Blu-ray or HD DVD

[geekerati]

So, who do you think will win out in this new technology? Any Comments

HD DVD camp:

• Microsoft
  Toshiba
  Sanyo
  NEC
  HBO
  New Line Cinema
  Paramount Home Entertainment
  Universal Studios Home Entertainment
  Warner Home Video
  Intel

Blu-ray camp:

• Dell
  Panasonic
  Philips
  Samsung
  Sharp
  Pioneer
  LG Electronics
  Apple
  Electronic Arts
  Twentieth Century Fox
  Vivendi Universal
  Walt Disney
  Hewlett-Packard
  *Warner Bros

Will Sony and it PS3 decide this battle for consumers?

Here
is a nice article to help explain their differences and similarities. Enjoy

*Edited

[Aírmanareiks Þiudareiks]

Sony usually doesn't win at hardware battles, but I bet they will win this race. My money is on their Blu-Ray technology.

[kesara]

I think Sony will win this race.
What I have found out is Blue Ray is more technologically advanced than HD DVD.
For example, they have support for multi-layer disks which will results 200GB
BTW, Paramount is not totally on HD DVD camp, right

[wallpad]

How long before we know the answer to this question? I'd like to wait until then before spending any money on anything.

Paul

[escante]

Well I think blueray is going to win the battle here lets be real dvd is old and what ever has dvd on it its going to be boring so hd dvd is boring and people want something new and blueray is the answer. And the playstation 3 is going to be a great help for blueray to be number 1 also from what I have seen in some forums playstation 3 is going to support Apple computers so that is really cool. And I think Apple, Sony, Samsung, and Panasonic are going to be the champ on blueray.

[andrew247]

Blu-ray because it sounds better, newer and more unique...also it has a cooler name

[kcmandava]

I'm with the Blu-ray camp.

[zima]

Who cares...once it becomes affordable, we will either have a winner and/or dualformat drives...

[geekerati]

Microsoft broke stance and decided to formally back HD DVD in September of this year, citing a number of reasons. Now the EE Times is reporting that the company may attempt to leverage its OS dominance to push HD DVD penetration in the PC market.

Several industry sources last week told EE Times that Microsoft is muscling into the optical-disk fray by leveraging its operating-system clout to bundle HD-DVD within Vista, the company's next-generation OS. There is also talk that the software giant may be planning to offer cash incentives — in the form "coupons" — to system vendors or retailers if they agree to support HD-DVD. Such coupons would provide "credits" or "memos" for each PC that is sold with HD-DVD inside.

Microsoft has declined comment, and the EE Times does not offer any considerable proof of their claims. They do, however, suggest that HP's decision to ask the Blu-ray Disc Association for more HD DVD-like features was the result of Microsoft "getting through" to the company, whatever that may mean. Maureen Weber, general manager of HP's Personal Storage Business, said that HP came to see Microsoft's side of things after a few meetings. According to Weber, the PC industry will be interested for one simple reason: cost.

"It's about money and the cost to the PC industry." Whereas the overall Blu-ray royalty structure adds up to $30 per PC drive, she said, everything a PC vendor needs to support HD-DVD "comes free, shipped and integrated with Vista — Microsoft Corp.'s next-generation operating system."

The question of motives is a never-ending one, and it has been rehashed more than once on Ars. The most common theory is that Microsoft is ultimately doing anything in its power to put the hurt on Sony's PlayStation 3, which will come equipped with a Blu-ray drive. The theory says that Microsoft is worried that the PS3 will dominate gaming once again, partially on account of the device's potential dual-role in the household: gaming console and Blu-ray player.

It goes without saying that Microsoft has an interest in seeing the PS3 reined in, but I don't believe that this explains the entire picture. Indeed, as I wrote back in September, there are other factors at play here (all of which I cannot address here), and the EE Times seems to have caught on. Microsoft's Media Center ambitions are huge, and in my opinion, they're bigger than those surrounding the Xbox 360. Make no mistake about it: the next version of Windows will be billed as an entertainment OS, and the Xbox 360 will be subjugated to that. Here's why.

First, the Xbox 360's hard drive is small, and even if you quadrupled the size, it's still meager by today's standards. Knowing that the PC is where the storage muscle lies, Windows Vista will act as home to all of your digital content. Movies (ripped or bought online), music, pictures, and more will reside on the main Media Center PC. Where does the Xbox 360 fit in? If a Media Center is networked properly, it can stream video content to up to five Xbox 360s simultaneously, within the same home. As you can see, Microsoft is thinking along the same lines as Sony: create a device that is both a console, and a media player. The difference, however, is that Sony will see the PS3 as a hub itself, while Microsoft is banking on the Windows Vista OS itself, which can use the Xbox 360 as a media extender, or it can use other products that are designed to act as media extenders without gaming functionality, such as D-Link's MediaLounge line.

It's in this context that we should understand Microsoft's commitment to the Microsoft/Disney iHD interactivity solution for HD DVD, which the company wants to also see included in Blu-ray. Right now the Java-based Multimedia Home Platform is part of the Blu-ray specification, and it's also the leading standard for interactivity in the cable TV world. When you step back and think about Microsoft's vision of the connected home media experience, you can see why they would like to see iHD supported: it fits right into the picture.

Is this enough to keep HD DVD in the fight? We'll have a better idea once CES 2006 comes. But in the meantime, ponder this statement from Ben Keen, chief analyst at Screen Digest, on Blu-ray's own cohesiveness in the face of the oncoming battle: "One of the most potentially divisive elements in the Blu-ray camp is Sony undercutting all the CE products with a Playstation 3 that does everything a Blu-ray player will do—and much more."

In other words, vested interests are par for the course. Consoles, my dear friends, are but pieces in this game of chess, not victory trophies.

Arstechnica