Archived: Insiders Thread

[hyperdine]

Paid,
Couple things...

1. Thanks for passing on the feedback about the security stickers. The latest SPHE titles I received in the mail today only have one sticker at the top!

2. I just popped in "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" and was thoroughly impressed. The amount of detail is amazing and it's a HUGE improvement over the DVD. In fact, I did an A/B comparison just for kicks and it's very noticeable. In one of the early scenes, when Aki lands in Old New York City, you can actually read the details on her high-tech Seiko watch. In fact, you can even make out the date "12/13/65", and this is impossible to read on the DVD version (even when upscaled). I can see details that I never saw before. It's like I'm seeing this film for the first time.

3. I also really liked the way the menu items fade-in and fade-out. It's a really nice effect. Very smooth.

Many thanks to you and your team!

[Penton-Man]

I would post this on AVMS but, it probably wouldn’t last long given their *affiliation* -however I can't let this go totally unchallenged because I still have a soft spot in my heart for what AVMS used to be in the old days...... namely AVS.

Posted by the insider named Andy Pennell (HDi Developer, Microsoft Corp) answering a question not asked of him but, asked specifically to paidgeek.................

"I have no idea about BD, but HD DVD certainly allows for different playback based on the parental control rating that the player is set to. It doesn't use seamless branching, just regular clips, with each clip having the potential to be marked with a level (and a language).

Titles like "300" already allow a "custom playlist" to be created (and shared with others over the net). Oh wait, the BD version can't do that of course"

from……………………….
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...&#post11277371

My response, for the record -
Well Andy, disregarding the blatant fact that the question was not directed to you or any HD VD insider, you did O.K. until…”Oh, wait”, then you imitated the A-man.
So my question is………Is it something in the food or liquid served there ?

Perhaps there are no "high roads" in Redmond only tunnels ?
Grow up Andy, or else your boss may just have to apologize for YOU, if you represent HD VD on the next Home Theater Cruise !

And the moderators over there wonder why they have so many problems with the "children". It obvious, "the children" imitate some of the protected adults.

[dialog_gvf]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Posted by the insider named Andy Pennell (HDi Developer, Microsoft Corp) answering a question not asked of him but, asked specifically to paidgeek.................

"I have no idea about BD, but ...

... let me say some wise-ass remark about it anyway"

I've copied this to the rant thread here so it can be responded to without filling up here.

[gand41f]

Originally Posted by WickyWoo

Next time I'm at Sony I'll buy you ice cream at the studio shop across the street. Don't worry, you can just stick a hand out the door so I don't breach your secret identity

And I'll buy you a hot dog. Or a Polish dog, if you like that more!

thanks a bunch paid
gandalf

P.S. Watched Final Fantasy: The Sprits Within tonight. It's one good looking title!

[GoldenRedux]

Moved some posts out into the appropriate thread in the Off Topic area.

[aygie]

Hey PaidGeek

Was hoping you'll know this, why are some studios releasing certain titles in certain countries?
For example Starship Troopers has been pulled from the States but i picked up a copy the other day. (I live in the UK)

Do different countries have different encodings or something like that? Thanks

[paidgeek]

Originally Posted by Aygie

Hey PaidGeek

Was hoping you'll know this, why are some studios releasing certain titles in certain countries?
For example Starship Troopers has been pulled from the States but i picked up a copy the other day. (I live in the UK)

Do different countries have different encodings or something like that? Thanks

Some titles have split rights. Usually this happens when the film is expensive and the studios want to reduce risk. In the case of Starship Troopers, we share rights with Disney.

Sometime ago, we had an arrangement where we released DVD titles for Universal internationally.

[Smackos]

Originally Posted by paidgeek

Some titles have split rights. Usually this happens when the film is expensive and the studios want to reduce risk. In the case of Starship Troopers, we share rights with Disney.

Sometime ago, we had an arrangement where we released DVD titles for Universal internationally.

You'll have to look up the clauses in that old contract and see if there's anything that has'nt legally lapsed you could use to release Universals titles on Blu-ray

PaidGeek, one question.. would it be possible for Sony to start bundling a Blu-ray demo disk in with the PS 3 showcasing it compared to SD content, maybe have interactive Faq's on what is Blu-ray along with trailers for upcoming film releases they could expect to see on it? You should be able to get the other studios to "chip in" for it since it'll be good advertising for they're big releases etc. Would help the general awareness of Blu-ray as a film format to a good majority of the PS3 crowd who have no idea it's for anything other than games as well as help reduce the number of misconceptions that people have about the format and cut through some of the FUD that's banded around all the time. For those that have bought and registered they're PS 3's you could send a disk out in the post to them.

[elwaylite]

Heres a question for the insiders(keep in mind Im a BD supporter). How do you think the BD vs HDDVD is going. BD is outselling HDDVD 2 to 1 consistently but I dont feel this enough to end it. I would like to see only one format, but if it labors on my priority is HD movies. If that means me buying a sub $200 player for HDDVD I just might.

Do you guys see a knockout punch coming or will the dual owners be stuck with a brick after a couple of years.

