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Data Storage Media

Memory-Tech, Toshiba Develop DVD/HD-DVD Discs 155

Posted by timothy from the two-two-two-scoops-of-raisins dept.
Kralizec writes "PC World reports that Memory-Tech has developed a dual DVD, HD-DVD disc, which stores DVD content on the upper layer and HD-DVD content on the lower. The DVD data can be read by standard DVD players, giving customers the incentive to buy now, and reap future benefits by buying an HD-DVD player at a later time. Blu-ray suffered a heavy blow when HD-DVD gained the support of four major movie studios; could this be the knockout punch?" (The format was developed jointly with Toshiba.)
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Memory-Tech, Toshiba Develop DVD/HD-DVD Discs More

Memory-Tech, Toshiba Develop DVD/HD-DVD Discs

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  • I'm willing to bet.... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:26PM (#11036716)
    That this will not be a KO. It will, in fact, be a disqualification on the part of the HD-DVD for ear biting.

  • This to popularize HD-DVD? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by fembots ( 753724 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:27PM (#11036720) Homepage
    The article says "The discs will help popularize the HD-DVD format for consumers and encourage them to purchase HD-DVD players..."

    I hope this is referring to the read-only HD-DVDs, not these dual DVD, HD-DVD disc.

    If consumers are given choice to buy new movies in HD-/DVD format, it'll only delay the need to purchase HD-DVD players, since it's obvious even to grandmas that all hardware price will drop so much in the first 6-12 months that if you can wait you will.

    I start buying DDR memory because my new mainboard only accepts 200pin, and my old one is using 168pin. Same thing goes to my Socket A and Socket 939 CPUs.
    • The adoption rate is definitely going to suffer as people choke on the prices of all this HD stuff. The problem is they do not hold their value - I have seen the same HDTV's I saw on the shelves last year at BB going for less than 25% of their price used on EBay.

      M

    • Well I think it won't speed adoption of HD compatable DVD players (HD-DVD) or Blu-Ray. But what it will do is format lock people who buy these DVD's into the HD-DVD format. When they do decide to buy an HD capable DVD Player, they will be predisposed to buying the HD-DVD Format over others.

      That is if they can sell these dual format disks at the same price as current DVD's and replace current DVD's with these disks. Any increase in price or a corresponding decrease in the DVD only formats will reduce t
    • it will delay the purchase of hd-dvd players, this is true. however it also means people won't have to buy the media separate so content producers don't have to worry about twice the packaging, twice the store shelf space, etc. this means there's a very nice transition period between the two formats without necessity to 'separate' the video store into two sections (it was how long until DVD and VCR tapes just became DVD tapes at blockbuster?). now they can just put a nice "HD-DVD" logo on the DVD package
      • it was how long until DVD and VCR tapes just became DVD tapes at blockbuster?

        mmm... You know you can still get tapes at Blockbuster, right? At least my local store still stocks tapes.
      • it was how long until DVD and VCR tapes just became DVD tapes at blockbuster?

        DVD tapes? When did those come out? Or is that the tape on the top of the DVD box that's impossible to remove without power tools? And more importantly, who'd want to rent indestructible tape?
    • Well I think it's about time home multimedia started doing what cellphones did (at least over here):
      Sell expensive machines at 0$, buy in market share, and later increase prices.
      • This only worked for cellphones because they were heavily subsidized by the carriers, who got their money back through monthly subscriptions and call rates.

        Who's going to subsidize the DVD players? Blockbuster? Netflix? It's not going to happen.
        • If you force anyone releasing media in your format to pay a license fee, you have a business model similar to console gaming systems.

          I'm sure the studios would appreciate that!
          • You might do something different.
            You might offer existing services under your name and charge money for it.
            Compuserve and AOL are doing it for years.

            My cable company is showing me films it gets for near nothing (old ones), many times over, and I pay fixed rate. It mostly subsidises local content.
        • Obviously, this is why this method worked for them.

          Companies which make multimedia devices could subsidise low-cost machines by offering services or by selling license rights (rights to create content for this product).
          This will probably only work if the service is a net connection (i.e. a cable provider who gives you a client machine, and content service), or if the client is a game-machine (at least in power, in programs one can sell for it)

    • I hope this is referring to the read-only HD-DVDs, not these dual DVD, HD-DVD disc."


      As opposed to the HD-DVD+R ? Or the HD-DVD-R ? Or the HD-DVD-R ? Or the HD-DVD-Greeen-ray with extra toppings ?

