HD or Blu ray

[spiritus]

I'm still of the opinion that Blu-Ray is taking off. The studios (-porn industry apparently) support it more (only major one studio is exclusive HD).
Plus the name seems to have stuck more if you listen to the press. I'm not buying yet though, not for a long while, and wouldn't recomend anyone does yeat till it's been settled properly with all studios releasing on one or the other.

Love your point and out of context even more made me giggle, my mind has a life of it's own.. :g:
but serious: a HD-DVD player for 99$ would be like omg and allmost cheaper than my crappy dvd player :woot2:

[GhostMjr]

I went in a local blockbuster and i could only find blu ray discs to rent. I hope blu ray wins though. Imagine 50gb on a disk

[kregoron]

imagine this http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20050608/105586/050608_hvc1.jpg
just with 30 times the amount of that card

[T-Bag]

After the Blu Ray/HD battle it's probably going to be a battle for the format which govens the flash memory which is the next battle. SD, Micro SD, Compact flash etc. I can't see it being to long till flash drives are big enough and cheap enough to replace optical media. Oh the joys of replacing expensive computer components regularly.

[delanvital]

Any update on this? what to buy? I haven't been in the loop and is part of a present that might be either or...

[GhostMjr]

Recent news in this sector seems to be that combi drives will soon be out for the pc. So fingers crossed for a Christmas release .

[delanvital]

Recent news in this sector seems to be that combi drives will soon be out for the pc. So fingers crossed for a Christmas release .

Cheers, will try and spot one of those

[kregoron]

I think i saw somewhere LG would have some ready for late november, just in time for the christmas sales

[Dr Sadako]

I would wait and see until the porn industry decides what format to use. We know from the VHS/Betamax/Video2000 war back in the 80s that VHS won because of the porn industry. Even though both Betamax and Video 2000 were superior products in every aspect.
Also, is HD or Bluray the next format? Considering the sizes of flash memories and their falling prices they really need to pick up the pace.

[kregoron]

The porn industry seems to be settling on HD dvd, and sounds like MS is settling for that now also, because of its low manufacturing cost compared to Bluray.
Tho i agree with sadako, HD dvd and Bluray might end up loosing both, if they dont start kicking up the progress or they will be left behind by Flashmemory chips or cards like the Optware holo cards..

[Luminance]

Ditto

tritto

[delanvital]

I would wait and see until the porn industry decides what format to use. We know from the VHS/Betamax/Video2000 war back in the 80s that VHS won because of the porn industry.

That is a myth:

"Many theories regarding why Sony's Betamax failed have arisen over the years. One of the more amusing (and false) is that Sony refused to allow pornographic material on their system. A quick perusal of the Betamax library reveals that adult entertainment was readily available. For example, Playboy Industries released their videos in a dual format, both Betamax and VHS, for most of the 1970s and 80s (and can be confirmed with a quick search through Ebay's adult section, or other used video markets). Second, the adult industry is too small to have any lasting impact on standards selection. According to Forbes.com, adult video income is approximately $1 billion. "The industry is tiny next to broadcast television ($32.3 billion in 1999), cable television ($45.5 billion), the newspaper business ($27.5 billion), Hollywood ($31 billion), even to professional and educational publishing ($14.8 billion). When one really examines the numbers, the porn industry â€" while a subject of fascination â€" is every bit as marginal as it seems at first glance." [2]"

[Dr Sadako]

That is a myth:
 
"Many theories regarding why Sony's Betamax failed have arisen over the years. One of the more amusing (and false) is that Sony refused to allow pornographic material on their system. A quick perusal of the Betamax library reveals that adult entertainment was readily available. For example, Playboy Industries released their videos in a dual format, both Betamax and VHS, for most of the 1970s and 80s (and can be confirmed with a quick search through Ebay's adult section, or other used video markets). Second, the adult industry is too small to have any lasting impact on standards selection. According to Forbes.com, adult video income is approximately $1 billion. "The industry is tiny next to broadcast television ($32.3 billion in 1999), cable television ($45.5 billion), the newspaper business ($27.5 billion), Hollywood ($31 billion), even to professional and educational publishing ($14.8 billion). When one really examines the numbers, the porn industry â€" while a subject of fascination â€" is every bit as marginal as it seems at first glance." [2]"

Sure this might be right but why don't they give the reason for the VHS victory? I believe it when I see a better source than wikipedia.
 
 I never said that porn wasn't released on Betamax/video 2000. However, in a documentary I saw about VHS the porn industry was credited as one of the factors that increased VHS success.
 
The figures presented are interesting ... today, but back in the 70s 80s I would believe it was much different. I don't remember being able to rent (or buy for that matter) TV shows to any larger extent. The big figures presented I would credit to all people buying their DVDs. Back in the 70s no one owned the original movie.

[delanvital]

Sure this might be right but why don't they give the reason for the VHS victory? I believe it when I see a better source than wikipedia.
 
 I never said that porn wasn't released on Betamax/video 2000. However, in a documentary I saw about VHS the porn industry was credited as one of the factors that increased VHS success.
 
