I was at the HE show LA this year. I spent most of my time locked in a tiny hotel room showing off speakers but I did get an hour and a half to roam around and have a look. Given the number of exhibitors, this was far too little time. Imagine my frustration at having spent 45 minutes of that time in Sony’s Blu-Ray demo! I digress…

Right off the bat, I wasn’t impressed. Here was the largest demo space in at the show, filled with the most expensive array of (Wilson) speakers, Sony’s top ‘o the line Projector and a MAMMOTH screen- but the receiver (right… receiver) wasn’t even in Sony’s ES line. Whatever.

The point is that they concentrated on interactivity, enhanced menus and then, at the end, resolution of fine details. They used Chicken Little’s featers as an example (DVD Vs. Blu-Ray) They barely acknowledged a competitor.

As it happened we (a Speaker maker, mind you) were the only exhibitors with an HD-DVD player. In all the time I spent at the show, I didn’t hear word one about Blu-Ray and even though the HD-DVD player got a lot of brief looks, it certainly wasn’t a star either. The few questions we did field were from enthusiasts about why the new audio formats on the discs were as yet unplayable.

I write all this just to help purge some frustration that I happen to share with you. The consumer is getting screwed by this “pissing match” If the Blu-Ray camp weren’t so screwed up, then perhaps they wouldn’t get the bad press that they do. HD-DVD is ahead of the game right now but I’m still holding my breath… maybe when Toshiba FINALLY releases the firmware upgrade I’ll be able to get a little more excited.

Until then, I’m going to stick to my bet that, in 5 years, we’ll speak as fondly of Blu-Ray and HD-DVD as we do now about LaserDisc and Minidisc (I still own and use both) I’m putting my money on Media Servers.

Cheers.

I was at the HE show LA this year. I spent most of my time locked in a tiny hotel room showing off speakers but I did get an hour and a half to roam around and have a look. Given the number of exhibitors, this was far too little time. Imagine my frustration at having spent 45 minutes of that time in Sony’s Blu-Ray demo! I digress…

Right off the bat, I wasn’t impressed. Here was the largest demo space in at the show, filled with the most expensive array of (Wilson) speakers, Sony’s top ‘o the line Projector and a MAMMOTH screen- but the receiver (right… receiver) wasn’t even in Sony’s ES line. Whatever.

The point is that they concentrated on interactivity, enhanced menus and then, at the end, resolution of fine details. They used Chicken Little’s featers as an example (DVD Vs. Blu-Ray) They barely acknowledged a competitor.

As it happened we (a Speaker maker, mind you) were the only exhibitors with an HD-DVD player. In all the time I spent at the show, I didn’t hear word one about Blu-Ray and even though the HD-DVD player got a lot of brief looks, it certainly wasn’t a star either. The few questions we did field were from enthusiasts about why the new audio formats on the discs were as yet unplayable.

I write all this just to help purge some frustration that I happen to share with you. The consumer is getting screwed by this “pissing match” If the Blu-Ray camp weren’t so screwed up, then perhaps they wouldn’t get the bad press that they do. HD-DVD is ahead of the game right now but I’m still holding my breath… maybe when Toshiba FINALLY releases the firmware upgrade I’ll be able to get a little more excited.

Until then, I’m going to stick to my bet that, in 5 years, we’ll speak as fondly of Blu-Ray and HD-DVD as we do now about LaserDisc and Minidisc (I still own and use both) I’m putting my money on Media Servers.

Cheers.

The most important issue, however, is quality control. PS3 is a sophisticated product. With no previous production experience, it is rather ambitious to pull this off in a short time frame. Remember the production issues related to Microsoft Xbox? I believe that Sony is looking for a manufacturer in China which can meet six sigma quality standards. This is not easy, and there will be a learning curve. Will the quality of PS3 be able to meet its customers’ expectations? These customers (700K for US alone), who should consist both hard-core gamers and early Blu-Ray adopters, could be picky at what they paid for.

It would be admirable if Sony can achieve all of these in three months. Even so, the attach rate question still remains. Toshiba can move its HD-DVD production capabilities to China now since it has experiences with it already. Sony is gambling on PS3 big time, and it is a high risk game. We will debate this for months until the first quarter earning report for one of the major format war players is out next year.

