And the winner is???
Sunday, Jul 1, 2007
Well here it is, July of 2007, and the two high definition disc camps are still slapping at each other like seven-year-old boys on a playground. As a confessed early adopter and all around technophile the HD content game is something I’d really like to be a part of, still even I have yet to get my feet wet. Logic would tell me to adopt Blu-Ray with its larger catalog of releases, but there are many great titles which so far remain HD-DVD exclusives (Batman Begins, Children of Men, and King Kong to name a few).
The problems with video quality that seemed so prevalent in Blu-Ray’s early days are all but gone, but the format has yet to prove itself superior to HD-DVD, as many of its releases lack the innovations in menu design and audio formats seen in the competition. Though I’m sure quality will continue to improve in the Blu-Ray camp, now doesn’t seem the time to buy into one format exclusively.
Consumer electronics manufacturer LG tried to make the format war meaningless with the release of its universal player, the BH1000 Super Blu Player. Sadly, this first generation product seemed rushed to market with poor integration of the HD-DVD standard. Perhaps future releases from LG or Samsung’s oft-rumored BD-UP5000 will give us a multi-disc player we can actually be happy with, but I’m afraid I’m not holding my breath.
So what’s a videophile to do? Within a few months, I may finally break down and purchase a PS3 (despite the lack of games available for the system). $600 seems like an acceptable price for what is consistently labeled the best Blu-Ray player on the market. Still, I want more. I want HD disc playback in my home. I want to be able to enjoy my 720p rear projector to its fullest. I want consumers like myself to be able to walk into a store and buy a product with confidence. As of right now, these wishes seem a long way off. It’s like SACD vs. DVD-A all over again, and that just makes me sad... Till Next Time--