Movie Reviews - New DVD Technology - High Definition

Spartan · Post by **Spartan** » January 1st, 2008, 1:47 pm

I've always been a fan of using technology which contributes to telling a story in a high-quality way, yet appropriate to the task.

I upgraded to a new player at home that can watch discs in both HD DVD and BLURAY. So movies are a bit better than they used to be than with regular DVD. But this applies mainly to movies with either great visual effects, a lot of action with compelling sound (intense battle scenes), etc... Those that merely tell a good story should probably be purchased using regular DVD technology.

Great movies that I've enjoyed using this new technology are:

The Kingdom
House of Flying Daggers
Curse of the Golden Flowers
300
The Searchers - great cinematography

Those that were good movies, but were a waste of money to purchase on this technology:

The Pursuit of Happyness
The Dirty Dozen
Eastern Promises
A Mighty Heart

Other movies I've purchased in high definition but not yet watched:

The Host
Children of Men
Dune
Lost (Season 3)
Pixar Short Films

Of those, I expect Dune, Lost and Pixar Short Films to be good using HD technology. The other 2, I probably should have bought using regular DVD.

Has anyone else made the jump to High Definition, either HD DVD or BLURAY yet and which movies have you found to be great on it and which would you avoid using it?

FireFinder · Post by **FireFinder** » January 1st, 2008, 2:51 pm

I picked up a Toshiba HDA3 HD DVD player last month, got it through Amazon with 10 free movies.

BluRay is still too expensive to justify.

The player takes forever to start up, and it certainly makes all my normal DVD's look better.

Its hooked up via HDMI to our Mitsubishi 37" 1080p LCD.

I'm pretty happy with it, though I should connect it to the network and see if there are any firmware updates for it.

RTO · Post by **RTO** » January 1st, 2008, 6:06 pm

It depends on how many lines of resolution your TV has to even begin to see any difference with BluRay. Many of the HDTV's sold in America now still only have 720 lines of resolution. You need at least 1080 lines on your TV to even see the difference BluRay makes.

msg_dman · Post by **msg_dman** » January 1st, 2008, 6:16 pm

I watch BlueRay movies on the PS3. I watched Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and it looked great.

Earthpig · Post by **Earthpig** » January 1st, 2008, 6:34 pm

I would bet that Braveheart and Beowulf would both be good choices. Sounds pretty cool, Spartan.

RLTW
EP

Spartan · Post by **Spartan** » January 1st, 2008, 8:07 pm

RTO wrote:It depends on how many lines of resolution your TV has to even begin to see any difference with BluRay. Many of the HDTV's sold in America now still only have 720 lines of resolution. You need at least 1080 lines on your TV to even see the difference BluRay makes.

Uh, yes. Mine is 1080 lines. But it is not as simple as that. It is better to have 1080p instead of 1080i. The P is for 'Progressive Scan', the I is for 'Interlacing'. BluRay and HD DVD Discs will both output to 1080P, but will also play at 1080i, displaying 1080 lines of resolution and of course superior audio.Progressive Scan is a higher resolution format than is presented by a display using Interlacing.

My TV display is a 32" LCD that is 1080i. I have the same one upstairs and downstairs. Both of our 'standard' DVD players will both upscale regular DVDs to 1080p. I may end up getting a new display down the road for upstairs where I do most of my watching and this shit isn't cheap. My computer display is a 27.5" LCD - 1080P and my new Dell computer has a BLURAY player/recorder in it.

I would highly recommend that before you invest in high definition equipment that you read through THIS RESOURCE. If the link did not work, go to Amazon.com and key in High Def 101 into their search form. That way you'll be well informed before putting down your hard earned dollars.

I got my player because it plays both formats and I won't have to get two players if I want to see a movie Sony produces - they own the BLURAY format with a few other media partners - thus, they won't be releasing their films on HD DVD anytime soon. Also, other media firms are invested in the format of HD DVD and they won't release their films on BLURAY. I think there are a few players that are 'multi-format' where the firms have licensed both technologies and put them into a single player. Mine is made by LG and is the LG SUPER Blu.

Although the sound on BluRay and HD DVD is better, I think they may still not have standardized the High Definition Audio part to encoding/playback and I don't know what the standard is. Probably Dolby with 7.1 sound or something?? I think it is offered on XM and Sirius. That's all brand new cutting edge stuff and I've got to do some research of my own in that area. I've not invested in Home Theater yet and I probably won't for a bit yet.

RTO · Post by **RTO** » January 2nd, 2008, 5:39 pm

I remember back in the early-mid 90's a good friend of mine spent close to $15,000 on a complete Laser Disk format, large screen TV and every title available (a hundred or so) at the time. He invited me over one night to check it out. I believe it was "True Lies" with Aaaaanold we watched. It wasn't more than a year or two later that DVD's first come out and sent his entire system to the stone age.

