BluRay or HD-DVD?

[Saurdaukar]

Which and why?

I will never own a BluRay disc.  I refuse to support that industry.

Im curious why?

With prices on BluRay and HDDVD players having fallen to the reality level, I'm thinking of picking one of the two up as Christmas gift for the house, but I'm concerned I'll end up with a Betamax or Laserdisc player if I choose incorrectly.

I should mention that I'm not even close to an expert on the subject.

I really do not want to get into it as it would be a major highjack of this thread.

[gyrene81]

BluRay...because we have no choice now...the electronics industry and the movie industry made the decision last year...BluRay.

Kinda irritated me at first too...but considering the benefits of BluRay over any other format...I can understand it. I just hate Sony with a passion and I was hoping it would go the way of the BetaMax.

[Skuzzy]

Neither.  I refuse to support anything BluRay based.  It is a ripoff to the consumer.  Associations, that sit around on thier collective fat butts making money off of consumers, while providing absolutely nothing in return is not something I care to support.

The lack of being able to make a backup copy or place the contents on a server for local viewing is a nuisance.  A completely unwarranted one at that.

The extravagant costs associated with licensing content on BluRay is putting small independent producers out of the market.  Indie film makers will struggle to get thier movies on BluRay, if they can at all.

It is about greed.  It is about controlling who can see it and who can place content on it.  If you like funding the MPAA and RIAA, then go for it.  Essentially that is what you are doing when you buy any HD based media content.

[gyrene81]

Skuzzy, hasn't it always been about money? Consumers have no rights to anything even if they pay for it...from your car to your home and the land it sits on to what's on your iPod...someone else has the rights to take it away from you or make you pay more for the privilege of having it in your possession.

Personally I think the consumer laws need to be changed to actually protect the consumer from the music, movie and gaming industries...I should be able to get a refund if I think something they produced is a lemon...or make a backup copy to protect my investment.

[Saurdaukar]

Hmm... so I'll stick with the regular DVD player, then. 

[68ZooM]

Well you can justify a BlueRay DVD Player, Don't just buy it as a stand alone there still very pricey, I wanted to upgrade my PS2 System and got the PS3 its BlueRay Based because all of the PS3 games are written on BlueRay Disc's anyway  ( BlueRays Have more capacity for data then Reg DVDs ), Ive watched Bluerays on the PS3  which is hooked to my 46" LED TV and the picture is just stunning, so are all the Games that are played thru it, Its something to consider $199 for PS3 or $250 on up for just a Stand Alone BlueRay Player.

[Skuzzy]

gyrene, sure it always been about money, but there is a line that can be crossed and the BluRay folks did.

See, I am a stubborn, hard-headed arse when it comes to people taking advantage of others ignorance.  I am not advocating anyone do what I am doing.  I do it as I have to be true to me or I could not live with myself.

[Shuffler]

Simply buy a standalone Blu-Ray player that has upconverting.

Never buy any bluray disc. Your regular DVDs will look amazing with upconverting. Not full HD but very close.
Bluray players are getting more price friendly by the day.

[Skuzzy]

You mean an upconverting DVD player.  Yes, that brings DVD to 720p quality, providing you get a decent upconverting player.

By the way, if you can find one, the OPPO DV-980H is probably the best upconverting DVD player ever made.

[TinmanX]

The lack of being able to make a backup copy or place the contents on a server for local viewing is a nuisance.  A completely unwarranted one at that.

The software already exists to make back-up copies onto either comparable media or hard-drive.
I won't advertise it here, but it does exist and works beautifully.

[Shuffler]

You mean an upconverting DVD player.  Yes, that brings DVD to 720p quality, providing you get a decent upconverting player.

By the way, if you can find one, the OPPO DV-980H is probably the best upconverting DVD player ever made.

This Samsung Blu-Ray player upconverts standard DVD up to 1080p. Check out the players at Samsung.com http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/tv-video/blu-ray/blu-ray-players/BD-P1600/XAA/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail&tab=spec. I bought mine at the local Frys.

I pretty much feel the same way you do about Sony.

[soda72]

Do blu-ray players allow you to play normal DvD's?  

[Shuffler]

Do blu-ray players allow you to play normal DvD's?  

Yes!

If you get a Bluray that upconverts it will make them look almost like full HD. Pretty amazing picture. I just recently bought a bluray player once I learned this and about the upconversion. Next time your at an electronics store, get them to put a standard DVD movie in a bluray that upconverts.  I think you'll be surprised. While it is not quite as good as native 1080p, it will be very close.

[SEraider]

You mean an upconverting DVD player.  Yes, that brings DVD to 720p quality, providing you get a decent upconverting player.

By the way, if you can find one, the OPPO DV-980H is probably the best upconverting DVD player ever made.

You're the man Skuzzy! You're the man! 

[eagl]

There is an option to wasting money on an upconverting DVD player or standalone BD player...

Any Nvidia GPU on the market today will do hardware upconversion even with fairly old versions of the various windows dvd players, so playing a DVD on your computer and displaying it on your TV will look really good.  I have a large 1080p LCD tv hooked up to an HTPC built from fairly old hand-me-down parts, and DVDs look far better on that setup than they did when played on a stand-alone upconverting DVD player.

You can get a computer BD drive for well under $100, and it will look really nice if hooked up to a big tv.  So if you have a spare computer with compatible video output, or want to put together an htpc, consider an OEM BD drive in a computer hooked up to a tv.