

[DrinkMore]

Not to stir anything up - but why even post this thread here? Its BLU-RAY.com. NOT hd-dvd.com.

You know damn well what is going to happen. All you are looking for is justification of your purchase. It won't be found here.

[Dark_Prince]

I'm not looking for justification for my purchase at all. I couldn't care less what you think, I made the decision myself, and I'm very happy with that decision.

I was just curious as to how many people on here actually do support both formats.

I really can't be doing with all this childish of people jumping on sides. The manufacturers should have gotten their act together in the first place, and not created consumer division, but that doesn't mean everyone has to be so childish towards each other.

I suppose 1 flame response so far out of 3 isn't bad going.

What's the big deal about posting a reasonable question on here. I'm just curious to see if there are many people who do support both formats. Last I heard, there was free speech, and you have no right to tell me I shouldn't post such a question on this forum. I'm a Blu Ray supporter, I'm also a HD-DVD supporter. I'd rather have 1 format and 1 machine, but that's not going to happen. I actually have 3 machines now, an old multi-region DVD to play my imported films, a HD-DVD and a PS3 to play Blu Ray's. I've been on both Blu Ray forums, and HD forums, and you know, it's sad to see supposedly grown men doing their best to knock the other side down. There is so much fud being spread at the moment by both camps - at this rate, the average consumer is never going to adopt either HD format.

[Zyclone]

if i get a healthy amount of money back from my tax return im going to pick up a HD player myself only problem is i can't find anywhere to buy one down under all i can find online is reviews.

im still tossing up between 360 plus add on or a stand alone the 360 will be cheaper but i used to own one before i traded it in to get some ps3 games and and since even the elite units are failing im weary of going that way.

oh well i will worry about it when i get my tax return.

enjoy your HD player DP.

[Petra]

sorry OP, and I want to say it politely, but you ARE part of the problem.


Neutrality, not picking a side is part of the reason why we are not seeing classic movies like Star Wars, LOTR, etc. in HD What we are all here in this site striving for is a single format future AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. It's not just about blu-ray, it's about ending this war AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

[Zyclone]

im sorry but do people really need another copy of star wars or LOTR they are great films but i doubt they are going to get the masses to start flocking to HD dvd and blu ray i still don't see it as a war sales from both sides are so low that its more a of a fire fight.

if you want to limit your range of movies by only supporting one side thats your choice as its other peoples choice to support both.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by Petra

sorry OP, and I want to say it politely, but you ARE part of the problem.

Precisely.

[Smackos]

He HAS picked his side.. he's chosen Hi-Def..

I hate it when people call this a war.. it's not you know. At the very most it's a skirmish between the tiny 1% of the population out there that gives a damn. The WAR as it's called is still to come..trying to win out against DVD.

When Joe blogs actually gets involved who the hell knows what he'll go for.. HD DVD, Blu-ray, Hi-Def downloads, Hi-Def Cable/Sat streaming or as is just as likely... none of the above.

Good for you DP.. hope you enjoy some lovely Hi-Def films..

[Dark_Prince]

Well, despite what Rick McCallum might say about only releasing Star Wars or Indy on Hi Def when a clear winner emerges, that's absolute bunkem. The fact is, Lucas WILL release his movies on one, or both, formats when there is sufficient market penetration of Hi Def players. In the meantime, I can enjoy my SD versions of Star Wars and Indy, and I can now enjoy a wider selection of movies by not limiting my choice to just Blu Ray.

Oh, Smackos, I thought you said I'd picked my side as HD for the moment before I reread your post. Yes, I'm supporting Hi Def movies all the way, whether that's on Blu Ray or HD-DVD, I just don't see why people can't all get along and why it has to be a playground brawl between supporters of just one format.

[Smackos]

Thats ok mate.. not a problem..

Exactly.. people seem to forget why they bought Blu-ray or HD DVD players to start with.. to enjoy the experience of Hi-Def PQ/AQ. The worst thing that could well happen is that Neither of these formats take off mainstream and that really would be a crime in my book.

If anyones got issues to do with Dual format owners then it is this.. like you mentioned before at the start of the thread if you'd had both formats to start with when you were buying 300 chances are you'd probably have bought HD DVD. Until BD-Live is fully supported then this will always affect the numbers that buy HD DVD over Blu-ray right now. People are expecting the numbers of Blu-ray copies to completely dwarf HD DVD but when you consider that theres a good percentage of Dual format owners out there that'll buy the HD DVD version because of the added interactive features it could be closer than one might suspect. Thats SONY's fault... not the publics.. given a choice most people try to buy the better version of something if they get the chance..

Let me guess... Batman Begins and V for Vendetta are already on order for you by any chance...?

[DrinkMore]

Sorry, but you all can come up with whatever excuses you need to - to justify why you think being neutral is ok. However, your hurting the entire scheme of things.

You all that are neutral love movies - as do I - and as much as I want to own movies that are on HD-DVD, I don't. I have seen them. These movies are for PURCHASE only and very few new releases are on HD-DVD. All movies being released have already been watched by us.

What you all don't grasp is the simple economic fact. MONEY TALKS. When you buy into an opponents product you are supporting the life of that product. Manufacturers, studios, stores and anyone dealing with the financial aspect of that product SEE and say HEY - PEOPLE ARE BUYING! We need to make MORE!

Where as if you DO NOT purchase a specific product - a loss of money speaks just as clearly. People go WHOA - were loosing too much money. Look at product A selling so much better. Hmm, I think we need to restructure our plan and start selling product A instead.

