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February 20, 2007
HD DVD DEAD! BLU-RAY WINS! The format war is over! Rest in peace HD DVD! At a news conference held in Japan on Tuesday afternoon, Toshiba Corporation president and CEO Atsutoshi Nishida announced: “We have reviewed the overall strategy for the HD DVD and concluded that it is best that we not further develop, manufacture, and market HD DVD players and recorders. This was a very difficult decision to make...but when we thought about the trouble we would cause to consumers and our partners, we decided it was not right for us to keep going with such a small presence. We carefully assessed the long-term impact of continuing the so-called ‘next-generation format war’ and concluded that a swift decision will best help the market develop. While we are disappointed for the company and more importantly, for the consumer, the real mass market opportunity for high definition content remains untapped and Toshiba is both able and determined to use our talent, technology and intellectual property to make digital convergence a reality.” Toshiba was the sole supplier of HD DVD players and the founder/leader of the HD DVD format. Without Toshiba, there is no HD DVD. Toshiba will cease production of its HD DVD players and recorders immediately and close out the business by the end of March. The company is expected to continue to support the installed base of HD DVD players. Back in August 2007 Paramount and DreamWorks Studios were paid $150M to go HD DVD exclusive for an 18-month period. With Toshiba no longer in the HD DVD game, both studios are now free to release Blu-ray titles without penalty as that contract is now null and void. While they always had an out clause in their contract, they no longer have to exercise that right and pay a penalty. Expect an announcement from both studios very soon. [Feb 21 update: Paramount has now announced that they too will be supporting Blu-ray]. Universal Studios Home Entertainment also had an HD DVD-exclusive contract right from the start. They are also now free to start producing content on Blu-ray Disc, and in fact, shortly after the Toshiba announcement the company's president Craig Kornblau offered the following statement: "The path for widespread adoption of the next-generation platform has finally become clear. The emergence of a single, high-definition format is cause for consumers, as well as the entire entertainment industry, to celebrate. While Universal values the close partnership we have shared with Toshiba, it is time to turn our focus to releasing new and catalog titles on Blu-ray." With this messy expensive war finally over, we can only hope that the Blu-ray pick up rate increases greatly, creating even cheaper players and software to give us home theater enthusiasts the best possible image quality at home! We've always said that HD on disc (be it Blu-ray or HD DVD) offers a substantial increase in picture and sound quality over standard DVD for use in home theater. It finally bridges the gap between commercial theaters and what we have at home. In most cases a properly set up home theater featuring HD content will easily surpass the experience you have in commercial theaters. It is that good! How is Blu-ray / HD DVD better than standard DVD?
If you've been holding out adding HD DVD or Blu-ray to your home theater setup, now is the time to do it. Blu-ray momentum is picking up fast so you can now buy into Blu-ray Disc technology without worrying who is going to win the format war. Likewise, if you're looking for a deal, HD DVD hardware and discs will continue to work for years to come and the prices are as low as ever. For example, Amazon is having a limited time 50% off sale on over 150 HD DVD titles, and their HD DVD store is liquidating HD DVD players! These movies won't stop working just because HD DVD is being phased out, and HD DVD looks every bit as good as Blu-ray as the same audio/video standards are used! For best image/sound quality, HD DVD and Blu-ray players should be hooked up using HDMI. To add HDMI to older displays, converters are available that work up to 1080p and beyond. Need help connecting the wires? See our new
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FAQ: Hooking it all up!. BLU-RAY RELEASE DATES & MUST-HAVE TITLES
Now that the war is over, we're kicking off a new feature on our forum: A complete list of Blu-ray disc release dates, including a short list of 'must have' Blu-ray discs. Want to show off how good your home theater looks and sounds? Use these discs! They represent some of the absolute best that Blu-ray has to offer in terms of audio and video quality. When you purchase Blu-ray discs from Amazon.com using these links a small percentage automatically goes towards our forum server hosting fees at no extra cost to you! Want to buy something other than Blu-ray discs? Use this link instead. We thank you! Hey Canadians! Amazon.com is Canuck friendly and cheaper than buying from Amazon.ca! We're in Canada and have been buying our movies from Amazon.com for over 10 years! There have never been any duties or taxes as they actually ship from Canada! Must-have Blu-ray Discs:
Live Free or Die Hard Release Dates:
February 05, 2008
February 12, 2008
February 19, 2008
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