The Blu-ray Thread - see first post for more BR information, players & region coding

[Shorty]

So Blu-ray won and everybody's currently getting their fill of victory champagne. Where to from here? Nobody knows, but it's what we're here to talk about.

What this thread is for:

- Blu-ray equipment and software owners discussing their equipment and software
- Talking about upcoming movies
- Talking about movies that are already out
- Talking about hardware and hardware developments
- Tips and tricks
- Reasonable comments and criticisms. We know the format isn't perfect.

What this thread is not for:

- Format war discussion. You won, hooray, let's move on.
- Tech spec wankery. It's what killed the last thread, it's completely unproductive and we just don't need it. Reasonable, civilised debate is fine. E-penis measuring is not.

I trust that the vast majority of you will be fine with these guidelines. The rest can go create their own thread if they wish. You may begin...


EDIT:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To find out if a certain Blu-ray movie is region locked please search via the following links:

Blu-Ray Region Code Info (http://bluray.liesinc.net/)

Blu-Ray.com (http://www.blu-ray.com/)

Movietyme (http://www.movietyme.com) - mostly UK releases

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Confirmed Blu-ray players that can play Blu-ray movies from other regions:

Require input code to change regions:

Soniq QPB302B
- requires input code to change regions for BR
- Serial number must start with P36TF5B.
- Serial numbers that start P36TF5A will not allow you change BR region.
- Serial numbers that start with P36TF5C are reported to allow you to change BR regions.


Kogan
- requires input code to change regions for BR

Search this thread for information about these players. Better yet Google it. :P

[Creedy]

I think you should add to the don'ts that you can't criticize someone else for deciding not to buy a movie if they feel it isn't up to the standards set by other films.

Shawshank Redemption is coming to Blu Ray in November, certainly one of my favorite movies ever.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Warner/Disc_Announcements/Warner_Plans_Shawshank_Redemption_Blu-ray_for_November_/1502

Sony bringing the first Bollywood film Saawariya to Blu Ray. Come on Eros where is Om Shanti Om?
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Sony/Street_Date_Changes/Sony_Sets_Specs,_New_Date_for_Saawariya_Blu-ray/1504

Batman: Gotham Knight released on Blu Ray in July. or those that don't know it's an animation feature similar to the Animatrix.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Warner/Direct-to-High-Def_Premieres/Disc_Announcements/Direct-to-Video_Batman:_Gotham_Knight__Bound_For_Blu-ray/1507

Sony announces first BD-Live (AKA Profile 2.0) players.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Industry_Trends/Hardware/Sony/Sony_Unveils_First_BD-Live_Players/1511

[Shorty]

I think you should add to the don'ts that you can't criticize someone else for deciding not to buy a movie if they feel it isn't up to the standards set by other films.

No.

So anyway, Sony have released two new Profile 2.0 players (http://gizmodo.com/360642/bdp+s350-and-s550-sonys-first-full-20-spec-blu+ray-players) - the BDP-S350 and S550 models. Both are fully BD Live-capable and will feature external ports for local storage. The S550 when released will also have 1Gb of local storage. Prices will be US$400 for the S350 and US$500 for the S550 and the players will come out this summer for the S350 and this fall (autumn) for the S550. So far, no word on Australian release dates or prices.

On the software front, hot titles out within the next two weeks include 30 Days of Night, Initial D (the live-action movie) and Ice Age.

Thoughts, gentlemen?

[Blue]

I will purchase a PS3 upon the release of MGS4, and may indulge in the odd Blu-Ray or two. But until I see some really solid growth from the format, I'll give it a miss for the most part. In a couple of years, it may be a true mainstream format.

[Northy179]

I think you should add to the don'ts that you can't criticize someone else for deciding not to buy a movie if they feel it isn't up to the standards set by other films.

or you could stop talking out your ass

[Creedy]

What? You wanna turn this thread to shit? Dolby Digital isn't an HD standard, it's an SD standard. Why would I buy an HD disc with SD standards?

[Hyperblau]

What? You wanna turn this thread to shit? Dolby Digital isn't an HD standard, it's an SD standard. Why would I buy an HD disc with SD standards?

You are the one that started it with your initial post. Dont act like you werent fishing for a response.

Dolby Digital + is a HD standard, unfortunately thats not a standard codec for this format.

[Lex]

What? You wanna turn this thread to shit? Dolby Digital isn't an HD standard, it's an SD standard. Why would I buy an HD disc with SD standards?

Well, seeing as I can; your opinion is instantly invalid, you have no idea what art is so you're watching these films purely to take advantage of your setup, where you should be using your setup to take advantage of great films.

You're a moron, and this is why nobody will ever listen to you.

[Shorty]

Oh hey, it's that tech spec wankery I was talking about, people. :mad:

Please try and keep it on topic, people.

[Cerebral]

What? You wanna turn this thread to shit? Dolby Digital isn't an HD standard, it's an SD standard. Why would I buy an HD disc with SD standards?
Because the movie might be pretty good, perhaps.

But I digress, I don't give a shit about HD audio. I don't even have a decent setup (2.1). :(

[Shorty]

Speaking of pretty good movies, is anyone else waiting for another 2-for-1 deal before they buy any more Blu-rays from JB? I'm not particularly keen on paying $40 a movie. At that price, I might as well buy a bunch of region-free titles off Amazon.

[farzadboy2003]

yes!! yes!! blu ray ftw!

[Creedy]

Because the movie might be pretty good, perhaps.

I don't care, it's my money, it's my choice. Why should it matter to you guys what choice I make?

Also Shorty I won't be waiting for any sales. I'll be making an Amazon order for the following movies very soon.

Across The Universe
Run Lola Run
30 Days of Night
Initial D
Ice Age
Dogma
Gattaca
Hitman
I' Robot
Independence Day

My total movie count will then be at 76.

[Shorty]

Creedy, you are absolutely entitled to your opinion and your choice. You are not entitled to have everyone accept your choice. If you can't accept that, feel free to McShut The Hell Up.

As for the sales, it takes a little less time for me to grab three movies from my local JB Hi-Fi than it does to have them shipped by Amazon from the US, which is why I'm rather keen that the 2-for-1 sale kicks in again. :cool:

[Creedy]

Creedy, you are absolutely entitled to your opinion and your choice. You are not entitled to have everyone accept your choice. If you can't accept that, feel free to McShut The Hell Up.

I can understand someone arguing someone elses point point about whether a movie was good/bad, whether a game is good/bad, whether a band is good/bad. But what is the point of arguing with someones choice to not buy a movie? Whats the pointof trying to force someone to buy what they don't want to buy?
I don't get it.

[Cerebral]

I don't care, it's my money, it's my choice. Why should it matter to you guys what choice I make?
It doesn't really. You posed a question, I gave an answer.

[Conor]

What is the need for analog output in these players? Wouldn't people who buy high-end players like the S350 and S550 have receivers with HDMI?

[Shorty]

I can understand someone arguing someone elses point point about whether a movie was good/bad, whether a game is good/bad, whether a band is good/bad. But what is the point of arguing with someones choice to not buy a movie? Whats the pointof trying to force someone to buy what they don't want to buy?
I don't get it.

Forcing? Does it look like we're holding a gun to your head and making you buy a movie? I don't think so.

If you put an opinion or justification for a decision out there, there's a chance someone will argue with it. It's a fact of life, get over it. Nobody is or should be under any obligation to automatically fully approve of any decision you make and the sooner you realise this, the better off you're going to be.

Now, you can either continue down this pointless line of argument or you can suck it up and start discussing Blu-ray like everyone. Your choice.

[Fenrir]

I arrived late. :(

I just wanted to say that I've never heard of a quality audio hardware setup from Sony (speakers, amp, some combination of). They always seem to overdo the treble, and the frickin' things start to produce harmonic distortion if you dare to turn the volume up past halfway. My sister's stereo (which set her back a few hundred) comes to mind. Hell even their earphones/headphones do it. :p
You'd never pick out the extremely tiny, subtle improvement between DD+ and PCM using anything but perfect Hi-Fi audio hardware (likely stuff costing atleast in excess of 10 grand); hell, DD+ passes the sound equivalent of uncanny valley as it is.

/$0.02

[SOX]

Soooooo where's my Blu-ray addon for the 360?

[pauljdavidson]

Speaking of pretty good movies, is anyone else waiting for another 2-for-1 deal before they buy any more Blu-rays from JB? I'm not particularly keen on paying $40 a movie. At that price, I might as well buy a bunch of region-free titles off Amazon.


I don't care, it's my money, it's my choice. Why should it matter to you guys what choice I make?

Also Shorty I won't be waiting for any sales. I'll be making an Amazon order for the following movies very soon.

Across The Universe
Run Lola Run
30 Days of Night
Initial D
Ice Age
Dogma
Gattaca
Hitman
I' Robot
Independence Day

My total movie count will then be at 76.

The US dollar is pretty weak against the Aussie dollar at the moment, 23 year high/low. Now is a good time to buy, pity there is no 3 for 2 sale.

[Creedy]

I've been importing all my movies from the beginning. The BOGO's always hit for titles I wanted straight after I bought them.

[Shorty]

Not all of us have Region A Blu-ray player, though, hence we have to be careful about which movies we import.

[pauljdavidson]

Here's hoping I Am Legend is All Regions.

[Shorty]

It's from Warner and a lot of their stuff is region-free so I don't see why not.

[Manny M]

Speaking of pretty good movies, is anyone else waiting for another 2-for-1 deal before they buy any more Blu-rays from JB? I'm not particularly keen on paying $40 a movie. At that price, I might as well buy a bunch of region-free titles off Amazon.

