Ask questions to The Digital Bits team (Bill Hunt, Jeff Kleist et.al.)

[NutsAboutPS3]

Fantastic two cents today, Bill, spot on.
("Some advice to the BDA, and readers interested in Blu-ray too")

[GarettP]

Well written Bits today Bill!

[dialog_gvf]

Me: All TVs need to support 24p input, proper 1080i de-interlacing, HDMI 1.3a, and xvYYC + deep colour. They all need to support the same thing or the public will be confused.

You: But all that stuff doesn't really affect the basic watching of TV programs or discs.

Me: Exactly.

2. If you care about being able to access ALL Blu-ray bonus features, both now AND in the future, you might want to wait to get a profile 2.0 compatible player, which basically means a player with a built-in Internet connection.

Unless you're calling for the end of innovation, how can anyone guarantee the future?

Gary

[DaViD Boulet]

If you care about being able to access ALL Blu-ray bonus features, both now AND in the future, you might want to wait to get a profile 2.0 compatible player, which basically means a player with a built-in Internet connection.

Unless you're calling for the end of innovation, how can anyone guarantee the future?

Gary,

I think the point is that not only does a 2.0 profile give you access to all current BD-spec features, but with an internet connection a player can be much more easily firmware updated for future innovation.

[ryoohki]

Originally Posted by Maxpower1987

I think the times of firmware updates will have to come to a swift end. DVD players don't require firmware updates (well most) Blu-ray should be no different in this regard.

Once we get beyond enthusiast level, firmware updates are a really bad idea, consumers hate them, I don't even like it that much. A product should do what it says on the tin out of the box and the efforts made to make this a reality should start showing through in the next few hardware generations.

Well i'am all for that, but FW update are nice to be pushed on the consumer level. In the first 3-4 years of DVD they have been Countless recall of DVD player for FW Flash (mostly by Toshiba and Panasonic) and now those are available for us.

As machine get complex, they use real OS, the things are plague to be bugged. Even some TV need FW update now. My first HDTV needed (in 2002) at FlashRom Flash and i had to skip 1 day of work to have the tech do it here to fix a 1080i issue.

Computers are the worst example of this...

[Nick Graham]

Is 2.0 the last of the BD-J Profiles? I would hope so, but have never heard any word about it one way or another.

[dialog_gvf]

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet

Gary,

I think the point is that not only does a 2.0 profile give you access to all current BD-spec features, but with an internet connection a player can be much more easily firmware updated for future innovation.

That's the situation as it is today. What about tomorrow? Maybe new ideas should get introduced (like, ummm, HD PiP or 3D ), and those ideas will probably not work on current players.

Is the demand to stagnate innovation by condeming any lack of features?

We've seen demands go from TrueHD decoding, to also demanding DTS-HD MA decoding, to now demanding HDMI 1.3a and bitstream output as well as internal decoding.

The target for acceptable has been moving.

Gary

[darkpoet25]

Bill I read your Two Cents today and I agree whole-heartedly. VERY well said.

[Alan Gordon]

Originally Posted by dialog_gvf

That's the situation as it is today. What about tomorrow? Maybe new ideas should get introduced (like, ummm, HD PiP or 3D ), and those ideas will probably not work on current players.

Is the demand to stagnate innovation by condeming any lack of features?

Originally Posted by Maxpower1987

Yes. Anything implemented over and above BonusView is optional, so again if certain manufacturers go over and above BD-Live it is their choice.

When I first got my DVD player back in '98, it had no DTS output, and it's best output was S-Video cable. My second DVD player was a Hitachi piece of crap that came with Hitachi TV (the TV was great, the player was a piece of crap!). It had DTS output and component output, I soon sold it and got a Sony DVD player that could output DTS and Progressive through Component output. While I have gotten several DVD players in other rooms with aditional features like DIVX playback, WMA playback, JPG playback, Kodak Photo CD playback, MP3 playback, DVD recording, upconverting, etc...

