comment #1

D.Z. says ...

I'm sticking with dvd, until they phase it out, but I doubt that Blu Ray will ever be as big as it. The fact that they had to lower prices for the systems this fast indicates the average consumer is not biting. The thing about the conversion from VHS to DVD which made it so successful is that most of the stuff which ended up on DVD was either never on the former format, or on tapes priced as high as $100
a pop. So I'm not sure why most people would want to pay more again per movie/tv show.

comment #2

le corbeau says ...

I bought a pretty nice receiver and DVD player both with various line-doubler type technology built in to go with my 55" Sony SXRD set. And you know what? DVDs look great. Would Blu-rays look better? I suppose, HD broadcasts look better, but 6 feet away, DVDs look fantastic. When this stuff gets cheaper and more dominant in the marketplace, I'll probably go for it, but I see no reason to be in a huge hurry.

comment #3

Unison says ...

All this format war has accomplished is made it that much closer until digital distribution of HD content becomes a reality and the dominant format.

comment #4

corey3rd says ...

Hold out for the 150 inch Plasma screen from Panasonic! Did that get shown off at CES?

comment #5

MASON says ...

I have a blu-ray player and love it. But Jeff --on a 40 inch set, a Blu-Ray player isn't going to make much of a difference -- if one at all -- than a good upscaling regular DVD player. Hell, the difference between 720p and 1080p is pretty much non-existent to the human eye on a set under 42 inches.

comment #6

Balthazar says ...

DVDs are just fine, thanks.

Blu-Ray will not have a "compile a huge collection" phase comparable to the DVD buying splurge of the late 90s/early 00s, IMO

comment #7

Aguirre says ...

it's about time jeff finally got around to posting something like this. so here goes... as someone with a vast dvd library (and a burgeoning blu-ray one), i can tell you that the difference between the two formats when viewed with the correct equipment is ALMOST as night and day as the VHS / DVD dichotomy... and the miracles it works for older films like 2001 are beyond words. the more people who experience the difference, the more people will believe that DVD might not be as sufficient as once thought. and jeff... mine eyes cannot fathom something that looks AND SOUNDS (lossless audio, people!) better than a blu-ray running at a full 1080p. and when the NO COUNTRY blu-ray streets next month... well, you'll be salivating far more than you can now anticipate.

HD-DVD is dead, and not a moment too soon. as the confusion over the prevailing format dies down and the blu-ray market increases exponentially (even if only as a niche), it will allow a rather large window of time for an HD disc market to flourish before a significantly larger percentage of the population relies on HD downloads.

that being said, i still can't fathom blu-ray usurping the dvd market to the extent that dvd did to vhs... but the format's victory and blossoming will allow for people to have an extensive physical library of HD films. this is a VERY good thing.

comment #8

GKLondon says ...

This format war has driven me nuts all year. I upgraded to HD in July of this year, with both Blu Ray and HD DVD (thank you freelance paychecks). I automatically preferred HD DVD, from the quality of the picture, to the non-region specific nature of the format (THE best element for someone living in London), and also the far better, by my reckoning, selection of films.

Titles like Children of Men, The Thing, The Deer Hunter, and Batman Begins are all HD DVD exclusives. Blu Ray boasts the Fox catalogue (The WAL MART of movie studios, "Look we do it faster, And for less! Who cares about legacy? We've got cashflow!") and the Disney catalogue, and therefore the only attraction from a film lovers point of view, i.e. Pixar. But with Warners now going exclusively Blu Ray, most likely due to an underwhelming Christmas for HD sales further indicated by the fact that most UK bsed retail chains started the "3 for 2" HD sales BEFORE christmas, it looks like my beloved HD DVD is going the way of the Laserdisc.

The solution to this? Blu Ray becomes the market leader, and dominates high-street HD sales, but clever little HD DVD gets companies like Criterion (PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE) and Eureka in the UK to be HD DVD exclusively, capitalising on the fact that HD DVD is more for "films", whereas Blu Ray is all about "movies".

If anyone who reads Wells, or Wells yourself, know anyone at Criterion, make inquiries. Or suggestions. Unlikely, but as I turned 30 twenty three minutes ago, maybe I've got a birthday wish saved up somewhere.

comment #9

caslab says ...

finally,

someone won the war to become laserdisc 2.0

i'm waiting for downloads

comment #10

Aguirre says ...

