<![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em - Gizmodo Comments]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em - Gizmodo Comments]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I sure hope that HD DVD doesn't climb back out of the grave.

Sure it was a simpler and cleaner format, designed for J6P at J6P prices, had consistent behavior across players, cheaper disc prices ovewrall, no region codes and tame DRM. Oh, and it was finished before it came to market.

But it died and I said a fond farewell and adopted blu-ray. I'm going to be REALLY annoyed if I have to dump all my blu-ray discs and go back to HD DVD.

kcmurphy88

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Bottom line: BD price is too high, digital distribution = DRM^2. People don't know anything about the DRM in BD but are forced to deal with DRM when they download Movies. Where do you store 200+ movies(downloaded). Oh and buying a PS3 simply for movies is a good way to keep the prices high and the DRM in place. Once a user base is establish(non PS3) BlueRay will not have the luxury of changing the specs on the format or enforcing revocated DRM keys.

dburrell

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @brundlefly76: Money. Lots and lots of money. And promises to the studios to screw you out of your fair-use rights.

HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> And in typical Sony fashion, they arent making any moves whatsoever to lower player prices to anything remotely reasonable to improve sales, just like they did with Betamax.

How the hell did they win this war?

brundlefly76

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Why do so many people bitch about the price of Blu-Ray while paying so much for cable or satellite service, a small fraction of which they actually watch? How much did these people pay for their hi-definition displays? If they're so price sensitive, why can't they save $thousands and continue to use DVD players and CRT displays? Honestly, it seems that some people just like to whine.

Physical media is here to stay, and by Christmas there will be plenty of compelling choices in Blu-Ray hardware and content. If you give a damn about high resolution, welcome to capitalism: you're gonna pay for it one way or another.

my favorite car is a motorcycle

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> DVDs are safe because they're a familiar technology and people have gotten accustomed to being able to go pick them up on a regular basis. It's new technology that typically takes the hardest hit during a recession, because the buy-in price is higher in the early stages, less people have already put up the money to get started, and a lot of people who might have been looking to do so are going to be looking at keeping as much money in reserve as possible. To a person who already owns a DVD player or two, a new-release DVD is budget-priced compared to taking the family out to watch a movie in the theater. Then again, renting is probably going to be a much more tasty alternative for many right now (and I believe I already cited the recession as part of the reason DVD sales have plateaued for the first time since they debuted).

New TVs, on the other hand, is hit and miss. See, the federal government has been giving out coupons for inexpensive digital convertor boxes, so many people won't have to pay more than a couple bucks tax to convert over. And if they do need to buy something, they'll probably go after a DVR or DVD recorder first, because a new TV won't record shows for them when they're not home.

Anyways, HDTV is something of a joke right now, given that both cable and satellite providers compress the heck out of their HD channels so they can pack them in like sardines. Broadcast HD channels are actually the highest definition you can get right now, but people have been told for years that broadcast channels look inferior to cable or satellite, and now there's this big fight over who offers the _most_ HD channels but neither side is willing to claim having the best quality because it'll cause people to ask all the wrong questions.

Purple Dave

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @Purple Dave:
If you are going to be that pessimistic about the economy then all technology is going to fail. People in the dire straights you describe are no longer tech consumers. They won't be buying DVD's either. I don't suspect that BD will be popular with war refugees either.

Many people, if not most, will buy new tv's in the next few years. These new tv's are going to be 720p at the least. They will want the better looking content to go with their new sets.

There are already 250% BD players and there will be sun $200 for the Christmas season. After that expect prices to fall slowly and steadily.

Techguy1138

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:
How about stuff that was shot for TV on video, in 480x resolution? The big push in the DVD market recently has been in bringing both new and old TV series to the customer, and they generally stuck to video because it's cheaper and faster to work with.

@Bender:
And when exactly will all of those channels be forced to go HD? The only forced change on the horizon is the switch from NTSC analog SDTV to ATSC digital SDTV. It's still going to be 480i.

@acemahl:
DVD sales this year reflect the slump in movie ticket sales 6-12 months ago, and the flagging economy. Blu-Ray is years (and perhaps decades) off from hitting the point where title sales are significantly impacted by box office success or lack of employment (they haven't even hit the point where NPD will report sales numbers). DVD has only recently hit that point, but sales have _barely_ dipped below the peak.

@k9bits:
It gets worse than that. Many people have been duped into thinking we're being forced to convert to HDTV next year. An estimated 1/3 of soon-to-be-affected TV watchers are believed to still be unaware that they're going to get shut off in less than a year. Cable subscribers likely think they're immune to the switch, when actually they'll end up having to use new digital cable boxes or buy new TVs as well.

@Techguy1138:
After the DTV conversion, most households will still be unable to drop more than $200 on a single TV set, and they'll be spending that money replacing VCRs that no longer work. Most households aren't rich enough to buy the latest-greatest, which seems to be an all-too-common misconception. This is why people were flocking to TRU on Black Friday to get $99 PS2's. Not PS3's.

There are a lot of people in my area who earn upwards of $50k/year and still live paycheck-to-paycheck because they bought the biggest house they could finance with an ARM, and a couple brand-new 10mi/gal SUVs to put in the driveway. Oh wait, except they don't earn $50,000 per year because they just got laid off or, worse yet, got conned into taking a buyout when there weren't any viable employment prospects in the area. And they don't have the biggest house they could finance because they've defaulted on the loan. They have bigger concerns than what kind of shiny new toys they can buy tomorrow, and that's not even getting into the people who work the day shift at McDonald's and the night shift at Burger King just to put food on the table.






Purple Dave

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> now the real reason that it wont overcome DVD.

DVD had a single great advantage over VHS/Tape media.

It doesn't degrade with use/time.

ALL TAPE MEDIA degrades over usage/time, thus the $20 VHS tape movie you bought and then watched once and then went back to 3 years later to watch again had a reduced picture quality.

DVD does not suffer from this problem.
The same as CD versus TAPE/LP.

