HD-DVD/DVD Combo Disc = Not giving us a choice!!! (1 Viewer)

[EnricoE]

ok, i'm not yet on the hd-dvd / blu-ray train but i'm looking very closely for my train to arrive. looking at current announcements of movies makes me wonder why studios think that they should only release certain movies as a combo version. warner and universal are doing this various titles on hd-dvd and personally i don't like those at all. it forces me either to re-buy a film i already have on sd-dvd or that i don't want on sd-dvd. besides, i never liked those flipper discs at all. i even traded my terminator 2 u.e. dvd-18 to a 2 disc set.

long story short: i want to have a choice what i buy -> sd-dvd, hd-dvd/sd-dvd combo or hd-dvd only.

i bet that a lot of people agree with me. now the studios only have to listen and make us costumers happy

 

[Pete T C]

Shop on AMAZON.COM. AT amazon.com the hybrids are generally no more than $4 more expensive than a non-hybrid; common prices are $24 for hybrids and $20 for non-hybrids. For $4, its nice to have the flexibility of playing the HD disc in any DVD player; also, HD30/DVD9 hybrids will be out by xmas according to MS.

As for flipper, just treat the standard DVD side as the label side. If you scratch it, who cares? The alternative is not to have that side or its content at all! (They aren't just going to give you a seperate free standard DVD disc that you could easily give to a family member/friend - that would be selling two movies for the price of 1.)

 

[Ed St. Clair]

You have the best choice possible, buy or not buy.
No, I'm not goofing on you at all.
This is the earliest stage of the format release.
If people buy combo discs, they will make more.
If people don't buy combo discs, they will not make any more.
So, we will soon know if combo's are a viable format in the market place.
Tough thing is, if its a title you want and you have a HD DVD player and have to pay more for the disc. Or, its a title you want and already have the SD DVD.
It's a tough thing to take, right now.
Butt, this is a startup & startup's are painful.
Hope this issue is 'settled' soon.
And, if combo discs are selling, prices should come down.
Hang in there, HD discs are worth it!!!

 

[RobertDW]

I would like to see Universal stop making standard DVD's and only make combo HD DVD/DVD discs. Price them exactly the same as standard DVD's.

 

[Ed St. Clair]

Yeah, the same way I thought Sony should have handled SA-CD.
(other than the Stone's re-releases, which they bailed on!?!?!?!? :-( )
Either totally get behind combo's or drop them.
Combo's for all new releases, at the same price point of non-combo HD discs.
It's the old; Shower or get out of the tub!!! ;-)

 

[TonyD]

i'm on the side that wont buy hybrid unless they were same price.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

Well the Combo's are nice for one reason. When I buy a movie I usually give it to my parents to watch, the do not now, nor ever will have Hi Def. If I just get the HD version that rules that out. Also I often will convert the movie to Xvid for my portable devices.

 

[Sean Bryan]

I'm not too fond of the combo discs.

Even if you are only paying $2 more than you would have if it was HD only, multiply that by multiple discs over multiple years and that adds up to a significant amount of money that you may as well have used as tissue paper.

Many people getting into HD are getting into it because they want HD and aren't interested in watching the HD films they buy in SD. That's the first group.

Then you have people who are getting into HD, but still want all the same use (portability, family rental store, etc...) they previously had with a completely different disc format, DVD. That's the second group.

If ONLY combos were made available (no DVDs, no HD DVDs, just combo discs) at the same prices as DVD now, then the vast majority of both groups would probably be satisfied (though there would still be many who aren't wild about two sided discs). But I don't see this happening. It's not realistic, at least not in near future. I also think studios feel that the higher quality of HD should command a price premium, and I couldn't argue with that (as long as it is in the $5-$10 premium range it is at now). I mean, it is a pretty standard concept that you are typically going to pay a bit more for better quality, right?

Or......

If consumers had a choice of DVD, HD DVD (at a premium over DVD), or a combo (at a premium over HD DVD), this would also satisfy both groups. And it is absolutely fair to expect those who want two formats in one to pay a premium for it. After all, it's not something everyone buying HD wants or needs. Those who want DVD only aren't going to have to pay more for something they don't currently want/need. Same for those interested in HD only. But those who demand the "best of both worlds" can pay a little more for it. That seems fair.

But this also seems pretty unlikely when you look at reality. As it is, stores are frustrated with having to stock and display (price, find shelf space for, properly organize, etc...) not just a DVD and a Hi-Def disc version, but a DVD and two different Hi-Def disc versions. IF you throw in a fourth (DVD, HD DVD, BD, and combo), it would be an even bigger problem.

So as it is, there is DVD and the combo. No choice of getting a "pure" HD DVD for a few bucks less than the combo release. Those who don't want or need a DVD of the movie they just purchased in HD are gonna have to fork over a few extra bucks. Of course, no one is forced to buy anything. But come on, we're movie enthusiasts and collectors here. If there is movie we really want in HD and it is only available as a combo, most are gonna buy it (which makes sense) and pay a few extra bucks for something extra they don't want/need in the process. And as I stated above, if this happens over multiple discs over multiple years that adds up to a good amount of money.

And while I'm not wild about combos, I could at least see the logic behind using them for some new releases. But Universal is releasing some catalog titles as hybrids as well. And that is really screwy because most people currently interested in those movies and buying HD discs are likely to have already bought the SD DVD.

Personally, I think that those who really want/need both HD and SD DVD copies of a movie can still get what they want without the need for combos (and forcing those who don't want them [but want the movie in HD] to pay more). It would just take a bit more effort. Wait a couple a months and buy the DVD cheap/used for like $5-$10 bucks. And if shelf space is such an issue that it is causing you problems, buy a new HD DVD case (just like we can all now buy really cheap replacement DVD cases, we'll likely soon be able to buy replacement HD cases for a variety of numbers of discs) that is for two discs, and there you go! You have both versions, you aren't losing any storage space, you have your "traveling, lend to people, let kids watch" SD version, and you only had to pay a few dollars more for the convenience.

But ultimately, isn't the idea of managed copy something that will allow owners to make a copy for portable devices, etc...? In a few years when this whole aspect of the new formats takes shape, I'll bet the "trendy" thing to do is make a portable digital copy (at SD resolution) for your portable movie viewer, etc... and there will not be as much of a need for the "DVD" anyway. Maybe.

 

[Pete T C]

I'd love to have every disc as HD15/DVD HD30/DVD combo format hybrid @ MSRP 29.99 - 34.99. That would simply rule as it would allow my HD DVD copy to be played virtually anywhere while still allowing me to enjoy the HD goodness.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

They shouldn't charge a premium on the combo discs- I don't have an HD player yet but being a media geek I want to pick up some of the early releases in each configuration. The combo discs are just too close to laserdisc prices though. If I did have an HD player I wouldn't want to pay extra for the SD version either; they don't charge extra on regular DVD titles that have pan & scan together with widescreen so they shouldn't on these either.

With the format war I think including HD-DVD with regular discs is a good way to get the format into more people's homes, since they can play them on their regular players in the meantime. If the record business was smart, they would have done the same thing with SACD hybrids.

My rule for buying new discs right now though is if a title's available or announced as coming on either HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, I won't buy it on regular DVD. I'd buy anything available as a combo disc though as long as it was the same price as a HD-only disc, and having them might motivate me to upgrade my equipment sooner too!