Pretty optimistic article about Blu-ray's chances on being a true successor to DVD.

http://www.homemediamagazine.com/news/html/breaking_article.cfm?sec_id=2&&article_ID=12401

Basically, it looks at Blu-ray to DVD sales ratios on newly released titles and finds that since the official "end of the war" they've gone up to around 9-12% of total sales. Not bad considering there aren't more than 5 million Blu-ray players in US homes, most of them being PS3s. Compare that to 130+ million DVD players (not counting the PS2 or PC DVD-ROM drives) and it's not in too bad a place right now. In fact it's probably ahead of the game. I just wish they would hurry up with stuff like LOTR.

[Edited on March 28, 2008 at 2:01 PM. Reason : :]

3/28/2008 1:57:19 PM

Quote :

"as annoying as the BT remote is. I can't justify 55 dollars to use a Universal Remote."

especially when Nyko makes a remote that will give you access to ALL OF THE SAME FEATURES (minus on/off) for $15. On your universal remote.

3/28/2008 2:26:31 PM

Personally I would prefer if all remotes went bluetooth... Then I could hide everything behind cabinet doors (where fans would also be muffled)

3/29/2008 11:52:53 AM

psshhhh blue ray is still too small MGS4 is can't fit on 1, 50Gb duel layered one. we need violet ray.

3/29/2008 12:59:32 PM

edit



[Edited on March 29, 2008 at 2:35 PM. Reason : ... Jesus. I think ^ is JamesBond from PartyEastCarolina. If it is, god help TWW]

3/29/2008 2:32:45 PM

so Blu-ray won, I'm stoked.

but where the fuck are the releases?

the last two weeks have been absolute ass!

where's "Sweeney Todd" on Blu-ray?

it's bullshit.

4/1/2008 11:20:42 AM

Sweeny Todd is in movie hell where all bad movies belong.

4/1/2008 11:29:25 AM

doesn't look like theres gonna be a price drop on the ps3 anytime soon...anyone heard otherwise?

4/8/2008 9:47:32 AM

There was an article a few days ago where Sony's US head talked about how the value of the yen vs. the dollar is hurting their bottom line. Basically, don't expect a state side price cut until the holiday season at the earliest. In fact, announced prices on unreleased stand-alone Blu-ray players have gone up because of this.

Your best bet is the MGS4 bundle coming out on June 12th, which will be an 80GB PS3 (the one that plays PS2 games), Dual Shock 3, and MGS4 for $499.99. There have also been rumors of a GTAIV bundle, but the chances of that hitting in the US are pretty low. Obviously, neither of those would be cheaper than the current 40GB SKU.

4/8/2008 10:14:46 AM

well assuming i can't wait until June 12th, should I just get the $400 one or are there any current bundles that are worth it? any hardware difference between the $400 40GB model and the 80GB model..besides the ability to play PS2 games and the larger hard drive?

4/8/2008 10:21:34 AM

The 80GB has SACD support, but who cares about that. The 40GB also runs cooler, quieter, and uses less power. I'd wait a week or so at least to make sure a GTAIV bundle doesn't materialize, but short of that, go ahead and get the 40GB. The only thing to keep in mind is that it still has the regular old Sixaxis in the box, so if you want a rumble, you'll have to shell out an additional $54.99 for a Dual Shock 3.

4/8/2008 10:34:26 AM

New releases for April 8, 2008
* The 6th Day
* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
* Sharkwater
* Space Ace
* Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
* The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
* Yukikaze

4/8/2008 11:04:29 AM

Blockbusters

4/8/2008 12:31:20 PM

Quote :

"Future firmware updates will include 1080 deinterlacing and DTS-HD MA, much to the joy of serious home theater buffs."

http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2008/04/08/interview-with-sce-engineers-reveal-bd-live-firmware-plans/

4/9/2008 2:11:36 AM

New Releases for April 15, 2008
* Alien vs. Predator: Requiem
* Alien vs. Predator/Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (Two-Pack)
* Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
* Commando
* Juno
* Mariah Carey: The Adventures of Mimi
* A Passage to India
* Predator

4/15/2008 12:33:41 PM

in other news:

the PS3 achieved "definitive best Blu-Ray player" status earlier today with the addition of DTS-MA support.

lack of IR port be damned.