People were willing to upgrade to something that doesn't degrade.

They are NOT willing to replace something that works well, doesn't degrade, and most of all, is cheaper, just to get a slightly better (and only truely better on new releases) picture quality.
Until people start buying stereo system that can handle the new audio formats (most people are lucky to have 5.1 at this time) that addition is a non entity to the public.

People aren't buying it because they don't NEED it.

Plus, with the ease of copying DVD's (you can teach a five year old to do it) and the storage requirements they have versus BD, it's not likely to change any time soon.

mikeg916

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:

You can chill out. It's not like you need to defend BD.

It's going to take off. You'll be vindicated but just let everyone else vent. It's cool to bash Sony. It's cool to have been a HD-DVD owner. It's cool to be an Apple or Xbox fan boy.

People just need to blow off steam and it's not like it matters if they are wrong.

It's the slump time of the year and the economy is hitting a slow down. Don't expect to see good sales number till Christmas. Even then the economy will be slow so the sales will be important but not impressive.

After the D-TV conversion most household will begin the switch to HD tv and then onwards to BD. The players don't need to be cheap yet because the mass market still doesn't have enough HDTVs.

That is the REAL reason why BD will take two years to take off.

People spend between 1-2k on a tv set with a spare in the bed room, 500-1k for a sounds system, then cheap out when it comes to a good source.

It's like buying a beautiful art galley and filling it with crappy posters, they will come around.

Techguy1138

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @SkoGoody:

There is no need to rebuy any dvd movies you have.

The point with BD is to buy new movies in BD. Your BD player, of any kind, will upscale your existing media.

This isn't a VHS to DVD upgrade. You new machine plays your old movies. That's why the back catalog releases are slim pickin's on BD.

Techguy1138

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @Doshu: You have a 100 inch screen and a 7.1 surround sound system and your complaining about a $25 media price?

It like a Ferrari owner bitching about the price of 98 octane gas and performance tires.

You are in a rare position of being able to fully benefit from HD media.

Techguy1138

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:
If you want to piss people off, you're going about it the wrong way.

* Try making fun of their religion (or lack there of).
* Drop the race card.
* Take a political/social stance for something vile, like the harvesting of babies as a way to solve the food shortage.
* Say Windows Vista is the best operating system ever.
* Make posts like, "Fake!", "I'd tap that", and "You're mom's a whore." where they least make sense.

Maybe next time when you want to be controversial you can be a little more prepared. Try making a list of "talking points" based on the aforementioned topics.

I hope I've helped. Happy Flaming.

Rabid Penguin

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Comment on HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em Sony may have bought their way to victory in the format wars, but that alone does not make their product irresistible. High prices (likely a direct result of them buying their way to the top) may be "a" factor in consumer resistance, but I'm not buying until Blu-Ray is a mature, fully functioning format. No 1. 05, 1.08, 2.03, ad infinitum for me, I'll wait for the final version. 'Til then, DVDs work just fine (and are cheap). And if fiber optic-to-the-door happens before I sink any money into Blu-Ray? Ha, you're screwed Sony. JDoors

QudamahCaballa

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> i know. cant we buy both?
I didnt buy Juno on BD, but i did get Cars in BD. Oh and a crapload of 14 dollar HDDVD.
Oh and i download movies on my 360 occasionally. Who really gives a turd



PagingDRb

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Oh lord, now we have a guy saying you can't tell a difference on less than a 50inch tv. Are you really that crazy? I think you're going to be hard pressed to find other people who have seen HD on 32/40/46 inch sets saying they can't tell a difference between HD and SD.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> lol.
"Since when is 6 times the resolution "bascially the same quality"? How many movies do you actually watch? You must be half blind."

Do you work for Sony? Sounds like some stupid ish they would say. LOL "Its better because it has a BLUE LASER" ROFL"
Truth is if your TV is too small then you wont notice a real diff. I have a 56 incher and can totally tell the difference. Why the hell is everyone is panic mode. The damn prices will drop we just have to be patient.



PagingDRb

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @ jpitsch: "They must be either too greedy, too scared or too stupid"

All of the above.

Copyright law permits me to make an archival backup of media I have bought. Encryption is designed to prevent it, and Blu-Ray takes it to a new (and futile) level.

So I bought "Enchanted." Tried to rip it, none of my rippers worked. So I got a torrent of the ISO that someone else had ripped. But it convinced me to stop buying physical media. Good job, Marketing!

Guy-Fawkes

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> For me personally...DVDs are good enough.

I'm sick of the game that involves buying all your current movies on new formats every couple of years. With VHS to DVD...the change not only made sense, but it was almost necessary. I equate it to the change from Cassette Tape to CD. Both formats were leaps and bounds beyond the one previous and gave the consumer serious reasons to change.

However, with up-scaling DVD and Blu-Ray...the difference is negligible. And with DVDs being almost always more then half the price of Blu-Rays...I just don't see the need to spend the extra money. And I rrrrealllly don't see the need to re-purchase the same movies I already own.

The whole scene makes me ill. So ill in fact, that I have stopped purchasing movies all together.

SkoGoody

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @redrabbit: That's basically my argument whenever the PS3 and Xbox360 fanboys start griping about how underpowered the Wii is.

"It's the content, stupid!"

HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Thats because the Blu ray players are so damn expensive! Some prices even went up after Hd dvd dropped out.

I think HD dvd players are more advanced than the current Blu ray players (ethernet connectivity) and do a better job upsacaling dvd's

cscamp20

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> "I prefer how the movie is made, over how it is displayed."

I think this should convince that even if your watching a movie that's 5 times as better as HD, it's still going to suck unless you actually like the movie. The 7 Samurai was shot in the 50's and it's my favorite movie.I pity the fool who prefers picture quality over content quality.