GKLondon... your post is patently ridiculous. criterion is the smartest home video company in the business, and there is a ZERO PERCENT CHANCE THAT THEY WILL SUPPORT A SINKING SHIP. criterion will not upgrade to HD until a winner of the format war has been formally declared (blu-ray), and have said as much in the past. moreover, there wont be a sinking ship to support, as by the end of 2008 i can all but guarantee you that HD-DVDS will no longer be being produced. i wish you the happiest of 30th birthdays, but i suggest that you spend your precious b-day wishes on something a bit more feasible.

comment #11

GKLondon says ...

And as for Aguirre's comments, I agree it IS a good thing that one format has won, the division of interest was stifling the HD market as a whole, and leading people to loose interest. But EVERY SINGLE PERSON I've shown HD to (usually either Batman Begins or Pirates 2 (I know I know, but it looks absolutely flawless)) have been bowled over. It's difficult to get people to go home!

Blu Ray are fine, I just personally took to HD DVD. I've watched Blade Runner on both, even going so far as to pause individual shots for comparison, and it's negligible.

comment #12

GKLondon says ...

Wish for something more feasible? What, like world peace?

It's my wish, and I'll wish for whatever ridiculousness I desire.

Thank for the birthday wishes. Weird, my first 30th congrats from a total stranger. We are forever bonded.

comment #13

MASON says ...

News out of CES is that Target has gone Blu Ray exlusive -- not restocking anything HDDVD. Wow. When does the Paramount deal with HDDVD end? Less than one year from now, right?

comment #14

D.Z. says ...

I talked to a guy who used to sell import Asian movies, and he seemed to side with HD for the same reasons as GK. But MS had it coming, so I'm not entirely despondent over them losing.

comment #15

Intense Guy III says ...

I tend to agree with this Jeff. And the fact is there's tons of movies that won't ever see the HD upgrade because they'll never be released to begin with, and then the next format comes along..etc etc. I'm somewhat interested to see how Criterion deals with the new formats though.

I'm not holding my breath on seeing blu-ray releases of The Body Snatcher, Johnny Guitar or Cross of Iron anytime soon. ;)

comment #16

Mr. Muckle says ...

Last month I bought one of the Sony Blu-ray players on sale. It cost $300. I wanted to see if it sounded OK for CDs so I could retire my CD player and have a simpler setup. As it happened, CDs sound much better than my CD player, which cost $750 and was considered a near-audiophile piece. My ten year old DVD player cost $250 when new and I sold it for $80 to my neighbor and I sold the CD player for $250, so I'm aces ahead.

The Blu-ray player also looks great for regular DVDs. There's not enough content out for Blu-ray to make it meaningful to me, but I have a renewed interest in my CD collection.

comment #17

actionman says ...

40 inch HD LCD. Standard dvds and player. Fine by me till direct digital downloads.

comment #18

PastePotPete says ...

I liked HD-DVD better because it was cheaper mainly. I've not noticed a difference in picture quality between HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.

Upscaled DVD IS pretty damned good on an HDTV under a certain size... I have a 32" tv. There is a noticeable difference though, a good hd movie looks nearly three dimensional compared to a dvd.

For example I watched 2001: A Space Odyssey on hd-dvd last night and was very distracted in the Dawn of Man sequence by FILTHY screens used for the frontscreen projection... you can tell it's fake on HD, and I'd never noticed that before, even in 70mm at the Egyptian.

For Jeff Wells purposes he should probably keep his tv. I assume he watches a lot of Academy ratio films and those will benefit from his large 4:3 screen.

comment #19

JHRussell says ...

I just bought a 52 inch / 1080 p / PS3 - blu ray set up, and I cannot put into words how phenomenal the picture is. You are deluding yourself if you believe that upscaled standard def on anything less than a 40 inch screen in under 1080 p/i is just as good...but I also agree with someone else who posted that the real future is in downloadable HD content - DVDs will go the way of the floppy disc in a few years...but don't ever delude yourself about the 1080 on a big screen set vs a smaller, standard def set...if you are going to "bet" on a format, buy Blu ray, but a good upscaler will suffice for the next few years...

comment #20

Balthazar says ...

