Digital Bits Reports: APPLE joins Blu-Ray. Brace yourself for a format war! (1 Viewer)

[Craig F]

What would be really great is if Apple makes an HTPC. I mean a full blown one, not some half-baked one.

Tray loading drive (those crappy slot loading drives have GOT to go)
HDMI out (supporting 720p, 1080i, and 1080p)
Firewire w/ copy protection support for video AND audio
Coaxial AND optical audio out
And of course, software that would play movies full screen, but allow a framed desktop so that TV would not have to be adjusted for no overscan.

 

[Brian-W]

On the fence until Blu-Ray consortium announces the first slate of releases. THe first slate of HD-DVD releases, only a small handful are movies I'd rush out to buy.

If Blu-Ray has a compelling selection, I'll be first in line to get a Blu-Ray machine, format war or not.

And a few studies were done a while ago (can't remember where I saw it) that showed that PS-2 contributed signficantly to DVD video market growth because it was a cheap DVD player and a game system. Keep in mind the installed base of PS-2 systems in near 70 million, a number that no one should dismiss.

If PS-3 plays Blu-Ray movies from day 1 (something no one knows yet), that really could spell the end of the format war. It also means 1 less product mass market retailers would have to carry.

Time will tell, but I'd give 3-1 Blu-Ray wins.

 

[Shane Martin]

It'll be interesting to see how many current folks whom are in the "I'm waiting until the format war is settled, so I'm buying nothing" camp will breakdown and buy one of the formats or both whenever they see the content in the stores. You know they'll look. If the content quality is there, many will breakdown and make up their mind.

 

[Chris Farmer]

It's not about the highest quality on your 17" screen, it's about having a computer that plays only one format. I take my iBook with me on plane trips and watch movies on it. that means that I'll buy movies that work with whatever optical drive is in my next laptop. If it has a blu-ray drive and not HD-DVD, then that means I won't be watching HD-DVD movies on it,only blu-ray ones. It's not about quality, it's about the ability to play the movies at all. And in that case, every laptop that will be used for plane trips, every desktop that will be used in a college dorm room to watch movies, every HTPC, that doesn't do HD-DVD but only supports blu-ray is another nail in HD-DVDs coffin. People won't buy their movies twice (which is why I expect the UMD movies on the PSP to be a failure), and they're not gonna pick and choose. They want to be able to grab whatever movie they want out of their collection, toss it in their laptop case, and watch the movie. They don't want to have to keep track of formats. So if the computer industry is solidly in favor of blu-ray, which seems to be the case, this is a huge point in favor of it and against HD-DVD. Add in the PS3 as well and HD-DVD has a huge hurdle to surmount. That's not gonna be easy at all.

 

[Evan M.]

I for one think that the fact Blu-Ray may be in the PS3 will be HUGE. A lot of people have been dismissing it by saying that it did not have a huge effect on normal DVD player purchases but I think that is an apple-orange comparison. DVD players were out before PS2 I believe and sales were pretty decent when it cam out. This was also a totaly different format than most people were used to as the difference between DVD and VHS is obviously tremendous. When the PS2 came out it is was somewhat a bonus that it was also a DVD player too but most were familiar with the technology. The PS3 should be coming out pretty much the same time Blu-Ray gets out there. When the frenzy happens when the PS3 is released these people will probably be introduced to the world of Blu-Ray as well.
I bet if everyone here went to 10 people who were not as informed about BR as we are and said "hey....have you ever heard of BR and did you know the PS3 is going to have it?" I bet none of them (maybe 1) will say "sure, I can't wait!!". I am sure they would say something like "yeah, I figured there would be a new PS coming out soon but what the heck is BR??"
Pretty much to some it up....a lot of people will probably learn what Blu-Ray is by the popularity of the PS3. Does this mean that they will run and buy one?? who knows....but I think they would be more to apt buy a BR player over a HD-DVD player since they will at least have a clue of what it is.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Those of us with HD-ready TV's with component-only inputs will have our minds made up for us -- we will be locked out with no HDMI inputs on our TVs. Add all the people with only analog TV's, and the initial market will be small anyway. Finally, subtract the HDTV w/ HDMI owners who do not want to jump into a format war, and this will be a niche market for quite awhile.