Quality of movie > Quality of picture

redrabbit

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I jumped into blu ray because I am white collar and I can afford it, even if it is a failure (but that would only happen if movies come out on flash cards.) After seeing bluray on my HD tv I was never going to touch another blue collar piece of shit 5 dollars DVD that is not HD. and let me tell you upscaling is CRAP, it comes out fuzzy and pixilated not smooth at all, upscaling is not HD. Watching Star Trek upscaled was shit, I cant wait for the bluray.

Until DVD's are discontinued Blu-ray sales will not be huge and it does not take a genius, a rating system or a tech blog to figure that out.

Daimyo Nintendo

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> the only thing i've learned by reading this article is that tutelary is a huge douchebag.

nikkomorocco

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: "Everybody else is retarded but me and the other people who buy what I like" tards: check.

HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @keyser: good point, this has certainly affected my recent purchases

dea136

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> physical media will not die for years. blu-ray is only a niche market. i have a ps3 and only buy my favorite movies (~15 BD's) prices are too high. Although if they went down, i'd still only buy my favorites (movies i'll want to watch more than once).

much prefer to rent BD's via Netflix. would choose HD over SD DVD anyday if I had the choice, but the ps3 upconverts DVDs well enough for me not to care very much.

dea136

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @Metropolis:
Why does he care? Because his mom bought him a PS3 for Xmas and it makes him feel good to tell people about how much he likes it. And it makes him feel bad when people say, "meh."


MarvinDog

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @strider_mt2k: There's something to be said for the banhammer, as well.

I am a militant evangelical civilist. I believe in being civil, and go out of my way to tell people about being civil. However, when folks aren't being civil, the mighty weight of the army of banhammer should be brought to bear to bring things back in line.

Seriously, this person came here and yacked up umpteen comments within a matter of hours. Let the hammer swing.

Elvisisdead

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:

Stop writing now, please. Not everyones life revolves around how good their media looks. If you can read most people said " upscaling is good enough for them" They never say BR is on the same level as upscaling. And, yes I know how upscaling works. Most people aren't going to sit and compare it to BR because the just don't care.

Why do you care so much about this subject anyway? Does it make a difference if people are elitist snobs like you are about their TV watching? This is the wrong place to try and convey your belief about something as poiintless as picture quality.

Metropolis

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @OMG! Ponies!:
You obviously haven't seen Casablanca in HD. I've seen a gloriously restored 35mm print and own it on HD DVD and DVD. The DVD can't compare to either on my projector in my media room-- the HD DVD looks almost 3D it's so crisp.

That said, Blu-Ray has a difficult road ahead of it. It's a down economy and people aren't going to purchase an expensive new tech-- especially one that every tech writer in the U.S. has been saying to wait until Q4 2008 at the very soonest to buy, citing high prices and an incomplete format.

Every soccer mom in my neighborhood has permanently-disney-playing dvd players in the headrests of her SUV. Is she going to greenlight a Blu-Ray player for the 32" TV in their family room when the discs won't keep Caitlin and Ethan quiet in the backseat on the trek to Starbucks?

Blu-Ray has a very limited future. I think that Sony even knows this, which is why they'll be renting downloads via PS3 soon. I think it's a smart move.

(as a disclaimer, I own a Toshiba HD-A3 and a Sony PS3 that's never seen a game)


MarvinDog

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @archercc:
I'm confused by what you said... Are saying Fifth Element was a terrible movie??? Because I was unaware that Bruce Willis was in a bad movie.

Rabid Penguin

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @OMG! Ponies!:
This may just be my opinion, but I think Cloverfield will suck about the same on DVD as it will on Blu-Ray. It'll be just as entertaining (or even more so) on a 3D-Viewmaster [www.gasolinealleyantiques.com] and probably save you a few bucks.

Conclusion: The format of choice for Cloverfield is the 3D-Viewmaster. With rich, colorful visuals, you'll have an immersive experience like no other, without having to actually watch the film or hear the corny dialog.

Rabid Penguin

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Where have all the good movies gone? There hasn't been a good release out since the new rambo and that was months ago. fu**ing hollywood!

guitarmunkey05

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:Those movies are terrible and are sitting in the bargain bin at Best Buy. I could probably get all of those for $50 at this point.

archercc

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> This Blu-Ray sales depression doesn't have a single thing to do with the availability of content for download in some fashion - via iTMS or NetFlix_

Nah - that of course has no impact either_

uberfu

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Maybe the BlueRay consumers are a little more educated this time around. We did the dance Hollywood wanted us to do with standard DVDs and now we are waiting for Hollywood to do our dance.

I spend a rediculous amount on HT equipment but I'm not buying any BR until Hollywood releases the most of the movies I want in DTS-MA or Dolby HD. I'm not going to buy the edited version when I know there is a directors cut or unedited version coming.

There is no excuse for releasing a crap version on BR and then a full version with good sound 1 year later - umm we didn't have enough room - nope not buying it and neither are consumers.

Give people with good speakers, and a big 1080p screen a reason to buy BR and we come a runnin!

I spend a lot on HT equipment but I don't replace often - I'm the same way about my DVDs. I have about 700 DVD and can think of at least 125 I would replace tomorrow with BR if they were available in BR DTS-MA. Granted - I don't need GroundHog Day in DTS-MA or Dolby HD but X-Men, Armageddon,Die Hard etc etc - those are movies I'd be happy to fork over some of my hard earned cash for (again) but give me a reason first.

This would be like if BMW came out with a new 7 series and said buy it NOW sure the model that includes the back seat will come out shortly but we have this stripped down version available right now at the same price as the fully loaded one available for those willing to wait.

boe

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> have you seen the recent movies that have come out? Why the hell would I want to buy any of them let alone on Blu-Ray. I have a PS3 I love Bluray I just wish there were movies I'd like to watch on BD, like the matrix trilogy... While Walk Hard is Fraking hysterical, I don't need to see it in 1080p...

Argyle

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @rudeadly: I agree. Fscking troll. Where's the vote-someone-off-the-island button?

FredicvsMaximvs

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> two cents :

I haven't seen any discussion on this digital cable switch. Consumers are facing a new TV or cable box purchase (and most of the uneducated masses assume it means a whole new set).