So, educate me on Blu-Ray: Can you play a regular DVD on a Blu-Ray player?

One of the neat things about the DVD era is that, somewhere around "the third wave of DVD," we started getting all these niche movies that hadn't been available in years and years. But will it be cost-effective for anything other than mainstream and classic films to be put out on DVD? Regarding Criterion, would they go back and re-do their entire catalog as Blu-Ray, or just start going Blu-Ray from here forward. There are so many films (and versions of films) I have on DVD that I can't ever see being ported to Blu-Ray. It just wouldn't be cost-effective for title that were niche in the first place. (And what about all the TV boxsets?!?)

comment #21

JHRussell says ...

Yes, you can play standard def DVDs on Blu Ray - it upscales them, not sure if to 1080 p or just 1080 i, but it does an excellent job, thus there is no need to also buy an upscaling DVD player, too.

I probably would not have bought a blu ray except for the the PS3 combo - I am not a gamer, but my kids love it, so I felt good about the purchase.

"Ratatouille" in Blu Ray is spectacular. Same with "Curse of the Golden Flower" and "The Lives of Others."

comment #22

mutinyco says ...

Upscaling would be interlaced, since NTSC DVDs are 29.97.

comment #23

gpcreative says ...

HD-DVD would have won if MS would have built them into the XBOX360.

comment #24

mutinyco says ...

Oh, and the unconfirmed rumor du jour is that Blu-Ray backer Apple is preparing it first models with built-in drives to be released in the near future...

comment #25

Balthazar says ...

OK, so IF, IF ... I had the disposable income for Blu-Ray technology and Blu-Ray discs (which I don't) and turned my living room into a home theater ... then EVENTUALLY I would have to run out of disposable income, right? What would happen is that I'd stop going to the movie theater altogether. Why go to a place with bad seats, gum on the floor and punk kids with their cellphones when I have perfection in my living room. THEN, the only way to get people into theaters is cater to the audience types who can't afford Blu-Ray, which means tripling the number of movies like Are We There Yet, Spider-Man 7 and Epic Movie 15. ... So all we'll have to watch on our lovely Blu-Rays are the classics from 2007 and before. ... (p.s. -- I don't know if that rant had a point, but oh well..)

comment #26

Mumbleboy says ...

MS can still make a separate Blu-Ray drive for the 360 and there is no real guarantee that a built in HD drive would have pushed that format over the top. What is guaranteed is that MS would not have won the first battle for gamers, and maybe even the war, if they had released the 360 for that $600 price point with a standard HD drive. MS wasn't the main force behind the creation of the HD-DVD format, unlike sony and the blu-ray, which is why they had to drop the PS3 price so quickly, just to push their blue ray player into more people homes.

And downloadable HD movies will happen so soon that sony won't reap the benefits of winning the next-generation movie format war. And I say all this as someone who was all about the PS2, until MS got the jump on sony.

comment #27

Mumbleboy says ...

Prior post was a reaction to gpcreative and my reaction to Balthazar is that is what the 3D/Real D technology is for. To keep us going to the theater.

comment #28

Balthazar says ...

OK, but do I really want to see a 3D version of There Will Be Blood or No Country For Old Men or an Errol Morris documentary? And what would I pay for such a ticket? Theaters have to remain affordable for the mass audiences. And, again, if I'm spending my monthly discretionary income on Blu-Rays, will I still go to the theater?

comment #29

Mumbleboy says ...

I only paid $9 for Beowolf and, yes, you would want to see 3D versions of those... not with the hackneyed finger in the face - "coming for yooouuuu!!" but for the additional depth of the image (except for maybe the documentary, but those rarely have much of a theatrical life anyways). Especially once the directors begin shooting with 3D in mind. Within the next 18 months or so we will have 3D James Cameron sci-fi action, for goodness sakes.

comment #30

Smurf says ...

