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2.7 million: 700,000 players is roughly the ratio, and don’t even get started on actual disc sales. Sure, you could argue for HD-DVD and say that 2 million plus of those players are PS3s, making the HD-DVD numbers seem more real, and for the most part that would be a fair assumption that PS3 owners aren’t buying Blu-Ray discs, but they are.
And yes, before you ask, the HD-DVD player number includes the Xbox 360 attachment, but I won’t offer to eliminate that number for two reasons, the first, I don’t know what it is. The second is because a good argument could be made that they would have only bought the attachment to play HD-DVDs, not for anything else such as gaming.
The disc sales are a pretty poor number too with both lying organizations claiming what they’ve sold, whether it’s true or not, I do not know, but the BDA is claiming 4 million discs of theirs sold, and the HD-DVD people are claiming 2.5 million discs of theirs sold. So, in summation, if the low, very low prices of HD-DVD players don’t start helping pick up the slack, HD-DVD might lose this war after all. I don’t have a personal preference or prejudice against either, I have never seen one or the other being played, and I’d buy a player, but I don’t have an HDTV, so that would be kind of pointless, no? I do like rooting for the underdog though, so I am hoping that HD-DVD will pull out of their slump and at least give the BDA a run for their money, make them lower their player prices a bit more.
US Blu-Ray Disc player sales pass 2.7m [via reghardware]
“I do like rooting for the underdog though, so I am hoping that HD-DVD will pull out of their slump”
Why? Why the hell would you want this format war to continue?
DO NOT SUPPORT HD-DVD ANY MORE. END THIS MESS NOW.
“I have never seen one or the other being played, and I’d buy a player, but I don’t have an HDTV, so that would be kind of pointless, no?”
This article is pretty pointless, no? You have no experience with either format, and say you have no prejudice against either, yet your title contradicts that statement. Scratching my head as to what the point was for writing this.
This article IS pointless, except, that you said that Blu-Ray suck, you don’t know why, buy it sucks.
I will tell you why Blu-Ray Sucks aBig Time:
1) Blu-Ray have more content than HD-DVD
2) Blu-Ray have more Gig than HD-DVD
3) Blu-Ray is the only one to have annonced to support 3D video
4) Blu-Ray can have interactive content, HD-DVD don’t
5) Blu-Ray can play on a PlayStation 3, HD-DVD don’t
6) Blu-Ray burner are cheaper and easier to find than HD-DVD burner
7) Blu-Ray support are cheaper and easier to find than HD-DVD burner
May be you can add something here !
Don’t back HD-DVD! Read this below excerpt from PC Advisor:
“Michael Bay - director of Transformers and Armageddon - was asked by a visitor to his website why his films were being released on HD-DVD rather than Blu-ray, which the user said was more popular in the UK due to its inclusion in Sony’s PlayStation 3 (PS3) console.
“What you don’t understand is corporate politics,” replied Bay. “Microsoft wants both formats to fail so they can be heroes and make the world move to digital downloads. That is the dirty secret no one is talking about.”
Not stopped there, Bay added that Microsoft is handing out $100m dollar checks to studios which embrace HD-DVD and not the “superior” Blu Ray. “They want confusion in the market until they perfect the digital downloads,” he said. “Time will tell and you will see the truth.”
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/new.....wsid=11540
I’m old enough to remember when Beta was the only VCR format. And when VHS arrived, Beta was superior in every measurable specification, especially sound quality. It still lost to VHS for consumers (but is only now being supplanted by digital - hard drives - as the media of choice for professionals). The lesson learned is that the better format does not always prevail, it also has to be the cheapest. Sony learned that lesson the hard way with Beta, and I am willing to bet they are prepared to do what ever it takes to make Blue Ray the only viable format in end.
Well Wayne, your partially wrong.
Beta lost because you could only record max 1 hour on the dang thing. Analyst have criticized it saying, hell you can’t even record 1 football game on that thing.
Blu-ray is different, space is no issue up to 50GB and still more studio’s backing the format. HD-DVD only has 2 studios backing it.
I support blu-ray, did you read my previous post about Microsoft giving HD-DVD backers money to prolong the format war so it can comeout with their “perfected” download format? Don’t be a microsoft tool just back Blu-ray.
Yeah because Michael Bay is a credible source. Some of his rants on this issue are laughable. These formats will co-exist for a long time yet, get both.
Why is it laughable? Once Paramount decided to go HD-DVD, Michael Bay was vocally against it even stating to the press he does not want Transformers to be released on HD-DVD, that is until Paramount had a talk with him. As the studio that backed the Transformers movie Michael Bay has to comply with the studio’s wishes.
