Blu Ray prices

[mrcool256]

I am new to the forum, and I am very excited about this new digital medium. I was just wondering what you all think the price of blu ray players will be when they become commercially available in the U.S. and also do you all think Blockbuster and other rental services will rent out Blu Ray discs?

[zombie]

Welcome to the forum! The projected price of initial Blu-ray players is $1000. And yes I'm certain Blockbuster will rent Blu-ray discs once the format gets going.

[mrcool256]

Doesn't a thousand bucks seem pricey. I am really enthusiasitc about HD, but I am on a pretty tight budget. I was thinking they would be more around the two-three hundred price; considering the PS3 will be about 300 and it will play blu ray movies.

[zombie]

Blu-ray prices are expected to drop significantly by the time PS3 comes out. I don't know of anyone who thinks PS3 will cost more than $499, most say $299 is all they're willing to pay. So once PS3 arrives, then yes I would certainly hope a standalone Blu-ray player would be similar in cost. I don't think it'll be less than PS3 because it will be able to record, PS3 Blu-ray drives will not.

[Rob]

Originally Posted by mrcool256

Doesn't a thousand bucks seem pricey. I am really enthusiasitc about HD, but I am on a pretty tight budget. I was thinking they would be more around the two-three hundred price; considering the PS3 will be about 300 and it will play blu ray movies.

What you have to remember about HD-DVD and Blu-Ray is that it's brand new technology. There's massive R&D costs to be recouped as well as the fact that players will initially be made in small quantities. Until they can liscence the technology and produce in greater volumes, they will be unable to take advantage of economies of scale. Therefore, if you want a player on day one you'll have to pay a premium. $1,000 doesn't seem unreasonable to me. Also, I've seen reports on the net and in magazines were it's possible to interpret a HD-DVD recorder for $1,000, with basic players cheaper. Yet I'm sure this is incorrect, (or I've misinterpreted). Perhaps it's because the £ is so strong against the $ at the moment but I would probably pay $1,000 to have an HD-DVD player. That's £550-600. I have a Pan dvd hdd recorder that retailed for £600 in the Uk which was able to pick up for £480 on release. I'm sure you'll be able to pick up a player for significantly less than $1k. Still, I remember when Phillips released their first dvd recorder in the Uk in 2001 for £1,300. Over $2,000!

[Rob]

Originally Posted by n2blu

Blu-ray prices are expected to drop significantly by the time PS3 comes out. I don't know of anyone who thinks PS3 will cost more than $499, most say $299 is all they're willing to pay. So once PS3 arrives, then yes I would certainly hope a standalone Blu-ray player would be similar in cost. I don't think it'll be less than PS3 because it will be able to record, PS3 Blu-ray drives will not.

I'd be surprised if the PS3 was much more than $300. I would say $400 max. Especially if the XBox launches with HD-DVD for $300 late 2005. I would suggest that Sony will launch at $300 for the simple fact that the success and early adoption of the PS3 could be crucial in getting the Blu-Ray format established and boosting software sales in the same way as the PS2 boosted dvd sales. In Japan sales of PS2 software was initially slow due to a lack of interesting titles, but dvd sales rocketed. Also, you never know, Nintendo might pull something out of the hat with it's Revolution come 2006. I'm guessing that there's will be the cheapest of all 3 machines as there's little chance of it having either hi-def disc format.

[mrcool256]

Very interesting, I'm looking forward to seeing how this new format plays out.

[hc666]

haha i love digging up old threads.

Fun to read back.

[newblu33]

Originally Posted by hc666

haha i love digging up old threads.

Fun to read back.

The first response really threw me until I looked at the date

[sardaukar1977]

2005, wow this is an old thread.

[Horhay]

Originally Posted by sardaukar1977

2005, wow this is an old thread.

2005! no kidding damn this is old lol