BluRay players operate with internet-upgradeable firmware, one benefit of which is that prior libraries of standard DVDs can be played at upscaled progressive resolution-- IF you bother to read your user's manual to access the correct settings. While this is an imperfectly fudged resolution, it allows DVDs to look a heckuva lot better than oldskool 480i - even on a 32" CRT.

Re theater-going, Variety did a story in the mid-90s interviewing industry experts on the future of cinema, and "3D Imax Indiana Jones" was unanimously predicted as the form of crowd-pleasing entertainment that would not disappear anytime soon. My biggest beefs are sloppy staffing (managers whose crews won't bother to ensure quality auditorium experience) and the obnoxious commercials (if we're paying higher ticket prices for "escapist" privileges, why do we get hassled more). Ushers who find kids on cellphones should be allowed to Taser.

comment #31

Smurf says ...

Mumbleboy, it's 24 months til Avatar - Fox pushed it back to allow Cameron to have the Titanic Dec 18th release date 12 years later.

comment #32

Balthazar says ...

Is Greedo going to shoot first in the 12-year anniversary version of Titanic? You KNOW Cameron is going to do all sorts of tinkering.

comment #33

Redmond says ...

There won't be a new dominant physical format. Streaming video is the future. If you have digital cable/satellite, you're one step there. No one is going to rebuild their DVD collection. It's just unfathomable at this stage. In 5-10 years, your favorite films will be downloaded to some form of box. Netflix is working on it right now. I do find this disheartening because I consider my movie collection like a trophy case.

All that being said, I did plunk down on the low model Toshiba HD DVD player and was thoroughly impressed. I basically wanted favorites like Batman Begins, Pan's Labyrinth, etc. with no intention to convert my collection. HD (whether HD DVD or Blu-ray) is that final last leap that DVD just couldn't quite make. There is a difference from standard DVD, and for film nuts, it's like crack.

comment #34

D.Z. says ...

Muckle: Why would you pay $750 for a CD player, even when they were "new"? And who's stupid enough to pay 1/3 that price for a used version? I've got a bridge to sell them.

gp: "HD-DVD would have won if MS would have built them into the XBOX360."

HD-DVD would have won, if MS had built X Box systems which worked and had exclusive games people wanted to play.

mutiny: "Oh, and the unconfirmed rumor du jour is that Blu-Ray backer Apple is preparing it first models with built-in drives to be released in the near future..."

That's not gonna help Apple, unless you can play PC games on their systems.

Balthazar: "THEN, the only way to get people into theaters is cater to the audience types who can't afford Blu-Ray, which means tripling the number of movies like Are We There Yet, Spider-Man 7 and Epic Movie 15. ... So all we'll have to watch on our lovely Blu-Rays are the classics from 2007 and before. ..."

Yeah, and I noted that the WGA strike is going to make the library even more empty for the player for a while.

"OK, but do I really want to see a 3D version of There Will Be Blood or No Country For Old Men or an Errol Morris documentary? And what would I pay for such a ticket? Theaters have to remain affordable for the mass audiences."

I know I don't, but only greedy studios would believe raping our wallets at home and at the theater will stop their declining sales.

Mumble: "MS can still make a separate Blu-Ray drive for the 360 and there is no real guarantee that a built in HD drive would have pushed that format over the top."

Except for the PS2 being Sony's best-selling system primarily because of the player...

"What is guaranteed is that MS would not have won the first battle for gamers, and maybe even the war, if they had released the 360 for that $600 price point with a standard HD drive."

Please. They're still only number two in the U.S. market, and number three in Japan. They might have had a financial edge without the player, but no one's taking their consoles seriously, because they're as defective as their software.

comment #35

Balthazar says ...

Within streaming/downloadable content, will you be able to get (and keep) content with the extras & quality of, say, the Criterions and the Lord of the Rings trilogy? Or will there be no reason anymore for studios to create such dazzling extras?

comment #36

D.Z. says ...

Mumble: "I only paid $9 for Beowolf and, yes, you would want to see 3D versions of those... not with the hackneyed finger in the face - "coming for yooouuuu!!" but for the additional depth of the image"

I saw Beowulf in 2-D, and I wasn't impressed enough to upgrade. It's a poor man's Harryhausen flick, and looking prettier isn't going to change that.

"Within the next 18 months or so we will have 3D James Cameron sci-fi action, for goodness sakes."