That's exactly why i'm still waiting before I delve into Blu-Ray. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to see some HD titles on my 1080p TV, but I can't justify forty bucks for one movie. It's way too expensive. When they drop sub $30, then we can talk, and i'll grab myself a PS3.

So what's this Blu Ray Live 2.0 thingy you were talking about?

[Shorty]

Profile 2.0 (AKA "BD Live") adds more local storage (1Gb vs 256Mb) and Internet connectivity to Blu-ray, bringing the feature set on par with HD DVD.

[TrinityJayOne]

Has Microsoft mentioned anything about what they'll be doing now?
__________________
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Hey! How would you like your very own Powdered Toast, man?
PLAY-ASIA don't sell it, but do they do sell great games stuff! (http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-91bz-49-en.html)
http://card.mygamercard.net/gbar/grill/trinityjayone.gif (http://profile.mygamercard.net/trinityjayone)

[Shorty]

The possibility of a Blu-ray add-on was never categorically ruled out but I think that if it would happen it'd be at least a few months.

[Creedy]

Microsoft will stick to digital downloads, IMO anyway.

*EDIT*

The Devil's Own to hit Blu Ray in May. Looks like Sony are starting to choose Dolby True HD over uncompressed PCM.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Sony/Disc_Announcements/Devils_Own_Coming_to_Blu-ray_this_May/1503

Paramount cancels all HD-DVD releases.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/DreamWorks/Paramount/Industry_Trends/Paramount_Cancels_Majority_of_HD_DVD_Slate/1522

*NOTE*
I don't know if it's true or not but I was informed by an EzyDVD employer that Transformers is indeed on it's way to Blu Ray and very shortly.

[pauljdavidson]

Microsoft will stick to digital downloads, IMO anyway.

*EDIT*

The Devil's Own to hot Blu Ray in May. Looks like Sony are starting to choose Dolby True HD over uncompressed PCM.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Sony/Disc_Announcements/Devils_Own_Coming_to_Blu-ray_this_May/1503

Paramount cancels all HD-DVD releases.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/DreamWorks/Paramount/Industry_Trends/Paramount_Cancels_Majority_of_HD_DVD_Slate/1522

*NOTE*
I don't know if it's true or not but I was informed by an EzyDVD employer that Transformers is indeed on it's way to Blu Ray and very shortly.

Except, if i'm not mistaken their digital downloads are 720p DD5.1 only, weigh in around 6-7gb and they are for rental only. Not really viable yet IMO. Bring on the bluray add on.

[Blue]

When they drop sub $30, then we can talk, and i'll grab myself a PS3.I think a lot of folks will think like this. So maybe Sony should hurry up and do it, to really tempt people to buy a PS3. I've gone from not considering getting one, despite MGS4, to wanting to grab the inevitable bundle. And one Blu Ray movie.

[dimorphic]

The possibility of a Blu-ray add-on was never categorically ruled out but I think that if it would happen it'd be at least a few months.

It'll happen. MS will be stupid not too. They backed the wrong format but they won't bow out of the race. They've stated before that if the consumer wanted it they'd release (probably) a Blu-Ray add-on.

[Dr Skinnybones]

I wish I could remember the interview, but some MS exec was pressed on the Blu-Ray drive question. He cited the poor attach rate of the HD-DVD drive as a reason why they would not be pursuing it (at least in the near future).

Honestly, I think they'll focus on getting their movie rental service out in more regions.

[Creedy]

MS only backed HD-DVD to cause confusion, a Blu Ray add-on won't happen.
:P

[Shorty]

Alright, who let Michael Bay in here? Come on. 'Fess up, people. :p

[Creedy]

Short Circuit is heading to Blu Ray in May, WTF wouldn't want this cult classic seriously?
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Image_Entertainment/Disc_Announcements/Short_Circuit_Headed_to_Blu-ray_/1514

The Orphanage could also be an interesting horror film. I'ts Spanish and produced by Del Toro.
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1063

[Moskau]

Number Five is alive!

Thats being added to my future purchases list. I need it.

[Dr Skinnybones]

Alright, who let Michael Bay in here? Come on. 'Fess up, people. :p

He got here on his 7 helicopters.

[pauljdavidson]

Those bluray space arguments really that necessary? says crackhead Kojima.

http://n4g.com/tech/News-117932.aspx

Honestly.

[Blue]

Those bluray space arguments really that necessary? says crackhead Kojima.

http://n4g.com/tech/News-117932.aspx

Honestly.

Maybe if you used some punctuation, what you just said may have made some sense, but alas.

Honestly.

[Lazlow]

Kojima is smoking way too much peyote.

[Shorty]

Maybe there's a 1080p HD video walkthrough of the entire game on the thing. :p

[Yottabit]

Those bluray space arguments really that necessary? says crackhead Kojima.

http://n4g.com/tech/News-117932.aspx

Honestly.

I think he has more talent, knowledge and experience in game development then you do pauljdavidson.

[Shorty]

That's not really the point, though. The point is what in God's name is Kojima putting in the game that would make even a BD-50 inadequate? Because you have to wonder at what would have such extreme storage requirements.

[Blue]

That's not really the point, though. The point is what in God's name is Kojima putting in the game that would make even a BD-50 inadequate? Because you have to wonder at what would have such extreme storage requirements.The best game of all time, perhaps.

[fishfishmonkeyhat]

The biggest game of all time, perhaps.

mrlk.

[Fenrir]

Eh, pretty much what happens when you spoil the developer with space - they waste it then ask for more. I'm yet to be convinced that the space difference has had any real impact in this generation at all; and at these storage sizes, there are countless ways of compressing data on high and low levels. (for the record, when I say "high levels", I'm thinking along the lines of SpeedTree)

[Creedy]

I wish people would stop spinning more storage space as a negative thing.

[Lazlow]

I'm not really against more storage space, mainly Kojima's comments. We've jumped from 8.5GB discs to 50GB discs... and suddenly this isn't enough? I've generally avoided this thread due to the fact I don't yet own BD capable hardware, but that article caught my ire.

[Fenrir]

I wish people would stop spinning more storage space as a negative thing.
I never called it a negative - more one of those initial positives that ends up nullified by the uninspired programmers it spawns, and the money-first driving force of the industry.
Whatever designers can make run on the platform, they'll inevitably manage to fit onto the storage medium available. Doubling the storage available won't compel the developer to double the game size, not when they can't reasonably charge an extra $50 or so for it.

[Blue]

I wish people would stop spinning more storage space as a negative thing.

Nobody has said that. Don't be a ****wit.

Now onto some big persons' conversation, I think disc space is always going to be like any space. If you give somebody a mansion, they'll fill it with furniture, and a pool, and spread their stuff out everywhere. Chuck them in an apartment, they'll get all IKEA, stack stuff and all that.

Now, I can sort of see where Kojima is coming from here. For the first time, he was probably expecting, or at least hoping, that he could deliver a final MGS masterpiece, an uncompromised version of his vision. This is, after all, supposed to be the big MGS send off.

For example, I had a 20GB iPod, and 2800 songs, and even though 20GB is supposedly enough space, it wasn't. Why? Because I like my songs to be in CD quality Apple Lossless format, bitches! So cha-ching, I'll have an 160GB iPod please. Because while I could have fit them all on a twenty gigger, I likes my musics uncompressed.

Of course Kojima doesn't need the space, per se, he's Japanese, they sleep in cupboards. But the man, like most artists, is a perfectionist, and he wants his masterpiece to be pre, unadulterated, cinematic HD brilliance.

(Whether or not extra space would really help, who knows. I'm just justifying it for argument's sake.)

[Shorty]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v694/unclespellbinder/Animated/beating-a-dead-horse.gif

Meanwhile, back at the ranch I've ordered six more Blu-ray movies - S.W.A.T., Swordfish, Stealth (they're both dumb fun movies), A Scanner Darkly, Full Metal Jacket: Deluxe Edition, and Hellboy: Director's Cut. Should be arriving in about a week and a half. :cool:

One thing I was wondering while watching The Rock is when we're going to start seeing Criterion Collection films in HD. The Criterion Collection are famous for their authoritative versions of classic films and were the pioneers of many of today's standard features like letterboxing (which replaced the usual pan-and-scan), commentary tracks and "special editions" of films. Apparently they've been mastering in HD for years anyway and have stayed out of the format war, so it'll be interesting to see what happens when they start releasing on Blu-ray.

[pauljdavidson]

Maybe if you used some punctuation, what you just said may have made some sense, but alas.

Honestly.

Made sense to me after 8 or so beers. Don't get your undies twisted.


I think he has more talent, knowledge and experience in game development then you do pauljdavidson.

No shit there.

[Hyperblau]

Hellboy: Director's Cut
This movie looks freakin awesome in HD.

[Blue]

Made sense to me after 8 or so beers. Don't get your undies twisted.You like to drink eight beers and then post on an internet forum. Oh no, no, I am impressesd. Don't get me wrong.

But what you wrote did not make sense. At all.

Try taking constructive criticism a little better next time.

[pauljdavidson]

You could do the same mate. Build a bridge. Get over it.

[Blue]

How quaint. May I enquire sir, as to from where exactly you sourced such a witty, inventive reposte?

Getting one's undies twisted? Building a bridge, in order to get over 'it'? My God, Mr. Davidson, not only are you an eloquent, concise linguist, but also a wit without equal.

A ****wit.

Now, the cretins dismissed, when will we be seeing Sin City on Blu Ray? I can't imagine anything better to start my collection with.

[Creedy]

Email Disney and see if you get an answer. They've had it running in their "coming to Blu Ray" trailers for quite some time. It's getting ANNOYING.