      I'm so glad we have yet another DVD format. :)

      Choice is good, I read it on /. so it must be true!
    • Well right now I'm somebody who own's a DVD player and a POTV (Plain Old TV). Now, if it so happens that all of the movies I start buying are in both HD and regular formats, then some day I'll look at my collection and think, "I really should upgrade".

      What ends up happening is that you feel like you could be getting more out of your system than you are. If you stereo is capable of 5.1 surround and you only have two speakers you'll keep wanting to get the other 3.1.

  • Damn smart. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by YetAnotherName ( 168064 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:27PM (#11036724) Homepage
    Really damn smart. But I predict that "compatibility with existing DVD players" will be a relative thing. For no particular reason, I picked up one of those ultra-cheap US$35 DVD players, which not only chokes on home burnt DVD+ and -Rs, but also on a minority of purchased movies.
    • No way! You paid a dirt-cheap, well below expected value price for a POS DVD player and it really turned out to be a POS worth what you paid for it? Say it isn't so!
      • I bought a slim book looking DVD player for 35$ and it hasn't given me any problems. It even reads +R.

        My only gripe... it doesn't have a tuner... everything is Composite, YUV and S-Video.

        Nice picture though.
      • No way! You paid a dirt-cheap, well below expected value price for a POS DVD player and it really turned out to be a POS worth what you paid for it? Say it isn't so!

        POS or no, a DVD player should play DVD's. The price is irrelevant. The real question is why didn't he return it.
    • My $35 dvd player (Yamakawa) plays more dvds than my expensive dvd player I bought 6 years ago (RCA/Proscan). Also the cheapo player was easy to put into region-free mode, and it does progressive output, and it has a more complete set of audio hookups. (5.1 as both analog and optical) and it has VGA out.

  • knockout punch? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by wcitechnologies ( 836709 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:27PM (#11036728)
    The knockout punch? No, this is the bunch that turns the 'argument' into a 'fight'. The media format wars are only beginning!

  • Yay, another media format! (Score:3, Funny)

    by elronxenu ( 117773 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:28PM (#11036736) Homepage
    Guess I gotta go buy that White Album again now.
    • I hear you, same with PF-The Wall, in HD.
    • Plagiarist! This is lifted from "Men in Black".
      • Plagiarist!

        Hey, you plagiarized that line yourself.

        This is lifted from "Men in Black".

        Besides, I'm not sure it really counts if you really have bought the damned thing three times already before Men in Black even came out.

        (Then there's the fact that we all know it's from Men in Black and his intent wasn't to take credit. Just as I didn't attribute "Voobah,voobah, voobah, ping!" to Bill Cosby. Everyone already knows that. If I tried to take credit I wouldn't be a plagiarist. I'd be a public doofball.

        • "Voobah,voobah, voobah, ping!" to Bill Cosby

          From Bill Cosby's "200MPH", after his Shelby Cobra is delivered:

          "Them 18"... 21" diameter dual PIPES!!! Coming out from under the hood and fenders and wrapping around the car to form,.. a... rrrooooll bar. Look at them PIPES!!!"

          I was surprised to find that a transcript of that bit is apparently not available on the web. It has to be heard to really appreciate it.
        • How is "Plagiarist!" plagiarism, pray tell? And I was only half-serious (or half-kidding?). I'd never assume people would know what I was quoting if I didn't put it in quotes, so the lack of attribution irked me a bit...anyway, waaay off topic at this point.
      • I don't believe the MPAA are currently prosecuting plagiarism, so I'm safe on that!

        Anyway, it's a cultural thing, like "In Soviet Russia, new media format buys you!". See Larry Lessig's talk in Finland for more information (can't remember url sorry).

  • Its a cut-throat business, trying to make develop a de-facto standard. A business where the best codec or standard isn't necessarily the one adopted by consumers/corporations.

  • Bah (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Wake me up when they come out with GNU/DVD-HD/CDRW-VCR/DVD-TIVO.PVR/+RW/HDTV.

    Until then, I will use less caps.

  • non-exclusive support (Score:5, Interesting)

    by no_opinion ( 148098 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:38PM (#11036816)
    Note that the recently announced support by Universal Studios & others is non-exclusive, so they could still release Blu-Ray titles. This fact is usually omitted from the press. The speculation is that by announcing they got a break on the format royalties.

  • I was going to submit this.... (Score:5, Informative)

    by kf6auf ( 719514 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:38PM (#11036822)

    So I have some more links for y'all.

    Technology News' Report [technewsworld.com] and PCWorld's Article [pcworld.com] on the new disc that will contain a backwards-compatible (4.6 GB) DVD layer and a higher definition (15 GB) HD-DVD layer of which production is planned to begin in October or November of next year.