Interestingly enough, while my first DVD player didn't have component and DTS output, I think almost all DVD players do DTS now... and a good majority of them have component, but not all of them have some of the features listed above. Because of this and his track record, I don't think Bill was trying to demand stagnation of "innovation by condemning" a lack of features, but simply calling for a standard... which from my knowledge of profiles is actually Profile 1.1 and not Profile 2.0... though I would personally go further and call for Profile 2.0 to be the final standard given that some Blu-ray discs already being released and soon to be released have internet features available... and I don't think a final profile should be final until it offers the ability to use all the disc functions. NOW, I would say that Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA decoding should be optional, but given the fact that I've heard bitstreaming of either audio codec causes some features to not work right, I'd have to add it to the list as well.

Some other features that could be optional are wireless internet connection for 2.0 features (this could be really great once the N standard is finalized), media connect functions (ala PS3 where you can listen to your music and view photos and videos from your home network), connection to other internet sites ("Amazon Unbox", "Rhapsody", and "Music Choice", ala TiVo), larger internal storage, etc, etc, etc...

As I said in another thread: "I love it when Bill gets on his soapbox!

I wholeheartedly agree Bill!!"

Also, Bill, have you heard anything about Magnolia? They've had several DVD releases lately, but have been pretty quiet lately regarding HDM...

~Alan

[micks_address]

for ages in europe you couldnt even get a dvd player with component outputs which did progressive scan!

i have to say i like HDMI.. there's an awful lot less wires behind my telly these days.. one from the ps3 to my receiver, one from my sat hd box to receiver and one from receiver to tv...

Originally Posted by Alan Gordon

When I first got my DVD player back in '98, it had no DTS output, and it's best output was S-Video cable. My second DVD player was a Hitachi piece of crap that came with Hitachi TV (the TV was great, the player was a piece of crap!). It had DTS output and component output, I soon sold it and got a Sony DVD player that could output DTS and Progressive through Component output. While I have gotten several DVD players in other rooms with aditional features like DIVX playback, WMA playback, JPG playback, Kodak Photo CD playback, MP3 playback, DVD recording, upconverting, etc...

Interestingly enough, while my first DVD player didn't have component and DTS output, I think almost all DVD players do DTS now... and a good majority of them have component, but not all of them have some of the features listed above. Because of this and his track record, I don't think Bill was trying to demand stagnation of "innovation by condemning" a lack of features, but simply calling for a standard... which from my knowledge of profiles is actually Profile 1.1 and not Profile 2.0... though I would personally go further and call for Profile 2.0 to be the final standard given that some Blu-ray discs already being released and soon to be released have internet features available... and I don't think a final profile should be final until it offers the ability to use all the disc functions. NOW, I would say that Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA decoding should be optional, but given the fact that I've heard bitstreaming of either audio codec causes some features to not work right, I'd have to add it to the list as well.

Some other features that could be optional are wireless internet connection for 2.0 features (this could be really great once the N standard is finalized), media connect functions (ala PS3 where you can listen to your music and view photos and videos from your home network), connection to other internet sites ("Amazon Unbox", "Rhapsody", and "Music Choice", ala TiVo), larger internal storage, etc, etc, etc...

As I said in another thread: "I love it when Bill gets on his soapbox!

I wholeheartedly agree Bill!!"

Also, Bill, have you heard anything about Magnolia? They've had several DVD releases lately, but have been pretty quiet lately regarding HDM...

~Alan

[Nathan P]

Originally Posted by Alan Gordon

When I first got my DVD player back in '98, it had no DTS output, and it's best output was S-Video cable. My second DVD player was a Hitachi piece of crap that came with Hitachi TV (the TV was great, the player was a piece of crap!). It had DTS output and component output, I soon sold it and got a Sony DVD player that could output DTS and Progressive through Component output. While I have gotten several DVD players in other rooms with aditional features like DIVX playback, WMA playback, JPG playback, Kodak Photo CD playback, MP3 playback, DVD recording, upconverting, etc...