 

[Chris Will]

Paul_Scott hit it on the nail for me. Ever since MS said at GDC that the Xbox 2 will only have a SD-DVD drive (deal breaker for me, no HD drive, no buy) I have turned my attention to the PS3. I have been wanting to upgrade my DVD player but am waiting until the HD formats come out. So, I'm about 80% sure that I'll be buying a PS3 which means my DVD player upgrade will be an HD-DVD player. Boom! I now have both formats! I believe that HD-DVD will be backwards compatible with SD-DVD (could be wrong) so, if that format "looses the war" then I still have a really fancy SD-DVD player.



With a DVI or HDMI cable of course. Do you really think that Sony will not have some type of HD cable available for the PS3. It may cost $50 to $100 but they'll have one.

 

[Jim Ogilvie]

Scott...

Apples marketshare is indeed low when you compare to intel/athalon based PC's. However, the marketshare of professional video type folks who are in the Apple camp is significantly higher than the ratio of machines sold suggests.

That being said, a company like Apple who can be very influential with that particular crowd, can invest a lot in their pro apps to support things like blu-ray authoring (I have no idea what is involved, but if Apple is supporting blu-ray, you can count on them supporting it from the post-production side of things).

I view this announcement as so much more than just a computer manufacturer saying their machine will play the discs.

At NAB we can expect to see some serious prosumer entrants into the HD camera marketplace (Panasonic being the one to watch), plus Apple will be showing Final Cut Pro 5, which is said to support HDV (in addition to other HD formats that Final Cut currently supports). Apple is clearly indicating where their support will be going forward (an announcement of blu-ray support for DVD Studio Pro would not shock me at NAB either).

Apple has been a real rising star of late, so when they throw their hat in the ring its not an insignificant event. They are a wall street darling right now and have a lot of momentum going.

Jim

edit: Of course this also means Pixar will be supporting blu-ray, since Steve Jobs is ruler supreme of both Apple and The Pix. "The Incredibles" on blu-ray, anyone? Well...ok. Disney distributes that film under the current agreement, but they are on the blu-ray side anyways. But future Pixar flicks would likely also be blu-ray - sorry for the long winded point.

 

[Keith I]

I will wait for players that support both formats (like the current DVD-A/SACD players) at an affordable price, if and when that time comes. If it doesn't, then I won't bother.
-

 

[Hal F]

I think the issue the original poster was referring to was the fact that millions of people have tv's that don't have either a dvi or hdmi input. So what good will the cable do them? How many will be willing to go out and buy a new tv just so they can play their P3 games?

 

[Bryant Trew]

I was somewhat of an early adopter with a 1080i RPTV, and I am not the least bit happy that copy protection will make my TV incompatible. My TV is in excellent shape, and with copy protection I wouldn't even be able to sell it. So having been burnt this time around, I'll hold off on adopting early this time around. Give me component connections or wait until my TV dies.

 

[Jeff Whitford]

Hal you are exactly right as far as what I meant. There are alot of people who buy gaming systems and dont even have A/V inputs.

 

[Brian-W]

Why? Are you buying into a format or the content?

I think people become way to wrapped up in the formats and not the content that these formats play. You could be denying yourself some great games.

 

[Chris Farmer]

Scott, it's not about Apple's marketshare either. I used that to give a concrete example. My point was that computer manufacturers seem to be throwing their tower in the Blu-Ray camp. Apple and HP both already have, and I think MS has said Windows will support Blu-Ray but said nothing about native HD-DVD support. But if the computer manufacturers all go towards one format, that will seriously hurt the other. Sure Apple only has 5%, but add in HP and you're up to 30%. Add MS and Apple and you've got well over 90% of the market (of course, that's true of MS alone too, but oh well). If computers can't play HD-DVD discs, that will be a major hindrance to its adoption.