With the fear of TV not working in under a year, I'm sure money that could be put into Blu-Ray players are being earmarked for that inevitable flat panel upgrade.

Just plain bad timing...

k9bits

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I'd consider buying into blu ray but I want to get a PS3, and those things are too big and ugly to warrant a spot under my TV.

liveinvt

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> What did they think...that people would be buying Blu when they didn't have larger than a 32" TV yet?

shoot most of the people that DO have HDTVs already have less than 50" screens...you can hardly tell a difference (if your not a technophile) in SD vs HD when your screen is smaller than 42"

Seiven

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> It's say high prices and the waiting for the BD-Live also the normal consumer still isn't exactly sure what Blu-ray is, need to put on education adverts lol.

DJTripleRRR

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Not a big surprise... Blu Ray players are still expensive, buggy, and lacking all the features. The format has extremely strong competition from regular DVDs. And the economy has gone to utter crap. So those on the fence will wait a while. Those ready to pull the trigger will go PS3 if they are smart (that's what I did).

Maybe this will motivate some price drops, then this will start gaining momentum, especially when the economy starts improving in a year or two.

redman042

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> So I have a question. Is it not better to compare on year to year growth instead of month to month so the difference in the season and other factors don't apply. In this regard blu-ray is doing fine. It's on an upswing while dvd sales are on a downswing.

acemahl

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> BTW: OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT!

(how's that for changing the subject)

guitarmunkey05

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: Uh.. did anyone else notice that Tutelary was on here last night bitching up a storm from midnight till like 130am, then started up at 8am this morning? I don't think i've ever seen anyone so heated about a debate that they bitch till they sleep, then wake up 6 and 1/2 hours and bitch more. Perhaps if he got the full 8 hours his posts would be a little more cheery :)

Here's my take:

VHS->DVD = No more rewinding, smaller media, better quality, extras, etc.
DVD->BR = Better quality

Switching to DVD made a lot of sense. Switching to BR DOES make sense... i'm not saying that it doesn't. HOWEVER, it's not quite as motivational as the previous switch. Especially when there's upconverting.

BR will be the future: People are getting into hissy-fits about pricing. I remember back when i bought my first CD-Burner, for $400. Now you can buy one for $5 off ebay. Pricing will come down as the technology gets easier to build/smaller. Give BR another year or two and we'll see affordable pricing.

Suggestion: I think we should stop using media that moves (discs), and go towards something more solid state. I hate scratched discs. I was a HUGE fan of the N64 cartriges. Why can't we do that again? When it doesn't work, just give it a blow, and all is well.

Me: I download all movies illegally. (oops) I haven't purchased a dvd since ~2002

Have a good day!


guitarmunkey05

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> tutelary, what you fail to understand about people like me is I don't care about haveing the best possible picture; I care about haveing a good picture. And I don't care about being "immersed;" I just want to watch a damn movie.

Right now, DVD is the best picture quality available for the majority of us. (In other words, it's better than TV.) How do you convince someone that the product which provides them the best viewing experience is inferior? It's difficult to say the least.

Ultimately, I think bluray will succeed. But it's going to take a long time. I'm talking 5+ years.

Why?

Once analog TV goes away, you will see a slighlty accelerated number of people buying HDTVs. Only when these new HDTV adopters see that "TV" now looks better than their DVD's, will they even consider ditching DVD for BD.

Then there are people like me.

I have an HDTV, but because of a lack of HD channels, most of the TV I watch is still SD. So DVD still has a better picture than 95% of the stuff I watch. Once all those SD channels are forced to go to HD, then my DVD's will be the weakest link and I'll be tempted to upgrade.

Bender

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> did it occur to anyone that the fucked up eco-no-money has people maybe, just maybe, buying gas, food and paying mortgages rather than buying movies?

why didnt the article compare it to the decline in flat panel TV purchases as well?

keysereble

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I have two PS3 players (purchased on

@mikecostia
I'm not complaining, I'm voting with my wallet. If the studios want better sales, they need figure out the market isn't for disks that cost 1.5 to 2 times that of DVD.

dwette

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I don't feel sorry for the bastards. I refuse to buy anything 'Blu Ray' and I'll be stoked when the next level of technology comes out and blows Blu-Ray out of the water.

dirk1965

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary You must be new around here. Welcome. We usually refrain from hurling insults at people with differing points of view.

We also read what we write so that we don't have dozens of comments where only a handful would suffice.

Would films shot in Cinescape benefit? Perhaps. But there's more to watching a movie than the resolution. There's screen size, viewing distance, set calibration, ambient room light, and the viewer's vision.

I live in an apartment in Brooklyn. My living room is 18'x20'. I have a 34" CRT in the corner. Were I to upgrade the television, I'd still only be able to fit about 46" maximum.

Please, without resorting to invectives, histrionics, or ad hominem attacks, explain to me why I should spend money replacing movies that are perfectly acceptable on DVD upscaled to 1080i. Bear in mind, the maximum resolution of my television is 1080i, although a PS3 will upscale to 1080p.

I have about 150 movies on DVD. Even at $20 per movie, that's $3000. And of course, that doesn't include the 8.725% sales tax.

I'd rather spend that kind of money on mortgage payments or put it towards my (future) child's education.

Of course, reasonable minds may differ.

God made the pretty girls pretty because he likes them more

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> who wants scratchable media. not me.
movies on cartridges will be the wave of the future. ssd anyone.


fostina1

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Man everyone complains so god dam much. Do any of you remember when DVDs first came out? The prices were just as crazy!! It took years to get the $20 dvd player and $15-$20 new release.

I for one have stopped buying DVDs and only purchase Blu-ray. The quality is worth it, esp on a large screen. Upscaled DVDs don't do so well on projectors, there fine for small sets though. As for price, just buy from Amazon. There much cheaper and if you open up an Amazon cc you get triple points for everyone. Again well worth.