4/15/2008 2:40:52 PM

New Releases for April 22, 2008
* National Geographic: Six Degrees Could Change the World
* One Missed Call
* The Orphanage
* Sublime

4/22/2008 11:19:38 AM

New Releases for April 29, 2008
* 27 Dresses
* First Knight
* The Golden Compass
* Motley Crue: Carnival of Sins
* Mozart: Die Zauberflote
* Ocean's Eleven
* Ocean's Twelve

4/29/2008 11:29:46 AM

I went to pick up GTA IV last night @midnight (walmart), and there was a guy there waiting for midnight so he could buy "27 dresses". No lie.

4/29/2008 12:19:38 PM

hahaha

don't patronize me for my cinematic pleasures

4/29/2008 4:48:17 PM

May 20th:
* Aeon Flux
* Babel
* Bee Movie
* Black Snake Moan
* Blades of Glory
* Coming to America
* Disturbia
* Dreamgirls
* Face/Off: Special Collector's Edition
* Four Brothers
* The Italian Job
* Next
* Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
* Sleepy Hollow
* Trading Places
* The Untouchables: Special Collector's Edition
* The Warriors: Ultimate Director's Cut
* U2: Rattle and Hum
* We Were Soldiers
* World Trade Center

June 3rd:
* Cloverfield
* There Will Be Blood

June 24th:
* The Spiderwick Chronicles

http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1253

4/30/2008 3:35:54 PM

Thank god, I was afraid Paramount had completely dropped the ball on Cloverfield.

4/30/2008 3:37:45 PM

anyone get blue-rays from blockbuster or netflix? whats your experience with that? i signed up for the free trial of the 9.99 2 dvds at a time with 3 in-store exchanges per month plan with BB. we'll see how it goes....

4/30/2008 4:26:42 PM

I get 'em from Netflix.

Seems to have a longer wait time for select titles. But other than that, what do you want to know?

[Edited on April 30, 2008 at 4:34 PM. Reason : ]

4/30/2008 4:32:56 PM

I've been getting both HD DVD and blu ray discs for a while...but now its just blu ray (netflix)

its awesome. I can get movies i would never buy or have seen before but want to see it in high def.

[Edited on April 30, 2008 at 4:34 PM. Reason : .]

4/30/2008 4:33:45 PM

^^ well i was curious about wait times the most i guess, and maybe selection. i remember when i did regular movies netflix had shorter wait/turnaround/transit times, but BB had the in store exchanges which helped off set that. just curious is the same is true for blu-ray or not

4/30/2008 4:55:57 PM

Well, I had the newest Harry Potter flick in my Netflix queue for about a month before it was sent.

Now I haven't watched it, and it's been more than a month

4/30/2008 5:16:04 PM

There can be few days longer wait time for blu-rays with blockbuster if its popular, but the same can be said for certain DVDs. Turnaround times are usually 3, maybe 4 days. They have a very limited selection in-store (thought they are slowly improving) and its limited online as well. The exchange deal is nice if you get caught without any new movies. DVDs can be exchanged for blu-rays for no extra cost AFAIK.

4/30/2008 5:34:33 PM

Blu-ray Disc Hardware Not Picking Up Steam
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=11651

i said this from the beginning that cost was the biggest factor of adoption.

good thing the movie studios knew this and thought blu-ray disc sales was a great indicator of what consumer's want.[/sarcasm]

well here we are, hardware sales are dismal, and the cost still high, and still a large portion of blu-ray sales still PS3 owners.

congratulations movie studios, you're officially dumb asses

Quote :

"ABI Research estimates that PS3s make up more than 85 percent of Blu-ray players in use this year and that the number of stand-alone players and Blu-ray-equipped PCs won't surpass Sony’s console base until 2013."

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 1:55 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 1:51:49 AM

yeah...and those dumbasses who were making HDTV's back in 1998 are probably really pissed that their technology didn't really start catching on until the mid 2000's

or how about the morons that started making CD's in 1982?

in case you didn't get the tone...

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 2:20 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 2:08:52 AM

http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/02/xbox-360-blu-ray-console-by-september/

Quote :

"For all of Microsoft's denial, the Xbox 360 Blu-ray console rumors just will not die. In fact, they are getting more and more specific. The Chinese language Economic Daily News is reporting that Pegatron, an OEM subsidiary of ASUS, has won the order from Microsoft to assemble the Xbox 360 with Blu-ray Disc ROM drive -- shipments are expected to being in Q3 of this year. Now come on Microsoft, just come clean on the matter, we won't tell anyone."