It is well known Paramount received $150 million dollars to change to HD-DVD, $50 million from Toshiba, and $100 million from Microsoft.
Microsoft has publicly indicated they will not fully back either format until they feel there is a clear winner despite a HD-DVD player attachment for Xbox 360, which they do not fully back nor advertise.
What Michael Bay is indicating is his personal frustration with corporations and their mind-games they play. Microsoft has been focusing on their Xbox Live TV show, and movie download catalog, with little to no endorsement from HD-DVD, yet funneling money to studios like Paramount to switch sides to prevent Blu-ray from winning.
This is typical Microsoft Tactic, its an insurance policy.
Microsoft had stated before launch of the original Xbox, their main goal was to counter Sony’s dominance of having a media center in everyone’s home. So they launched the Xbox just so they can prevent Sony from taking over the market and establishing a Media centric system everywhere, like their Windows in almost every PC tactic.
“I don’t have a personal preference or prejudice against either” but the title says Blu-ray sucks! mmmmm
Anyway I disagree as I have a PS3 and a Sony Blu-Ray player and like many of my friends weenjoy the superd picture quality and sound. I dont care who wins but I do think Blu-Ray is winning right now, I dont know anyone who has HDDVD, yet I know more than 10 people with a standalone Blu-ray player and many more with a PS3.
Obviously I am on the side of Blu-Ray - thankfully :)
Blu Ray does suck. Problem is people buying HD players whether Blu Ray or HD DVD are uninformed on the important problems in both formats:
Both formats are too restrictive! Well HD DVD at least has Managed Copying — DRM with some fair use provisions but Sony’s Blu Ray is the most draconian DRM system to date. I oppose any and all DRM — that’s why I have held of updating my PC to Windows Vista that has DRM (see http://www.badvista.org for details), I would never update to Vista because I don’t agree with its End User License Agreement. With each new version of Windows Microsoft makes the operating system more proprietary and restrictive than the last. Aside from Microsoft Sony is also one of the worst anti-consumer companies around. In their zeal for money their greed has been their own undoing. Rather than creating products consumers will like and benefit from Sony instead makes products to dumb consumers down with DRM.
They have ruined their own reputation and killed their brand, effectively leading all their fans to ditch them. I used to be a Sony fan but am now anti Sony.
Remember the root-kits in Sony BMG music CDs? Remember the battery recall for laptops with Sony batteries including but not limited to Sony laptops (other vendors manufacturing laptops that use Sony batteries were also affected including Apple whose PowerBook G4s and earlier laptops with a Sony battery had problems) and Sony refused to even recognize there was a problem and to issue a recall for all defective batteries they made even for non Sony laptops until they had to recall batteries for their own laptops.
Remember the Memory Stick? VHS versus Betamax? Sony has always been on the losing side as they impose tighter DRM. The only reason Blu Ray seems to be doing well is more studios are supporting it exclusively over HD DVD — there are more Blu Ray only titles because these studios being just as greedy as Sony want to use the most restrictive format they can. I think any logical consumer aware of the DRM issue would if possible choose HD DVD over Blu Ray every time asked to choose a side.
I still wouldn’t want to be an early adopter and throw in my support for HD DVD either just yet because it too has a tough DRM to crack but its not as tough as Blu Ray. What’s more Blu Ray has a mechanism that if its DRM is cracked it will update itself to re-install the DRM and this time the DRM will be tighter and it can disable access to the content if the DRM is cracked.
They are fighting a worthless battle anything you can see or hear can be used. If I can hear the audio on a song I can copy it to any device I want. The only way they can make DRM work is if they disable access completely.
If you buy music as long as you can hear it you can pirate it — that is if you want to pirate it nothing stops you from doing so as far as technology is involved.
Technology should not be developed to restrict advancement of technology. Technologies should improve in the consumer’s favor. Music companies will never completely recoup all the lost revenue from declining music CD sales via digital music sales because now consumers armed with the ability to buy singles won’t pay for entire albums anymore — your not obligated to buy the entire album to get just one song.
The groups trying to enforce DRM are fighting a losing battle and consumers and hackers are on the winning side. I don’t support piracy but I support hackers who are trying to protect fair use.
I don’t like hackers who would hack into computer systems to do harm but hackers who hack technology to make it work better are great people. I support hackers who hack Apple’s iPhone to free it from AT&T. However, if hackers attempt to maliciously cause harm to iPhone or a computer I would not support such unethical and illegal behavior.
I would support Sony’s Play Station 2 that was a good game system but because of the Blu Ray DRM shenanigans I will boycott PS3. Besides its too expensive — yes they are bringing the price down with price cuts but that’s only because it wasn’t selling at its original price and it was priced so high because Blu Ray had been too expensive to manufacture.