Interestingly enough, while my first DVD player didn't have component and DTS output, I think almost all DVD players do DTS now... and a good majority of them have component, but not all of them have some of the features listed above. Because of this and his track record, I don't think Bill was trying to demand stagnation of "innovation by condemning" a lack of features, but simply calling for a standard... which from my knowledge of profiles is actually Profile 1.1 and not Profile 2.0... though I would personally go further and call for Profile 2.0 to be the final standard given that some Blu-ray discs already being released and soon to be released have internet features available... and I don't think a final profile should be final until it offers the ability to use all the disc functions. NOW, I would say that Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA decoding should be optional, but given the fact that I've heard bitstreaming of either audio codec causes some features to not work right, I'd have to add it to the list as well.

Some other features that could be optional are wireless internet connection for 2.0 features (this could be really great once the N standard is finalized), media connect functions (ala PS3 where you can listen to your music and view photos and videos from your home network), connection to other internet sites ("Amazon Unbox", "Rhapsody", and "Music Choice", ala TiVo), larger internal storage, etc, etc, etc...

As I said in another thread: "I love it when Bill gets on his soapbox!

I wholeheartedly agree Bill!!"

Also, Bill, have you heard anything about Magnolia? They've had several DVD releases lately, but have been pretty quiet lately regarding HDM...

~Alan

True, but a lot goes on the price that you pay. I paid £380 (ex demo model RRPO was £550)in the UK for my sony DVD player in 1999 and it does everything. I paid extra because I knew that i could upgrade the other H/T pieces one at a time. My blu ray upgrades will be no different as they will have to last as long as my DVD player has.

[Nathan P]

Originally Posted by Maxpower1987

You are quite lucky then, the Panasonic BD-50 will be cheaper than that Sony, and will do everything for the life of the format.

That one is on my list due to the analog outs - it means i don't have to get rid of the old school receiver anytime soon. Also i've not had much experience with panasonic gear - is it good kit??

[RickD]

Originally Posted by Nathan P

That one is on my list due to the analog outs - it means i don't have to get rid of the old school receiver anytime soon. Also i've not had much experience with panasonic gear - is it good kit??

I don't have much Panasonic experience either, but I can tell you from owning it that the BD-30 is excellent.

Rick

[bassbone57]

Originally Posted by Nathan P

That one is on my list due to the analog outs - it means i don't have to get rid of the old school receiver anytime soon. Also i've not had much experience with panasonic gear - is it good kit??

I've had a lot of Panasonic experience and it's always very reliable and very good quality. I would give a thumbs up to just about anything in their brand. (Check my sig for confirmation)

-K

[Spike68]

Is it just me , or has Bill's thread been hijacked into a public forum now??

[SBrooks1]

Originally Posted by Spike68

Is it just me , or has Bill's thread been hijacked into a public forum now??

Yeah I keep coming back day after day to see if he's posted and it's been no all week. I skip all other replies except for his.

[WickyWoo]

An excellent point

Return conversation to Q&A please

Bill's really tied up right now, I'm going to lock it till he has time to come back

[WickyWoo]

Bill will be returning sometime on Sunday morning/afternoon Pacific time. Just a head's up for those who want to ask questions. Remember, please keep crosstalk to a minimum

[Bill Hunt]

Hey guys,

Sorry for the absence. Things have been a little nuts lately. There's been a lot of work behind the scenes on The Bits, I've had (and continue to have) family and friends visiting, and I've also been migrating to a new PC. My old one was just about to give up the ghost. If you have questions you'd like to ask me, feel free to jump in with them. I'll be back late tonight and tomorrow morning to answer as many as I can.

Meanwhile, I've posted a little bit of the latest information about what's going on with various studios' Blu-ray plans on The Bits today (including word of a few titles Fox and MGM are working on for release later this year). It's in the Friday post, and more is coming next week:

http://thedigitalbits.com/#mytwocents

Thanks for your patience, everyone!

[Slec]

Originally Posted by Bill Hunt

Hey guys,

Sorry for the absence. Things have been a little nuts lately. There's been a lot of work behind the scenes on The Bits, I've had (and continue to have) family and friends visiting, and I've also been migrating to a new PC. My old one was just about to give up the ghost. If you have questions you'd like to ask me, feel free to jump in with them. I'll be back late tonight and tomorrow morning to answer as many as I can.

Thanks for your patience!

Thanks for your participation here. Good to have you back!