[pauljdavidson]

How quaint. May I enquire sir, as to from where exactly you sourced such a witty, inventive reposte?

Getting one's undies twisted? Building a bridge, in order to get over 'it'? My God, Mr. Davidson, not only are you an eloquent, concise linguist, but also a wit without equal.

A ****wit.

Now, the cretins dismissed, when will we be seeing Sin City on Blu Ray? I can't imagine anything better to start my collection with.


Ok then. Why are you taking it so hard? I wasnt trying to sound like a hard ass or elitist or whatever. I had had a few beers and jumped on here and posted something I thought was worthwhile at the time, and so my grammar wasn't as good as everything you've ever posted. It's just an internet forum. I'm a cretin for bad grammar and being wrongly accused of attempting to be witty. Ok Blue.

Love Sin City, cannot wait for that. Most coming soon lists also have Sin City 2 listed, is this to be a direct-to-video type feature maybe?

[Blue]

See, to me, it seemed as though when I remarked that what you said made no sense, and that as a result I couldn't understand what your point was, you were trying to be a hard-arse, with your "eight beers, undies twisted, no shit" reply, instead of simply rewording the misunderstood post for conversation's sake.

Let's build that bridge then.

I hate Blu-Ray cases.

[Creedy]

I hate DVD cases.

[Blue]

CD cases are perfect. Why would you add extraneous space? Make a case the size of the disc, beautiful.

[Creedy]

I hate CD cases even more, they crack way to easily and so do the CD holder parts.

[nintendo]

I hate Blu-Ray cases.

I Hate both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD cases. I mean who ever thought it was a good idea to change the SIZE is an idiot. Now they dont match your DVD collection. Let alone the crappy colour chosen for both formats. I think when I take the plunge into the HD era Ill make my own covers for spare DVD cases and put my Blu-Rays in there.

[Shorty]

I'm sure there's probably a Web site out there that offers custom DVD case-size covers for your Blu-ray movies.

[Creedy]

Now they dont match your DVD collection.

Thats because Blu Ray and HD-DVD aren't DVD. They are a different media type.

[Lazlow]

And..?

[nintendo]

Thats because Blu Ray and HD-DVD aren't DVD. They are a different media type.

I see that as irrelevant. The physical size of the discs is the same (as far as I can tell). You could then say, "What about CDs and their size being the same as DVD, but DVD got a different case?" Well I guess because ones audio and ones video. I dont want my collection looking like shite.

[Shorty]

It's like saying the sky is blue because it's not chocolate. :p

[pauljdavidson]

IIRC DVD cases were chosen based on matching dimensions of movie one-sheets.

[Lex]

Thats because Blu Ray and HD-DVD aren't DVD. They are a different media type.

Are you retarded?

[Creedy]

I see that as irrelevant. The physical size of the discs is the same (as far as I can tell). You could then say, "What about CDs and their size being the same as DVD, but DVD got a different case?" Well I guess because ones audio and ones video. I dont want my collection looking like shite.

Well yeah, why didn't DVD use the same size packaging as CD's? I'm pretty sure VCD did so why not DVD?

Lex ...... shut up.

[Shorty]

Well yeah, why didn't DVD use the same size packaging as CD's? I'm pretty sure VCD did so why not DVD?

IIRC DVD cases were chosen based on matching dimensions of movie one-sheets.

The height of the DVD keep case (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keep_case) is very close to the standard width of a VHS tape, allowing DVDs to be stored in VHS shelves.

[nintendo]

The height of the DVD keep case (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keep_case) is very close to the standard width of a VHS tape, allowing DVDs to be stored in VHS shelves.

Emphasis. I believe that they should be the same, and I cant see why anyone would want them to change the size. Fair enough the colour, even though its *****ing horrible (both colours, but just Blu-Rays).

[Fenrir]

I daresay we should use the Golden Ratio (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_ratio) to determine which case size is superior.

According to Wikipedia, the DVD keep case (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keep_case)'s dimensions are: 190mm × 135mm × 13mm.
190 / 135 = 1.407407407...

According to the same page, Blu-Ray/HD-DVD cases are about 19mm shorter (if someone wants to measure it exactly, go ahead). That gives us 171mm x 135mm.
171 / 135 = 1.266666666...


1.407 is closer to the Golden Ratio (approx. 1.6180339887) than 1.266; DVD wins. ;)
















...what? >_>

[fishfishmonkeyhat]

Do HD/Blu cases fit in normal DVD holders?

[nintendo]

Actually Ive always wondered that. My uncle keeps his in a cupboard so I cant tell.

[Creedy]

This is what all stores should be doing, allowing people to trade in their HD-DVD players for Blu Ray players.

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Industry_Trends/High-Def_Retailing/Circuit_City/Shhh!_Circuit_City_Trading_HD_DVD_Players__for_Blu-ray/1545

[StorminNorman]

Do they take 360 add-on drives?

[Creedy]

Don't tell me you wasted your money on one?

[Shorty]

They were doing in trade-ins in Japan since a while ago, IIRC.

[drzaius]

I wish all bluray/hddvd cases were slimline.

and - just be thankful they aren't still releasing games in random sized (cardboard) boxes!

[Shorty]

The US ones are slimmer than the Australian ones. You can tell if you've imported any titles yourself or if you go into JB Hi-Fi and look at the ones they've imported (like Alpha Dog and a few of the music videos). While you could probably fit more of them on a given sized shelf, it makes a bit harder to read the titles on the spines when you're picking one out.

[drzaius]

meh - in terms of storage - smaller is always better!
EVERYTHING should be slimline!

[fishfishmonkeyhat]

50gb bluray would like a word!

[Fenrir]

Don't tell me you wasted your money on one?
That's a bit rough. :rolleyes:

[Shorty]

To be honest, I find it just a little bit sad that the thread dedicated to the "dead" format is significantly better-behaved than the one dedicated to the "winner". :p

But I digress.

Fox are apparently rereleasing some of their Blu-ray titles with BD Live (http://gizmodo.com/364342/here-comes-the-reaming-blu+ray-movie-rereleases-coming-with-bd-live). Which may interest those with a BD Live-capable player and a thirst for interactivity with their movies.

[Creedy]

Hopefully some of the other franchises they are talking about include the actual proper Aliens series. I'm also happy I didn't buy any early Fox releases, way too over priced for bare bones releases.

[Shorty]

Well, the headline specifically said rerelease so I'm guessing it's limited to movies that have already come out, unless you can figure out a way to rerelease something that was never released. :p

[Creedy]

Die Hard is the only major franchise Fox has released on Blu Ray. There haven't been any other major franchises released, so when the article quotes about Fox looking at 3 major franchises I'd assume it's from unreleased titles.

[Shorty]

Not quite. The Fox rep said they were looking at three other major franchises for interactive content ("Davison also said Fox was looking at three other major franchises for a heavy interactive component."), which didn't necessarily imply that they were getting rereleases. The rereleases are only occurring on released titles. It's logically impossible to "rerelease" a movie that was never "released" in the same way it's impossible to "redo" something you haven't actually done yet. So if the movie isn't out then it's a spec change and not a "rerelease".

[Creedy]

You just basically said what I already said, the 3 major franchises will be unreleased titles.

[Hyperblau]

Lets just pray its Aliens. X-men 1 and 2 would be fantastic also.

[Creedy]

I'm hoping it's X-Men 1 and 2 as well because I hate X-Men 3.

[Shorty]

You just basically said what I already said, the 3 major franchises will be unreleased titles.

They are, but they won't be rereleased for the aforementioned reasons.

Hyperblau, AFAIK none of the Alien movies have confirmed release dates.

[Hyperblau]

Hyperblau, AFAIK none of the Alien movies have confirmed release dates.

Yes, i know, and it angers me as each day passes.

[Creedy]

This video about the Scavenger Hunt game on the Independence Day Blu Ray is quite interesting. Not so much because of the game but because of the potential future possibilities that could arise.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc3maivq0oI

Shorty, your confusing me, I never said anything about re-releases.

[Creedy]

I just ordered the following from Amazon:-

30 Days of Night
Across the Universe
Dogma
Enchanted
Gattaca
Hitman
Ice Age
Independence Day
Initial D
I Robot
Run Lola Run

[Gutsman Heavy]

I hope you've seen and liked 30 Days of Night, bad choice for a blind buy, since its terrible. Does dogma have the commentary?

[Creedy]

Yeah I've seen 30 Days of Night, I thought it was quite enjoyable.
Dogma seems to have a few commentaries but not sure what ones.

[Shorty]

In other news, DVDTown is reporting that HD DVD's demise seems to have pushed Blu-ray prices up (http://www.dvdtown.com/news/hd-dvds-demise-seems-to-push-blu-ray-prices-up/5310). To be fair, it's a fairly small survey sample but I wonder could there be any further truth to this?

[Fenrir]

In other news, DVDTown is reporting that HD DVD's demise seems to have pushed Blu-ray prices up (http://www.dvdtown.com/news/hd-dvds-demise-seems-to-push-blu-ray-prices-up/5310). To be fair, it's a fairly small survey sample but I wonder could there be any further truth to this?
I believe a certain user known by the handle Fenrir forecasted this very situation. :p

</gloat>
<cry>

[Shorty]

That's kinda like predicting an asteroid hitting the Earth or nuclear war. You don't really want to be right about it. :p

[Creedy]

And you think if HD-DVD had won, their players prices wouldn't have increased with the amount of money they were losing?
Software seems to be keeping it's same price.

[the_concierge.]

