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flyfisher
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 133
Location: Hertford, UK
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 Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 8:32 am Post subject: Boost for BluRay? |
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Is this story the thin end of the wedge for the demise of HD DVD?
I seem to recall that the video rental market was decisive in VHS winning out over Betamax (in Europe anyway) all those years ago.
I doubt that things are so simple, but this is an interesting development and, with the current lack of dual-format players, if this trend continues I can see it making things difficult for HD DVD.
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rogs
Joined: 03 Apr 2007
Posts: 50
Location: Bournemouth UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 2:55 pm Post subject: |
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I'm not sure if either format will make a huge impact -- too much competition -- TV on demand, improved streaming, solid state, HDD recorders,TIVO, etc..
I think the good old DVD may hang on past its 'sell by' date, much like audio cassettes did, and (some would say) audio CDs have, and the rival formats like those listed above might just sneak in to make the newer generation of discs largely irrelevant.
But who knows? -- (I wish I did - I'd know where to move my pension fund !  ) |
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Colin
Joined: 13 Apr 2007
Posts: 117
Location: Milton Keynes, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 4:36 pm Post subject: |
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I think that's very true. I've been nailing my thoughts to the mast of solid-state for a couple of years now, and it's interesting to see that not only is DVD on the way out (already!) where camcorders are concerned, but high-capacity memory media is now coming on in leaps and bounds. So much so that "one leading consumer electronics maker" is already making plans to drop DVD as a camcorder format as early as next year and invest even more money in flash memory devices - such as the HD TV displays with SDHC card slots in the front of them and WiFi connectivity.
Colin
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flyfisher
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 133
Location: Hertford, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 7:39 pm Post subject: |
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| rogs wrote: | I'm not sure if either format will make a huge impact -- too much competition -- TV on demand, improved streaming, solid state, HDD recorders,TIVO, etc..
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Do these other formats support HD content though? (you can tell I'm completely underwhelmed by it all  ).
I read the article as suggesting blu-ray could become the format of choice for rental. As I've hardly ever rented tapes or DVDs, I'm not sure how big or important this market really is . . . although most towns seem to have a rental shop so I guess it must be fairly substantial. If it really is a big market then people will, according to the article, want to buy blu-ray players in preference to HD DVD.
For camcorders, I would bet on solid-state for the long term, even though I'm an HDD fan - but I'll admit HDDs only seems to win when the storage requirements are huge, which is typically not the case for a consumer camcorder.
Perhaps people will prefer to download their HD content to a big HDD player? It would certainly be much simpler than going to a rental shop.
Interesting times (but I'm still watching events from my vantage point of sitting on the fence  )
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Colin
Joined: 13 Apr 2007
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Location: Milton Keynes, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 7:59 pm Post subject: |
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| flyfisher wrote: | | Do these other formats support HD content though? |
Yes, of course. Solid state and HD go hand-in-hand and - together - are the holy grail of the video business (even professional). MPEG4/H.264 compression is the key along with high capacity solid-state media.
I'm currently writing and producing a set of H.264 video podcasts for "a major consumer technology brand" which will involve their distributing training and customer information support podcasts on SDHC card (in addition to downloads via iTunes, etc) to their retail network.
Playback a video sequence by slipping an SDHC card into a large-screen HD LCD and the results are impressive - and getting better all the time*.
Colin
* There's a song in there sometime. Me? I used to get mad at my school....
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Look out for some great digital video-making features in "Digital Video" (Issue 0232), "Computer Buyer" (Issue 195) and "Computer Shopper" (Issue 235) magazines. And others I can't remember!!! |
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flyfisher
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 133
Location: Hertford, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 10:16 pm Post subject: |
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Of course, of course. I must get used to ever-increasing resolution/quality NOT meaning bigger and bigger file sizes due to ever-increasing compression. If these two trends continue we'll end up with incredible resolution and tiny files; super-dooper-HD on a floppy disk anyone? 
As for the song, well it was 40 years ago a couple of weeks back - talk about technology changes. Just goes to show that technology and creativity are two completely different things - and that great content is timeless.
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Colin
Joined: 13 Apr 2007
Posts: 117
Location: Milton Keynes, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 10:53 pm Post subject: |
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| flyfisher wrote: | | Of course, of course. I must get used to ever-increasing resolution/quality NOT meaning bigger and bigger file sizes due to ever-increasing compression. If these two trends continue we'll end up with incredible resolution and tiny files; super-dooper-HD on a floppy disk anyone? |
Recently, when my parents were up visiting, I played some HD video on my Mac and asked my father where he thought it was playing from (given the plethora of hardware devices in my office-cum-den-cum-padded cell). He was absolutely staggered when I removed a 4GB SDHC card from a Panasonic camcorder and told him that the clips were stored on it.
Colin
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Look out for some great digital video-making features in "Digital Video" (Issue 0232), "Computer Buyer" (Issue 195) and "Computer Shopper" (Issue 235) magazines. And others I can't remember!!! |
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AndyB01
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 76
Location: Shropshire
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| Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 8:19 pm Post subject: |
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This is all very well but I still have to switch over to good old analogue when the weather is bad (or pressure is unusually high) as all my digital channels have artefacts when this happens despite having a high gain aerial etc.
Is someone telling the government this before it switches off the analogue signal? 
We have been putting off replacing our TV for at least three years and the way it is going I may never replace it - given it's stuffed full of talentless wanabees most of the time anyway. Except for Andrew Marr's recent History of Modern Britain which I thoroughly enjoyed
I find I am increasingly turned off by the latest technology - must be me age Guv...
