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Kent Gebo
Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Local Time: 01:10 AM
Local Date: 07-06-2008
Posts: 32
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Expectations
Howdy!
Warning: This is kinda long but I’ll try to avoid saying some of the same things that have already been said by others and will give it my own demented slant. However, as should be expected, a bit of this is bound to cover the same ground. So, read on … or not.
I’ve noticed that a bit of controversy has brewed because of the HTF/Bits people getting free Hi Def players and what people knew or didn’t know before going to the EMA event. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I definitely had no idea of what to expect. In fact, my expectations were a bit on the low side.
I applied for registration very late in the game, shortly after The Digital Bits mentioned that some people had canceled and there was room for a few more. I didn’t know anything about EMA and thought this was going to be somewhat similar to the CES.
It wasn’t until a few days before the event that I realized (through a bit of Googling) it was more of a show for software vendors and that any hardware questions I had were probably going to have to wait for another time. Since it still sounded at least somewhat of interest, I’d already registered, and Vegas was only a little over a 3 hour drive from home, I decided to go anyway. Plus, I was (and still am) having printer problems and Ron had helped me get through the difficulties this caused with the registration process. So, since he’d gone out of his way to get me registered, it would have been rather rude to not show up!
What this is leading up to is that I went with somewhat low expectations. I figured that there would be plenty of literature handed out by various companies, some promo materials (pens, a hat or two, maybe a Frisbee, etc), and probably a few screener DVDs. Aside from that, I was expecting a few interesting panels, discussions, and people. About the only other good expectation was the possibility of getting Ernest Borgnine’s autograph (since Ron had mentioned that possibility in one of his emails). Alas, Borgnine wasn’t doing the autograph thing, so the laser disc of “Ice Station Zebra” that I’d painstakingly dug out of storage remains unsigned. Oh, well … A little trivia note: When I was working on the movie, “The Black Hole,” I saw his car and the license plate was, “BORG9.” :-) That may or may not still be the case.
So, although EMA wasn’t the CES-type show that I’d originally expected, it far outreached my secondary expectations and I actually did get a few hardware questions answered. For one thing, I found out from the THX panel that the only difference between THX Select2 and THX Ultra2 is a matter of volume (Ultra2 is worthy of THX certification even at very high volumes). Before this, I thought there was a quality difference between the two, even when compared at lower volumes. I’m leaning toward getting an Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver and the THX panel left me feeling good with this choice (though it’s not a given, yet). Have to decide fairly quickly, though, or I’ll have no way to play any new HD hardware and software.
Vegas in July? What a concept! Another thing I expected was really killer hot weather, though I didn’t know until a few days before that the overnight lows were around 90! My plan was to save some money (I’m not one of those rich guys, but I‘m good at saving money for some really cool things) by sleeping in the back of my Subaru Outback. It’s actually fairly comfortable under the right circumstances, but it turned out to be impossible in the Venetian’s extra hot and humid parking structure. By the way, if you go to the food court area near the side of the casino and sit at one of the empty tables to rest, guards will continually come up, nudge you, and say something along the lines of, “It’s okay to sit here, but you can’t go to sleep or rest your head on the table.” So, keep that in mind if you want to sleep in a public area of the Venetian. ;-) They were understanding of my situation (I‘d lost my wallet, so couldn‘t get a room even if I‘d decided it was worth the money), but there were still rules that needed to be followed. Next time I go to Vegas (this was my first time being in Vegas with the actual intention of staying there) in the summer, I’ll definitely consider the great value of getting an air conditioned room (a bed is of secondary importance). Why do the EMA folksies like having the show at this time of year? Isn’t it a bit too early or late for many of the major DVD announcements? Just wondering; not whining.
It was great to see Leo Laporte as part of the opening session. I remember him fondly from the good old days of TechTV. Coincidently, I thought that his was the best part of the session, since it was interesting to hear some of the views of “average Joes” about high definition and DVDs. Not only were some of them not into high def, but some were quite happy to take advantage of all sorts of VHS closeouts!
A while back, I’d mentioned to a Trekkie friend of my mom’s that “Star Trek: Enterprise” had begun playing on HDNet. She said something about already watching all of it in HD from recordings she’d made. How had she seen it in HD when it hadn’t been broadcast that way yet? It didn’t occur to me until later that she’d probably recorded them on VHS or some such thing and watched them back on her HDTV. As far as she was concerned, this was watching something in high definition!!! Some have talked of the importance and difficulty of educating people about the merits of HD, but I’m sure quite a few won’t give a darn even after the education. Of course, I’m sure that all of you reading this care a whole lot! … and I can’t believe you’re still reading this!
The Warner Brothers presentation was quite informative. The Picture-in-Picture stuff convinced me that HD DVD was the way to go with “300,” which is my first HD software purchase. Bought “Chicago” in Blu-Ray, though, because of the direction the HD war appears to be heading at the moment. Those are my only purchases so far, though “2001” and “Blade Runner” are right around the corner. How great is that!?