Also I would buy a game system for games first, movie playback second. I don’t like XBox 1 or XBox 360 but I would prefer 360 over PS3 for the reason that it lets you choose to get the system with or without HD DVD. Buying without HD DVD is cheaper than with it and the fact that both options are available is good for the consumer.
I don’t like the Red Ring of Death in XBox 360 anymore than I like Windows Blue Screen of Death. At present I just play games on the computer in Windows, Macintosh or Linux.
As for console gaming my only option other than the corrupt Micro$oft and corrupt Sony is Nintendo and so I have a Wii. It is fun to play and goes have great graphics — its not a high powered performance system though and lacks entertainment center features. However it makes up for that with fun and innovative games and has an innovative controller.
Sony wants PS3 owners who have PS2 games to just keep playing them on PS2. They don’t understand the importance of convergence. I like that Nintendo’s Wii Virtual Console addresses the need of convergence and Nintendo studied why consumers use emulators to play older games not available on newer systems and sought to provide old games on its current system to eliminate the need for emulators. Rather than trying to kill emulators and ignoring the need to play old games (thus risking hurting its reputation) Nintendo decided to listen to customers and maintain a good reputation with them.
Even Microsoft’s XBox 360 with its Live Marketplace will soon sell XBox 1 games via download to the 360 hard drive to play old games.
Microsoft provides XBox for 2 reasons though 1 because every console sold equals one less reason to buy a new PC running Windows and second the fear of consoles gaining the same abilities as a PC — imagine a console like those made by Sony becoming PCs — the threat of consoles with PC capabilities independent of Microsoft was and is a threat to them. PS2 scared Microsoft they want gamers locked to Windows and DirectX to make it harder for PCs not running Windows to advance in game making and playback and don’t want a console to undercut Windows gaming market share.
As for the Blu Ray issue as I said earlier I don’t want to be an early adopter and I don’t want to support Blu Ray or any Sony format. For more info see http://www.defectivebydesign.org for boycott against DRM. Also http://www.hdboycott.com — Boycott HD Formats using AACS!
Both formats are for a niche market and it is doubtful either will be a ’success’; Joe Sixpack will not go out and re-purchase the movies he has on DVD in HD format as 90% of the world cannot tell the difference between HD and upsampled HD (unless they have a 70+ inch 1080p TV and they are sitting about 4′ away from it).
That said, it looks like there is a new Toshiba HD-A3 under my Christmas tree at the moment; I guess will be buying a few HD DVDs movie before both formats fade into obscurity…
Why blu-ray suck!!!!
I think the one that sales less movies is suck. The reason it’s suck because nobody wants it. Well that would be HD-DVD.
I haven’t ever seen both of these, I would think you would have to have the biggest screen possible to get the best out of those DVDs. I still prefer movies when they have big screens.
Denis:
“4) Blu-Ray can have interactive content, HD-DVD don’t”
This is blatantly untrue. In fact, the HD DVD specification enforced interactivity right from the beginning. The Blu-ray specification including interactivity has only just (October 31st, 2007) become mandatory.
Go Blue-Ray Go LOL Microsoft
Am I the only one that sees that the Blueray picture is a little too clear. It looks like everything is CGI.I cant believe that no one else is noticing this. Movies should look like real life ( the way hd does ) not computerised fake crap. Everything on the blueray pics look fake and layered. Its true that they are very clear images, but Im sure that they digitally enhance the image somehow and I can definitley tell. It doesn’t look like film, it doesn’t look like the theatre image and this is one case where clearer is not better. The next time you watch your blue ray, notice how weird things look, especially the movements.
i don’t know which movie you watch but if that’s the artifacts you seeing, it has little or probably nothing to do with either Format but your display refreshing rate or excessive uses of CGI in the movie, by the studio. I have the ‘300′ in both Format and it’s as heavily edited to reflect the grainy and film looks, both appear to be similar to my eyes.
Imaballa writes:
“Beta lost because you could only record max 1 hour on the dang thing. Analyst have criticized it saying, hell you can’t even record 1 football game on that thing.”
That might have been true in the 70s, but in the 80s you could record 1, 3, or 5 hours on a Beta tape, depending on speed setting, while VHS recorded 2, 4, or 6 hours. VHS had only a marginal edge on recording time, but it’s cassettes were also bulkier. The outcome of the VHS/Beta format war, much like the recent format war, has more to do with business & marketing strategies, cost and availablility of players, compatibility, etc, than with the inherent superiority of either format.