Buying into both formats is a joke in my opinion. Do you not realize you have 2 very different products? One clearly better than the other? The only thing you are doing is prolonging the two different formats and supporting a format that needs to be done away with.

[Blubaru]

I have an HD-DVD player. I bought it in October and the last time I touched it or purchased movies for it was in November of last year.

Universal could go Blu as early as the end of summer and as late as January 08. Universal has already commented that they plan on being in talks with the BDA towards the end of the summer.

We could possibly see Universal movies on Blu-ray be the end of this year. Universal will be on the Blu team soon so I see no point in investing into a dead format, especially when all of those HD-DVD films are going to be re-released on Blu-ray.

[Petra]

Originally Posted by Zyclone

im sorry but do people really need another copy of star wars or LOTR they are great films but i doubt they are going to get the masses to start flocking to HD dvd and blu ray i still don't see it as a war sales from both sides are so low that its more a of a fire fight.

Using that argument, then why do all HD-DVD owners feel the need to buy HD-DVD considering most of Universal stuff are catalog titles? That's a flawed argument

It's not just a matter of owning another copy of SW or LOTR, it's a matter of owning SW and LOTR in HD

And we won't see them until this war is settled. It's a war, two competing formats or products meant to be used for the same purpose. They don't offer different values or purposes. It's a product war, like it or not, whether you agree with it or not, it's a war. We, consumers/movie lovers, are in the middle of it. It's unfortunate that the companies put us in this situation, but it is what it is. If HD-DVD was winning, I would've thrown my full support behind it. It's not a matter of Sony or Toshiba or Disney, it's matter of ending this lunacy ASAP.

[WickyWoo]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He HAS picked his side.. he's chosen Hi-Def..

That's not a side. That's Switzerland.

Neutrality does not resolve conflict.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by Zyclone

im sorry but do people really need another copy of star wars or LOTR they are great films but i doubt they are going to get the masses to start flocking to HD dvd and blu ray

Wrong.

These are arguably THE two biggest franchises out there that a lot of people are waiting on.

Star Wars basically could end the format war today if Lucas even leaked one of those out for Christmas.

If LOTR Trilogy got announced for BD this Christmas, you're kidding yourself if you don't think that BD hardware of some kind wouldn't see a nice spike in sales to get to that. Star Wars would be at least as big if not more so.

I feel like I'm arguing that "the sky is blue" here.

Honestly, your post is about as perplexing and out of touch with reality as anything I've seen lately.

...
i still don't see it as a war sales from both sides are so low that its more a of a fire fight.

I'd be interested to compare the totals of both formats, or even just BD's, to DVD. Laserdisc and...*barf* DivX in their first year or so.

...
if you want to limit your range of movies by only supporting one side thats your choice as its other peoples choice to support both.

Yeah, I'll keep limiting myself to everything but mediocre Universal titles and discs (for the most part.)

I'll limit myself to 90 percent plus studio support and pretty much all of the leaders in the CE industry.

Hell, at this rate, pretty much everyone worth merit note except for Toshiba and Microsoft. No loss there.

I suspect most around here probably agree with me on that, like you'd expect.

[Dadds]

Well put JTK.

[The Don]

Originally Posted by Dark_Prince

I'm not looking for justification for my purchase at all. I couldn't care less what you think, I made the decision myself, and I'm very happy with that decision.

I was just curious as to how many people on here actually do support both formats.

I really can't be doing with all this childish of people jumping on sides. The manufacturers should have gotten their act together in the first place, and not created consumer division, but that doesn't mean everyone has to be so childish towards each other.

I suppose 1 flame response so far out of 3 isn't bad going.

What's the big deal about posting a reasonable question on here. I'm just curious to see if there are many people who do support both formats. Last I heard, there was free speech, and you have no right to tell me I shouldn't post such a question on this forum. I'm a Blu Ray supporter, I'm also a HD-DVD supporter. I'd rather have 1 format and 1 machine, but that's not going to happen. I actually have 3 machines now, an old multi-region DVD to play my imported films, a HD-DVD and a PS3 to play Blu Ray's. I've been on both Blu Ray forums, and HD forums, and you know, it's sad to see supposedly grown men doing their best to knock the other side down. There is so much fud being spread at the moment by both camps - at this rate, the average consumer is never going to adopt either HD format.

see...I was fine with your first post, although you posted it on the wrong forum...

but saying that choosing sides is childish....is childish...all it does is justify your move...and you don't have to justify it as it's your money, not mine...

I choose a side because I refuse to buy 2 players and give in to Universal being stubborn....

I can survive without movies from 1 studio until they come to their senses...

the customers, stores and the industry do not want 2 formats co-existing and wherever you read that, I'd like a link...

even universal has said in their debate that they don't want 2 formats....yet they are the reason that there are 2...

I choose a side because I support my investment and I made a strong decision on which way I wanted to go and I went where my favorite movies are...

I almost purchased a HD DVD player...out of being impatient and nothing else, but now I am on BD's side until there is a clear winner....

and for the record, if HD DVD somehow won...I would then purchase a player...so it has nothing to do with being a Sony ***** or a fanboy...I just want the best available product...and that is Blu-ray..

[The Don]

Originally Posted by Dark_Prince

Reading some of the posts here, I just find it unbelievable how petty and juvenile some of you people are with your comments.

any more flame and name-calling?...it's encouraged.