And that means something, because...? I mean, the guy hasn't done anything new in over a decade, unless you count that crappy show with Jessica Alba which got canceled after two seasons.

comment #37

le corbeau says ...

And the fact is there's tons of movies that won't ever see the HD upgrade because they'll never be released to begin with, and then the next format comes along..etc etc. I'm somewhat interested to see how Criterion deals with the new formats though.

Criterion has been mastering things in high definition for some time in anticipation (especially important for them because getting your hands on the negative of Threepenny Opera is not as easy as a studio dealing with one of its own movies). But how long before everything that's out now comes out in the next format? Here's one clue-- I have Criterion laserdiscs of Sansho the Bailiff and The Earrings of Madame de..., but where are the DVDs? It's not a rights issue that's holding them up.

That's not gonna help Apple, unless you can play PC games on their systems.

Um, D.Z., I have some news for you about Macs and Windows compatibility...

comment #38

mutinyco says ...

Never said it would help Apple. It was simply a heads up to Apple users. If you're planning on buying a new computer in the next year or so, it might make sense to wait for that.

comment #39

Mumbleboy says ...

Yea! Now I know I'm part of the group... DZ has referenced me and misrepresented/misunderstood what I wrote.

Mumble: "MS can still make a separate Blu-Ray drive for the 360 and there is no real guarantee that a built in HD drive would have pushed that format over the top."

DZ: "Except for the PS2 being Sony's best-selling system primarily because of the player..."

What does that have to do with anything? Yeah, the PS2 is their best seller from the last generation of game systems. What "player" does the PS2 have that you're referring to? And if you meant to say the PS3, then you're wrong for a different reason. The PS2 may be the best selling system as far as total home market saturation goes (to be expected for the length of time its been on the market, since sometime after 2000 and has been selling for around $100 for a while now), but the PS3 doesn't hasn't gotten into nearly as many homes as the 360 has. Of course the Wii sells better than either of them, but I was only referring to High Definition systems.

As far as your second point goes... I should have said "What is guaranteed is that MS would not have won the first battle for NEXT-GEN/HIGH DEF gamers, and maybe even the war, if they had released the 360 for that $600 price point with a standard HD drive."

AND

DZ: I saw Beowulf in 2-D, and I wasn't impressed enough to upgrade. It's a poor man's Harryhausen flick, and looking prettier isn't going to change that.

Yeah, I saw The Wizard of Oz on a black and white TV and I don't see what the big deal is.

Me: "Within the next 18 months or so we will have 3D James Cameron sci-fi action, for goodness sakes."

DZ: And that means something, because...? I mean, the guy hasn't done anything new in over a decade, unless you count that crappy show with Jessica Alba which got canceled after two seasons.

Or if you don't count
Aliens of the Deep (2005)
Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)
... aka Titanic3D: Ghosts of the Abyss (Australia: IMAX version)
Expedition: Bismarck (2002) (TV)
... aka James Cameron's Expedition: Bismarck (USA: DVD title)
Earthship.TV (2001) (TV)

Sorry to anyone other than DZ who is still reading for continuing on the gaming thread. I now understand why the majority of you ignore his/her ramblings, same reason we ignore the mutterings of those wandering the city streets smelling of their own filth.

Oh, and smurf, I didn't know it had been pushed back to that date, but I'm glad I do now. Thanks. But that's why I gave myself some leeway by saying "18 months or so".

comment #40

atticusrex says ...

Shoutout to D.Z.: Dude do some research on your Xbox news. While yes they had problems with machines overheating they did fix that. They also gave all 360 owners a 3 year warranty. But when you said "HD-DVD would have won, if MS had built X Box systems which worked and had exclusive games people wanted to play." I just about fell out of my chair... Let's see... hmmm... Three of the Top games of the year both in terms of sales and reviews were Gears of War, Bio Shock and Halo 3 all Xbox 360 exclusives. Out of the top 10 games released this year only one was exclusive to PS3.

All that said I do hope Xbox puts out a BR add-on I can put it next to there great HD-DVD add-on.

comment #41

taragossip says ...

I am reading a related blog at richromances.com as well. Now the people are talking about it over there.

comment #42

Aguirre says ...