The most important issue, however, is quality control. PS3 is a sophisticated product. With no previous production experience, it is rather ambitious to pull this off in a short time frame. Remember the production issues related to Microsoft Xbox? I believe that Sony is looking for a manufacturer in China which can meet six sigma quality standards. This is not easy, and there will be a learning curve. Will the quality of PS3 be able to meet its customers’ expectations? These customers (700K for US alone), who should consist both hard-core gamers and early Blu-Ray adopters, could be picky at what they paid for.

It would be admirable if Sony can achieve all of these in three months. Even so, the attach rate question still remains. Toshiba can move its HD-DVD production capabilities to China now since it has experiences with it already. Sony is gambling on PS3 big time, and it is a high risk game. We will debate this for months until the first quarter earning report for one of the major format war players is out next year.

I’m sorry you feel like you’ve entered a spin zone, that’s kind of what I feel like every time I hear about how superior Blu-ray is, when every thing I’ve seen since its launch leads me to believe otherwise.

Every day that passes with this bullshit imposed on us is one less day we could have been enjoying insert-name-here movie on our big screens. I’m pissed about that and rather than sit by and take it, I’d rather voice my opinion and maybe in some tiny way move the process along.

I have a determination to see the best image quality win. if Blu-ray was delivering that and or I had the feeling that was even their goal then you’d probably be just as sick of me talking about Blu-ray, because that’s what I’d back. I feel that NOW is the time to discuss what’s going on, not after we’ve become complacent to whole idea and just settle on whatever offers the quickest and easiest solution.

Hi-def DVD’s are (in my opinion) one of the most important things to happen in home theater in the last 10 to 15 years, I rank its importance just behind HDTV, would you begrudge me talking about HDTV? Home theater has always been about the best image and sound reproduction possible, so I consider hi-def discs extremely important.

I hope that whatever relevance or worth I bring to this site is based on what I’m really thinking about on that given day, if I can’t bring my own opinion or point of view to the subject then what’s the point? regurgitate what everyone else thinks because its less inflammatory? I’ll pass.

I’ve also never tried to tow any corporate line or regurgitate the opinions of others unless I felt they were spot-on and relevant to what I was trying to relay in the post. HD DVD is what I’m interested in right now, and I don’t feel like turning a blind eye to what’s going on.

Would you have said the same when DIVX was being pushed on the consumer? If I’d had a site then, I guarantee you I would have been screaming about how wrong it was as well. So, let me ask you, do you not find the “PS3 hasn’t even entered into production yet” newsworthy? Also how about the very concept of a game-console playing a role in deciding a home video format? maybe it “doesn’t really matter”?

I’m sorry you feel like you’ve entered a spin zone, that’s kind of what I feel like every time I hear about how superior Blu-ray is, when every thing I’ve seen since its launch leads me to believe otherwise.

Every day that passes with this bullshit imposed on us is one less day we could have been enjoying insert-name-here movie on our big screens. I’m pissed about that and rather than sit by and take it, I’d rather voice my opinion and maybe in some tiny way move the process along.

I have a determination to see the best image quality win. if Blu-ray was delivering that and or I had the feeling that was even their goal then you’d probably be just as sick of me talking about Blu-ray, because that’s what I’d back. I feel that NOW is the time to discuss what’s going on, not after we’ve become complacent to whole idea and just settle on whatever offers the quickest and easiest solution.

Hi-def DVD’s are (in my opinion) one of the most important things to happen in home theater in the last 10 to 15 years, I rank its importance just behind HDTV, would you begrudge me talking about HDTV? Home theater has always been about the best image and sound reproduction possible, so I consider hi-def discs extremely important.

I hope that whatever relevance or worth I bring to this site is based on what I’m really thinking about on that given day, if I can’t bring my own opinion or point of view to the subject then what’s the point? regurgitate what everyone else thinks because its less inflammatory? I’ll pass.