I'm off for a glass of wine and a lie down - been a bad day.
Andy
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flyfisher
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 133
Location: Hertford, UK
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| Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 9:48 pm Post subject: |
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| AndyB01 wrote: | This is all very well but I still have to switch over to good old analogue when the weather is bad (or pressure is unusually high) as all my digital channels have artefacts when this happens despite having a high gain aerial etc.
Is someone telling the government this before it switches off the analogue signal?
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At least you can get digtal broadcasts. Last time I tried (last year sometime) I couldn't receive anything. OK, I don't have the best aerial, but it receives analogue transmissions OK (though not C5). And in case anyone thinks I'm in the middle of nowhere, I'm only about 30 miles north of London - hardly the back of beyond. I do point to the Sandy transmitter in Bedfordshire though, so maybe that's the problem? - but I've tried pointing towards London and the analogue reception is even worse, so I doubt it.
| AndyB01 wrote: |
We have been putting off replacing our TV for at least three years and the way it is going I may never replace it - given it's stuffed full of talentless wanabees most of the time anyway.
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I was doing the same until our old (15+ years?) Sony Trinitron died on us about 2 or 3 years ago. Plasmas/LCDs were still pretty pricey then and I didn't like the interpolated picture quality when viewing non-native content, so I bought a 36-inch CRT instead, which gives a better picture (I think) for less money. OK, it's a bit of a big beast, but we're fortunate this wasn't an issue. I'm assuming this will last another 10 years at least.
| AndyB01 wrote: |
I find I am increasingly turned off by the latest technology - must be me age Guv...
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I'm not exactly turned off by the latest technology but I do find myself becoming more critical about the actual point of it all. As far as broadcast television is concerned, I watch very little these days and therefore find it quite hard to get excited about spending a small fortune on the latest and greatest HD flat-screen.
Having just passed a significant birthday (so people tell me), perhaps it is an age thing 
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Colin
Joined: 13 Apr 2007
Posts: 117
Location: Milton Keynes, UK
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| Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 10:37 pm Post subject: |
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| flyfisher wrote: | | Having just passed a significant birthday (so people tell me), perhaps it is an age thing |
I really don't think it's age thing. I passed a certain "significant" birthday two years ago - and I've never been more fascinated by modern technology. At last I can do at virtually no cost what was impossible without £500,000 investment in the late 70s.
Do what exactly? The equivalent on three-machine VT editing in my spare bedroom for the price of a modern computer and sub-£100 software, that's what. Fantastic!!!!
I was talking, last week, to a former BBCTV VT editor who left Television Centre in the late 80s and who, thanks to today's consumer digital technology, is like a kid at Christmas every day.
Anyhow, Blu-ray or HD-DVD is very nearly yesterday's technology already. Bring on solid-state!
Colin
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Look out for some great digital video-making features in "Digital Video" (Issue 0232), "Computer Buyer" (Issue 195) and "Computer Shopper" (Issue 235) magazines. And others I can't remember!!! |
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flyfisher
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 133
Location: Hertford, UK
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| Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 10:54 am Post subject: |
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I entirely agree with your video editing example. That must be one of THE best examples of how technology has brought hitherto impossible capability (due to cost) into our homes.
But this is a 'PC thing', along with many other examples rather than a 'TV thing'. My previous post was really aimed at TV technology in the context of my "what's the point of it all" comment - i.e. why spend loads of dosh on new HD TV technology just to watch the same old rubbish?
OK, I know there is increasing crossover with the technologies, but if I was forced to choose between television or PCs then my tele would be first into the skip.
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AndyB01
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 76
Location: Shropshire
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| Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:02 pm Post subject: |
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| flyfisher wrote: | | but I do find myself becoming more critical about the actual point of it all. As far as broadcast television is concerned, I watch very little these days and therefore find it quite hard to get excited about spending a small fortune on the latest and greatest HD flat-screen. |
This is exactly what I meant - there is a law of diminishing returns here somewhere and I think we are close to the top of the curve where the level of investment doesn't justify the improvement.
OK - I can see that HD is better than non HD but does it really improve my viewing experience that much - compared to say 3D? Now an iMax film is an experience to behold - even if you do have to wear those dodgy glasses! 
| flyfisher wrote: | | OK, I know there is increasing crossover with the technologies, but if I was forced to choose between television or PCs then my tele would be first into the skip. |
Agreed - with a PC upgrade I get tangible improvements but I don't get that same sense with video and audio.
Audio is a good example - as the technology has advanced the actual sound quality of the recordings has arguably got worse. CD is not as good as good vinyl played through top quality equipment but it is masses better than MP3 which is heavily compressed. I now listen almost exclusively to my music via mp3 off the computer and it sounds fine - so if someone (like Apple) wants to charge me more for higher bit rate files that are supposed to be of a better quality, I probably won't pay because I can't distinguish sufficient added value to justify the cost.
Andy
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Arpe
Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 80
Location: New Zealand
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| Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 1:54 am Post subject: |
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So instead of hiring a DVD, HDDVD or Blu Ray disc, we will walk out of the store with an SD card! Cool! Or just download the movie (legally) from the "store", the movie will have a self-destruct built in.
I'm glad I just bought the cheapest DVD I could find at the time. Still holdin off on my Hard Disc recorder though, prices are nearly there, that would still find lots of use.
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