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Blockbuster to focus on Blu-ray | |
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| Time: 11:52 EST/16:52 GMT | News Source: BBC | Posted By: Byron Hinson | ||
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Film rental firm Blockbuster is to rent high-definition DVDs only in the Blu-ray format at 1,450 US stores. The move is viewed as a blow for the rival Toshiba-backed HD DVD format - which has been battling against the Blu-ray format, supported by Sony. Blockbuster said that consumers have chosen Blu-ray over HD DVD in the 250 stores where both were available. The limited choice of titles in the HD DVD format was also a factor in focusing on Blu-ray, Blockbuster said. | ||
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| #1 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/18/2007 12:04:26 PM |
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That ringing sound you hear is the bell tolling for HD DVD.
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| #2 By 135 (216.17.26.137) at 6/18/2007 12:28:54 PM |
| Which side is the porn industry choosing? |
| #3 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/18/2007 1:41:51 PM |
| #2: Good question considering they're credited with being a major force in pushing VHS over Beta as the standard. |
| #4 By 7754 (216.160.8.41) at 6/18/2007 1:56:51 PM |
| Yeah, once the rental chains make their choice, that's not a good sign for the opposing format. I don't follow the porn industry, but I wonder if it would matter as much for them now with online distribution? Or for that matter, will online distribution make this "war" rather pointless anyhow? |
| #5 By 11262 (12.1.48.108) at 6/18/2007 2:03:52 PM |
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This could be good news for HD DVD. Blockboster is known for their scratched disks. Once people start renting Blu-Ray, and the disks get scratched and unusable we shall see a lot of complaints.
Remember that Blu-Ray is burned closer to the surface than DVD and HD DVD. |
| #6 By 3 (86.1.34.106) at 6/18/2007 2:15:35 PM |
| #5 - always good when someone tries to find some kind of silver lining! |
| #7 By 3 (86.1.34.106) at 6/18/2007 2:17:22 PM |
| #2 - won't make much difference like it used to in the VHS days. Remember the internet is where that all lies now. Times have changed - but either way there is still porn on both formats so far!!! |
| #8 By 25030 (72.78.188.254) at 6/18/2007 3:25:50 PM |
| My understanding is that the "adult" folks were more in the HD-DVD camp. Part of the reason is the PC industry ties, plus fewer manufacturers were able to press Blu-Ray discs. Something to do with Disney not allowing anyone pressing their discs to also do adult titles, and Disney being in the Blu-Ray camp takes those mfrs out of the adult business. |
| #9 By 3653 (68.52.143.149) at 6/18/2007 9:23:08 PM |
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i'm still yawning trying to figure out why i would buy either format.
ps... i wonder if latch likes bluray for legit reasons or simply because msft likes hddvd. hater, me thinks. |
| #10 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/19/2007 9:13:34 AM |
| #9: Don't you ever get tired of being wrong??? Personally, I couldn't care less about Blu-Ray vs HDDVD. I rarely watch movies. DVD is good enough for me. I, like many consumers, are pissed that the format wars rear their head once again, making everything more expensive for users who are nothing but pawns in a format power-play. |
| #11 By 37 (76.210.78.134) at 6/19/2007 1:01:43 PM |
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in related news, HD-DVD takes up 60% of the HD standalone market, surpassing BR.
Finally, the future is digital distribution, not BR or HD-DVD. |
| #12 By 8556 (12.207.97.148) at 6/19/2007 2:00:03 PM |
| AWBrian: While I enjoy watching streaming TV show episodes on my TV, running from my laptop, the quality of downloadable movies has been inferior to DVD's. None have had the sharpness of image, contrast, or details of a DVD, let alone one of the new dual to the death hi-def DVDs. Still, I agree that as the quality improves movie downloads will become more widely accepted. |
| #13 By 7754 (216.160.8.41) at 6/19/2007 2:43:58 PM |
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#12: Have you tried the HD movies on XBox Live? The quality is superb on those.
