High Definition DVD Wars is Over - Blu-ray is Victorious

The battle between Blu-Ray and HD DVD at first seemed to be a repeat of the old videotape format wars between VHS and Betmax (and Video2000, which people usually forget about). However, the battle was all over much sooner than anticipated - Blu-Ray has won the final battle, and the war of high-def format. Sony is the backer of Blu-Ray, and Toshiba backed HD DVD. However, to mark its defeat, Toshiba has stopped producing HD DVD players in February 2008, and it is likely that all other manufacturers will follow suit quickly, so that they can start developing Blu-Ray machines. Toshiba has suffered as a result of this already, as it has had to lower its full-year profit forecast by 30%. Toshiba has also suffered a reduction in demand for its Nand memory chips, which are used in digital cameras, mobile phones and portable music players. Maybe the move to hard drive format is hitting Toshiba hard. So, Blu-Ray has won the format wars. Already there are PC Blu-Ray players on the market for as little as GBP115.00, or GBP226.00 for home cinema Blu-Ray players, such as the Sony BDP-S300 - Blu-Ray DVD Player. This low-end Blu-Ray players allows you to enter the world of high-definition. This DVD player reads Blu-Ray discs and offers a 1080p Upscaling function via its HDMi connection, so you can enjoy sensational images that are unbelievably realistic. The HDMi port also delivers uncompressed 7.1 sound. The BDP-S300 player is equipped with x.v. Colour technology to improve colour quality as well as a Bravia Theatre Sync processor for perfect sound and image restitution on your HD ready or Full HD TV. The BDP-S300 also includes Dolby Digital and DTS audio decoders, ushering you into a new era of audiovisual entertainment! So, time to sell those DVD's on eBay while there is still a market, and start building your Blu-Ray Collection.

Blu-ray camcorders now available from Hitachi

Hitachi has announced the arrival of the world's first Blu-ray camcorders, offering 1920x1080-pixel HD recording onto miniature BD-R (recordable Blu-ray) discs. And in a parallel move, recording media companies Imation and Verbatim heralded the arrival of the blank discs the camcorders will use. Imation and Verbatim have announced the availabiility of blank 8cm Blu-ray discs. The discs have a capacity of 7.5GB, and can store an hour of 1920x1080i video, or two hours of 1440x1080i. Two versions are available: BD-R is a one-shot recording medium, while BD-RE is erasable and rewritable. Source: whathifi.com If you cannot decide which format to go for, and you like to record home cinema as well as watch films, then maybe Blu-ray is the best option with the availability of Blu-ray camcorders. Sony HDR-SR5E 40GB High Definition Camcorder Buy new: £574.98 Usually dispatched within 24 hours Sony HDR-SR7E 60GB High Definition Camcorder Buy new: £759.99 Usually dispatched within 24 hours

Blu-ray and HD DVD war gets nasty

Home Cinema News reports on the ongoing battle between blu-ray and HD DVD: Last week saw the HD DVD group proudly announcing that sales of HD DVD hardware have outstripped sales of Blu-ray hardware by three-to-one in Europe's main markets so far this year. But surprise surprise, the Blu-ray camp isn't prepared to take that lying down. The Blu-ray Disc Association European Promotions Committee has reacted by saying that the HD DVD camp's claims are 'misleading and misrepresentative of the real and clear market trends in Europe'. Ouch. For while HD DVD does indeed have the sales advantage in the standalone player market for what the Blu-ray camp describe slightly amusingly as 'several reasons', if you look at the HD market as a whole things aren't so simple. In other words, in the PC HD market, Blu-ray is apparently outselling HD DVD by two to one from a total sales figure of 24000 units so far in 2007. Plus the HD DVD claims didn't include the Blu-ray sporting PS3, and when you factor that into the equation, the Blu-ray camp reckons its format actually accounts for almost 96 per cent of all next generation hardware sales. Source: Homecinemachoice Samsung BD-P1000 - Blu Ray 1080P DVD Player £394.95 Toshiba HD-E1 HD DVD High Definition DVD Pl... £199.00 LiteOn HD-A760GX 250GB Hard Drive, Dual For... Time will tell who comes out on top, but if we hark back the the Betamax v's VHS v's Video2000 wars, experience tells us that this battle could well go on for some time. Best not to wait for the victor if you want hi-def video, just pick one of the two. Toss a coin if need be. Check which films are available on each format, see which players are by preferred brands etc. It is unlikely that either Blu-ray or HD DVD will fail in the immediate future, so risk is minimal in the short to medium term (i.e. over the next 5 years). So dive in, and go Hi-Def today!