 

[Nick Laslett]

I am a long standing Blu-Ray advocate and have been banging the drum about this superior format for ages.

The only thing that concerns me is Lord of the Rings.

The thought that the trilogy would only be available on HD-DVD severly pains me.

I would have no choice but to buy both formats, Lawrence of Arabia being the deal breaker on the other side.

Then I read that MGM (Sony) and New Line were in negotiation to set-up the Hobbit for Peter Jackson to direct. Perhaps Sony would make the Blu-Ray release of LOTR one of the negotiating points for this deal.

I have already resigned myself to buying both players as my favourite movies fall pretty evenly between the two.

The worst outcome would be for the High Definition Discs to be a niche format. We need one format to win in a big way, or it will be a re-run of LD with just a trickle of content.

By the time Europe gears up for the format change the US and Japan will have already identified the winner.

 

[TravisR]

For a long, long time, high def DVD (whoever the winner) will be a niche format. Yes, eventually high def will be the standard but that's going to take YEARS to actually happen.

The average guy who has trouble paying his bills each month isn't thinking "Gee, I can't wait to get a new HDTV and a high def DVD player!" They will convert only when they have no choice left in the matter. How many years have they been saying that analog broadcasts will be gone in 'the next few years'? Never seems to actually happen though. Sure, someday it will but it's gonna take a long time.

On the positive side, just because it's a niche format doesn't mean you won't see some great content.

 

[Vader]

There was hardly a "trickle of content", as it became the norm for all new releases (and many catalog titles) to be released on LD as well as VHS. Granted, there were not as many titles available on LD as VHS (mainly due to back catalog), but the format's niche status had more to do with J6P's ignorance/apathy for quality (LaserDisc, in it's time, gave the absolute best available PQ). Towards the end, price was also a big factor, as most special edition (and even standard) LDs could cost many times that of its VHS couterpart. Early on, the opposite was true: I remember paying $29.99 for The Hunt for Red October in LBX, while the VHS counterpart was $99.99 (ah, rental pricing...). Finally, LD catered mainly to AV-philes, and not to J6P, who adamantly objected to "those black bars". Indeed, LaserDisc was the genesis of Home Theater as we know it, and DVD is merely a descendant.

 

[WillardK]

I would guess that just like users of HD players with non-compliant tv's, they will view their discs (and games) in SD. Of course, if Sony has chosen the 'loser' (see? someone on the internet can spell that word correctly!), adopters of their product will be stuck with a Betamax Game Console.

However, I think it will not matter much because of the likelihood of TravisR's point. Especially with the latest news on further copyright protection, I think it might well not be until post HD-DVD/Blu-ray that a 'winning' format will reach market.

Of course LD's niche status had more to do with pricing and availability. DVD is it's successor moreso than descendant I'd say. Black bar VHS tapes were fairly popular at my local outlet.

 

[Felix Martinez]

Folks, I'm a big Apple guy, do all my video/audio/DVD production using their hardware and software tools, but am I the only one truly perplexed by their statement...?


If apple is pleased to join Blu-ray because consumers "are anxiously awaiting a way to burn their own high def DVDs" then it appears they chose the wrong format. Poorly worded statement or halfhearted support...?

If Apple does go full on into suppoting Blu-Ray with burners installed in future hardware - what happens to good 'ol DVD production? If we're having trouble seeing universal DVD/Blu-Ray players, I find it harder to envision CD-R/CD-RW/DVD-R/DVD-RW/DVD+R/Blu-Ray burners anytime soon...

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Given that BluRay is in no way a "DVD" format, the irony/error in their semantics is somehwhat humorous...


though we know what they mean...I'm sure the layman will associate BluRay with a form of "hi def DVD" even though it's technically not a DVD at all.

-dave