Format War - It's Nearing the End

Lots of news today, and people are predicting the end! Good for the consumers? Well, most of them.

Engadget Death Watch

Wal-Mart bows out

Toshiba "reconsidering the market"

It is good for the consumers that were waiting to make a decision. It is bad for people like me, but not in the way you would think. See, I have been supporting Blu-ray for a while now and since I picked a camp, I have been purchasing very cheap Blu-ray discs on Amazon ($15-20 each). Once Blu-ray is declared the winner, Sony camp will have no more reason to move Blu-ray discs at severly discounted rates. Oh well...

Just curious, any readers out there declare this enough evidence to hop on board? If not, go read some of the news articles about player makers that are siding with Blu-ray as well.


UPDATE 16-Feb-2008:
This just in!

Warner Bros. Makes A Decision, For Now

(January 4, 2008 – Burbank, CA) – In response to consumer demand, Warner Bros.
Entertainment will release its high-definition DVD titles exclusively in the
Blu-ray disc format beginning later this year, it was announced today by Barry
Meyer, Chairman & CEO, Warner Bros. and Kevin Tsujihara, President, Warner
Bros. Home Entertainment Group.

from deadlinehollywooddaily via engadgethd

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all! And my God bless you and yours during this season of remembrance.

So I am up on Christmas morning reading news, actually. This article about the Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD war sparked a thought as I disagree with their opinion.

Some powerful voices are telling buyers to remain on the sidelines.
Consumer Reports instructed readers not to purchase either HD DVD or Blu-ray players. Film critic Roger Ebert recently wrote that he's not buying until the format war is settled.

If people take a passive approach and wait for one side to win, no one will win. We, the consumers, will continue to be the losers until some sort of agreement is made, or dual media players become more prevalent. I say pick a side, and go with it! Pick the side that you prefer (depending on if you are an XBox 360, PS3 fan, Disney fan, etc).

For consumers, picking one high-def player means some favorites flicks won't be available in their chosen format.

While this is true, the flicks will continue to be available in regular, good old DVD. So, you will be able to purchase and watch in home any movie you desire. For example, I wanted to purchase the Bourne Trilogy, but as it is not available in Blu-ray (my choice), I will purchase the DVDs. And, as I have picked Blu-ray, I have access to great titles such as The Simpsons Movie, Pirates of the Caribbean, and all Disney filmes. I say we the consumers work to end the war and pick the side we think is better (Blu-ray!) and help ensure they win the "war".

Lucky for my side, Blu-ray has Disney, which is what I hope will help end this so called war.

PS3, Finally In the Game

Today I ordered my PS3 from Costco. Costco still has the fantastic repair/return plan built into their gaming systems, so this is the best way to go (only recently was the 90 day part added due to abuse). We have already changed our BlockBuster selections over to Blu-ray in anticipation. Also, I have my copy of Planet Earth in Blu-ray on its way.

Guitar Hero 3, here I come!

Let the Hacking Begin!

HD DVD was cracked, somewhat, a few weeks back.

This just came in yesterday. My favorite quote:

Oups, I did it again!

In less that 24 hours, without any Blu-Ray equipment, but with the help of Janvitos, I managed to decrypt and play a Blu-Ray media file using my known-plaintext attack...

Not perfect yet, but moving along nicely.