    This seems like this could be a major factor in the format [disctronics.co.uk] war [msn.com] between HD-DVD and the higher capacity Blu-ray.

  • Ultimate Answer (Score:4, Insightful)

    by 31415926535897 ( 702314 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:38PM (#11036824) Journal
    It's starting to look like there will be a pretty good format war between the two new HD optical disks in the near future. Both sides are doing an excellent job in aligning themselves with key players that will help them to get their format accepted by the public, and various people on Slashdot have mentioned the benefits of both media.

    I have a pretty good hunch that we'll be seeing many drives and players that are dual format (like DVD +/ - R is now). If this does happen, it won't be so bad if there are two dominant media types, and I am sure the competition between the formats can be good for consumers. We shall see!
    • The public doesn't really want, or need, another VHS vs Betamax format war. Eventually only one format will survive. People who buy into the losing standard will end up with an expensive doorstop. Laserdisc anyone?
      • Eventually only one format will survive. People who buy into the losing standard will end up with an expensive doorstop.

        DVD+R and DVD-R have been around, what, 4 years now? Neither seems any more likely to die before the other, why should HD-DVD and Blu-ray be any different? There is probably more chance of SuperDuper-DVD or Purpl-Ray killing HD-DVD/Blu-Ray than there is for one to stand triumphant over the other.
      • Laserdisc anyone?

        Got plenty, thanks. Lots of them will never see a DVD release either, so I'm quite happy flipping discs knowing I have the best available home version of a number of movies. Any day now, my Japanese version of "Blade Runner" will arrive in the mail, complete with happy ending, voice overs, and extra violence. Plus a nifty gallery of production art and other nifty content.

  • Is it any wonder? (Score:4, Funny)

    by skyman8081 ( 681052 ) <skyman8081&gmail,com> on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:39PM (#11036835) Homepage
    Who actually though Blu-Ray would be able to win.
    • HD-DVD is technologically inferior to Blu-Ray.
    • Blu-Ray is backed by Sony
    I think we can see why HD-DVD would win this format war, judging by the past history of how other wars have played out.

    • Re:Is it any wonder? (Score:5, Informative)

      by andymar ( 690982 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:53PM (#11036941)
      Why is Blu-Ray superior ?
      1. More capacity, up to 200Gb according to Sony
      2. TDK has developed a scratch-free surface for Blu-ray DVD's. I would say that's a killer, no more hard to read DVD's when you come home from Blockbuster.
      • 2. TDK has developed a scratch-free surface for Blu-ray DVD's

        I'll see that when I believe it. I remember all too well the promises that were made about the scratch resistance of CDs.
      • Dude I worked at Blockbuster, we get all up in there with the scour pads, ain't no lousy coating on earth gonna let you watch a skip free DVD.
      • 2. TDK has developed a scratch-free surface for Blu-ray DVD's.

        Don't worry, the MPAA (via Orrin) would illegalize TDK's scratch-free surface in seconds.
      • The reason Blu-Ray needs that special TDK coating is because the plastic layer on the data side is much thinner than current CDs, DVDs, or the HD-DVD spec. The thickness is roughly equivalent to the lacquer coating on the label side of CDs, and all know how easily those can fail. As an added bonus, since the thin layer will be on the data side, you won't be able to effectively buff out even minor scratches!

        IMHO, even if the new coating works as advertised, Blu-Ray's durability will be at best a wash compar
    • The Playstation 3 is going to use Blu-ray...

      If you remember back in the day, people loved the PS2 because it also played DVDs (rather crappily, but still played them). For $300 you got a game system AND a player that could show the latest video technology. VHS was still the major format at retailers. That pretty much ended as the PS2 put a lot of DVD players in homes that might not otherwise have purchased them.

      While it might not have been the defining force that pushed DVD sales up (although I would

  • DD (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:41PM (#11036849)
    Can't I just punch a hole in the corner of a regular DVD and turn it over?

    • Re:DD (Score:2, Funny)

      by Hank Scorpio ( 137966 )
      Can't I just punch a hole in the corner of a regular DVD and turn it over?

      You could, if you could find the corner. Good luck to you, sir.

    • Come on, get with the program. DVDs are optical media.

      It's done with a special felt-tipped marker.
    • Thanks. Now I feel so old I want to shoot myself.

  • Good for them (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Doesn't_Comment_Code ( 692510 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:48PM (#11036902)
    An attempt to smoothly transition customers from old to new products without too much hastle is a good sign.