The figures presented are interesting ... today, but back in the 70s 80s I would believe it was much different. I don't remember being able to rent (or buy for that matter) TV shows to any larger extent. The big figures presented I would credit to all people buying their DVDs. Back in the 70s no one owned the original movie.

I am sorry I forgot the link to Wikipedia btw.

There are plenty of other, much more reliable explanations, Doc. This has to be one of the most studies cases of advanced strategy ever. I had this in an advanced strategy course and there are several that explains this much much better and in extreme detail. Just google about and you will find loads of articles and references in this.

I like the study by Liebowitz, I can dig it up if you want in paper, but what he mentions is this IIRC:

BetaMax did not have that vastly superior performance to the average user. It had the crosstalk improvement, faster loading and well-designed loading mechanics allowing for future improvements here but not the lead that i think some people give it. VHS machines were smaller (and much more adequate for rental shops) and had advantages in larger size tape giving better running time/quality ratio - some even say VHS produced better quality as the machines quickly mimicked the advantages of Sony's - I have articles backing this up in paper somewhere around here.

Key though has to be Sony's faulty idea of a 1 hr but smaller tape being better than JVC's bigger but 2 hours tape. It turned out the average consumer did not care as much about the size and maybe minor better quality, as about the capacity. VHS lad the lead in capacity all the way and when you could have a whole American football game on one tape you would prefer a VHS.

Distribution - Sony's was sold in high-street shops only, VHS was spread more out in other shops. VHS was in better supply, BetaMax could happen to have waiting lists.

VHS was the one you rented on in video rental shops, this was a planned strategy from SelectaVision (in the US). People did not want to buy a machine yet, when there was such a standard war going on, and they decided to rent, especially with the machines being pricey. With VHS being the option this quickly increased the possibilites of what to rent on VHS, compared to BetaMax. (Edit: I cant remember the right figures, but I think VHS got a 70-80% share of the rental market in absolute no-time).

BetaMax was introduced in 75 or 76 I think. SelectVision introduced VHS machines in 77. In almost no time VHS was outselling BetaMax. Months IIRC.

Edit: So, even if BetaMax had first mover advantage they were not capable of exploiting these advantages. Partly because of faulty strategy and path dependency they quickly lost the standard war and suffered lock-in. Parallels are made to Xerox, believing as well that superior quality would always prevail, regardless of competitors much more suitable business models.

I have loads of sources for this if you want but in paper.

IMHO a much better explanation.

[Dr Sadako]

I am sorry I forgot the link to Wikipedia btw.
 
There are plenty of other, much more reliable explanations, Doc. This has to be one of the most studies cases of advanced strategy ever. I had this in an advanced strategy course and there are several that explains this much much better and in extreme detail. Just google about and you will find loads of articles and references in this.
 
I like the study by Liebowitz, I can dig it up if you want in paper, but what he mentions is this IIRC:
 
BetaMax did not have that vastly superior performance to the average user. It had the crosstalk improvement, faster loading and well-designed loading mechanics allowing for future improvements here but not the lead that i think some people give it. VHS machines were smaller (and much more adequate for rental shops) and had advantages in larger size tape giving better running time/quality ratio - some even say VHS produced better quality as the machines quickly mimicked the advantages of Sony's - I have articles backing this up in paper somewhere around here.
 
Key though has to be Sony's faulty idea of a 1 hr but smaller tape being better than JVC's bigger but 2 hours tape. It turned out the average consumer did not care as much about the size and maybe minor better quality, as about the capacity. VHS lad the lead in capacity all the way and when you could have a whole American football game on one tape you would prefer a VHS.
 
Distribution - Sony's was sold in high-street shops only, VHS was spread more out in other shops. VHS was in better supply, BetaMax could happen to have waiting lists.
 
VHS was the one you rented on in video rental shops, this was a planned strategy from SelectaVision (in the US). People did not want to buy a machine yet, when there was such a standard war going on, and they decided to rent, especially with the machines being pricey. With VHS being the option this quickly increased the possibilites of what to rent on VHS, compared to BetaMax. (Edit: I cant remember the right figures, but I think VHS got a 70-80% share of the rental market in absolute no-time).
 
BetaMax was introduced in 75 or 76 I think. SelectVision introduced VHS machines in 77. In almost no time VHS was outselling BetaMax. Months IIRC.
 
Edit: So, even if BetaMax had first mover advantage they were not capable of exploiting these advantages. Partly because of faulty strategy and path dependency they quickly lost the standard war and suffered lock-in. Parallels are made to Xerox, believing as well that superior quality would always prevail, regardless of competitors much more suitable business models.
 
I have loads of sources for this if you want but in paper.
 
IMHO a much better explanation.

This explanation makes more sense. My family had both Betamax and VHS and I agree with many of the points presented above.
 
The question is if Bluray or HD DVD will have a chance in comparison to large and cheap memory sticks? The fast evolution of all memory solutions make HD and Blu extremely slow. I think many people could consider plugin a memorystick with a movie in the TV straight away instead of using a player.
 
Here is one example that is on the way towards what I am meaning.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/10/22/sandisk-wants-to-simply-your-pc-to-tv-viewing/