I’ve also never tried to tow any corporate line or regurgitate the opinions of others unless I felt they were spot-on and relevant to what I was trying to relay in the post. HD DVD is what I’m interested in right now, and I don’t feel like turning a blind eye to what’s going on.

Would you have said the same when DIVX was being pushed on the consumer? If I’d had a site then, I guarantee you I would have been screaming about how wrong it was as well. So, let me ask you, do you not find the “PS3 hasn’t even entered into production yet” newsworthy? Also how about the very concept of a game-console playing a role in deciding a home video format? maybe it “doesn’t really matter”?

I own an HD-DVD player. I think that right now this is the better technology. Still, I could also make a million arguments about why this doesn’t matter right now and how Blu-ray has its own advantages, but it doesn’t really matter.

Imagine an alternate universe where there is a site called “home theater golb”. Here they are adamant about the Blu-ray technology and spend most of their posts making a case by interpreting quote of executives and articles on the subject. Wouldn’t it get a little overwhelming?

I enjoy reading your posts. You have excellent insight into the industry and technology. I’d like to see more product reviews and news about other facets of our world. Why not start a blog titled “HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray” to focus on this topic and return to what you did before this “war” began?

Okay, soap box rant over…

I own an HD-DVD player. I think that right now this is the better technology. Still, I could also make a million arguments about why this doesn’t matter right now and how Blu-ray has its own advantages, but it doesn’t really matter.

Imagine an alternate universe where there is a site called “home theater golb”. Here they are adamant about the Blu-ray technology and spend most of their posts making a case by interpreting quote of executives and articles on the subject. Wouldn’t it get a little overwhelming?

I enjoy reading your posts. You have excellent insight into the industry and technology. I’d like to see more product reviews and news about other facets of our world. Why not start a blog titled “HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray” to focus on this topic and return to what you did before this “war” began?

Okay, soap box rant over…

I work for a systems integrator, and most of the people I work with couldn’t care less about the two formats. I can’t imagine the average PlayStation owner is going to care any more than they do. The sales of PS3 are going to give them ‘vapor’ statistics-marketing tools showing how many Blu-ray owners there are in the United States. Even if most of them don’t know it.

And let me say also that-in case you didn’t realize it-I own the HD-DVD player. I just bought it recently when I realized I needed a new DVD player. I never had a preference one way or another before the two formats actually launched. I think I kind of stuck up for HD DVD in an ‘underdog’ kind of way. It seemed like Blu-ray was just going to bowl it over with its strong marketing presence and oddly devout advocates (who had never even seen the format).

It seemed like most people’s decisions were being based simply on storage capacity (ironic now, I know). But my take was this: I don’t care about backing up my entire hard drive on fewer discs. I don’t care if one offers 30G or 50G. How much space do we need to display a movie in Hi Def? If its less than 30G, than I don’t care who has more storage space.

Barring any other uses or benefits or storage capacity, which one delivers better looking movies? That should be our winner.

The format war is only going to generate more confusion and apathy among the general public.

Okay, soap box rant over…

I work for a systems integrator, and most of the people I work with couldn’t care less about the two formats. I can’t imagine the average PlayStation owner is going to care any more than they do. The sales of PS3 are going to give them ‘vapor’ statistics-marketing tools showing how many Blu-ray owners there are in the United States. Even if most of them don’t know it.

And let me say also that-in case you didn’t realize it-I own the HD-DVD player. I just bought it recently when I realized I needed a new DVD player. I never had a preference one way or another before the two formats actually launched. I think I kind of stuck up for HD DVD in an ‘underdog’ kind of way. It seemed like Blu-ray was just going to bowl it over with its strong marketing presence and oddly devout advocates (who had never even seen the format).

It seemed like most people’s decisions were being based simply on storage capacity (ironic now, I know). But my take was this: I don’t care about backing up my entire hard drive on fewer discs. I don’t care if one offers 30G or 50G. How much space do we need to display a movie in Hi Def? If its less than 30G, than I don’t care who has more storage space.

Barring any other uses or benefits or storage capacity, which one delivers better looking movies? That should be our winner.

The format war is only going to generate more confusion and apathy among the general public.

Okay, soap box rant over…