Im a PS3 owner at this point and am VERY happy but may pick a cheap A2 up this Christmas. At this point 8 out of 10 netflix rentals are BD, but id like 10 out of 10 to be HD movies.

[blitz6speed]

Geek:

Ive always wondered why sony didnt put a "You are not in High Def mode" logo on the XMB of the PS3 when it is not using at least 720p? If there was a message like that, most people would try to find out how to get the HD image on the screen to take away the error message. It would also give people more insight of what their system is capable of. Just a suggestion.

[mattym]

i like hte idea of a demo disk for BD with the PS3, like the trailer on the front of CR, i was surprised there was nothing in my box when i bought my ps3.

KJack...any word on new player developments, anything on the horizon form CE or the Chinese?

[ra1024]

Paid, in regards to your comments about The Company, can you comment on how this might compare to Crank? Your comments sounded like this might raise the bar even higher which would be an accomplishment considering how great Crank looks.

[paidgeek]

Originally Posted by Smackos

You'll have to look up the clauses in that old contract and see if there's anything that has'nt legally lapsed you could use to release Universals titles on Blu-ray

PaidGeek, one question.. would it be possible for Sony to start bundling a Blu-ray demo disk in with the PS 3 showcasing it compared to SD content, maybe have interactive Faq's on what is Blu-ray along with trailers for upcoming film releases they could expect to see on it? You should be able to get the other studios to "chip in" for it since it'll be good advertising for they're big releases etc. Would help the general awareness of Blu-ray as a film format to a good majority of the PS3 crowd who have no idea it's for anything other than games as well as help reduce the number of misconceptions that people have about the format and cut through some of the FUD that's banded around all the time. For those that have bought and registered they're PS 3's you could send a disk out in the post to them.

We have bundled Blu-ray movies with PS3 in the past and may do it again, but PS3 buyers are also eligible for the 5 disc promotion. It seems to me that getting your pick of 5 titles should be a good intro to the format.

[paidgeek]

Originally Posted by ra1024

Paid, in regards to your comments about The Company, can you comment on how this might compare to Crank? Your comments sounded like this might raise the bar even higher which would be an accomplishment considering how great Crank looks.

I have not seen "Crank", but I'll make a point of getting a copy.

[Banjo]

Paidgeek,

Can you tell us if the special features on the upcoming Blu-ray edition of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' are subtitled in English?

Thank you.

[Chris Beveridge]

Originally Posted by Banjo

Paidgeek,

Can you tell us if the special features on the upcoming Blu-ray edition of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' are subtitled in English?

Thank you.

And as a side note, a huge thanks for including both English SDH and non-SDH subtitles. My wife and I watch everything subtitled (years of watching anime with subtitles) and often have to keep volumes low due to sleeping people. Not having the SDH text is something that makes it all the better.

[ra1024]

Originally Posted by paidgeek

I have not seen "Crank", but I'll make a point of getting a copy. I looked up the specs and saw it was shot Super35. It should look quite different from "The Company".

Thanks for checking. I thought Crank was one of the few films shot digitally which is why I was asking. I did a little checking and found a link that indicated it was shot with a HDC-F950 digital camera so I was just curious how The Company would compare. From the tier ratings I've seen, Crank is about the only film ranked up with the best CGI titles so it would be interesting if The Company was on par with Crank's PQ.

[Penton-Man]

ra1024 –
See paid’s edited post above.

Since you appear to be a big fan of this film, here’s a good link on the camera tech stuff for your perusal………………….

http://www.sonybiz.net/biz/view/Show...=1172517900498

Specifically, they mostly used a Pace Technologies Advantage camera adaptation of the Sony F950, and the full range of ZEISS DigiPrime and DigiZoom lenses.

And here’s an insider/insider tidbit for paidgeek as I seem to be throwing these all about today.
Paid – You know our girl Kelsey ? She’s been on several dates with Jason Statham. Small world, eh ?

[darkedgex]

@ paidgeek:

I know the PS3 isn't your responsibility, but you seem to be good at bringing up issues to the right people for resolution. One thing that's been bugging me for the past couple of weeks is the lack of PAL playback support in the PS3 (for DVD video, not sure if this is even an issue for BD). I have a number of PAL discs that I can only play on a normal set top DVD player, but the PS3 has replaced that set top DVD player for 99% of my viewing, and I'd like to retire the thing if I can.

Soooo, can you nag someone at Sony to enable PAL playback support in the PS3 in a future firmware update? =)

Thanks.

[darinp2]

Originally Posted by paidgeek

We have bundled Blu-ray movies with PS3 in the past and may do it again, but PS3 buyers are also eligible for the 5 disc promotion. It seems to me that getting your pick of 5 titles should be a good intro to the format.

I agree and think that 5 movies are a great way to encourage people to setup the PS3 with the best display in the house also. But, I just hope people who are buying PS3s now are aware of the mail in rebate. I'm not sure how obvious that is being made to them. Frys had rebate forms and a couple of free BDs a couple of weeks ago, but a few days ago I saw a stack of PS3s and no rebate forms.

--Darin