It took me two TV purchases to figure out that I was only getting 720p maximum, not the full 1080p. Oh well

Texfire wrote:

For me, yes. For the mass market maybe not. Tex

Oh, I see what you are complaining about. The prices on Blu-ray players will never get as low as a mass market DVD player. The reason is that all the high-end manufacturers got behind Blu-ray from the beginning (Toshiba is not high end) and decided not to ever give the technology to the Wal-mart brands that never paid their licensing fees when they were given the technology to make DVD players. The key is the lens - it takes a lot of moo-lah to develop a lens that will work for CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray (yes, you can use the same blue laser). The Wal-mart brands will have to develop their own.

Good to know, I was unaware that you could use the blue laser for the old formats. I guess since it's a tighter beam, it would be technically possible, if probably tricky to implement.

And I'm not complaining. I am concerned that this format war has scared off the average consumer. If we can't get enough demand for HD video on physical media, then the HD discs will earn a place with the Laserdisc in the dustbin of electronics history. Maybe that'll be a good thing in the long run and lead to online distribution.

I won't like it though. I buy all my music on CD. That way I have physical media that I can use how I like. Until the recording companies manage to get a law outlawing fair use that is, then I'll be a criminal if I want to rip my CDs to MP3s and my movies to a server.

Tex

Laserdiscs are proof that you don't have to have mass market to have a market. As long as nothing comes along that is technically superior, you are safe.

Laserdiscs made in Japan with digital sound (and CDs made in the same time period) are the pinnacle of mankind's achievement in audio fidelity. CDs sound equally bad in all nations nowadays. There are nifty high-res formats but they are usually mastered so badly it's a pointless waste. Case in point Queen: A Night at the Opera DVD-Audio. However, sometimes they can be stunning. Case in point: Bruce Dickinson: Balls to Picasso DVD-Audio. But both of those are out of print now.

news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20...an_toshiba

Final nail in the coffin. Toshiba throws in the towel.

And Microsoft stops making HD DVD add on for Xbox 360:

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23323919/

Mark these words, MS Blu Ray coming out by xmas

The Blu-ray hardware standard should be finalized by then.

Somehow I'm not surprised that I got this message when checked my cart on Amazon.

Quote::

Please note that the price of Superman Returns [Blu-ray] has increased from $15.95 to $23.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of Casino Royale [Blu-ray] has increased from $20.95 to $24.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of Black Hawk Down [Blu-ray] has increased from $16.95 to $17.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of The Road Warrior [Blu-ray] has increased from $14.95 to $19.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of The Phantom of the Opera [Blu-ray] has increased from $14.95 to $19.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of The Dirty Dozen [Blu-ray] has increased from $14.95 to $19.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages. Please note that the price of Rio Bravo [Blu-ray] has increased from $14.95 to $19.95 since you placed it in your Shopping Cart. Items in your cart will always reflect the most recent price displayed on their product detail pages.

Why buy the movies at all? There's this thing called Netflix.

Phantom of the Opera - the leading female was stunning but she sings like a cartoon mouse.

There is just something about one's own library