Of course we are - and Sony wins this time. They came better prepared.

Although it is not quite as simple as before - VHS vs Beta was simple, if you wanted quality picture, AND sound, you got Beta HiFi, if watching crappy quality longer was important, you got VHS.

Sony has a better quality theoretically and has more of a push going with providers (Blockbuster, Netflix, etc) and players - as every house with children who like Sony PS3 has a player already. With the kids my son’s age (17) it’s no contest - Sony wins hands down, better games and less worries the console will fry itself.

My take on this Blu-ray, HD-DVD thing is: Why bother with either. The ordinary DVD experience is awesome in itself and under-utilised. What happened to DVD audio format. Now that is something to listen to.

Hi Marc,
Thanks for sharing your experience with us.

Hello Geoff,
Good thought. Why bother.

Thanks, Ron

Blu-Ray wins just because of the PS3. I personally don’t care who wins lol. I have a PS3 so i’ll use that. As long as good movies keep coming on blu-ray I’m happy.

Hi Liquidsnake,
Thanks for your comment.
Ron

Blue-Ray will win for one simple reason: it has a jazzier name. People will latch onto Blue-Ray, but HD-DVD? Too generic.

Hello R.Midyett,
Thanks for your comment. Stranger things have happened just because something has a ‘cool’ name.
Ron

It seems that this latest format war will again be decided in a large way on how consumers vote with their dollars. Anyone who has been reading blogs and researching the pros and cons of Blue Ray vs HD DVD surely appreciates the opinions and occasional die-hard support for one format over the other..I know I certainly do. However, the average consumer armed with a solid understanding of the technology behind both formats (both manufacturing technology and marketing technology/strategy) should not be underestimated.

I realize that this is one person’s opinion, but my analysis leads me to the following conclusion based on a few significant facts currently at work in the marketplace: 1) Both formats use a 405-nanometer laser beam over the older 650-nm beam used by DVD, so with a true 1080p player and HDTV both will produce the same resolution (generally speaking..I’m not nit-picking over certain TV brands,etc.)
2) Blue-Ray discs, while able to store more information, cost more to produce due to re-tooling of current equipment in order to create the thin .1mm protective outer layer, which may potentially cause playback problems due them being easily scratched or nicked. The higher cost of production is again passed on to the buyers through higher disc prices. HD DVD discs, conversely, are more compatible with existing machinery configurations in the manufacturing process and therefore cost less to produce.
3) Finally, even though marketing for Blue-Ray and publics relations for Sony appears to have an edge over HD DVD at this time, especially given the large number of BD discs vs HD DVD currently in stores, the fact remains that Blue-Ray players are considerably more expensive than HD DVD players right now. I was just Best Buy yesterday and noticed that the Toshiba HD-XA2 premier HD DVD player was several hundred dollars cheaper than the Sony BDP-S1 Blue-Ray player. I have to say that consumers will certainly be influenced by these prices especially near the upcoming Christmas season and again will vote with their wallets and purses. My conclusion is that they will lean towards buying the HD DVD player over the Blue-Ray player.

Fellow bloggers, please don’t misunderstand me here. As an avid audio/video enthusiast who witnessed the Beta vs VHS format war of the 80’s I certainly welcome alls point of view on the current issues, and I’m not telling people that either of the formats is superior or inferior to each other. In fact, I was an early purchaser of Sony’s Beta Max player and wished it had remained in the stores. Most of my movies on tape are Beta…it was a great format! I’m simply stating that regardless of the marketing hype devoted to the current “war”, I think HD DVD will eventually win out.

I am reading these comments here in the UK where I think the rental market will decide the fate of HD-DVD the same way betamax was killed off over here.
During the VCR fiasco, people in the UK would rent TV’s and VCR’s rather than buy them. All the major hire companies stocked VHS machines, so that swayed the balance over here.
At the moment Blockbuster do not stock HD-DVD so if you want to rent a film, you have to rent Blue-Ray.

Hello TMcD,
I like your statement “who witnessed the Beta vs VHS format war of the 80’s”
because I believe that you had to be there to understand what had happened. It was in fact the consumers who decided which format won, regardless of which format was better. It all came down to pricing than, and the same thing will happen again. Pricing will dictate the winner, not the companies nor the motion picture industry.

Thanks for your comments.
Ron

Just to confuse things. I’m a PS3 owner but am leaning towards HD-DVD. I’ve got two Blu-ray movies but won’t be getting more until this format thing is over. I’m reluctant to use my PS3 as a player based on my PS2 experience. I’m on my fourth PS2, the previous three all checking out with DVD drive failures. I’d used them for movies and possibly they failed due to elcheapo drives wearing out. I’m not keen to repeat the experience with my PS3 and I’ve already noticed some tiny stutters in the BD movies I have. When the HD format is decided I’ll get a standalone player. I lean towards HD-DVD as Sony loves to overcharge for its proprietary formats and if they get control of the HD market we’ll pay more for movies and players.

Hi Michael,
Good points. Thanks for your comments.
Ron

On almost every format war Sony’s engaged in, they’ve lost because they try to micromanage whatever format they’re involved in, and end up producing the costlier format. For that reason I bought an HD-DVD player; that, and all the reviews I’ve read claim that the Toshiba units have awesome DVD upconvert ability. If Blu-Ray wins (despite being vastly superior, I think it unlikely now) I still have a better upconvert than the costlier Blu-Ray players.

In the end, though, I think you’re going to see someone–possibly DirecTV or Dish, as well as companies like Comcast–offer streaming services (maybe via their Internet-over-cable-and-dish) allowing their DVRs to capture content for playback later. People have gotten used to the convenience of DVR and probably won’t mind waiting for a download if it means they can watch a (likely low-quality) HD movie anytime they want without popping a disc out of a case and into a player.