MGMAX... got some good news for ya, the sansho the bailiff criterion disc flagrantly exists. the rest of your point is valid. enjoy.

comment #43

Aguirre says ...

MGMAX... got some good news for ya, the sansho the bailiff criterion DVD flagrantly exists. the rest of your point is valid. enjoy.

comment #44

le corbeau says ...

Hot damn, so it does. Well, we still need lots of Ophuls from them-- Earrings of Madame de... would make my top 20 of all time, I think.

comment #45

rocco says ...

I'm baffled by people who buy a 50"+ screen only to sit 20 feet away or hang it 8 feet off the ground, as though they ENJOY being late to a movie and relegated to the front row...

Sitting more than 3.5x the diagonal away shatters the illusion of the home "theater" and renders higher resolution an unnecessary expense. As other have said, go grab an upconverting player for around 100 bucks.

comment #46

D.Z. says ...

Mgmax: "Um, D.Z., I have some news for you about Macs and Windows compatibility.."

Yes? http://www.gamespite.net/verbalspew/archives/entry_490.php#body

Mumbleboy: "Yeah, I saw The Wizard of Oz on a black and white TV and I don't see what the big deal is."

Bull. Beowulf doesn't have likable characters or memorable moments like Oz. It's just another sword-and-sandals flick in 3-D. Next, you'll be telling me that Charlie Wilson's War is this decade's Citizen Kane.

"Or if you don't count
Aliens of the Deep (2005)
Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)
... aka Titanic3D: Ghosts of the Abyss (Australia: IMAX version)
Expedition: Bismarck (2002) (TV)
... aka James Cameron's Expedition: Bismarck (USA: DVD title)
Earthship.TV (2001) (TV)"

No one saw those movies, because they were more interested in LOTR.

atticus: "Dude do some research on your Xbox news. While yes they had problems with machines overheating they did fix that. They also gave all 360 owners a 3 year warranty."

The company shouldn't have to fix them or provide a warranty that soon.

"But when you said "HD-DVD would have won, if MS had built X Box systems which worked and had exclusive games people wanted to play." I just about fell out of my chair... Let's see... hmmm... Three of the Top games of the year both in terms of sales and reviews were Gears of War, Bio Shock and Halo 3 all Xbox 360 exclusives."

You can get Gears of War on Mac or PC, and Bioshock on PC. Halo 3's the only exclusive, and that's not worth a $450 defective system without a
player. Not from a company worth ten times more than Sony.

comment #47

Balthazar says ...

Will Blu-Ray run my Infocom games? That's the only computer-game action I'm looking for. Planetfall me in glorious resolution, baby!

comment #48

Mumbleboy says ...

Oh no, not again.

DZ: Bull. Beowulf doesn't have likable characters or memorable moments like Oz. It's just another sword-and-sandals flick in 3-D. Next, you'll be telling me that Charlie Wilson's War is this decade's Citizen Kane.

The Beowolf (3D)/Oz (Technicolor) comparison was about the technology and how watching in an inferior system won't allow for appreciation of said technology, not the content. As was the original post was about 3D, to which you responded "I saw Beowulf in 2-D, and I wasn't impressed"

And it wasn't about who saw what, but what Cameron had been up to. Remember what you wrote: "DZ: And that means something, because...? I mean, the guy hasn't done anything new in over a decade"... As if he would lose his filmmaking skills, even if he had taken a decade off.

I'm sure if you took a decade off of posting, you would still be just as poignant. Sarcasm!

Me: No, that tin foil hat won't keep out the mind control rays, Mr Poopy Pants.

DZ/Mr. Poopy Pants: I like cheese!

AND, more people were waiting to buy a 360 for Halo 3 than have bought a PS3 for the games it offers. I repeat... for the games it offers.

comment #49

D.Z. says ...

Mumble: "The Beowolf (3D)/Oz (Technicolor) comparison was about the technology and how watching in an inferior system won't allow for appreciation of said technology, not the content. As was the original post was about 3D, to which you responded "I saw Beowulf in 2-D, and I wasn't impressed"

That's still a shitty analogy, because Oz was a little bit more than just changing the fucking color scheme, and you know it.