In other news, DVDTown is reporting that HD DVD's demise seems to have pushed Blu-ray prices up (http://www.dvdtown.com/news/hd-dvds-demise-seems-to-push-blu-ray-prices-up/5310). To be fair, it's a fairly small survey sample but I wonder could there be any further truth to this?

If anything, I don't think you are going to be seeing Blu Ray players get dramatically cheaper within the next 6 months or so. That's assuming that sales continue to rise of course.

[Creedy]

I think Blu Ray players prices will start dropping before Christmas.

[Lazlow]

maybe for BD 1.1 players >_>

[Shorty]

I honestly can't say whether or not HD DVD equipment would have followed the same price trajectory had it won because it didn't. What I am doing is going on what is happening and according to the article, Blu-ray equipment seems to have gotten more expensive since winning the format war.

As concierge more astutely pointed out, players probably aren't going to get dramatically cheaper during the next six months or so. But they will need to get cheaper eventually because their main competitor now is standard DVD.

[Creedy]

You can't honestly say that HD-DVD would have increased it's prices? Even after Toshiba openly admitted they were losing to much money from hardware sales due to their low prices?

[Shorty]

They could have in the same way that I could get hit by a bus tomorrow. It's a hypothetical question. My original point was quite clearly actual.

[Bill Bryson]

I think he needs you to draw him a picture, because your words could not have been clearer.

Do you think there is a need though, right now, for Sony to cut prices of Blu-Ray? DVD is more than lining the back pockets of everyone involved, so why not sit on it for awhile, try and swindle as much as possible from the early adopters of HD, and then hit the gas when DVD begins to tail off in a year or so?

[Creedy]

I think he needs you to draw him a picture, because your words could not have been clearer.

I understood him perfectly, but it's silly to assume that there was a slight chance Toshiba wouldn't have risen their prices considering how much money they were losing.

[Fenrir]

You can't honestly say that HD-DVD would have increased it's prices? Even after Toshiba openly admitted they were losing to much money from hardware sales due to their low prices?
Sources, please. Toshiba can't have been losing as much as Sony, simply because Blu-Ray is the more expensive format - I'd be more likely to guess that any money being lost would've been due to their losing position in the format war.

Anyway, I was pretty sure that we had already established that Blu-Ray has been a purely profit-driven exercise to usurp the DVD Forum. What's left to debate?

[Shorty]

I understood him perfectly, but it's silly to assume that there was a slight chance Toshiba wouldn't have risen their prices considering how much money they were losing.

Except that wasn't the original point, which was that Blu-ray manufacturers appeared to be actually raising prices and that simply raising the hypothetical question of whether or not Toshiba might have done the same thing isn't a valid response in itself. Whereas a response along the lines of, say, "no they haven't, here's proof" or "they had good reason to do so" would have been more pertinent to the topic at hand. And with that in mind, I'd like to ask if anyone has any thoughts either way? Are manufacturers indeed raising prices or is the survey sample size skewing the results? And if so, are the manufacturers justified in doing so?

[pauljdavidson]

While there may be a price premium for a little while yet (HD is just getting started), hardware manufacturers will probably start to compete with each other. Prices will come down, or they wont get bought by the majority of the people.

[Creedy]

I think that article is way to short the base any type of opinion on personally. Not enough hard facts are given.

Fenrir, did you intentionally not read any of the Toshiba press releases or insider news?

[Fenrir]

And with that in mind, I'd like to ask if anyone has any thoughts either way? Are manufacturers indeed raising prices or is the survey sample size skewing the results? And if so, are the manufacturers justified in doing so?
Justified? Is this an assessment of ethical conduct or something?

I think it's pretty simple: they can do (or charge) whatever the hell they want. Granted I'm not likely to upgrade from DVD anytime soon, but really, the collective of industry and consumer (admittedly the consumer didn't get enough say in this, though) took the bait, and they're all going to have to live with it. I based my opinion off what I saw coming, and openly declared my support for the format that offered (what I rationally deduced to be) the best deal - that's not a moral stance, just a practical one.
Blu-Ray won, the BDA will now procede to milk it (and us). Tough cookies.


EDIT: Creedy, I know Toshiba were losing money due to HD-DVD's second-place position in the format war, and I daresay to make the price difference obvious to the consumer, Toshiba may've had to undercut to some extent. But we wouldn't see HD-DVD players selling for the prices demanded for Blu-Ray players now.
Granted it's all speculation, but you'd have to be making some mighty impressive leaps to conclude that HD-DVD hardware prices could get as top-shelf as that of the Blu-Ray hardware.

[Creedy]

Taken the bait, damn your funny. We don't even know if it's the manufacturers who are raising the price or the retailers.

*EDIT*
Appleseed Ex Machina review at HDD.

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/1259/appleseedexmachina.html

My lone complaint? I could actually hear the compression limitations bogging down the crowded soundscape -- the entire experience begged for a TrueHD track. The Dolby Digital mixes sound great, but they lack the clarity and fidelity of a lossless mix. Voices could have been crisper, effects could have had more punch, and ambiance could have been richer. I wish Warner would really embrace the possibilities and tap into the power of high definition. What could easily have been a pair of 5-star lossless tracks is merely a pair of cutting edge standard mixes.

ANNOYED ANNOYED ANNOYED ANNOYED
Even Chris Beveridges review said the same thing! At least HDD are starting to come around and start admitting that SD audio tracks just aren't cutting it.

[Shorty]

Taken the bait? So you admit you're trolling? I'd be careful about admitting stuff like that, if I were you. You're on a tight enough leash as it is, Creedy.

Fenrir, I also think that companies can charge whatever they want (and in a sense, my phrasing as "justified to do so" was probably a little clumsy - what I was getting at was whether or not there was some technical of financial reason for doing so as opposed to a simple wholescale milking of the public). But whether or not they will is another matter entirely and if they'll have a hard time selling their stuff if they're charging more than people are willing to pay for it (ie. "what the market will bear"). Considering that Blu-ray remains somewhat of a niche product and the vast majority of the movie-buying public is still with DVD, I think the manufacturers will be able to charge that little bit extra for the time being. But not for much longer if they want people to buy the bloody things... :p

(And there's that lossless audio head horse again... :rolleyes:)

[Creedy]

Taken the bait? So you admit you're trolling? I'd be careful about admitting stuff like that, if I were you. You're on a tight enough leash as it is, Creedy.

ummmmm
It sounded like Fenrir was saying consumers nibbled on Sony's bait with Blu Ray.

*EDIT*
Sorry that it's a head horse that you can't beat anymore Shorty.

[Shorty]

ummmmm
It sounded like Fenrir was saying consumers nibbled on Sony's bait with Blu Ray.

Indeed it was. My bad for overreacting. The Snuke episode of South Park's on TV so maybe I'm a little edgy or something. :p

[Lazlow]

Had to laugh the last week at Triple J breakfast radio when Marieke Hardy commented "what the hell is blu-ray?!?" when they had their geek/tech commentator on talking about HD DVD bowing out.

BTW, when did this become HD DVD vs blu-ray again? :p


ANNOYED ANNOYED ANNOYED ANNOYED
Even Chris Beveridges review said the same thing! At least HDD are starting to come around and start admitting that SD audio tracks just aren't cutting it.

I'll bite...

I love the fact Creedy has chosen to focus on the one lone complaint and ignore the 2 previous paragraphs of glowing praise the reviewer gave the audio mix.

Anime enthusiasts can breathe a sigh of relief. Despite the information presented in the tech specs on the back cover, the Blu-ray edition of 'Appleseed Ex Machina' features two 640kbps surround tracks -- an English Dolby Digital 5.1 track and a Japanese language Dolby Digital 5.1 track. While they aren't the pair of TrueHD mixes Warner promised fans once upon a time, the results are nonetheless impressive.

Dialogue is clean, spread across the central channels, and well prioritized within the soundscape -- explosions and screeching thrusters never overwhelm mid-action character banter. Better still, LFE support is heavy and aggressive, imbuing the mechs that frequently populate 'Ex Machina' with a convincing sense of weight. The rear channels are busy as well, providing more than the usual background ambiance of other anime titles. The sound designers launch objects across the well-defined soundfield and manage to create a sense of genuine space. Surprise gunfire came from over my shoulder, doves flew over my head, and ships rumbled through my home theater. The entire experience was deeper and more satisfying than most high-def anime releases.

Secondly, he is bitching about 4 star audio, when the video presented only got 3.

[Shorty]

Hopefully all I'll need to say on the matter is that as long as the soundtrack is well-mixed (ie. I can hear the dialogue and don't have to crank the volume knob up and down because of poor dynamic range) and doesn't sound like it's being played through a pool speaker covered by a wet sock, I'm reasonably happy.

And on the price issue, I don't think that Blu-ray manufacturers and content creators should be slowing down. I think that the aggressive pricing we saw during the format war could still benefit them after the format war by encouraging more people to buy it. Charging more for it now sacrifices potential long-term profits for short-term gain.

[Creedy]

I love the fact Creedy has chosen to focus on the one lone complaint and ignore the 2 previous paragraphs of glowing praise the reviewer gave the audio mix.

Yeah thats right, he's reviewing it as a DD track compared with other DD tracks. It isn't reviewed in comparison to lossless audio. One of HDD's fundamental flaws, the paragraph I quoted is where he actually acknowledged Appleseed's release would have benefited from a lossless audio track.

[Lazlow]

I really don't wish to drag this redundant argument out again, so I'll leave it by saying that my interpretation of his review didn't see any perceived comparisons to other audio formats. Whilst its fair to say a lossless track will have more punch and clarity than a lossy track, his analysis was still very glowing. The audio simply missed that extra 10-15% that lossless provides, this is by no means a glaring fault as it still rated 4 stars.