It's going to take awhile, but prices will drop. Stop bitching.

mikecoscia

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary:
I'm glad you've chosen such a worthy cause to have such passion over, but perhaps you can make a point without devolving into personal insults right away?

There is something to be said for civil discourse.

strider_mt2k

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> PS3 isn't stimulating BD sales?

Why, look what the PSP did for...oh yeah I probably shouldn't mention that.

strider_mt2k

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @daftrok:
Imagine that... a movie format that is bundled into a video game console only gets big disc sales from movies based on video games.


Optimus-Prime

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Optical media is not only on its way out the door, but it looks like it is dying a slow and miserable death.

bms

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I can add a new tard to the list tho:
"old movies don't benefit" tard.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @OMG! Ponies!:
you show you ABSOLUTE ignorance in saying a movie shot on 35mm film 50 years ago wont show a quality difference. Absolutely WRONG. Where the hell do you think studios are getting master content from champ? 35mm film has roughly 4 times the resolution of current top tier HD content.

Just because you're stupid doesn't mean much to anyone else. Go watch Forbidden Planet or Casablanca in HD and get back to me, you dimp.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I think disks are too expensive but that's about the only reason for wanting to watch DVD over BD. I think the price is a symptom of early adoption phase of any technology. Once it goes mainstream the prices will drop just like they did with DVD.

DrXym

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> It's because they cannot supply the demand. You can hardly find one in stock anywhere here in Texas.

That applys to any of them...

budabellyx

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I use digitial downloads because they're free. It may make me a thieving gypo, but a thieving gypo with more free cash.

Sleeper_Service

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I'm actually baffled at the number of people who think digital media is winning out. I still have a hard time paying for something without getting something tangible I can hold in my hand in return.

I've bought a few blu ray movies, but the issue isn't anything but the price. All retailers are trying to sell most movies at $29.99, which you can buy on DVD for half the price. So, I choose to buy nothing until the price drops, or unless I really like the movie.

kwicherbichin

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I like how the more expensive player won and now no one will buy it. Bluray didn't just kill HDDVD it killed the whole market.

sned

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: So you take issue with people's subjective tastes? Congratulations on being a tech snob. I suppose you also think that those who enjoy an $8 bottle of Chardonnay with their dinner are "tards" for not preferring a $75 vintage Reisling, regardless of whether their palate is capable of appreciating the nuances or whether they are merely having a bottle of wine with a casual dinner at home.

Perhaps you also think that those who prefer Monet to Jackson Pollack are "tards". Or what of those who prefer reading histories by David McCullough rather than philosophy essays by Immanuel Kant.

Maybe I bought my parents' brainwashing but I watch my television from about 8' - 12' away. I also wear glasses. And, right now, DVD is just fine for me. I see no reason to replace my DVD library with Blu-Ray. I have no plans to replace many of my DVDs simply because, as stated, a movie shot on 35mm film 50 years ago will see no improvement from a Blu-Ray release.

Please explain the advantage of spending $30 on a movie that I already own. Please explain the advantage to me of spending $30 versus $13 for a 35 year-old movie like Bonnie & Clyde or even a 25 year-old movie like Taxi Driver or Raging Bull.

It seems to me like you've bought the marketing talking points. This is bargain-hunting season for a lot of people. Except for movies like Iron Man - i.e., films made in the last 10 years that are visual heavy - I can see no reason for myself to spend extra money on a feature that I will not be able to fully appreciate.

God made the pretty girls pretty because he likes them more

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> It's the TV's, people. I wonder what percentage of Americans have something that can do more then 480p? And then, throw in that it takes more then 32" (i *think* that is what the reviews said) to notice more then 720 rez, and it all comes back to the display.

Everyone posting here is obviously gadget junkies, but Joe Six-Pack is not. Throw in a bad economy, and DVD is going to be around for awhile.

hypereric

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Digital and SD cards are the progression from DVD, as someone else said, Blu Ray is basically Dvd 2.0 - as someone else also said, many adults continue top consider DVD to be a 'new' and 'high tech' format - The industry needs to look at the economics of new tech, rather that relying on its muscle to force change - they may have a lot of power, but ultimatly they rely on that which they cannot control, the exeptions being people like tutelary - We arnt all audiophiles, and quality obsessed people with money to waste.

aquillla

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I know it may surprise some of you, especially on this site, but most people don't own HDTV's. Plain and simple. An upgrade to Blu is more than just a media player, it's an entire home entertainment center upgrade. In 5 years when peoples stuff will have been replaced anyway, sure, Bluray will be the new dvd. But until then, buy 2 get a free tv is the only deal that will make sales accelerate.

Holyelephant

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Price. They're insane for charging as much as they do for BDs. Twenty bucks is still too much. Fifteen or sixteen bucks for new releases and ten bucks or less for the bargain bin is really all the mass market will support. Especially now that torrenting high definition content is possible.

jackbrown

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> "You guys have apparently been listening to our warnings about not jumping into the Blu pool just yet."

The what now? I'm pretty sure I've been one of the people in the "HD format war is pointless" camp. People wanted to switch from VHS because the tapes wore out, got eaten by a worn out player, or ended up covered in Junior's PB&J at some point. Even so, it didn't really take off until the PS2 offered a _cheap_ DVD player for a couple hundred bucks. Blu-Ray will _NEVER_ hit that point, unless Sony can suddenly start giving away the PS3 for free. Why? Because you need an HDTV to make the HD format matter, and that's more of an expense than Joe American is likely to be able to afford, much less feel like spending just to be able to have a slightly better picture (if you get a really big HDTV, the difference is considerable, but if you're talking a 20" TV, it's not so impressive).

As for the digital download camp, that dog don't hunt in my book. I want a _legal_ DVD, in the original case, on my DVD shelf. Not some nebulous file that may or may not still be on my hard-drive. And for damn sure I want my bonus features. I have five different copies of The Princess Bride because they keep releasing it with new bonus content. I have three copies of the Lord of the Rings trilogy for the exact same reason. And I still buy music for my iPod on CDs that, if at all possible, I pick up from the store in person.

