Friend convincing me to go HD-DVD

[stuntman mike]

Hi guys first post... and it shouldn't be a thread but I figured what the heck?

Okay, the story is like this. I have a friend that's deadset on getting me to buy a HD-DVD player. He says everything from sound quality, bitrates, picture quality, to video format, is superior to blu-ray. I asked him "why does BD cost more? obviously it has better hardware." he then said "it's a complete ripoff. HD-DVD does everything better for half the price."

Price is not a issue (at this point) I have a nice budget that I'm willing to spend and I want to make sure I'm getting the best money can buy. He never gives me reasons why HD-DVD is better, he just claims it is. Now before this turns into a huge format war, I'd just like to say I'm interested in both formats equally but I've only gotten one side of the story. That's where you guys come in... =)!