"And it wasn't about who saw what, but what Cameron had been up to. Remember what you wrote: "DZ: And that means something, because...? I mean, the guy hasn't done anything new in over a decade"..."

That's still not really anything Jacques Cousteau
couldn't have done. By anything, I meant in the realm of entertainment, not infotainment.

"AND, more people were waiting to buy a 360 for Halo 3 than have bought a PS3 for the games it offers."

That changed after the price drop for the PS3...

comment #50

Mumbleboy says ...

The first one to lower themselves to cursing during a debate is the one who knows they have lost.

DZ: That's still a ______ analogy, because Oz was a little bit more than just changing the _______ color scheme, and you know it.

You're right... it had songs and your little dog too.

DZ: By anything, I meant in the realm of entertainment, not infotainment.

And it's not until your third Cameron comment that you backtrack to restate what your first two statements were arguing.

DZ: That's still not really anything Jacques Cousteau
couldn't have done.

Sure, if Cousteau was alive and had filmmaking/storytelling talent on par with JC. Heck, George Washington could have done it too, if only he had been born James Cameron.

AND, no, they are only buying more PS3 after the price drop because it has a blu ray player, not for the games.

Forget what I said before about ignoring DZ. This is kind of fun.

comment #51

D.Z. says ...

Mumble: "The first one to lower themselves to cursing during a debate is the one who knows they have lost."

Only when you curse other people.

"You're right... it had songs and your little dog too."

Um, no. It had set designs which were ahead of their time. By your logic, Ted Turner's colored versions of B+W films are the same thing.

"And it's not until your third Cameron comment that you backtrack to restate what your first two statements were arguing."

Who cares? You still lose, because those still don't count as anything.

"Sure, if Cousteau was alive and had filmmaking/storytelling talent on par with JC."

You mean Cousteau should've plagiarized his narratives from Harlan Ellison?

"AND, no, they are only buying more PS3 after the price drop because it has a blu ray player, not for the games."

Yeah, no one wants Metal Gear Solid 4.

comment #52

lipranzer says ...

As a video store employee (yeah, I know, endangered species), I'm watching the battle between HD and Blu-Ray with interest. Given how things are, we haven't jumped on the bandwagon of either side, but if we stay open, and Blu-Ray does eventually win out, we'll probably get some Blu-Ray DVDs. I've never watched a DVD on either format, so I'm curious to see how it works.

Oh, and Mgmax, I completely agree re Ophuls, though I've seen a few of them available for Region 2 players. Along with Earrings of Madame De, I'd love to have Letter From an Unknown Woman, Caught, La Ronde, and Reckless Moment finally be on DVD.

comment #53

Mumbleboy says ...

All responses to DZ.

So, it didn't have songs and a little dog? No, by my logic, using outdated tech to watch new tech doesn't allow you to give opinion on the new tech. And I don't mean pocap, but the RealD tech. Quit trying to change the argument. It's called reading comprehension. Look into it.

Anything=entertainment not infotainment? Sure. if seeing worlds outside your normal realm isn't entertaining to you.

No, I mean Cousteau is dead and can't do what Cameron did because he is still alive and working.

And when does MGS4 come out again? By your logic, people are buying those systems now, just waiting for it to come out.

comment #54

Craig Kennedy says ...

I'm no videophile (and I don't play one on TV), but I don't believe the cannard that HiDef DVDs on anything less than 50" TVs don't make a difference. Perhaps if you're sitting 20 feet from your screen.

I live in an apartment. I sit relatively close to my screen. For a year I was waching upscaled DVDs which looked fantastic. Then I bought a PS3 last summer and have been renting BluRay from Netflix.

You can tell the difference and you won't want to go back to regular DVDs, even on smaller screens.

I don't plan on actually buying DVDs since I think the technology is just a stepping stone.

comment #55

Craig Kennedy says ...

But why would you listen to a guy who doesn't now how to spell 'canard'?

comment #56

D.Z. says ...

"So, it didn't have songs and a little dog?"

Yes, but it was more than that.

"No, by my logic, using outdated tech to watch new tech doesn't allow you to give opinion on the new tech."