Just copied this off the 'net about new (maybe not even here yet) technology: "Last year there was a minor hubbub about so-called laser television, but it was ultimately a no-show (though it may have been presented behind closed doors), with some people calling the whole technology an outright scam. But it does, however, seem to exist in some form now. Laser TV is a projector TV technology that uses lasers instead of incandescent lamps to create light. Proponents say it uses less power and allows for lighter sets than even LCDs offer, with "bulbs" that never burn out. True? We'll see soon; Mitsubishi has sent fancy invitations to a big unveiling of the technology at the show already."

centermass · Post by **centermass** » January 3rd, 2008, 12:29 am

FireFinder wrote:BluRay is still too expensive to justify.

Actually, compared to the technology when it first came out (1200-1500.00) it's come down......a lot.

And until the HD-DVD vs Blu-Ray war is over, LG is cleaning house right now with the only player compatible with both.

LG Computer Drive

LG Home DVD Player

As for Bestbuy, Circuit City, figure 799-899.00 Actually, Bestbuy is sold out.

Kind of reminds me back when Sony was pushing Beta-max vs everyone else with VHS.

At least with this technology, you don't have to wait and have more flexibility with whatever route you choose.

And you have to figure that just like records, cassettes, VCR's, bulky TV's, this will become the new standard, if it hasn't already.

cams · Post by **cams** » January 3rd, 2008, 4:25 pm

I've got the Blue Ray on my PS3, 37" LCD and the Bose 3-2-1 system, which by the way is great for movies, plays DVD's, CD's, AM/FM and I had it set up and rockin' in 20 minutes.

Normally they go for about 800.00 dollars new, but if you contact Bose you should be able to get a factory refurbished one for about 400.00. Well worth the price, I love it.

Apocalypto was the first Blue Ray I watched with the surround sound system too, fucking awesome. You can hear blow gun darts zipping by your head. All the sounds of the jungle, which every Ranger is familiar with, it was very cool.

Bravo57 · Post by **Bravo57** » January 7th, 2008, 10:30 am

This was a very informative thread. Thanks.

GEEK FIGHT!!!!!!!!!!

Bravo runs away covering his head with one arm, pointing and laughing with the other..

RTO · Post by **RTO** » January 7th, 2008, 9:37 pm

This just in from this years CES show here in 'Vegas. Gotta get me one of these '11ft. 150 inch TV's one day...

http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/63717

RTO · Post by **RTO** » February 18th, 2008, 9:15 pm

Finally, the war is over....

Toshiba Corp. will announce an exit from the HD DVD market on Tues.
According to the report, Toshiba will stop developing and manufacturing HD DVD players and recorders immediately and cease production of HD DVD products by Mar.

The claim coincides with an earlier report from NHK Japan Broadcasting Corp. that it will end HD DVD production and close DVD factories in the Aomori prefecture in Northern Japan.

Toshiba's exit follows a two-year war against Sony Corp.'s Blu-ray disc format to claim lucrative manufacturer royalties for the high-definition DVD market.

Story Continues....

BruteForce · Post by **BruteForce** » February 19th, 2008, 11:10 am

I'm glad I held out. I got close to picking up some Sony HD DVD equipment, but decided to wait to see if the HD DVD -v- BluRay culminate in a clear victor.. Toshiba just made that evident that BluRay wins.

Black 6 · Post by **Black 6** » February 19th, 2008, 12:22 pm

BruteForce wrote:I'm glad I held out. I got close to picking up some Sony HD DVD equipment, but decided to wait to see if the HD DVD -v- BluRay culminate in a clear victor.. Toshiba just made that evident that BluRay wins.

One of the main selling factors for the PS3 was the B-ray (for me). It just made sense.
Sure the HD is nice, but the 25gig single, 50gig double storage is what made me know it was going to last. Get yourself a 100 pack of BR DVDs, and you have up to 5000 gigs of information or 4.88 terabytes. This is verses the 15 gig single, 30 gig doulble capacity of the HD.

Every body knows bigger is better, and size does count.

BruteForce · Post by **BruteForce** » February 19th, 2008, 3:27 pm

Black 6 wrote:
BruteForce wrote:I'm glad I held out. I got close to picking up some Sony HD DVD equipment, but decided to wait to see if the HD DVD -v- BluRay culminate in a clear victor.. Toshiba just made that evident that BluRay wins.
One of the main selling factors for the PS3 was the B-ray (for me). It just made sense.
Sure the HD is nice, but the 25gig single, 50gig double storage is what made me know it was going to last. Get yourself a 100 pack of BR DVDs, and you have up to 5000 gigs of information or 4.88 terabytes. This is verses the 15 gig single, 30 gig doulble capacity of the HD.

Every body knows bigger is better, and size does count.

Precisely what I had in mind. For the $, the PS3 is the most cost effective Blu-Ray on the market.