HDTV Tuner-Receiver | Get HDTV Broadcasts

An Hdtv tuner-receiver will be necessary to get local Hdtv broadcasts on your Hdtv if it does not have a built in ATSC tuner or you don't already have HD cable or satellite service. Without the ATSC tuner your tv is "Hdtv ready", meaning it is capable of showing high defintion images on the screen when connected to a digital tuner and source. However, all is not lost. Depending on your current configuration their are many tuner/receiver choices available. First, lets get this clear a tuner and receiver are the same thing, they are sometimes also called a decoder. Just more things Hdtv to cause confusion. The tuner is needed to receive digital signals for all digital sets and decode then transmit digital images and audio to your Hdtv. Receiver is most commonly used when referring to a satellite or cable set top box. Hdtv is the highest form of digital tv. There is also Enhanced Digital tv and about 16 other digital transmission protocals mandated by the FCC. HDTV's that don't have a built in (ATSC) tuner require a digital cable or satellite receiver to recieve HD channels and may still require the use of an Hdtv antenna to receive local Hdtv broadcasts over-the-air. An Hd ready tv is sometimes called Hd capable tv or Hd monitor. These sets when properly outfitted with a Hdtv tuner-receiver and Hdtv antenna will allow you to get local Hdtv broadcasts with startling clear images on your television. As prices continue to fall you may find a Hdtv tuner-receiver for as low as $100.00 depending on the requirements of your viewing. Your present analog hardware such as video games, your DVD, camcorders etc. will work with Hdtv sets in their current video formats not high definition. This is called being backward compatible. Be sure that the Hdtv inputs match the outputs of the Hdtv tuner-receiver you're choosing. Preferably the outputs of the tuner should be digital cable connection to the tv. The older DVI-D and HDMI are the standards most often used and they're compatible and can be used together with a simple small adapter. To prevent future headaches check to ensure that your present or future entertainment setup will be a accomadated by the new tuner-receiver. Account for your audio, Dvd player, games and any other equipment that you may wish to view on your Hdtv through the hdtv tuner-receiver. This will require some analog component outputs as well as the digital. Ironically there is a FCC requirement that "By March 2007, all TVs (and other devices that are designed to receive broadcast television signals) are required to have digital tuners built in." and "Analog TVs receiving over-the-air programming will still work after that date, but owners of these TVs will need to buy converter boxes to change digital broadcasts into analog format." You can get more information on the pending transition to digital tv from the FCC at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/digitaltv.html. So when buying your Hdtv tuner-receiver make sure to check compatability for your Hdtv and your entertainment needs. Check with your cable or satellite provider to determine what Hdtv receiver-tuner is compatible for receiving Hd broadcasts from them. With just a little research, buying your new Hdtv tuner-receiver you can easily get Hdtv and local Hdtv broadcasts and and start enjoying the crystal clear pictures and cd quality audio that Hdtv provides. About the Author Get More HDTV information and articles on Hdtv at HDTV Reviews go to http://www.hdtv.totalinfoguide.com

High Definition DVD

Definition of high definition DVD High definition DVD is like an evolution in DVD format rather then just an outright revolution. If we compare the audio and video quality the difference just like what was in DVD and VHS Tapes. Now day’s television sets are compatible to display high definition pictures quality. If talk more precisely high definition DVD offers about 1080 lines of video resolution then compare to 576 or 480 lines offered by other DVD. Need of High Definition DVD The answer is very similar to the reason for choosing DVD rather then VHS Tapes. Not only high quality audio and video, the increased capacity of High definition DVD is the major advantage over DVD. You can store one full movie in one single disc rather than using multiple disks as earlier. However using High definition DVD no where means that your existing DVD media gone obsolete. Almost all the latest high definition DVD is fully compatible to the older DVD media. In fact most of latest High Definition DVD formats also capable of increasing the resolution of old DVD to upwards which means you can still enjoys your old collection in latest High definition DVD format. This feature will sooner or later be found in almost all-High definition DVD players. This up scaling not equals to real high definition movies but this can provide you high resolution without loss of quality. Various format of High Definition DVD Two major competing formats are HD DVD and other is Blu ray disk or simply BD. Other formats are also there but all these are based in Asia these includes EVD, FVD etc. Playing High Definition DVD on Computer As of now there is no fully compatible system is available to play real high definition DVD. To display highest audio/video resolutions there is requirement of high-speed processor and dedicated audio decoding hardware. Cyberlink the maker of PowerDVD has taken some initiatives by demonstrating playing some HD DVD with PowerDVD on Intel Pentium D processor in September 2005. Cyberlink is also demonstrated paying of Blu Ray disks with PowerDVD. The latest versions of PowerDVD deluxe support various High definition DVD formats including H264 etc. Other players in market are makers of winDVD, another High definition DVD player software. Blu-ray Vs HD DVD format of High Definition DVD Blu ray is one of two most popular high definition DVD format. It uses blue-violet laser for reading and writing data that is why is called Blu ray or BD. On the other hand HD DVD is another most popular High definition DVD format. HD DVD is not synonymous to High Definition DVD but it’s just a format of High definition DVD. HD DVD and Blu Ray both comes in three different formats one is readable only called ROM second is Writable and third is Rewritable. About the Author: Hyun Kim is a freelance writer who writes about home audio and home theater related topics. He loves to visit Stereo|411 to discuss Home Audio topics and he loves to talk about Turntables. Article Source: www.iSnare.com