Blue Ray disk - a real revolution?

[Tenshi no Ai]

All I hear about and see everywhere is about the new "Blue Ray". Seems like the ONLY difference it has is that somehow it surpasses DVDs with SUPER high definition and like, has TONS of space for it for people who are big fans of extras... either than that, don't see what's so amazing about them, personally.

The jump from VHS - DVD WAS a real revolution right there. I don't even have to explain why^^ But Blue Ray just seems like... what would be a good exmaple here? Well basically just slightly modifyed and better DVDs. My thought now with how DVDs have only recently FULLY taken over from VHSs is "Oh great, now stores are gunna get rid of ALL their DVDs and be FULL of Blue Ray only..." but maybe that won't be the case? My feeling is almost that they'll both sell continiously with a choice of if you want the regular one, or the better one... a question though to people who know a bit more on it: can Blue Ray played play DVDs too? I'm not even sure WHAT the disks look like. I'm assuming they are smaller than regular disks though, but that's just my best guess... All I know is that LOTS of people will be getting PS3s because of it having a cheap BR player in it...

So what are your thoughts on it? Picking one up right away? Enthralled by it's... amazing new differences?

[GrubbTheFragger]

No i won't be picking up one right off. I don't see the big deal really

[samuraidragon]

i've already know about this for a while. i use a Mac, and Apple Computers is on the Blu-Ray's board of directors. since Steve Jobs is such a huge fan of HD, i expect the Macs to have Blu-Ray drives standard in the next year or so

[creed4]

Right now there is a format war between Blu-ray and HD-dvd I'd wait till they descide on a format before I start buying

[JesusFreak84]

My only interest in this is as a means of data storage, and since Blu-Ray even on a single-layer disk (from what I've read) can hold more data....

The only DVDs I buy are anime, pretty much, and I don't think anime really stands to benefit from HD formats. *Shrugs*

[Roy Mustang]

Blue Ray played play DVDs too?

Yes, Blu-ray will be backwards compatible with DVD.

Info from Bu-ray.com

Will Blu-ray be backwards compatible with DVD?

Yes, several leading consumer electronics companies (including Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Pioneer, Sharp and LG) have already demonstrated products that can read/write CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs using a BD/DVD/CD compatible optical head, so you don't have to worry about your existing DVD collection becoming obsolete. In fact, most of the Blu-ray players coming out will support upscaling of DVDs to 1080p/1080i, so your existing DVD collection will look even better than before. While it's up to each manufacturer to decide if they want to make their products backwards compatible with DVD, the format is far too popular to not be supported. The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) expects every Blu-ray Disc device to be backward compatible with DVDs.

All I know is that LOTS of people will be getting PS3s because of it having a cheap BR player in it...

That's because it will or is for now be the lower cost Blu Ray player, other then the Samsung BD-P1000 Blu-Ray Disc Player that shows up on amazon for $599, which is the same price as the PS3.

So far, the price runs from $999 to $2,000 for them.

So what are your thoughts on it? Picking one up right away? Enthralled by it's... amazing new differences?

Uh, no. There are a few reasons why I will not pick one up right away. First, I want to see who will win the format war between Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.

The other thing is, I don't have a HD TV and if I'm right. You can use a Bly Ray player with non HD TV, but you will not get the full output of the player.

Its like buying a car with no motor.

Wingzero22

[Tenshi no Ai]

The other thing is, I don't have a HD TV and if I'm right. You can use a Bly Ray player with non HD TV, but you will not get the full output of the player.

Its like buying a car with no motor.

Wingzero22

Technolgy wars today are HUGE cash cows... "...but you can't buy something in HD without an HD TV to play it on!"

But yeah I totally forgot about thoseHD players... probably cause more talk (and releases) have been made for HD... but sheesh the world seems to be getting more expensive by the minute^^ If it's not iPods... (one thing that I've NEVER gotten into the trend of nor ever will just cause... :/)

[Sparrowhawk]

I will not be buying one immidiately. I'me a huge rpg fan tho, and Blu-ray means longer games with more detail. If you have more space, you can have more and better of anything since actions, graphics, everything takes space. That's the reason they are making the big deal. You can fit more, but it mostly will just allow for longer games. That's a BIG + for me tho, but not worth the inital price tag that comes with it.