Why not? I've seen plenty of digital films on crappy projectors and decent projectors, and they look mediocre either way. If you can't sell me on a new experience, I don't care if it looks pretty.

"Anything=entertainment not infotainment? Sure. if seeing worlds outside your normal realm isn't entertaining to you."

I've seen a documentary in IMAX, and the boredom you get after you realize you can watch the same thing on The Discovery Channel is why the chain almost went bankrupt.

"No, I mean Cousteau is dead and can't do what Cameron did because he is still alive and working."

He'd been doing what Cameron did long before him, though.

"And when does MGS4 come out again?"

Sooner than MS will be filing for bankruptcy, unfortunately.

"By your logic, people are buying those systems now, just waiting for it to come out."

Yep, and?

comment #57

Bob Violence says ...

Upscaling would be interlaced, since NTSC DVDs are 29.97.

It's pretty trivial (at least these days) to deinterlace a film-sourced NTSC encode and obtain a progressive signal, hence the proliferation of progressive scan players on the market. (See this for a more detailed explanation.) I doubt there is now or has ever been an upscaling player that can't perform this operation (and yes, there are plenty of players that upscale all the way to 1080p, although the quality varies depending on the hardware and the source material).

comment #58

mutinyco says ...

I understand all that. I permanently keep the 'de-interlace' on my computer where I watch most of my movies. It looks fine. But, as the movies were originally shot at 24fps, then converted into an interlaced 60-field 29.97 fps, even if you translate that to progressive something's rotten in Denmark. You know?

comment #59

christian says ...

I don't care.

comment #60

moviemaniac2002 says ...

Now that format tide has been turned, I'd buy a
Blu-Ray under the following two conditions:

1.That the last scoop of dirt is finally thrown on HD-DVD's coffin, signifying that all these greedy corporations have realized the consumer public would never support two formats.

2. Blu-Ray players and discs quickly plummet down to affordable prices, so us working stiffs stop thinking of them rich-folk's hi-tech toys.

comment #61

frankbooth says ...

Something I've been meaning to ask one of you Blu-Ray/HD people:

How much better do night scenes (or blacks in general) and elements like fog look, compared to DVD? Is there a noticeable improvement in terms of posterization and aliasing and all that stuff?

comment #62

carla kolchak says ...

50 inches? Why stop there?

comment #63

Mr. Muckle says ...

DZ: Why a $750 CD player? To go with the $3500 tube amplifier and $4500 speakers. You don't know anything about audiophiles, do you? That's all cheap for an audiophile. Rent a copy of Stereophile sometime. What, do you listen to music on a goddam iPod? Know nothing about how much quality costs? Know quality when it hits you in the face?

Comment on what you know. A harsh discipline, natch.

comment #64

jv66 says ...

Hey Jeff, don't forget that your Blue-Ray will upsample your regular dvds to either 1080i or 1080p depending on which type of tv you get. Trust me the difference between 480p to 1080i/p is very nice indeed. I got the Sony BDP 500 which sells for about 600$ and i'm very satisfied with it. Bottom line is don't worry about replacing all those dvds you have with Blue-rays.

comment #65

D.Z. says ...

Muckle: Most audiophiles would build their own speakers for a fraction of the price.

comment #66

Mr. Muckle says ...

Complete nonsense, D.Z. You still haven't seen an issue of Stereophile, have you? No one builds stuff any more. You can't duplicate the high end that way. Back in the day of Popular Mechanics, maybe, people built Dynaco amps. They don't hold a candle to the esoteric stuff nowadays. You might as well talk about building your own HD TV. Think you could cobble together an HDMI cable even?

comment #67

Jay T. says ...

I finally gave in a few months back and bought a Blu-Ray player, figuring they'd win the battle.

Oh, and Jeff, the LCD flatscreen is WORTH the money, more so than upgrading your DVD player. I highly recommend the 40" LCD HDTVs by Samsung.

comment #68

Jay T. says ...

"How much better do night scenes (or blacks in general) and elements like fog look, compared to DVD? Is there a noticeable improvement in terms of posterization and aliasing and all that stuff?"

Pretty much everything looks just a little bit better, but what you describe is someting I noticed was particularly improved.

comment #69

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