The downright snobbery of a "cutting edge standard mixes" (which is a perplexing turn of phrase considering it still provides crisp, clear spatial 5.1 sound) based purely on minor codec differences really astounds me. Especially considering it was previously pointed out that you own setup merely ranks as adequate.

Surely Appleseed would have benefited from lossless audio, but by sounds of it, it certainly didn't suffer from the lack of it. I'd be more concerned about the 3 star video transfer.

[Creedy]

My set up is more than adequate, Voltron or whoever it was overexagerating. Especially when he said I had a crap sub woofer and that it was under powered. In some movies due to my room size the bass can be way to overpowering and drown out the treble. So obviously I turn my sub woofer down for some movies.
I think I'll be upgrading my speakers early next year as I'll be moving into the granny flat where I'll have more room. Down there my speakers most likely won't cut it so I'll be giving them to one of my friends for the great price of free.

Movies sound great with these speakers, CD audio sounds like shit. Lossless music sounds great though, can't really explain it. All I can say is that the songs in Shoot'em Up sound divine in comparison to my CD versions.

As for Appleseed's video rating, the reviewer is very picky when it comes to video quality. He'll even give a low rating to a movie with certain filters even though it's the directors vision. Chris Beveridge says the video looks great.

[Shorty]

Comparing a multi-channel uncompressed movie soundtrack to a standard stereo CD is pretty unwise when you consider their considerably different purposes. You might as well say "gee, this Mack truck sounds a helluva lot meaner than my Volkswagen Golf". :p

One wonders if we'd still be having this conversation if the reviewer had said "well, they included a lossless soundtrack but dear GOD it sounds shit". In any case, I think Lazlow summed it up very eloquently:

Surely Appleseed would have benefited from lossless audio, but by sounds of it, it certainly didn't suffer from the lack of it.

At least they were smart enough to include both English and Japanese audio tracks. I think that's a much more important issue when you're talking about anime and other foreign cinema.

[Creedy]

Weeds season 3 coming to Blu Ray in June!!!!!
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1101
Fuuuuuck yeah!!!!!!

Anger Management released on May 20th.
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1100

Warner dropping VC1 for AVC, Warner owns GDMX. Take that Microsoft and your feeble attempt to control media.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-05-2008/0004768029&EDATE=

[StorminNorman]

Just chiming in to note that we're getting a 1080p set with HDMI this week. It's a 101cm Samsung M81. The only problem with it is figuring out how to rearrange everything to fit the screen in where a 76cm LCD currently sits.

The big problem we have at the moment is figuring out what to do with the HDMI audio. Our AV receiver can't take HDMI, however the new TV has a digital audio output, so I'm assuming we can just whack a cable on that into the stereo and get full sound. Otherwise we might have a problem.

The only other issue is that my 360 is a pre-HDMI model, so I'm stuck with dodgy-vision for 360 games. :(

[Shorty]

Component gives an excellent picture for me. The visual improvement with HDMI is marginal and most of the benefit is the convenience of having a single cable.

[pauljdavidson]

I think that Samsung M8 does 1080p over component so it won't look bad at all.

[Creedy]

Stormo, your going to need to get a new receiver if you want lossless audio via HDMI. Surely they shouldn't be to much these days, mine was about $600 about a year and a half ago.

[Hyperblau]

Warner dropping VC1 for AVC, Warner owns GDMX. Take that Microsoft and your feeble attempt to control media.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-05-2008/0004768029&EDATE=

Finally a victory for people that can tell the difference between a VC1 encode and an AVC encode.

Oh wait...thats nobody.

And take that Microsoft for supplying companies with a highly efficient, beautiful encoder for high definition content. How dare you.

[Creedy]

Theres certainly no difference between VC1 or AVC. :p
I just don't like Microsoft trying to control things.

[Shorty]

But that's just it - since there is basically zero difference to the end user, much of the need to actually give a shit goes away.

[Hyperblau]

I still don't understand the Microsoft hate. I also don't understand why the people that hate Microsoft continue to use their products. 99% of the people bitching about Microsoft on forums no doubt typed it up on a windows machine. When a movie looks as good as it does encoded with VC-1, it could be made by a racist communist that eats babies and lives under the sea and i wouldnt give two shits.

[Creedy]

Yeah I use Windows XP, but any program I use is not Microsoft based. Like I use Firefox for my browser. I couldn't be stuffed getting emulators up and running on Linux when Windows plays all my games proper. I'd also choose Steam over any Windows Live crap that Microsoft try to implement.

[Shorty]

(Well, I type most of my posts on a Mac so I have at least some excuse. :cool:)

Most people continue to use Microsoft products because in a lot of real-world situations, you have to. Or it's not your computer and the owner hasn't gotten a Mac. Or your business uses Windows computers. Or you want to play more than just casual Web games relatively easily (emphasis on the relative). You tolerate them because you need their stuff to do your stuff.

But really, you have to pick your battles. If people have complaints about Vista or Windows in general, I'm all ears. But a behind-the-scenes encoder switch that in all likelihood would have gone completely unnoticed by everyone except those who specifically seek out such information hardly qualifies as "sticking it to the man" or a "victory for democracy" or whatever catchphrases the kids are using this week.

[Vicious]

Hey, did you hear about MS in the news today!?

Neither did I. Wow, for such an evil company I was sure I was going to hear something devious being plotted :rolleyes:

Seriously, they are not nearly as bad as they used to be. No new "let's break X browser scheme" or anything of the sort, no conspiracy theory on the RROD, no nothing. Creedy, grow the **** up already. It's getting old.

[Yottabit]

Seriously, they are not nearly as bad as they used to be. No new "let's break X browser scheme".

Too bad about standards though.

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/7173/58000586er9.th.jpg (http://img208.imageshack.us/my.php?image=58000586er9.jpg)

[Vicious]

Too bad about standards though.

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/7173/58000586er9.th.jpg (http://img208.imageshack.us/my.php?image=58000586er9.jpg)

Hm, that's a shame. I thought the major design goal behind IE8 was 100% on Acid . . .

Still, that really wasn't the point though.

[davejhj]

no more hd-dvd...i feel for those of you that bought one...but seriously, $35 for a blueray movie, gtfo

[StorminNorman]

I think that Samsung M8 does 1080p over component so it won't look bad at all.

That's interesting to note. I was always under the impression that 1080p over component was impossible due to signal bandwidth limitations.

Stormo, your going to need to get a new receiver if you want lossless audio via HDMI. Surely they shouldn't be to much these days, mine was about $600 about a year and a half ago.


A new AV receiver may be something we look into down the track, but, as we're not blessed with "golden ears" in this household, it's unlikely we'd notice any difference with uncompressed audio vs. compressed audio.

[Vicious]

Speaking of golden ears . . . the other day I got my hearing tested and it turns out I'm losing the upper range of my hearing.

Yep, it's horrible. My hearing has gone from 22khz to 21khz. By the time I'm 30, I'll have the hearing of an average person! :p

[Creedy]

For those people waiting for some Blu Ray sales. Here you go:-

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&plgroup=1&docId=1000205241&plpage=1&tag=bluraynews-20

134 titles with up to 55% off, you'll need to switch between tabs up the top.

[Cerebral]

Too bad about standards though.

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/7173/58000586er9.th.jpg (http://img208.imageshack.us/my.php?image=58000586er9.jpg)
That's wierd, it worked for me.

[Lazlow]

Theres a statement on the Acid2 test site from Dec07 that says IE8Beta works with the test now.

[pauljdavidson]

That's interesting to note. I was always under the impression that 1080p over component was impossible due to signal bandwidth limitations.

I've actually read the users manual for it and it does say 1080p over component. Also its a given option within the 360 dash, so I'm just going by what they say, having never tried it.

Edit: And wikipedia agrees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Component_video

[Lazlow]

no more hd-dvd...i feel for those of you that bought one...but seriously, $35 for a blueray movie, gtfo


I've paid that for DVD.

[StorminNorman]

Edit: And wikipedia agrees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Component_video

Awesome. As soon as I can figure out where to put my 360, I'll check it out.

In related news, things look Better<TM> in 1080p. Even DVDs look fantastic when you upscale them through the PS3.

Just a pity that my PS3 can play less than 10% of my DVD collection. :(

[pauljdavidson]

You have an imported PS3?

[Vicious]

I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be able to upscale over component, due to some crappy legislation. However, the 360 is able to do it over VGA and the PS3 is probably able to do it over HDMI.

[StorminNorman]

You have an imported PS3?

No, I have a PAL PS3.

[/backslash]

You must have a few imported DVD titles then StorminNorman

I can't play any DVDs on mine unless it came from japan :( So I have to keep a DVD player & PS3 in the same room *sighs* Hopefully a RegionX product will come out soon and considering the PS3 has a HDD now it should be able to install software (like AnyDVD), scan the disc and play instantly

-----------------

Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=amb_link_6480972_1?ie=UTF8&plgroup=1&docId=1000205241&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=right-1&pf_rd_r=0RB3YZBDKDTVWDC5CXE5&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=370881401&pf_rd_i=193640011) are having 50% off selected blu-ray titles including Black Hawk Down, Reservoir Dogs, Rambo First Blood. Pretty standard deals really, I'm hoping for another 'Buy 1 get 1 free' sale soon so I can get Enter the Dragon and maybe some others

[Shorty]

I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be able to upscale over component, due to some crappy legislation.

AFAIK, it's the CSS system that won't let you upscale DVDs to HD over component.