[Scarecrow]

I am not getting Blue-Ray period... or HD... not for about 5 years at least... for one, you gain nothing if you don't have an HD TV... the difference is pretty much unnoticable on a regular tv. Second, I just barely got all my old Videos on DVD... I'm not gonna rebuy all my DVDs on Blue Ray... 3... I'm waiting to see if either will pick up before spending huge wads of cash on this... I seriously think this HD stuff is too soon and the general public will not care and be happy with their DVDs, so I wouldn't be surprised if this never picks up. 4... the price is rediculous right now... I bought my DVD player when they pretty much first came out on sale for 200 dollars.. and that was a cheap brand... An expensive DVD player doesn't even cost that much anymore...

And yea, I'm happy with my DVD player. I don't play games enough to care about longer games (I really thought Zelda Windwaker was a long game.. and one of the few I've completed cause Zelda rocks And Tales of Symphonia went on foooorever... I stuck it out in hopes of awesom anime cutscenes like it said on the box but the only cutscene you get is in the middle and at the very end... oh well, it was a fun game at least but way to long)

[Mithrandir]

I may get one as part of the PS3, when it comes out, but I won't buy one separate, that's for sure. I'd be SUPER surprised to see macs ship standard with a BR-DVD in the next two years, though.


Apple has spent the last few years figuring out how to get into the "less than high-end" or "entry" computer market, and jumping their costs 500-1000 bucks for a single device most of their users don't want is NOT consistant with their current strategy.


Just my $0.02.

[samuraidragon]

one of the important things about blu-ray is not only HD video, but also the fact that it can hold up to 23GB or something close to that. even if you don't plan on going for the HDTV soon, 23GB of storage is going to be nice. i'm sure it will replace DVD because of this, if not for video as well.

[Mithrandir]

SD:

Audio DVDs have not replaced audio CDs, and they are more than 4 times the size. While your point is well made, there is not a direct correlation.

[samuraidragon]

I mean more for data storage and maybe back-up. Audio DVDs haven't replaced music CDs, but I find them darn handy for backing up my music library. I guess I'm not sure if Blu-Ray will replace, as compliment DVD. It would depend heavily on the price of the media as well though. DVDs are getting cheaper, but when they first were avalible it was nuts.

[Orange Kitten]

I WILL buy a PS3, but not for a year for the price to drop. I didn't buy DVD-Rs when they came out for $1000, and now they're less than $100.

If you're not impressed with the "higher" quality Blu-Ray gives over DVD, then you're not impressed with the quality HD has over SD. Simple stats: 480i VS 1080P.

Sure, not everyone has an HDTV, but they will eventually. The technology has to start somewhere.

I'm a fan of the playstation anyway over Xbox or nintendo, so I'd buy one eventually even if it didn't have HD capabilities.

Apple has said nothing official, but I'm POSITIVE Apple will ship macs with Blu-Ray. Maybe not right away, but eventually.

[ShiroiHikari]

I think this so-called "format war" is ridiculous. I'm not buying HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, because quite honestly, I couldn't care less. DVDs work. They work well. In my opinion, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Also, I don't have-- nor do I want --a 1500 dollar HDTV, so what the crap do I need HD-DVDs for? I'm also not paying 500 bucks for a PS3.

[Mithrandir]

I WILL buy a PS3, but not for a year for the price to drop. I didn't buy DVD-Rs when they came out for $1000, and now they're less than $100.

If you're not impressed with the "higher" quality Blu-Ray gives over DVD, then you're not impressed with the quality HD has over SD. Simple stats: 480i VS 1080P.

Sure, not everyone has an HDTV, but they will eventually. The technology has to start somewhere.

I'm a fan of the playstation anyway over Xbox or nintendo, so I'd buy one eventually even if it didn't have HD capabilities.

Apple has said nothing official, but I'm POSITIVE Apple will ship macs with Blu-Ray. Maybe not right away, but eventually.

Well put. Providence has smiled down on me. FF12 is coming out around the same time as the PS3. I can't really buy either until March (I have little self control, and I'm in a very rigorous masters program until then). In march, I'll buy FF12 and beat it once, then write a walkthrough for it (what can I say? That's what I do.) By then, the PS3s will be on their second gen, and relativly stable. They may even drop a hundred bucks or so. In any event, I'll likely save some money.

As for Apple, it's possible, but it'll take a while. I'm sure it'll come as an option, but it wont be the primary player on the low-end macs for at least 3 years. You can quote me on that.

[Orange Kitten]

Think Secret has got a wiff that Apple may support BOTH formats

http://www.thinksecret.com/news/0610brieflyhddvd.html