Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Blu-Ray Vs HD-DVD: Let's Call It A Draw!

Gamespot is reporting that lost sales due to the current DVD Format War by studios that only offer one format or the other will soon mean that everyone will provide both. I'm not 100% sure I buy the logic quoted there (sourced from Screen Digest) but what I really want to know is:

Will we soon get to the point where all DVD players that handle one HD format also handle the other?

Because when that happens - if in fact there isn't a clear cut winner between the two formats - then I really won't care which one I buy, and would in fact probably just opt for the cheaper or more readily-available one on a per-DVD basis. Right now spending money on Blu-Ray DVDs just seems silly.

1 comment:

cjguerra said...

Two years ago a sales-droid tried to get my mom to by an HD-capable TV that they were going to use as a spare movie-screener at their cottage. She asked me if it was a good idea and I told her then that there wasn't a way to play movies in HD quality and it would be several years before it got worked out. I wish they'd get on with it.

Time Warner is also going to try and release dual-format discs - one disc with both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD on it. Would cost a bit more than buying one format or the other.

HD-DVD looks like it will hit the magic $200/player mark sooner, so that may push things one way. The HD-DVD group is paying some studios for exclusive access.

All in all, it's pretty silly. Oh, and a 3rd format is about to enter the market. Fun.