CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

**AnalogRocks** · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 6:29 am Post subject:

Dual format ROM drive comming out for the PC. What's my point? I don't care which format it's in so long as I can watch the dman thing.

I'm not going the Beta vs. VHS route all over again. Back then I bought both so why not now?

WanMan · Joined: 19 Mar 2006 Posts: 10270

A clue? Consumers have continuously been misled regarding the 'HD' clue. Just look at the HD[lite] that DirecTV spews on us. And since there isn't an adopted broadcast HD acceptance that the display manufacturers are willing to agree with (they want more of your money for less of their delivered results in products) it makes little difference what POS you tag with 'HD', whether that be DVDs or anything else.

ecrabb · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:19 pm Post subject:

Wow. So, in your mind, all products that aren't either 1080i or 720p aren't HD? Everything has to look like an uncompressed studio master, or it isn't HD? What resolution and at what bitrate DOES qualify as "HD" and where's that cutoff? If bitrate isn't the problem, then would you be happy if DirecTV broadcast everything only in 720p instead of 1440x1080i? It wouldn't be "lite" then, right? Or, IS it the bitrate you don't like? Too bad I haven't seen anywhere where bitrate is part of the definition of what "HD" truly is. Oh, and what bitrate for which codec?

I agree that in practice, stuff labeled as "HD" isn't necessarily what we'd all agree is truly HD, but what are you saying? Since a bunch of display manufacturers and some satellite companies misuse the term, it's not meaningful anymore? I guess I just don't agree that everything is as simply and easily defined as you apparently do.

After all that, my point still stands! At least "HD-DVD" gives the uninitiated an idea about what it is. The masses know what "DVD" is and even J6P knows what "HD" is (watered-down as that term may be amongst enthusiasts.)

WTF does Blu-ray disk mean? What's that? Something for your computer?

SC

Ridebreck · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 3:35 pm Post subject:

I guess I'm just one of the folks that's not really up in arms for either side. In the next few days when my PS3 arrives, I will officially be format neutral and will get to simply enjoy the movies. That said, I have heard several people speculate that one of the biggest downsides to this "war" is that until a "winner" is decided, we will likely not see releases of mega blockbusters such as LOTR and Star Wars.

**kal** · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 4:17 pm Post subject:

WTS · Joined: 08 Mar 2006 Posts: 1276 Location: Calgary

Everytime I go to blockbuster to rent a hddvd they ask if I have a hd player, and I say yes, they say are you sure it's hd. Everytime it's a different guy and they all say the same thing -- we get at least one complaint a day that the HD discs don't work in their players but the player says hd on the box.

**kal** · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 7:17 pm Post subject:

ecrabb · Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2007 8:48 pm Post subject:

So there's one dense DVD renter per day trying to rent an HD disc to take home and put in his/her upscaling player. 5000 stores, 1 bonehead per day per store. This IS Blockbuster we're talking about, here. I mean - I'm not exactly surprised. One of the reasons I don't particularly like going to rent DVDs (especially at Blockbuster) is that it always feels a little like the bus station to me... if you know what I mean. It's the same thing I don't like about going to movies. There's always some person (or persons) there doing something to remind me why I should probably live on an acreage in the middle of nowhere. Smile

Hmmm... I was just looking at the Best Buy site, and I couldn't find a single upscaling player that says "HD" anywhere on the player itself, unless you count the "HD" in the "HDMI" logo. That could be confusing, I suppose. Even Best Buy seems to be going out of their way to list the upscaling players as a "[brand x] DVD Player with HD Upconversion".

I know what you're saying, but you can't educate ALL the public. I remember people being confused about why you couldn't play DVD's in a VCR. It's a VIDEO... why won't it play in my VIDEO player. Oy.

I guess to the average Joe, you have one format name that is easily confused with some other things, and another format name that doesn't say anything meaningful about what it is or what it does.

SC

garyfritz · Joined: 08 Apr 2006 Posts: 12088 Location: Fort Collins, CO

WanMan · Joined: 19 Mar 2006 Posts: 10270

rod · Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2007 1:26 am Post subject:

In case you haven't noticed..... the entire Western Civilization is built on mass marketing confusion. It's all about "getting more than what you paid for" - cars with useless features, electronics with features you'll never use, sunglasses (UV protection), toothpaste (whiteners, plaque removers), household cleaners (POWER degreasers, biodegradable), vitamins, beauty lotions, prescription drugs, penin enlargement drugs, HD, this list just goes on and on and on and on............., Next time you look at advertising look at how the ads simply stretch what you're really buying.
These are all multi-billioin dollar industries and we consume it like a Toronto street bum on a tossed cigarette butt.
Ask anyone that has a Hemi in their Dodge truck what the hell it is and 80% don't have a fog-bound clue.
Hell we even pay 20 bucks for a 5 dollar hat that has a Nike logo on it. Why? Because Tiger Woods endorses it. The hats are otherwsie the same.
This is why you have Blu-Ray, HD-DVD, 'HD' players, - people by it. Another good one back about 3-4 years ago - HD ready TVs. Hello!?
Like the satirical phase from the Sixth Sense "There's STUPID people walking around. And they don't even know their STUPID!"

WanMan · Joined: 19 Mar 2006 Posts: 10270

Yeah, but usually I leave it to the government to maintain the delivery of lies. Very Happy

JustGreg · Joined: 07 Mar 2006 Posts: 3098 Location: Kenosha, WI

I just want to chime in about my last experience at BlockBuster a month or so ago. I grabbed an XB360 game I wanted, wandered past their spanking new BluRay display stocked with about 8 different movies (all together now....oooooooooohhhh ahhhhhhhhhh) and made my way through their strategically designed rat maze lined on both sides with impulse buy movies, candy, BB Online pamphlets, and such...

I finally made it to the register where I dutifully plunked down my game and a sucker sized bag of M&M's (peanut...yumm) and asked the Clearasil Kid behind the counter when or if BlockBuster was going to start carrying HDDVD's.

He innocently and quite proudly pointed to the BluRay display. Laughing (AT ME...the little zit) he says, "Boy...(snort snort), How in the world did you miss our new high definition disc display (snort snort)."

I turned, looked at the display, looked back at him and said "Son, that's not HDDVD."

The kid didn't wait a beat and said, "Yuh huh it is. It's high definition."

I said "Yes. It is. But it's not the right format for the player I have."

The Kid, ".................................."

Me, "You do know there's two formats competing for the title of THE high definition format leader right?"

The Kid, "You mean like the BIG discs?"

Me, "................................."

Me, "Look....wait. No. It's like this...umm.....Ahhhm...Forget it. It's not important." (for me to educate your ass)

A young female manager had walked up halfway through the conversation and waited until I was paying for the game and said they in fact didn't have HDDVD in-store but they could be had from BlockBuster Online. After wishing The Clearasil Kid a good day (and good hygiene) she ushered me around the corner to a laptop bolted to the counter.
While logging in with her logon info she carried on non-stop about the benefits of their online service (and in a high road kind of way, bashing Netflix).
To make a long story short, she spent 5 more minutes of my time trying to find the listings for BlockBusters HDDVD offerings...and never did. I'd eaten a goodly portion of my mega bag of peanut M&M's by this time and *really* needed something to wash them down with. She promised to continue the online search and call me when she found the web page.
Just like when I was dating, she hasn't called me back.

paw · Joined: 08 Mar 2006 Posts: 1176 Location: Arvada, CO