That Disney bit was flown by yesterday. I don't think that Disney has that kind of clout yet. Snowflake's "Finding Nemo" is about the best MPEG2 conversion I have seen (all of the latest top-tier animations are stellar in standard def.) This Disney bit is relying on a market that I think is smaller in demographic than the console market to "win" for Blu-Ray. Not sure that is going to work. Cheapest media that can be replaced will win. That will still be DVD for awhile. Let Blu-Ray "Finding Nemo" sit paused on the menu for a couple of weeks and let's see if mom and dad are ready to replace the player so quickly.

I go back and forth on buying a player (HD DVD or Blu Ray) or not. I love Criterion, and they haven't really mentioned going HD (either format), so I'm enjoying not taking the plunge yet, and watching some Criterion in glorious SD DVD.

heath

SD DVD still looks great on a 50" plasma, so until the cost for HD systems comes WAY down I just can't see any major migration happening. The massive sales that selling the HD-DVD players at $100 generated is proof positive of this.

My bet is that the company that can put out a $100-$130 dual-format HD player will steal all the sales the big players are after and make itself an absolute mint in the process.

Just saw that Best Buy is advertising a $400 Blu-Ray player, which includes 6 disks and a $100 Best Buy Gift Card.

SD looks fine until you start comparing it to decent HD material, and then it looks like low-resolution mush based on antiquated 1950s technology. As far as a "major migration" is concerned, the purchase rate of HD-capable playback devices is running at least double that of standard DVD players when they were first introduced ten years ago - and at prices which are a bargain by comparison for what you can get. We're in the midst of one of the most historic consumer technology shifts in decades and many videographers are still talking about HD like it's just a fad. News flash: buggy whips are no longer readily available and HD is here to stay.

HD is already here, that is true. On the other hand, I watched two HD movies already, "Good night and good luck" and "Apollo 13" and I am not THAT much excited. Probably this is because I already have seen good HD shows on TV. I would not say that these movies look better than HD TV shows, and why should they.

But the shocker is that with TV shows the difference in quality between "old" SD shows and new HD shows is evident, while the difference between upscaled SD movies and HD movies is not so. The most visible difference is in text, whenever there is text onscreen, it is more legible and rounded and smooth. But overall... I would not say I see a lot of difference. Maybe the movies that I chose to watch are not the best showcase of HD transfer. All in all, HD is better, but the difference is quite subtle, so watching regular DVDs does not make me wanting for more.

In my opinion, what is more important between "old" video and movies and "new" ones is aspect ratio. IMHO, having 16:9 AR is more important than having HD.

P.S. I have a rather large 50-inch TV, but the panel is not 1920x1080, it is only 1365x768, so with "true" HD panels the difference may be more pronounced.

Films in HD are incredible to watch, but viewing documentaries shot in HD, like the underwater ones I see on Discovery HD, are truly wonderous. To my eye, films in HD look more like films in the theatre, but 1080i60/30p/720p to me at least, feels like HD.

Does that make sense? Probably has to do with frame rates and lighting.

Anyway, if someone makes a dual-format hi def DVD player for even $300, they'll be a dominant force.

heath

That deals is as good as what Wal Mart’s offering for the 80 gig PS3 which includes any 10 under $30 movies for free. That’s a total of 15 free movies. Although I think they should have also offered a deal where you can choose any 3 PS3 games for free instead of movies.

At the rate things are going, I wouldn’t be surprised to see 20 free movie offers for both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD players by Christmas.

It also has to do with Filters and colour correction as well.

Movie stars still have to look good, they don't want you to see every blemish and wrinkle. Fish... not so much. :)

True, true. I feel for the actors and actresses being shot in 2K and 4K. MAKEUP!

heath

HD DVD Star Trek deal
 

http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/release_tosh112007.html
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh..._Revealed/1195

I just pulled the trigger on the A3 from Amazon.

$30 more than Sears but I got 3 extra movies worth $75 for my $30.
$197.22 plus tax, free shipping and 10 movies.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.htm...cId=1000167901

Konrad

[dripping-sarcasm]Hmm, now THERE's a deal![/dripping-sarcasm] (targetted to the ad, not to Paul!) I guess if you're a serious Trekie, it might be worthwhile to trade your programmable remote control that controls 9 or 10 devices for a nice, sleek phaser remote that's a 3-in-1...

Now, maybe if they offered a serious discount on the boxed set, or on the higher-end players...

I think I agree heartily with the few posts wishing for a dual-format player.

ciao.

$100 for the A2 + 5 movies made more sense for me, because most of the free movies are not worthy watching.

I still wish I did the $100 deal. I'm kicking myself. Maybe the A3 will be discontinued by next year...

heath