From here on out, we live in a three-format world. DVDs for the people who will continue to use standard-def TVs for the foreseeable future, Blu-Ray for the minority of people go for the HD format, and digital for those who either want more titles for less money, or need to have it _now_ (and don't mind the fact that the resolution is crap and the downloads are device-restrictive). None of the three formats is in danger of going away anytime soon.

And for those who think Blu-Ray is overtaking DVD faster than DVD overtook VHS, keep in mind that DVDs have far outstripped the popularity of VHS, and the market is continuing to grow. TV shows that got cancelled after only a couple episodes have been released to DVD with any completed unreleased episodes in tow. VHS saw only a handful of TV series released, not all of which even managed to run through to completion because it generally cost ~$10 per episode to collect them (the only series I know of that did see full runs released on VHS both start with "Star Trek").

Purple Dave

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> tutelary is my least favorite commenter on gizmodo :(

rudeadly

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: That being the case if we move from Bluray to some kind of flash or whatever I don't care, as long as the quality is there and I have a physical media of some kind that I can archive myself.

I totally agree. I want quality too. I have a 7.1 surround system, a 100" inch screen and a projector to play BD movies on. Thing is, I also want the prices to be realistic.

I also agree that digital distribution is not going to take off in the next 5 years, and would result in a significant reduction in quality and service.

But you can't just dismiss the issue of price based on prices in one country when almost all the releases are made in that country and that country is a significant portion of the market. For the rest of the world, the prices are still to high. And even in the USA, the prices are still too high for much of the population. And price will continue to be a limiting factor everywhere until BDs approach DVD level prices (players and discs).

Doshu

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I agree with the prices of BD movies being a major determiner in poor sales. People have been used to paying a certain price for DVD content for some time now, and although Blu Ray is HD, at the end of the day it's still just a movie.

Since buying my PS3 almost two months ago I still have yet to purchase a BD movie. Everything so far has come from Netflix and I'm fine with that. I have an extensive DVD collection, and although I don't think the upscaling is on par with Blu Ray, it suits me fine as opposed to paying almost double for new titles.

Until the prices on BD titles drop to below $20 bucks, I'm fine with Netflix and upconversion.

surfer88

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Yep... just today I bought 3 more DVD movies for my collection.
And if it depended on me (sorry Blu-ray fans), Blu-ray would trail the same path as HD-DVD.

The only thing I need right now from new medias is cheap backup storage. That's all.

Shure Blu-ray resolution is awesome and prettier... but since I'm happy enough watching stuff on my PSP, why would I bother spending loads of cash on new unstable formats?

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @oldmanstan: I don't care what manner of format evolves, but quality is of the highest importance. Digital downloads are crap, and will be for a LONG time. Look at cable companies compressing 3 hd stations into the bandwidth they previously had 2 on. Don't expect better out of digital downloads people, expect worse.

That being the case if we move from Bluray to some kind of flash or whatever I don't care, as long as the quality is there and I have a physical media of some kind that I can archive myself.

There is one thing to keep in mind folks: the studios are never going to sell the public perfect 1:1 copies of master material. Ever. Proper 1080p high bitrate movies are what the consumer can expect for a LONG time to come.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: i don't pay more than $10 for dvds, i buy them "used" from the local video rental place, so yeah, those prices are way more than i'm willing to pay... once blu-ray reaches critical mass i expect to be able to get those prices, until then, i will wait

also, blu-ray may have had faster adoption but note (from the article) that sales have dropped since january. if the format was really getting ready to take-off i would expect a steady pick-up in sales

also, 25 year format? are you high? nothing lasts 25 years any more... if technology has taught us anything it is that the pace of change tends to pick up over time... dvd didn't have anything close to 25 years, i don't expect BR to have that long either... i'm not saying it will necessarily be replaced, just that in 25 years i seriously doubt people will be consuming their media on BR

oldmanstan

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I find it amazing how many people are ready to throw themselves on the altar of "digital downloads" with inferior quality video and sound, and what will obviously be tightly controlled DRM. These same people then bitch about DRM on everything else. lol.

Real, high quality HD is immersive. Theres a tangible benefit added to a movie in high resolution. You see things as they were intended to be seen. You see the sets and the costumes, and every little nuance of the actors emotions being played out. Proper HD makes movies MORE of what movies should be.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: I understand your reasons, but just because it'll last long, doesn't necessarily mean we need to buy it. BR won't even be around that long. Fortunatley, digital files can survive a lot longer...
Fortunately for me, I can still enjoy a movie for how it is made, not displayed.


redrabbit

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> You guys can flounder with SD. I'm going to go sell about 400 of my roughly 500 dvds and move to Blu.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @redrabbit: The difference here is that Bluray is a good 25 year format at least. The fact is the resolution is high enough to throw a good 70 to 100 inch image up on a projector and have a razor sharp experience with lossless audio. I can't see most people in the world moving to screens over that size anytime soon, can you? Film is roughly 4 times that resolution, but look at how large a theater screen has to be. The fact is that for home theater enjoyment, BD is the definitive way to go for everyone. If you can't use it yet, you'll grow into it, because theres plenty of room.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: seriously, it's mind numbing. i don't understand how people can get giant erections over hdtv's, and then give all their support to the format with the worst image/sound/feature/price (i'm looking at you, digital distribution). while this can be expected to improve in the coming years, i'm guessing it's still about a decade away before the infrastructure is readily available to allow the average consumer to take advantage of it.

@oldmanstan: a significant reason blu-ray disc sales have dropped is probably because there is absolutely nothing worthwhile being released on the format at the moment. the past three months have seen absolute shit releases. crap releases, coupled with a higher price (yes, blu-ray does need to drop by about $10), and hell, even an american recession, are all likely putting a significant dent in blu-ray adoption at the moment. if it's still like this come december, then we'll have something to talk about.

adaorardor

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> If you people would check the price of oil you would understand why pricing on items that come from any other country are going up. Thats the nature of the beast.

