HD-DVD and DVD's future

So just when will HD-DVDs and players hit the mainstream consumer
market? Should I continue to invest in DVDs? For example, should I
purchase all seven seasons of "Star Trek-The Next Generation" (which
I'm seriously comtemplating) or wait?

Phil Riker

Phil Riker wrote:
> So just when will HD-DVDs and players hit the mainstream consumer
> market? Should I continue to invest in DVDs? For example, should I
> purchase all seven seasons of "Star Trek-The Next Generation" (which
> I'm seriously comtemplating) or wait?

Why not? If they eventually re-release TNG on HD-DVD the only benefit
will be fewer discs. It was filmed before tv shows were filmed in HD
(at least in this country).

--
"Get rid of the Range Rover. You are not responsible for patrolling
Australia's Dingo Barrier Fence, nor do you work the Savannah, capturing
and tagging wildebeests."
--Michael J. Nelson

Grand Inquisitor
http://www.dvdprofiler.com/mycollection.asp?alias=Oost

Grand Inquisitor

Phil Riker <> wrote in message news: om...
> So just when will HD-DVDs and players hit the mainstream consumer
> market?

I'd say it is at least 5 years away, if ever.

> Should I continue to invest in DVDs?

Depends on how many you have, how often you buy,
how many you buy, how often you watch, how old you are, etc.
Sooner or later, everyone will reach the point
when their collection is so large that it is less and less likely
that you will ever watch a movie again. Simple arithmetic.

> For example, should I purchase all seven seasons
> of "Star Trek-The Next Generation"
> (which I'm seriously comtemplating) or wait?

Was TNG shot in HD?

Hugh Candlin

Grand Inquisitor <> writes:
> Why not? If they eventually re-release TNG on HD-DVD the only benefit
> will be fewer discs. It was filmed before tv shows were filmed in HD
> (at least in this country).

Quite right... it was *filmed*! Which means that it can be
re-telecined in HD if they hurry and do it before the film elements
rot.

--
Forte International, P.O. Box 1412, Ridgecrest, CA 93556-1412
Ronald Cole <> Phone: (760) 499-9142
President, CEO Fax: (760) 499-9152
My GPG fingerprint: C3AF 4BE9 BEA6 F1C2 B084 4A88 8851 E6C8 69E3 B00B

Ronald Cole

"Hugh Candlin" <> wrote in message
news:FUa9b.142335$...

> I'd say it is at least 5 years away, if ever.

HD DVD come for sure. 5 year seems a bit pessimisstic. What studios want
is to skin the cow multiple times. So they'll like to sell you their
catalogue titles in DVD and then HD DVD. Studios are brining out their
catalogue titles at alarming rate right now. It won't be long before they
run out of bankable catalogue titles and by then they'll be motivated to
sell them to you, yet again in HD DVD. My guess is within the next 3-5
years.

Having said that, I'm liquidating my collections on ebay as I see DVD is
slowly approaching the status of a passe.

Goldfgn

Ronald Cole <> wrote in message news:<>...
> Grand Inquisitor <> writes:
> > Why not? If they eventually re-release TNG on HD-DVD the only benefit
> > will be fewer discs. It was filmed before tv shows were filmed in HD
> > (at least in this country).
>
> Quite right... it was *filmed*! Which means that it can be
> re-telecined in HD if they hurry and do it before the film elements
> rot.

All of the special effects for ST:TNG were done on videotape so they
can't really make high-quality HD masters anyway.

Smaug69

Smaug69

Goldfgn, says...
> What studios want
> is to skin the cow multiple times. So they'll like to sell you their
> catalogue titles in DVD and then HD DVD. Studios are brining out their
> catalogue titles at alarming rate right now.

Actually, the studios do NOT want to release movies in HD right now. In
fact, they are quite resistant to even releasing them to HBO-HD, until
much better copy protection mechanisms are mandated in both software and
display hardware. Plus, the industry has learned that consumers will not
support too frequent upgrades to their equipment. Thus the poor consumer
response to DAT, Mini-Disk, DigitalVHS, etc.

Mark Spatny

Ronald Cole, says...
> Quite right... it was *filmed*! Which means that it can be
> re-telecined in HD if they hurry and do it before the film elements
> rot.

Paramount will not spend any kind of money redoing the effects in HD.
Which means, at best, you get retransferred HD footage for non effects
shots only. But keep in mind that when the show was produced, HD was not
even a blip on the horizon, so it is unlikely that any of the shots were
framed with 16x9 in mind. If they retransfer, you are going to get some
mighty strange compositions.

Mark Spatny

"Hugh Candlin" <> wrote in message
news:FUa9b.142335$...


> Sooner or later, everyone will reach the point
> when their collection is so large that it is less and less likely
> that you will ever watch a movie again. Simple arithmetic.

I have an idea, why not let Netflix be one's collection?

Ken W.

In article < t>,
Mark Spatny <> wrote:

> Actually, the studios do NOT want to release movies in HD right now. In
> fact, they are quite resistant to even releasing them to HBO-HD, until
> much better copy protection mechanisms are mandated in both software and
> display hardware. Plus, the industry has learned that consumers will not
> support too frequent upgrades to their equipment. Thus the poor consumer
> response to DAT, Mini-Disk, DigitalVHS, etc.

Technically speaking, it's not even a simple upgrade as you have to buy
brand new equipment. Whether it's blue-ray or WM9 that we end up using,
it's still gonna require a new player and be assured that these players
are going to be very expensive for at least a few years after hitting
the market. Not to mention HD-DVD is utterly worthless without an HDTV
set. HDTV's have only managed to penetrate 10% of US homes so far, if
even that. It's also gonna be very difficult to get people to buy into
these after investing hundreds to thousands of dollars on standard DVD
collections. The switch isn't like the switch from VHS to DVD where even
a blind nun can see a huge difference. Most people who saw a well
mastered DVD for the first time had a "holy ****!" responce after being
subjected to the crap-o-vision known as VHS. People who have seen test
models of blue-ray or D-VHS have not had the same responce. The
improvement is much more subtle. It's better alright, but it's sure as
hell not gonna make Joe Sick Pack say "Oh mah gosh! I've gotta me one
dem HD-DVD playas!" With all these factors, I'd say HD-DVD is a long
ways away. So anyone who's bidding off their DVD collections is being a
complete idiot. I for one will keep buying regular DVD's(while being
very selective of course...) and have as much fun with them as I always
have.
--
BL

Black Locust