Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

macgeek2005 · Mar 1, 2007, 09:20 PM

How long is it gonna take before we know which is gonna become the standard platform? I wanna start upgrading to HD, but I don't know what format to buy in. When will one of them start dying already??

Cadaver · Mar 2, 2007, 07:23 PM

Blu-Ray movies outsell HD-DVD two to one.

brokenjago · Mar 2, 2007, 08:10 PM

Do they? I thought HD-DVD was topping Amazon's bet selling list.

macgeek2005 · Mar 2, 2007, 08:48 PM

But the fact is, within a year, one of them wont be selling at all, correct? They can't both stay alive forever. I wish I could know which one is gonna win in the end....

kamina · Mar 3, 2007, 01:39 AM

Atleast in a years time the situation will seem a lot clearer then it does now. It won't be clear before one of them is selling large amounts of cheapish players. With the current prices it does not matter which one is selling more, as neither is selling a lot..

brokenjago · Mar 3, 2007, 01:49 AM

Well, the PS3 should significantly drive market penetration of Blu-Ray.

Over 2 million PS3s have been sold, meaning there are at least 2 million Blu-Ray players out there, which is undoubtedly more than what HD-DVD has.

kamina · Mar 3, 2007, 03:18 AM

How many dvd-players are there out there? I don't know anyone with a ps3 (yet), so it's not quite common yet. I don't care which one "wins", but the battle is far from over.

macgeek2005 · Mar 3, 2007, 01:20 PM

Alright then i'll just sit back and wait. When I can buy a Blu-Ray/HD-DVD burner for my computer for $100 or less, then i'll buy it, and begin buying movies in HD. I guess it's not the end of the world if at first I still watch most movies on DVD. I'll switch over slowly as I buy movies.

Thanks guys.

Leonard · Mar 3, 2007, 10:23 PM

Originally Posted by macgeek2005

But the fact is, within a year, one of them wont be selling at all, correct? They can't both stay alive forever. I wish I could know which one is gonna win in the end....

Sure they can both coexist and they probably will. DVD-R and DVD+R coexist.

Just look at this Samsung prepares Blu-ray, HD DVD combo drive or this LG's hybrid Blu-ray/HD DVD standalone drive coming soon - Engadget

macgeek2005 · Mar 4, 2007, 12:06 AM

Originally Posted by Leonard

Sure they can both coexist and they probably will. DVD-R and DVD+R coexist.

Just look at this Samsung prepares Blu-ray, HD DVD combo drive or this LG's hybrid Blu-ray/HD DVD standalone drive coming soon - Engadget

So how can I begin to convert my setup right now? What would you recommend I get? Should I wait for that player? It says it's SATA, but my Optical Drive bays are not SATA. They're IDE.

Also, at what point will I have to upgrade my video card and monitor?

The reason i'm getting nervous about this is because it's reaching the point where some of the movies i'm buying are available on Blu-Ray/HD-DVD already, and I feel like i'm buying a previous generation. I'd like to buy Babel and The Departed on an HD format if my computer could just play them.

Cadaver · Mar 4, 2007, 12:18 AM

Originally Posted by macgeek2005

Also, at what point will I have to upgrade my video card and monitor?

If you want to watch hi-def movies (Blu-Ray or HD-DVD) on your personal computer, you will need a monitor that supports digital content protection (either via an HDMI port or HDCP on the DVI port) as well as a complient video card.

So for most people, that does mean a new monitor and video card.

Of course, since there are no HD software players for the Mac at the moment, there's certainly no rush. Though FYI, Apple is a Blu-Ray supporter.

macgeek2005 · Mar 4, 2007, 12:26 AM

Originally Posted by Cadaver

If you want to watch hi-def movies (Blu-Ray or HD-DVD) on your personal computer, you will need a monitor that supports digital content protection (either via an HDMI port or HDCP on the DVI port) as well as a complient video card.

So for most people, that does mean a new monitor and video card.

Of course, since there are no HD software players for the Mac at the moment, there's certainly no rush. Though FYI, Apple is a Blu-Ray supporter.

Don't you think Apple will find a way to integrate HDCP support inside a future version of DVD player, so that people won't have to upgrade?

Can I plug a normal Blu-Ray player (such as a PS3), into my computer, and play Blu-Ray discs that way?

Wouldn't there be a way to play a Blu-Ray disc, even though theres no software? Couldn't you just get inside the disc and open the media up in VLC or Quicktime or something?

el chupacabra · Mar 4, 2007, 01:03 AM

Originally Posted by brokenjago

Do they? I thought HD-DVD was topping Amazon's bet selling list.

You should recheck that The Product Wars fought on Amazon.com

In any case you should probably just wait, the longer you wait the better they should be learning to encode movies; better, cheaper players too. Right now companies are sort of half assing their movies just to get them out the door.

Probably don't want to accidently buy any movies in VC1 codec and sadly this codec is polluting its way to blu ray too..

macintologist · Mar 4, 2007, 01:04 AM

The movie industry can suck it. I've invested a lot of money in my DVDs and it is a perfectly acceptable format. No. really. It's not like VHS to DVD. That was huge. This is different. I am NOT buying into this HD hype. No way.

macgeek2005 · Mar 4, 2007, 10:15 AM

Originally Posted by macintologist

The movie industry can suck it. I've invested a lot of money in my DVDs and it is a perfectly acceptable format. No. really. It's not like VHS to DVD. That was huge. This is different. I am NOT buying into this HD hype. No way.

If you have a screen smaller than 30" or so, then you're absolutely right. I'm not even sure why I care so much about it. DVD's look almost the same as HD on my 23" screen, with Apple DVD Player upscaling it as nicely as it does. I guess i'm just thinking about the future.. if I buy too many DVD's now, it will inevitably, eventually become obsolete.