Try hitting your local gas station and buying a damn coke or candy bar. Sticker shock anyone?

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: I agree with you, and it made me think. DVD was a revolution to the VHS. I mean if you just look at the differences between them, DVD allowed you to have more video-time on it, it was smaller, it was "interactive", as in "choose where you wanna go in the movie", the picture quality was better, you didn't even have to rewind the DVD.

So what sort of revolutionary progress has HD and BR made? Better picture quality? I think we can just call it an improvement on the DVD and just call it DVD 1.1, I don't know what the big fuss is about it.

redrabbit

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @speakafreaka: You live on an island, and you aren't producing discs there...welcome to reality.

The fact is that pricing will fall, it ALWAYS does. You people can whine and cry and say "it doesnt matter, ill just watch dvd" and eventually you'll go Blu because Blu hardware prices will make building anything OTHER than a bluray player stupid.

Again: You same feebs moved from VHS to DVD, so stfu.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Well this was kind of expected. I mean instead of lowering prices, most Blu-ray manufacturers put markups on bd players. Sure with the death of hd dvd they were expecting consumers to switch over but you can't make them pay in blood and have a ps3 as the only cheap alternative route.

As for Sony's idea of getting blu ray sales through the ps3, this was a miss or hit. A lot of people have bought ps3's just for blu ray, which is a deal because of the low price and firmware updates, but people would still rather a cheaper player.

CGrant

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> In australia, from sanity:
Hellboy - $39.99

I Am Legend (Preorder) - $49.99

Fifth Element - $39.99

Blade Runner - Final Cut (1 disc) $34.99
So am i allowed to whinge? please daddy.. can i?
Antifeeb.. or whatever

speakafreaka

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> In australia, from sanity:

Hellboy - $39.99
I Am Legend (Preorder) - $49.99
Fifth Element - $39.99
Blade Runner - Final Cut (1 disc) $34.99

So am i allowed to whinge? please daddy.. can i?

Antifeeb.. or whatever

speakafreaka

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> If you're both blind and dumb dvd is definitely good enough for you. For that matter, why did you ever leave VHS?

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: Soooo shouldn't that mean that we should start saving our money and buy the lesser-expensive "Good-enough" stuff like regular DVDs instead of the more expensive ones? :)

redrabbit

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @redkamel: Since when is 6 times the resolution "bascially the same quality"? How many movies do you actually watch? You must be half blind.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Looking at some movies right now I'm thinking about purchasing on Amazon:
Bluray:
Hellboy Directors Cut - $19
I Am Legend - $19
Fifth Element $15
Blade Runner (5 discs) - $26

OH MY GOD THE PRICING!!!! WAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH

Whine more, you feebs.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: You tards talking about pricing should learn to pre-order when you can get most coming releases at $19.99. Order a few at once, get free shipping.

Maybe in your part of the world. AU$39.99 is the price of all new blu-ray releases here.

Doshu

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I have a PS3 and still dont buy blu-ray movies. hmm 15 bucks or 35 for a movie with basically the same quality as far as I can tell most of the time, after upscaling?

redkamel

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I live in australia, flat price of $40-$60 for BD's

its cheaper for me to get 2 or 3 from amazon sent from the states.. but i dont want to get burned if they decide to implement regioning on some discs through firmware updates

speakafreaka

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> And yes, those are facts, look them up.
Players and Discs have BOTH fallen faster and been more widely accepted than dvd was during the same inital time frame.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @oldmanstan: The "real" reason? Stupidity. Bluray adoption is faster than dvd was, and player pricing has fallen dramatically faster than dvd did. You feebs just want everything NOW! And want to complain like little bitches when you don't get it.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I don't think that many people have TV's that can really show off that kind of resolution. I'm a college student, and I don't make nearly enough to afford an HD TV. And no HD means BD is completely irrelevant.

burddog

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @tutelary: ok, so you called everyone a tard for attempting to logically explain an observation (blu-ray sales are awful)... what's the *real* reason then? i desperately want to know.

oldmanstan

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> You tards talking about pricing should learn to pre-order when you can get most coming releases at $19.99. Order a few at once, get free shipping.

Idiots.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> A larger selection of BD movies wouldn't hurt! It's time for the stragglers to jump on board.

rg

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @speakafreaka: hd dvd was undercutting its prices in desperation. It wasn't cheaper in the marketplace, it was a loss leader for Toshiba. The discs DEFINITELY were not cheaper.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @jpitsch: Too greedy

remember we're talking about sony here so that should be self explanitory

/me points to all the smug hd-dvd owners holding "i told you so" banners

speakafreaka

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @jpitsch: try going to the damn grocery store or the mall. The pricing on everything is increasing due to distribution costs. You people are idiots.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> -"upscaling is good enough" tards: check
-"hd dvd blah blah" tards: check
-"digital distribution" tards: check
-"pricing" tards: check
-"not 2.0" tards: check

yeah, these comments have about all the goddamn ignorant ass stupidity I can stand for one night.

tutelary

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> "Blu-ray sales have only jumped a meager two percent...."

Poetic justice! It just goes to show that HD DVD should have won!

funtasticguy

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I like the extras that you get with physical media. But the price difference between Blu-Ray and DVD plays a big part.
Would I pay an extra 5 bucks for HD content? Sure.
Will a allow myself to get gouged paying 15 bucks more? Not so much.

Bring the prices down and and I'll buy a few more. Until then, the most I will do is rent.

CaptCaveman

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @Final: Does the PS3 upconvert?

Yes. It does it quite well actually.

@FiveLiters: I never bought that many DVDs to begin with (mostly concerts),and as everyone mentioned, the price is still way up there.

I'm the same. We have maybe 100-200 DVDs, and most of those are of TV shows that were never produced in HD resolutions. The rest are the occasional documentary or concert video.

I'll buy more BDs when the price drops to something approaching reasonable. I currently own 4. 1 came with my PS3, the other 3 were older movies as part of a "buy 2, get 1 free" deal. It still cost me AU$60 for those three old movies.