What I've noticed with all of the digital formats, though--DVD as well--is the artifacts produced when the screen action is fast. You start to see little squares all over the image. Also, even at slow speeds, it seems like they have a low color bit-depth--the gradients are very choppy. It seems like every digital format suffers from this, from DVD to broadcast HD to HD-DVD/Blu-ray to downloadable HD formats (WMV/VC-1, H.264, etc.). It's like watching a JPG flip-book, except the faster the action, the higher the JPG compression. It looks fantastic on a still image, though. |
| #14 By 3746 (72.12.162.246) at 6/19/2007 3:06:11 PM |
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#13
What kind of TV do you have? I have none of these problems. If you do it is probably the equipment or the way it is hooked up. |
| #15 By 7754 (216.160.8.41) at 6/19/2007 3:30:58 PM |
| It's not the TV--I've seen this on every single TV I've watched, whether it's Best Buy, Ultimate Electronics, Circuit City, or wherever. I'm being picky, though. I think it has to do with the compression not being able to "keep up" when the action is too fast--too much data changing from frame to frame to stay within the data rate. I don't know what the story is on the choppy gradients, though--I see that on every display as well, including high-end computer monitors. It definitely isn't the monitor that's at fault. |
| #16 By 37 (76.210.78.134) at 6/19/2007 3:56:49 PM |
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Bob Sireno, the quality of content I have downloaded on iTunes and Xbox 360 have surpassed any DVD's I have played. This post was edited by AWBrian on Wednesday, June 20, 2007 at 14:15. |
| #17 By 23275 (24.179.4.158) at 6/19/2007 9:40:30 PM |
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#13, 14, bluvg probably has extremely good vision in the context of how his eyes are balanced - both eyes being equally strong. One of my guys, with relatively normal vision, has equally strong eyes [e.g., one eye is not dominant], as such, he can see the same kinds of things on even the best HDTV's and best HD DVD players. He can't even watch a DLP HD TV and LCD's had better be good. He needs a high-end plasma display and the very best of equipment to not notice artifacts, banding and all sorts of things most people can't see.
***Average human men can see about 185 FPS, where avg. women can see above 200 FPS - some guys, like bluvg appears to be, can see well above 200-220 FPS+ - "Super-Normal" vision as it is called. In some cases, they can see more detail [like 20/-70] in others, they can see things in motion and it may be the later that bluvg is seeing. ***** "Motion Blur is used to trick human eyes into thinking things are fluid and it is a myth that DFTC at 29.97 FPS is all we can see - as I have stated, humans can see a great number of FPS. |
| #18 By 3653 (68.52.143.149) at 6/19/2007 10:19:31 PM |
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lketchum has an employee that has talked the boss into buying him "a high-end plasma display and the very best of equipment to not notice artifacts".
I GOTTA try that with my boss. ;-) |
| #19 By 7754 (216.160.8.41) at 6/19/2007 11:54:24 PM |
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#17, so that's what that extra chromosome is for??? :P
Actually, that would surprise me if others can't see it. Since the original content is only 24-30 FPS in the first place (interpolated up), it would seem that anyone could see that type of artifact (if that's the case). However, I don't think the frame rate is the issue, because those aren't the types of artifacts I'm seeing. In fast-motion video (like an action scene), there is noticeable artifacting to me. Take the chase scene at the opening of Casino Royale, for instance--when they're running through the... forest? Look at the plants as the camera pans--the green areas break down into a mass of green blocks briefly while they fly by. |
| #20 By 23275 (24.179.4.158) at 6/20/2007 1:24:21 AM |
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#18, Gawd... if you only knew.... I am the easiest mark that ever walked. Candidly, they are worth it and so much more. and yes, in this guy's case, I did hook him up with the best made at the time - but much more to say an extra thanks for so much hard and great work - I added a new Xbox 360 Premium and a new Nvidia 8800 and a buddy added the HD DVD drive to flesh out his new HD rig. The guy is literally the kind of man that will go through walls of fire and never ask why - in addition to being so smart, it is scary.
#19, no, not any, or even most. Motion blur is extremely effective, but for guys that have equally strong eyes, they can focus on and stop portions of the moving image - which reveals the artifacts to them. We do so much work and code for ocular healthcare and the pres. of the AOA is among our oldest customers and personal friends. We've been able to learn a ton about how human vision works, and to our benefit, it has helped in so many seemingly unrelated ways - blue and green screen work we do, and visual rendering, etc... It's amazing stuff - human vision. ***also, you'd likely make for an excellent shooter/marksman - a great sport, by the way. |
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