It’s nice to have these format choices now. Because of my financial situation, I was going to wait until the end of the war before buying anything. However, it was really frustrating to keep buying titles in standard DVD that I would possibly prefer in high def. I’m not one of those who feels that everything is worth spending that kind of money on, though, and won‘t be replacing all of the old DVDs with HD versions. Just bought “Animal House” and “Liar Liar” for $3.99. They’re good, but not worth $25 or so each!
Some people mentioned that the lunch break was longer than necessary, but I took advantage of that by rushing over to the Luxor (actually, “rushing” isn’t quite the right word to describe Vegas traffic) to buy something from the Criss Angel shop. Unfortunately, it was while waiting in the shop's line with a few goodies, that I discovered a sudden lack of wallet. So much for buying a Criss Angel mug. Sorry, Criss! Next time.
I enjoyed the stories from Ernest Borgnine and Katt Williams, though I really didn’t know anything about Katt before this. Got his autographed photo, though! … wherever it is.
Party time! I missed most of the Blu-Ray party at the TAO Nightclub (won‘t repeat things here, but you can catch a couple of my comments about this at the “Not ALL Attendees walked away with the Blu-Ray Titles” thread), but what little I experienced was quite enjoyable. The Starz party at the Palms Moon Club was high and mighty. Great atmosphere. Lots of great tidbits to eat, people to meet, and sights to be seen. Wow! Whatta great view from the 53rd floor! Shouldn’t have left my SLR film camera in the car (haven‘t made the digital plunge quite yet). Numerous people were taking pictures with their cell phone. It was surprising to see that some of these photos actually came out fairly well. Probably not for 8x10 use, though. Hate to sound like an old fart, but is it necessary to have the music this loud in an eating and gathering (well, okay, a few people were dancing) environment? It's hard on the throat to have to shout a conversation ... not that I talk all that much.
Saw a fairly well known actor who‘s been around quite a while, and who shall remain nameless, with several young ladies. I got the impression that one of the girls knew me when she stared at me and said with a big smile, “I know you!” Hence, my impression that she knew me. :-) Anyway, she went on with this for a bit and after an awkward moment of me trying to figure out what to say and who she was, she said, “Just kidding!” They all got a big laugh out of it. Strange. Perhaps, she gets her kicks out of publicly humiliating total strangers. I really don’t know. The party was great, but all things must come to an end, so it was back to the Venetian.
Ooohhh, night of little sleep! Definitely too dead to do the celebrity workout with Billy Blanks (saw him, though) on Wednesday morning. Instead, a few doors over, I caught a bit of a Sony-related presentation (it was geared toward marketing strategies) that included breakfast. Things such as this saved me from getting hungry and from having to waste valuable time looking for food.
The HD DVD interactive demos were interesting, even though the Warner presentation the day before covered some of that same ground. This went further with the interactive features, though. The possibility of being able to grab new and improved features and subtitles off the net is nice, especially if you like foreign films. For the moment, at least, this is a bit of a feather in the cap of the HD DVD format. Though some of it seemed pretty cool, how many people are actually going to care about taking the time to put their own edits of fave film moments on the internet? Obviously, some people will love this feature to death, but most people just want to watch a movie and a few behind-the-scenes extras. It’s a good capability to have, but is it really all that much of a selling point for the general public and how many people will want (or bother) to hook their DVD player to the net? Note: I’m talking “general public” here.
Lunch! Quick (well, not so quick) run to Washington Mutual and money at last (after jumping through various hoops)! Gassed up the car, finally. Tiny bit late for the Uni Studio/HD DVD Q&A, but it was a bit delayed, anyway, so no big deal. Very good session. Got a bit more heated than I’d expected, but interesting and informative.
That was pretty much it. I quickly went through the showroom and visited a few vendor rooms, then was on my way home. All in all , a very good show and well worth attending. Overall, the sessions were very well presented. I was impressed with the BenQ projector. Due to my experience with a Sony 72” mirror-projection system in the 80s, I tend to expect them to need extremely dark rooms and have very soft images and muted colors. Obviously, projectors has come a very long way, but I’d guess that non-projection screens still win in a room that can’t easily be fairly well darkened.
One minor presentation problem: I was slightly surprised at some of the technical problems that cropped up a few times during some demos, especially during sessions related to HD DVD. At some point, someone said something about using a first generation player. I’d think it would pay to put your best foot forward with up-to-date equipment, but I guess it shouldn’t be expected that presenters always run out and spend big bucks on new stuff every time there’s an update. Plus, they got it up and running fairly quickly and were able to prove that many of the new features will even work on a first gen player. A good point to make, actually. :-)
I want to thank everyone who made this show possible. I especially want to thank Ron for his help. Wish I’d met more people. As I’ve seen a few others mention, there wasn’t really much time to find out who was who. Plus, I’m rather shy. Plus, I had unexpected diversions.
Holy crapola! This post’s longer than expected (wanted to get a variant of the word “expect“ in here one more time)! As I said in another post, I make up for shyness by rambling on and on. Forgive me! So, before I think of something else to say, I’m outta here!
No, wait …uh … no, no, I’m outta here!
Toodles;
Kento
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