| Editorial October 2007
Hi-Def: Choosing Sides
 The
running battle between HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc to be the single high-definition video
format has continued to rumble, producing some surprises along the way. Sony has claimed
victory because of the sales of its PlayStation 3 game consoles, which can play Blu-rays.
The huge electronics giant also crowed that it had the lead in disc sales for the first
quarter of 2007. Hardly surprising -- back then, almost no new HD DVD titles had been
released.
Then Toshiba began to reduce the prices of its players, and
offer free HD DVDs to entice consumers to buy them. Then Sony brought its studio
power into play, having already signed contracts with 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney, and
its own Sony and Columbia studios to release hi-def films exclusively on Blu-ray. Toshiba
had only Universal and the Weinstein Company. The best recent movies had been from
Blu-ray-exclusive studios as well as Paramount and DreamWorks, which released both Blu-ray
and HD DVD versions of almost all their titles. Ditto Warner Bros.
Then Paramount changed course. Recently, to almost
everyone’s surprise, they announced that they would release hi-def titles only on HD
DVD, and canceled all of their previously announced Blu-ray releases. This tawdry little
drama played with big bucks takes a new turn every day, so what I say here could be old
news by the time it’s posted. But as I write this it’s Toshiba, Universal,
Weinstein, and Paramount vs. Sony, 20th Century Fox, and Disney. (Yes, some other
manufacturers are making HD DVD and Blu-ray players, but I think they constitute a
negligible factor.)
The conflict is hard on consumers. What if cars were being
produced that would run either only on ethanol or only on gasoline? You’d buy
based on cost and the proximity to you of gasoline or ethanol stations. Assuming they were
about the same, the actual quality and efficiency of either system would be a small point.
That’s the way it is with HD DVD and Blu-ray. Executives keep shouting "Let
the consumer decide." But that consumer is not deciding whether HD DVD or
Blu-ray is the better system, he’s deciding whether he likes Universal and Paramount
movies better than those from Fox and Disney, and what having one system or another will
do to his wallet.
Toshiba and Sony may just sink the whole HD boat. Sony will
stubbornly hang on to its more expensive Blu-ray system. This will not only kill Blu-ray,
it will drag the HD DVD system, which is comparable in picture and sound, down with
it to a place where, at best, high-definition video will become a niche industry, while
downloads and hard drives steadily advance toward the next significant change.
The only thing to do for now is to keep both systems going.
Consumers have already spent too much money on players and discs. I like Warner’s
idea of a disc that would be Blu-ray on one side and HD DVD on the other. That
actually would give consumers a fair choice. But that won’t be coming till
next year at the soonest, and if it costs more than a regular HD DVD or Blu-ray, it
will be doomed from the start. Nor are universal players an answer, because they’ll
be too expensive for some time.
My advice is to wait. But if you have a new hi-def monitor
and just have to have something better than cable to feed it, get an HD DVD player.
Toshiba’s players are also great at playing standard-definition DVDs, which they
upsample to HD spec -- they look almost as good as hi-def. I haven’t seen a Blu-ray
player that can come close with SD DVDs. Also, Toshiba’s HD players are edging toward
half the cost of Blu-ray machines, and they’re solidly built. (Supposedly, cheaper
Chinese knockoffs are on the way, but who knows how well they’ll work?) Even if the
HD system does fail, you’ll still have a player that will show off your entire
video-on-disc collection to best advantage. That way, you can also say that you did have a
choice based on evaluating the systems.
So buy a good HD DVD player and be patient. Hollywood
is finally realizing that HD DVD is the best high-definition bang for the buck. In my
opinion, and for whatever reason they did it, Paramount has made a good move.
...Rad Bennett
radb@hometheatersound.com |