[StorminNorman]

You must have a few imported DVD titles then StorminNorman

Yeah. It's actually killing us a bit with regards to Blu-Ray, as we're unlikely to buy a proper BRD player until region-free ones are available. The optimal solution will be for it to become possible to de-region the PS3 for BRD playback. On the other hand, the worst-case scenario is that we have to import a US PS3 just so we can continue to import media.

Regions suck. Massively.

[/backslash]

Yeah. It's actually killing us a bit with regards to Blu-Ray, as we're unlikely to buy a proper BRD player until region-free ones are available. The optimal solution will be for it to become possible to de-region the PS3 for BRD playback. On the other hand, the worst-case scenario is that we have to import a US PS3 just so we can continue to import media.

Regions suck. Massively.
I'm surprised you didn't just import a US PS3 if a majority of your DVDs are imported. I would've considered that if I was in a similar situation. Though then I'd have to stick with local blu-rays which cost way too much :( Region restrictions can go to hell "You can play this US PS3 game but you can't watch that US DVD" WTF?

[Vicious]

AFAIK, it's the CSS system that won't let you upscale DVDs to HD over component.

Yeah, it's that shitty system. It escaped me at the moment.

[StorminNorman]

I'm surprised you didn't just import a US PS3 if a majority of your DVDs are imported.

The PS3 was something of an impulse buy, and we weren't expecting to be using it for DVD playback.

[StorminNorman]

So I finally set up the other two game consoles this afternoon, and discovered that the new TV really brings out the limitations of the JoyTech box.

The 360's video has a slightly "dirty" blur effect going on (it's hard to describe, maybe I'll try and get a picture of it) in the dashboard. It's not as noticeable in games, and I firmly believe it would go away entirely if I could connect the 360 to the TV directly (which I cannot do).

Incidentally, setting the 360 up turned into a bit of a saga. The TV chose not to accept the 1080i signal it was previously using (is this normal? Do 1080p TVs tend to not use 1080i?), which was a problem. Then I remembered that switch on the 360's video cable, and set it to "TV" mode, which immediately solved the problem by forcing the 360 to think it was connected to a television. From there I was able to make the changes to get it to output 1080p, which it does very nicely thank you very much (aside from the switchbox issue). Tested some games (Area 5 of Rez looks amazing and PGR4 is pretty stunning as well), and all is well.

The Wii, however, is a mess. It works fine, but Nintendo's mentally godsdamn retarded decision to not support HD with the Wii absolutely wrecks the system. Games look like first-gen PS2 games, all giant polygons, low-res textures and aliasing. Admittedly, I've only tried NiGHTS so far, but given that's about the second-best looking game on the Wii, and I can't find my copy of SMG right now, I'd say I'm not expecting much from the other Wii titles.

I'm quite honestly disappointed with the way the Wii comes out on the new TV, as I expected it to at least look halfway decent.

I'm yet to try the PS2, though I don't expect it to look any better than the Wii. On the other hand, at least with the PS2 I can expect that.

Fun new problem: Everytime I get a white or almost-white screen on the XBox or Wii, the Joytech craps out.

[pauljdavidson]

If you bought the Samsung M8, shouldn't you have a good few connections? At least 2 component in, and 3 hdmi in, and a couple of rca and s-video. The Wii connected by component will clean things up a bit. My mate runs his Wii on the same tv, though upscaled via Yamaha's latest receiver the RX-something something, and produces a much smoother, cleaner picture. Unless you've got no other choice, maybe you should ditch the joytech box.

[Vicious]

The Wii, however, is a mess. It works fine, but Nintendo's mentally godsdamn retarded decision to not support HD with the Wii absolutely wrecks the system. Games look like first-gen PS2 games, all giant polygons, low-res textures and aliasing. Admittedly, I've only tried NiGHTS so far, but given that's about the second-best looking game on the Wii, and I can't find my copy of SMG right now, I'd say I'm not expecting much from the other Wii titles.

I take it you haven't tried component cables and 480P have you? If not, go buy the damn cables already and hook them up. The difference is resounding to say the least, and makes the Wii very playable. We just played SSBB a couple hours ago on a sixty inch screen through our HD projector, and must say the comparison to the PS2 is laughable at best.

(PS: Don't forget to select 480P in system properties)

[StorminNorman]

Both the component inputs are already used - one from the AV receiver (Cable/DVD) and one from the Joytech box (XBox 360/Wii). We're also using a composite in (for the PS2) and a HDMI connector (for the PS3). At the moment, we're running the audio out on the TV to the stereo so we can get PS3 sound into the stereo, which is a nifty feature.

The real issue is the quality of Foxtel: It's a mess of compression artifacts and grainy video now. Recorded material is even worse. Hopefully this will go away when we get a Foxtel HD box later in the year.

[Vicious]

Both the component inputs are already used - one from the AV receiver (Cable/DVD) and one from the Joytech box (XBox 360/Wii). We're also using a composite in (for the PS2) and a HDMI connector (for the PS3). At the moment, we're running the audio out on the TV to the stereo so we can get PS3 sound into the stereo, which is a nifty feature.

So you are using the component cables for Wii? Have you set the resolution to 480P yet?

If you have and it still looks like garbage, have you tried removing the Joytech from the signalpath?

[Creedy]

Stormo, can I suggest that when you guys buy a brand new receiver for your lossless audio, also make sure it can upscale video. PS2 games look pretty darn good on my plasma, whether they are PAL (576p upscaled via receiver) or NTSC (720p upscaled via PS3).

*EDIT*

There will be no Blu Ray add-on for X360. To me in my opinion it goes to show that the HD-DVD drive was never about offering choice but to cause confusion between the HD formats in the hopes that their download service would come out on top. After all if it was all about choice they'd offer consumers the choice of a Blu Ray add-on.

http://www.reuters.com/article/reutersEdge/idUSN1224707720080313?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0

[pauljdavidson]

Maybe it was because the HD DVD drives didn't sell that well? I don't think it was to cause confusion,hell they dont have a download service in most countries!

[Northy179]

To me in my opinion it goes to show that the HD-DVD drive was never about offering choice but to cause confusion between the HD formats in the hopes that their download service would come out on top.

???

your as crazy as Micheal Bay

microsoft said they were looking in to making the option available, if anything it was denied cos it was seen as unprofitable due to their biggest competition in the console industry making the bloody thing. Considering it's the one thing selling the ps3 i don't think sony would be that keen to share the technology cheaply yet.

I'm sure MS will start a push on the digital downloads at some stage but they would be idiotic to hope for it to replace discs anywhere in the near future.

[StorminNorman]

Stormo, can I suggest that when you guys buy a brand new receiver for your lossless audio, also make sure it can upscale video.

It turns out that the lossless audio tracks go through on the current setup anyway, so we don't need to prioritise a new receiver as much as I first thought.

We've decided to get an upscaling DVD player instead, as they're ultra-cheap, and will play all of our DVDs, which is pretty important.

As for the Joytech, I think we're just going to have to live with it, for now.

[Creedy]

Can't you hook all your consoles up to your receiver than and have a single HDMI cable going from the receiver to the TV?

*EDIT*

Fox have finally slashed their Blu Ray prices.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Fox/High-Def_Disc_Marketing/Fox_Slashes_Prices_on_Blu-ray_Catalog/1563

[StorminNorman]

The receiver has no HDMI ports.

[Hyperblau]

Fox have finally slashed their Blu Ray prices.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Fox/High-Def_Disc_Marketing/Fox_Slashes_Prices_on_Blu-ray_Catalog/1563

Would be good if there were some movies worth buying.

[pauljdavidson]

Can't you hook all your consoles up to your receiver than and have a single HDMI cable going from the receiver to the TV?

*EDIT*

Fox have finally slashed their Blu Ray prices.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Fox/High-Def_Disc_Marketing/Fox_Slashes_Prices_on_Blu-ray_Catalog/1563

Did you read the article? They slashed a few old catalogue discs, not everything.

[Bill Bryson]

Or, to put a finer point on it, they slashed nothing of any consequence.

[Shorty]

While "slashing prices" was actually a reasonable interpretation of the article, I also agree that it wouldn't kill Fox to lower the prices on all their titles and not just the catalogue releases. If your main competitor is now standard DVD, you should be pricing accordingly.

On another note, I've put in an order for a few more titles to take advantage of the discount prices:

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Total Recall
Gattaca
The Replacement Killers (Extended Cut)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Appleseed Ex Machina
I Am Legend
Dogma

[Creedy]

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Total Recall
The Replacement Killers (Extended Cut)
Appleseed Ex Machina

I want all these movies but am awaiting for re-releases for various reasons.

The receiver has no HDMI ports.

You won't be able to accept lossless audio via the PS3 than.

[Vicious]

You won't be able to accept lossless audio via the PS3 than.

*facepalm*

That's all that has to be said.

[Gutsman Heavy]

I was really surprised to get an amazon order weeks early for once, it had only two blu's in this one, Condemned and Shoot 'em Up. Sweet.

Also if inappropriate mods, feel free to kick me up the arse.

anyone want a copy of House of 1000 Corpses, watched once (US)?

Open to any offer but interested in a trade, interested in the following:
Meet the Robinsons
Sky High
Cars
Sunshine
Blade Runner
28 weeks later
The Fifth Element (Remastered)

region A compat' only

[StorminNorman]

You won't be able to accept lossless audio via the PS3 than.

It works fine. PS3 goes into the TV, and the TV's optical out goes into the stereo, and the lossless audio tracks I've tried so far work fine. Not sure why they wouldn't, tbh.

We bought an upscaling DVD player today (Pioneer DV400SV), and re-arranged a lot of stuff, so we've cut the Joytech out for the 360 now.