5/2/2008 4:03:46 AM

^^^it's not that it won't catch on, it's quite clear the choice has already been made FOR US, so we don't have an option anymore if we ever want to make the move to Hi-Def movies.

i'm rolling my eyes at the REASONS why they chose to end the format war early... it's obvious that blu-ray wasn't the clear winner they thought it was.

but with aggressive marketing and lower prices, HDDVD's standalone units were at least getting off the shelves (vs. the 85% PS3 blu-ray share)

i don't want to start another discussion on this because it's dead. but i like to point out that the movie industry exec's decision was an incorrect, ill-informed one, and their assumptions were wrong.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 10:00 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 9:57:46 AM

What are you talking about, dude? The Blu-ray pricedrops have been numerous, showing the BDA's commitment to the consumer and their desire to move competitively price-wise with normal DVDs.

5/2/2008 10:23:03 AM

^Blu-ray disc price drops don't do much if people aren't buying the hardware to play 'em

i guess it's too much to ask people to read articles these days...

Quote :

"Most expected that the surrender of HD DVD would trigger a surge for Blu-ray Disc, but instead, sales of Blu-ray Disc hardware fell 40 percent from January to February, NPD Group reported. The lull in sales didn’t improve much at all, rising only 2 percent from February to March. NPD declined to release specific sales numbers “for fear that it would be easy to identify individual retailers,” according to a New York Times blog. Actual figures are to be released later this year. Cost is likely a top factor in the slow adoption of Blu-ray Disc, as even the cheapest player is hundreds more than an upscaling DVD machine. "

you're right, they're SELLING LIKE HOTCAKES!!!!

Quote :

"“When we surveyed consumers late last year, an overwhelming number of them said they weren't investing in a new next-generation player because their old DVD player worked well and next-generation players were too expensive,” said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at NPD. “It's clear from retail sales that those consumer sentiments are still holding true.”"

i got no qualm with blu-ray, i DO have a problem with the cost of their players. bring down the price of BOTH HARDWARE & DISCS, and people will buy/adopt blu-ray.... it's that simple... they've done one, now they have to do the other

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 10:51 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 10:46:51 AM

It was sarcasm, homes.

Complete and utter sarcasm. Nothing could have been further from the truth.

5/2/2008 10:51:13 AM

ok

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 10:53 AM. Reason : /]

5/2/2008 10:53:04 AM

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/articles/cemadvdsales.html

Hmmmm, so it appears Blu-ray is following the exact same sales trends as DVD. Look at the 1998-1999 numbers, rising in the fall, peaking during the holidays, and dropping drastically after ward. That's the way it always works.

Also, Divx vs. DVD didn't offically end until June 1999, and the sales didn't spike until, again, the holidays. Is that article seriously trying to make a point about Blu-ray sales falling after the holidays? And you people ate it right it up? Amazing.

Between, what I just mentioned, the falling economy, and the fact that the PS3 is still the most fully featured Blu-ray on the market for the best price, the conclusions that article (and Prospero) have come to are absolutely ridiculous.

How can you say the studios made the wrong "assumption" when their descision was based on cold hard numbers. Despite the price difference, Blu-ray stand-alones outsold their HD DVD counterparts during the holidays last year, and the disc sales were ridiculously skewed in Blu-ray's favor throughout the year. What assumption?

Enough with the sour grapes, that shit got old 3 months ago.

5/2/2008 10:53:06 AM

i'm not sour, i'm being realistic.

but -40% drop in hardware sales is not what you just call a "calm" after a holiday... even February to March showed a 2% increase in sales. that's NOTHING!

Quote :

"Blu-ray sales falling after the holidays? And you people ate it right it up? Amazing."

and you think that the consumer market is represented by PS3 owners... amazing.

Quote :

"What assumption?"

the assumption that by making it a one-format war, that people would just JUMP on the HD bandwagon.

i don't care who won the format war i am merely pointing out the obvious that until the prices come down, people aren't going to buy this.... i've said that from the very beginning. but as long as DVD's remain the bread & butter for movie studios, they aren't going to lower the prices on Blu-ray... only when consumers start demanding it... i mean the same thing happened with VHS to DVD

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 11:05 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 10:57:31 AM

That's all well and good but it's pretty ridiculous to say that Blu-ray player sales are somehow not meeting expectations when they are following the exact same sales trends DVD player sales did early in it's adoption.

A year and a half into it's release, there were only a little over 1 million DVD players sold, there are already well over 5 million Blu-ray players in people's homes (counting the PS3 of course).

In fact, it is actually well ahead of the curve when PS3 sales are accounted for, if you remember the PS2 was not released until 2000, and did not affect early DVD players sales as the PS3 has affected Blu-ray player sales.