Doshu

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @Final: Yes, and quite nicely i must add.

Physical Media is no where near dead. Most people don't even know what Blu-ray is and you expect them to download movies? Not gunna happen for a while. For many people this will also mean getting much greater bandwith and installing some way to get internet to the TV (via router, etc...) Most people just like to buy a piece of plastic, pop it in and enjoy a movie. Also, HD movie downloads look much worse than Blu-ray, they are just too compressed (its quite evident on a 56" 1080p TV with 7.1 surrond)

ab3

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> The laptop I just bought has a blu-ray player,but I won't be purchasing any disks anytime soon. I never bought that many DVDs to begin with (mostly concerts),and as everyone mentioned, the price is still way up there. It's nice to already have the player though,for when they finally do come down. I guess I would say it swayed my decision to get this particular one a little bit.

FiveLiters

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I have to say, DVDs upscaled on my PS3 look plenty good - so good that I don't think I'll buy Cloverfield on Blu-Ray when it comes out. How's that for irony.

The fact (for me at least) is that upscaled DVDs on my 34" HDTV from 8' away look great. Couple that with the dearth of decent movies on Blu-Ray and 2008 will have a lot of red mixed in with the blue.

Also, for those in NYC - go to J&R as fast as possible. Criterion Collection DVDs are on sale for $25 a pop. And no, you don't need Blu-Ray to appreciate 1960s French New Wave cinema.

God made the pretty girls pretty because he likes them more

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I guess most people are content with their already good-enough standard DVDs and don't want to pay all the money for the new stuff? I sure as hell don't. Screw HD, screw BR, I'm sticking with Standard DVD for another couple of good years. I don't jump on the band-wagon just because you have a couple of fans on them already, it feels like they're forcing consumers to move on, which is one thing I hate.

redrabbit

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I'm one of those "good enough" people. Since I like to transfer my purchases to my iPod as well, I can't say I'm terribly interested in a format I can't trust to play nice with my computers.

Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Price is still too high. DVD upscaling to 1080p works very nicely-- not worth spending the $$ on BR discs until they come down to the $20 range.

Sora57

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> The issue is more simple than that.

For most people, DVD's are "Good Enough" -- particularly hooked up with an upconverting dvd player.

Its a case of the tech moving too fast for the consumer. People still consider their DVD's to be their "new, high tech movie thing."

Nobody has shown a good reason why they need to switch.

AndrewJayPollack

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> digital distribution FTW!

JuiceDaddy

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> @TheDuckOfDeath: It did require a second reading, as it didn't flow like the pee from HD DVD into the Blue Ray Pool.

I won't bother with BD until the format becomes inexpensive enough for BD-R disks costing about the same as DL disks. That, and the players still cost $300+, and I'm not buying the same movie again for the 200+ DVD movies I already own. Same argument against buying PSP disks.

electrikecho

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Because Bluray is an incomplete format right now and the PS3 is the only player that is "future compatible".

And the pricing is insane too.

dagamer34

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> It's always going to be about price point for electronics consumers. Once the price of HD tv sets aligns, digital broadcasting standards are set, then consumers will expect higher quality in general and that, I would imagine, would drive higher sales of Blu-ray players. We're not talking about a total progression like VHS-DVD, only an improvement of one format.

malvones

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> With loosely 70% or so of Blu-ray players being PS3's and realizing that the vast majority of those owners actually play there games on the system and have not actually been purchasing any Blu-ray disks, this concern is not a surprise. For a storage medium sure this is great but for the common consumer the thought of re-purchasing and replacing your entire collection with new media just for the sake of better image quality always seemed like flawed reasoning to me on the part of these large corporations. Most movies were great due to the story and the bump in visuals would do little to the experience while those movies like "300" etc would probably benefit the most but to the average consumer its just not worthwhile.

DaIntellectual

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Does the PS3 upconvert?

Final

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Could also be people like me, who are just basking in discount HD-DVD for the time being.

Aaron Martin-Colby

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> There's no way Blu-ray will ever be a mass-market format. HD DVD had everything in place to smoothly migrate Joe Public over from DVD, plus it was cheap, simple to use and the players worked well.

Blu-ray is a joke by comparison, and consumers are rightly staying the hell away.

UnnDunn

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Well one problem is the fact that they raised the Blu-Ray player prices after the HD-DVD exit. If they just lowered the player prices I am sure that would help sales. Then of course they could lower the disc prices and that would help sales.

They must be either too greedy, too scared or too stupid to do one or both of the above. Meaning they want too much profit, there margins are already too low or they are too f-ing stupid-respectively.

jpitsch

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Physical media is here for a while....a long while. I just wish I could rip DVDs to my Xbox and have it upscale them on site... because im tires of downlaoding codecs every month....

CCCP here I come

Cordfucious

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Is "stopping peeing in it and lied down to die" some sort of google translation quote or something? Engrish?

TheDuckOfDeath

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> BD are still expensive, that's right, but Amazon, for example, has some great deals to get them cheaper (buy 1 get 1 free...).

Wait to get Transformers, and other huge movies on BD ;)

prouted

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> I wouldn't say physical media is dead. Just non-rewritable media that uses moving parts. I'm sick and tired of being right. Blu-Ray is just a gap filler, not a brand new media.

*COUGH*
*HIGH SPEED HIGH CAPACITY SD CARDS WE ARE WAITING*
*COUGH*

DustyButt

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Seriously, $30 for the same thing I can get (legally) for $10-15. Is the quality twice as high?

I have and will buy 0.0.

willyt9

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> Price too high for me as well, I've never bought one outside of a "buy one, get one free" offer. Even "buy 2 get one free" isn't enough incentive.

klew

]]> <![CDATA[HD DVD's Death Hasn't Helped Blu-ray Sales, Which Are So Bad NPD Won't Talk About 'Em]]> digital content is the only way for me. Plus didn't like the way pricing all of a sudden got higher after hd-dvd keeled over.

Dickey

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