Things look Better<tm>.

Also, Virtua Tennis 3 is a visually stunning game.

[/backslash]

It works fine. PS3 goes into the TV, and the TV's optical out goes into the stereo, and the lossless audio tracks I've tried so far work fine. Not sure why they wouldn't, tbh.
I just bought an optical toslink audio cable (ebay) to connect my Logitech Z5500's up to my LCD TV that has an optical input - does that mean it'll automatically connect to my PS3 and DVD player? Or do I need more cables?

[Hyperblau]

It works fine. PS3 goes into the TV, and the TV's optical out goes into the stereo, and the lossless audio tracks I've tried so far work fine. Not sure why they wouldn't, tbh.


Unfortunately optical cannot carry the full bandwidth of lossless audio. What you are getting is most likely plain old dolby digital or its getting downmixed somewhere.

To get any of the lossless audio formats you will need HDMI or a player that has analogue outputs on the back and that decodes internally.

[Shorty]

And the PS3 does not have analogue outputs on the back.

On the Blu-ray pricing front, Tom's Hardware does their own investigation (http://www.tomshardware.com/2008/03/12/blu_ray_player_prices_hit_2008_highs_as_competitio n_dwindles/) and concludes that the argument may actually have some merit. It also cautions against buying a standalone player until the new Profile 2.0 models come in.

[StorminNorman]

Unfortunately optical cannot carry the full bandwidth of lossless audio. What you are getting is most likely plain old dolby digital or its getting downmixed somewhere.

All I know is that when I choose lossless audio on a BRD, it works. Setup is this:

PS3 --HDMI--> TV --Optical--> AV Receiver.

Either way, the audio setup probably isn't good enough that I'd notice a huge difference anyway (it's a three-year-old Yamaha receiver).

[Creedy]

Are you getting surround sound or stereo?

[Hyperblau]

All I know is that when I choose lossless audio on a BRD, it works. Setup is this:

PS3 --HDMI--> TV --Optical--> AV Receiver.

Yeah, you will still get audio either way. Its just not gonna be lossless, and if your going through the TV, then i wouldn't be surprised if your only getting stereo sound.

[StorminNorman]

I wasn't really listening for it, to be honest. I'll see what the receiver says it is tomorrow, and have a good listen for surround elements. The opening to Paprika is pretty wide from memory, so I'll test with that.

(Which reminds me, would it have killed the guys that authored Paprika on DVD, BRD and UMD to have put a chapter stop right at the beginning of the opening credits?)

[Vicious]

Unfortunately optical cannot carry the full bandwidth of lossless audio. What you are getting is most likely plain old dolby digital or its getting downmixed somewhere.

WRONG!

SPDIF is has enough bandwidth for lossless Stereo, much how Shorty has listened to it in the past. I know this because I send lossless from my PC over SPDIF.

[pauljdavidson]

I think Hyperblau is talking about lossless audio in surround, such as pcm 5.1 or 7.1 or the other lossless formats. If this is what Hyperblau was referring to then he is not wrong.


A common use for the S/PDIF interface is to carry compressed digital audio as defined by the standard IEC 61937. This mode is used to connect the output of a DVD player to a home theater receiver that supports Dolby Digital or DTS surround sound. Another common use is to carry uncompressed digital audio from a CD player to a receiver. This specification also allows for the coupling personal computer digital sound (if equipped) via optical or coax to Dolby or DTS capable receivers.

As was said before, you are right about 2 channel uncompressed audio.

[Vicious]

I think Hyperblau is talking about lossless audio in surround, such as pcm 5.1 or 7.1 or the other lossless formats. If this is what Hyperblau was referring to then he is not wrong.

Said and meant are not the same thing. The issue is this was discussed at length before and is getting to be tiring.

[Creedy]

Said and meant are not the same thing. The issue is this was discussed at length before and is getting to be tiring.

Your getting to be tiring.

[Lex]

Your getting to be tiring.

you're*

[spectator]

Price rises in the US
http://arstechnica.com/journals/hardware.ars/2008/03/14/blu-ray-player-prices-rise-as-hd-dvd-dwindles
Lets hope the same doesn't happen here. And at least there's still the PS3

[Hyperblau]

Said and meant are not the same thing. The issue is this was discussed at length before and is getting to be tiring.

I actually brought up the fact that you can do lossless stereo last time this discussion was had. I thought maybe people would remember. You need to chill out a bit.

[Bellamut]

you're*

You know Lex, for someone who accuses Creedy of trying to start an argument in every second thread, you are an absolute hypocrite.

[Hyperblau]

You know Lex, for someone who accuses Creedy of trying to start an argument in every second thread, you're an absolute hypocrite.

Fixed :D:D:D:D:D

[Vicious]

I actually brought up the fact that you can do lossless stereo last time this discussion was had. I thought maybe people would remember. You need to chill out a bit.

You're just not that memorable. Regardless, it does stereo lossless.

Your getting to be tiring.

*facepalm*

Can we ban him yet, please?

[Fenrir]

You know Lex, for someone who accuses Creedy of trying to start an argument in every second thread, you are an absolute hypocrite.
Quiet, you - someone had to pick on Creedy's horrendous grammatical crimes. Lex has done these forums a great favour.

[Lex]

You know Lex, for someone who accuses Creedy of trying to start an argument in every second thread, you are an absolute hypocrite.

But I never deny it.

[Hyperblau]

You're just not that memorable. Regardless, it does stereo lossless.


Maybe it's because i don't go around being a twat all the time.

[Vicious]

Maybe it's because i don't go around being a twat all the time.

So what you're saying is . . . you want to be more like Creedy? :p

[Hyperblau]

So what you're saying is . . . you want to be more like Creedy? :p

Way to miss the point....

[pauljdavidson]

This forum needs Creedy. Shorty would be without a nemesis.

[Shorty]

I can find other people to argue with. I'd probably enjoy it more. :cool:

[Vicious]

Way to miss the point....

It's not that I missed your point parsay, it's just that I really didn't care about it and disregarded it like a lot of things. The way I looked at it, there was about four ways to interpret the sentence, and I didn't give a damn about any of them.


In other news, I forgot my happy pill today. I should probably take it . . .

[pauljdavidson]

Said and meant are not the same thing.

Take a couple of those pills, you sound a little...vicious today.:)

[Vicious]

Take a couple of those pills, you sound a little...vicious today.:)

I know, I'm a bit of a dick without them . . . or at least, a dick to everyone that doesn't deserve it.

[Creedy]

WRONG!

SPDIF is has enough bandwidth for lossless Stereo, much how Shorty has listened to it in the past. I know this because I send lossless from my PC over SPDIF.

Who the hell cares about lossless stereo for movies when you have a 5.1 set up?

[Vicious]

Who the hell cares about lossless stereo for movies when you have a 5.1 set up?

Oh just shut the hell up Creedy. Jesus Christ, you make a huge deal about lossless audio but then "who cares" if you have 5.1.

This was in the last thread, and apparently a chunk of people at AVS that actually had good enough setups to actually hear the difference say they prefer lossless audio in stereo over lossy 5.1

[Creedy]

You lose half the sound scape, I'd prefer to upgrade my hardware than lose half the sound scape thank you. Thats how much I care about lossless.
I'll be upgrading my speakers when move into the granny flat too. Give away my current speakers to a friend.

[Vicious]

You lose half the sound scape, I'd prefer to upgrade my hardware than lose half the sound scape thank you. Thats how much I care about lossless.

And I doubt you of all people can hear it. As for the sound scape, get some speakers that can actually image and you probably wouldn't bitch so much.

Whatever though, this is getting repetitious and you're just being a pest as usual. We've gone over this enough.

[Creedy]

Your the pest that started the pointless argument again.

[Vicious]

Your the pest that started the pointless argument again.

It's YOU'RE damn it. For example, YOU'RE AN IDIOT.

God, it's ****ing pathetic when an American even has to correct your damn English. And you started it with the whole "lolz no lossless" act again.

[Creedy]

Gotta love grammar Nazi's.
I'm sitting this forum test to perfect my life.

[/backslash]

'I Am Legend' blu-ray is now US$18.95 on Amazon.com. Not sure how long this'll last for but its a nice stepdown from US$24.95

[Shorty]

I put my order down for the same reason. Seems a bit rich for Fox to charge $40 per disc when a brand new Warner release is only $19.

[Hyperblau]

'I Am Legend' blu-ray is now US$18.95 on Amazon.com. Not sure how long this'll last for but its a nice stepdown from US$24.95

I had to cancel my order and replace it to get the price drop. I don't understand why though, because Amazon is supposed to have this pre-order price guarantee where they automatically drop the price for your order if the price of the product drops.

Good stuff though, i advise anyone blind buying this to watch it with the alternate ending and not the theatrical, if you can, never watch the theatrical ending, its rubbish.

[/backslash]

I had to cancel my order and replace it to get the price drop. I don't understand why though, because Amazon is supposed to have this pre-order price guarantee where they automatically drop the price for your order if the price of the product drops.

Good stuff though, i advise anyone blind buying this to watch it with the alternate ending and not the theatrical, if you can, never watch the theatrical ending, its rubbish.
There's a 24 hour waiting period apparently for the pricedrop thing. But its much easier to just cancel the order and make another one since it could only be a 12 hour sale.

I put an order through for that + Appleseed Ex-Machina (changed my mind before) + Enter the Dragon blu ray. I wish the price would stop going up & down with Enter the Dragon, I've seen it for US$13.95 but shipping is always a bitch for 1 title.