Also, there was a spike in sales that occurred in January after the Warner announcement, which basically marked the end of the format war. Everyone who was waiting for the end of the war to buy a player did it then. Sales then fell back to their seasonal averages afterwards.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 11:15 AM. Reason : :]

5/2/2008 11:09:13 AM

yea... i'm sure it will pick up.... eventually.

the other thing i think holding people up is the first-cost expense when it comes to HD. there's the HDTV, then there's the HD receiver so you can get HD audio, then the HD blu-ray player, i mean there's a LOT more cost involved than there was with the DVD player.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 11:16 AM. Reason : .]

5/2/2008 11:15:36 AM

Quote :

"While sales of Blu-ray Disc players may be stagnant, PlayStation 3 consoles are moving at a decent rate."

umm ... who gives a fuck about standalone players?

anyone who asks my opinion, I tell them to buy a PS3 -- whether they're a a gamer or not.

It's the only full-featured Blu-ray disc player currently on the market. It's the only smart choice.

5/2/2008 11:25:35 AM

Quote :

"It's the only smart choice."

i think you're confused...just because the options are an overly-expensive and largely useless gaming console and craptastic standalone alternatives doesn't mean that the ps3 is the "smart" choice...when given those options, it's the ONLY choice...because, let's be honest - the vast majority of the people buying HD setups (HDTVs, HD audio receivers, and HD video units) are the ones who MUST have the latest and greatest RIGHT NOW, and they by no means represent the AVERAGE consumer, or even a statistically significant portion of all consumers

5/2/2008 11:51:53 AM

Quote :

"shipments are expected to being in Q3 of this year"

thats not fast enough microsoft

you better get that shit out before the MGS4 bundle comes or i'm pickin up the PS3

5/2/2008 1:42:32 PM

Quote :

"overly-expensive and largely useless gaming console "

fuck being a gaming console, that's not even the topic at hand.

the PS3 is the cheapest and best Blu-ray player currently on the market.

hands down!

5/2/2008 8:15:38 PM

nvm...

[Edited on May 5, 2008 at 10:05 PM. Reason : already posted.]

5/5/2008 10:05:22 PM

^^^^

Quote :

"because, let's be honest - the vast majority of the people buying HD setups (HDTVs, HD audio receivers, and HD video units) are the ones who MUST have the latest and greatest RIGHT NOW, and they by no means represent the AVERAGE consumer, or even a statistically significant portion of all consumers"

wait, what?

I thought over 35% of american households had HDTV's, and blueray sales are 20% of all discs sold, and sony wants that number to go up to 50% by the end of the year. I would say these numbers are "a statistically significant portion of all consumers". How are they not?

5/5/2008 10:12:06 PM

Quote :

"and blueray sales are 20% of all discs sold"

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that's blatantly wrong, mainly based on this from a little over a month ago:

http://www.homemediamagazine.com/news/html/breaking_article.cfm?sec_id=2&article_ID=12401

5/5/2008 10:24:11 PM

^just like you i was simply citing something i read.

http://www.electronista.com/print/52402.

Quote :

"Blu-ray's current movie disc market share is 20%, with the remaining 80% still belonging to traditional DVD. "

Whether it's wrong or not has really nothing to do with my point. My point was that quagmire02 said HD customers weren't even a "statistically significant portion of all consumers". I was simply pointing out that they are a significant portion of all consumers.

5/5/2008 11:04:32 PM

Quote :

". My point was that quagmire02 said HD customers weren't even a "statistically significant portion of all consumers". I was simply pointing out that they are a significant portion of all consumers."

reading comprehension FTL, apparently...i specifically said that those purchasing HD setups (and then identified that as HDTVs, HD audio, and HD video) did not represent the average consumer, and that because of that, they aren't even statistically significant...please focus on the fact that i am talking about FULL HD setups, as that, really is the only true HD experience...getting standard cable on a wal-mart LCD special does not qualify

okay, so 35% of the population has HDTVs...how many of them are 1080p? how many of THOSE have HD video of either HD-DVD or BR? and then, how many of THOSE have true HD audio setups? yes, they're statistically insignificant

5/5/2008 11:25:37 PM

^I guess, but for example that same survey that said 35% of american households had HDTV's said that only a little over half were actually getting an HD signal or taking advantage of HD. But still you don't think 15-20% is "statistically significant"?

Statistically significant:

Quote :

""A statistically significant difference" simply means there is statistical evidence that there is a difference."

Statistically significant simply means there's a big enough difference to see and observe. I would say 15-20% (those with HDTVs AND HD signals) is "statistically significant". I guess i just didn't think you used that word correctly. Seeing as 15%-20% IS very statistically significant.

5/6/2008 12:33:33 AM