[Creedy]

I'd replace the order for I Am Legend but I have another 8 movies ordered with it. Not like that extra $6 means to much to me.

[Hyperblau]

I'd replace the order for I Am Legend but I have another 8 movies ordered with it. Not like that extra $6 means to much to me.

I had the same thing, so i canceled i am legend from my order, made a new order with just legend and then combined that order with the original order. Saved 12 bucks because i was ordering one for a mate, and i can put that money towards my next buy. I can understand if it was like 50c, but your saving enough money for a quarter of a movie, why not take the 2 minutes.

[Creedy]

I'm happy to give Warner my munies as I loved the movie. I don't feel as though I'm getting ripped off.
:)

[nintendo]

I had to cancel my order and replace it to get the price drop. I don't understand why though, because Amazon is supposed to have this pre-order price guarantee where they automatically drop the price for your order if the price of the product drops.

Good stuff though, i advise anyone blind buying this to watch it with the alternate ending and not the theatrical, if you can, never watch the theatrical ending, its rubbish.

Sorry to go of topic.

What exactly is different about the DC I am Legend? It would have to start taking effect from when the dog dies for me to care. The whole end of that movie just sucked arse.

[Shorty]

(FWIW I don't consider these spoilers since they don't give away the original ending.)

The "controversial alternate ending" takes place from the standoff near the end. He basically hands back the female to the alpha male and in turn they spare his life. Then Robert, Anna and Ethan cross the Washington bridge together to look for more survivors.

[StorminNorman]

Out of curiosity, which ending is closest to the book? It's been a while since I've read it, and I honestly can't remember what happens in the end.

[nintendo]

I really do have to read the book. Because to me, the movie, was a complete and utter let down. They built up certain major aspects only to have them amount to NOTHING! Like the zombies getting smart. A zombie runs into the light when he traps her. Which when you first see it, you realise that it isnt becasue they are getting dumber that the zombie went into the light. Then he gets trapped. TRAPPED. WTF? They completely choose to ignore that? Smith doesnt even remark about it? And then they just completely balls the rest.

[Shorty]

In other news, Batman Begins will hit Blu-ray soon in two versions (http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Warner/High-Def_Disc_Packaging/Disc_Announcements/Warner_Announces_Dual_Batman_Begins_Blu-rays/1565).

[/backslash]

In other news, Batman Begins will hit Blu-ray soon in two versions (http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Warner/High-Def_Disc_Packaging/Disc_Announcements/Warner_Announces_Dual_Batman_Begins_Blu-rays/1565).
I read about that. The 'LE Gift Set' seems like a waste of money though, especially with the additional US$21 difference - I see nothing that warrants my interest. Since the RRP is US$28.99 it should be less than US$20 on Amazon since they're always 30% off. Good to hear :) Wonder how long it'll take for the Dark Knight to appear on blu-ray?

[Clockw0rk]

Out of curiosity, who here owns a stand-alone Blu-Ray player (not a PS3)?

[Starscream]

I read about that. The 'LE Gift Set' seems like a waste of money though, especially with the additional US$21 difference - I see nothing that warrants my interest. Since the RRP is US$28.99 it should be less than US$20 on Amazon since they're always 30% off. Good to hear :) Wonder how long it'll take for the Dark Knight to appear on blu-ray?
That's great news, considering the HD-DVD version is US $16. An additional US $4 won't hurt the bank. Unless they drastically drop the price of the HD-DVD version to sub US $10.....

[Creedy]

Out of curiosity, who here owns a stand-alone Blu-Ray player (not a PS3)?

You'd be crazy to own a stand alone Blu Ray player.
^___^

[Hyperblau]

You'd be crazy to own a stand alone Blu Ray player.
^___^

Not if you want all the lossless audio options. PS3 cannot do DTS-HDMA, it can only extract the core. So if you really had to have that sort of thing, you would have to get a stand alone player that will output the bitstream or decode it internally. That would probably make you crazy though :P

[pauljdavidson]

When they sort out the profile shit, and the players are within a respectable price range,I will be buying a standalone bluray player, specifically for when I get a projector set up. PS3 will do for regular watching.

I seriously want I, Robot. How awesome is this gonna be in hd?! Read the review,

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/613/irobot.html

[Creedy]

Not if you want all the lossless audio options. PS3 cannot do DTS-HDMA, it can only extract the core. So if you really had to have that sort of thing, you would have to get a stand alone player that will output the bitstream or decode it internally. That would probably make you crazy though :P

It'll be added via firmware update by the end of this year.

[Lazlow]

I thought it was more of a hardware issue, and not a firmware one.

[Creedy]

Stand alones have had DTS MA decoding added via firmware. Certainly not a hardware issue.

[Lazlow]

My bad, it cannot pass a DTS-HDMA bitstream... but it could decode internally with an update.

[Shorty]

In other news, Gizmodo takes a look at the aftermath of the format war (http://gizmodo.com/366260/whole-blu-world-the-format-wars-bloody-aftermath) and ponders some of the downsides of Blu-ray's victory while still rounding things off on a fairly positive note.

[Hyperblau]

I thought it was more of a hardware issue, and not a firmware one.
It kind of is a hardware issue, the PS3 has a certain version of HDMI 1.3 that cannot pass bitstream audio, but as was mentioned (edit: mentioned by you :P) they can add internal decoding at some point to negate this shortfall.

[/backslash]

Planet Earth is now US$49.95 on Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Planet-Earth-Complete-BBC-Blu-ray/dp/B000MRAAJM/ref=pd_ts_c_th_4?pf_rd_p=315869901&pf_rd_s=right-5&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=193640011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0HDQVBKBHWGKZE6RH2JE). JUST AFTER my order shipped! ******

I've got it on DVD but everything looks way too smooth and loses heaps of detail

[Gutsman Heavy]

use amazons post order price guarantee, it lasts for 30 days after shipped, e-mail customer support.

[Shorty]

If anyone's wondering where the downloadable movies conversation went, it's here (http://www.hyper.com.au/forums/showthread.php?t=14254).

[Creedy]

Good idea Shorty.

*EDIT*
Looks like I didn't have to change my Amazon order for I Am Legend after all.

I Am Legend [Blu-ray]Price on order date: $24.95
Price charged at shipping: $18.95
Lowest price before release date: $18.95
Quantity: 1
Total Savings: $6.00

[pauljdavidson]

Possible injunction against Bluray? Turning out to be an expensive venture for Sony and the BDA.

http://www.betanews.com/article/Columbia_University_professor_could_trigger_a_Blur ay_injunction/1206132536

[Lazlow]

Wonder what Shuji Nakamura has to say about all this.

EDIT:

to clarify

The term blue laser is frequently applied to semiconductor laser diode based on gallium nitride. These new devices have applications in many areas ranging from optoelectronic data storage at high-density to medical applications.

Thanks to prior development of many (mostly Japanese) groups, including- most notably- professor Isamu Akasaki's group, Shuji Nakamura at Nichia Chemical Industries in Anan (Tokushima-ken, Japan) made a series of inventions and developed commercially viable blue and violet semiconductor lasers. The active layer of the Nichia devices was formed from InGaN quantum wells or quantum dots spontaneously formed via self-assembly. Until the mid 1990s, when blue semiconductor lasers were developed, blue lasers were large and expensive gas laser instruments which relied on population inversion in rare gas mixtures and needed high currents and strong cooling. The new invention enabled the development of small, convenient and low priced blue, violet and ultraviolet UV lasers which had not been available before and opened the way for applications such as high-density HD DVD data storage and Blu-ray discs. The shorter wavelength allows it to read discs containing much more information. Blue lasers usually operate at 405 nanometers but in general the operation of these devices was demonstrated between 360 and 480 nm.

[Hyperblau]

She has the patent in America though, so if the lasers coming in use the same technology that is in her patent, she is owed money. Who really knows if she invented it, it's all gonna come down to patents in the end.

[Lazlow]

So patents can be locked into a territory - that is, her patent only applies to the US?

Sounds ******ed up considering she's done ****** all with it.

[Hyperblau]

So patents can be locked into a territory - that is, her patent only applies to the US?

Sounds ******ed up considering she's done ****** all with it.

I'm not 100% sure but i believe it works something like that.

[Gutsman Heavy]

Whats better between DTS and Dolby Digital?

[Shorty]

It depends on which one you're talking about. There are quite a few flavours of DD and DTS around.

There's the original DTS and DD tracks that are used on DVDs. For them, DTS was (supposedly) better but at 1.5Mbps it took up a lot of space that would have otherwise been used for extra tracks or special features. For Blu-ray (and HD DVD), there's Dolby Digital Plus (compressed up to 1.5Mbps), Dolby TrueHD (lossless compressed) and two flavours of DTS-HD - DTS-HD Master Audio and DTS HD High Resolution. HR is basically high-bitrate compressed audio at 1.5Mbps to 6Mbps, whereas MA generates a 1.5Mbps "core" track that can be decoded by any DTS-compatible receiver and a "residual" track that contains the "difference" between the core track and the original master that completes the mix.

Comparing these formats is a lot more complicated simply because there are more of them and they differ rather significantly in design. A lot of people will say that Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA are better than DD+ and DTS-HD HR simply because they're losslessly compressed (although DTS-HD would seem to stretch that definition somewhat) but with a properly-mixed DD+ soundtrack the difference is nearly imperceptible. Ultimately, it's really up to what the studio wants to use and how much effort they want to put into the sound mix because even uncompressed PCM won't save a crappy sound mix.

[Gutsman Heavy]

:confused:jeez:confused:, I think I'll stick to the default setting on my disks!

[Starscream]

LOL.

Stick with mono or stereo. Can't go wrong there.