    Add the fact that they aren't trying to rip you off by requiring you to re-purchase everything you already own (they're actually doing the opposite) and it seems like they might be trying to please their customers!

    Don't look now, but a media company might DO THE RIGHT THING.

    If they continue to act appropriately like this (pleasing customers rather than bullying) I will make a note to reward them with a few purchases.

  • I... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by greywire ( 78262 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:51PM (#11036918) Homepage
    I for one welcome our new dual DVD, HD-DVD overlords...

    But seriously, this is a great move. Not because it technologicaly better, but simply because people will buy these disks, perhaps not even knowing they are HD-DVD compatible. Some time later, when shopping for a new DVD player, when the salesman says "and if you have any DVD-HD-DVD disks, you will get better quality from your existing disks!" thus sealing the deal for lots of people...
    • ...people will buy these disks, perhaps not even knowing they are HD-DVD compatible. Some time later, when shopping for a new DVD player, when the salesman says "and if you have any DVD-HD-DVD disks, you will get better quality from your existing disks!" thus sealing the deal for lots of people...

      The problem that I see with this scenario is that if people do not realize that the discs are HD-DVD compatible when they buy them, they will not have a clue about it when the salesman mentions the "better qualit
      • The problem that I see with this scenario is that if people do not realize that the discs are HD-DVD compatible when they buy them, they will not have a clue about it when the salesman mentions the "better quality" perk.

        Entirely possible. Never underestimate the ignorance of the average human...

        As for the comparison to SACD.. Can you tell the difference between CD and SACD? I dont think I can. Most people are happy with lossy MP3, much less CD, so SACD is kinda dumb. But I bet anybody with eyes can t
    • Hasn't worked so far for SACD.
  • Looking at the hardware that's coming, I'd say I'm more inclined toward HD-DVD over Blu-ray, just for the fact that the Blu-ray hardware costs three times as much as the HD-DVD hardware. If I start seeing my movies in the store with DVD/HD-DVD logos, I'm buying those.
  • This seems to be an innovative idea, but I doubt that is going to kill Blu-Ray. Everyone is assuming that we have to have another VHS/Betamax style format war, and that's just not the case here. Why can't studios just produce double-sided discs? One side could be a DVD/HD-DVD dual layer hybrid, and the other side could be the same content in Blu-Ray. Just turn the disc over to support your player.

    Of course, this would benefit the consumer and we just can't have that, now can we?

    • innovating all the money out of my wallet (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      so now the consumer has to pay royalties to both format licensors!

      brilliant!
      • The consumers other options being to own a player for each format or not see the content released in the format they opted against. I don't like any of these solutions. Personally, I'd rather just get the content streamed from my cable provider to a file that I can play on my PC or STB, but we all know that's out of the question...
    • Well, I'd imagine that there would be a problem of then having to pay royalties for both formats if you want to release a something like that. Plus, if the competition gets really intense, Toshiba or Sony might just disallow anyone using their format to release such double-sided, double-format disks.

  • Simple (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Namarrgon ( 105036 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:53PM (#11036942) Homepage
    It depends entirely on the price, just like the CD/SACD discs.

    If the DVD/HD-DVD hybrid disc is the same or very close to the DVD-only disc price, people will buy the HD version on the off-chance it will be useful to them in the future. But if it costs significantly more, it'll get completely ignored.

    This could be a chance for Toshiba & partners to lock in a good chunk of the market before the market even exists - but they'll never give up their precious new-product premiums. No way will they let their fancy new HD content go for the same price as existing SD content (especially as the hybrid disc will no doubt cost a little more to manufacture).

    • It depends entirely on the price, just like the CD/SACD discs.

      Actually, it depends entirely on the politics of the movie studios (content companies).

      Without content, no format can make it. No matter how cheap or technically superior the format may be.

      To these content companies, price and quality might matter a bit. But there are other factors in their politics.

    • It could be twice the price, say maybe 10cents per unit, retail $20.
      hell they only loose a coupld of cents.
  • I thought the reason HD-DVD gave for choosing its lower capacity over the Blu-Ray was that the Discs could be manufactured on existing DVD machines.

    This seems to change that cheap manufacturing equation.

  • ONLY 1/3 THE STORAGE (Score:5, Interesting)

    by DumbSwede ( 521261 ) <slashdotbin@hotmail.com> on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @05:56PM (#11036978) Homepage Journal
    This sounds great until you really look at the storage numbers.

    A 4.6 GB DVD layer And a 15 GB HD-DVD Layer

    15 GB not even twice a 9 GB standard double layer disk. The few movies released in HD on DVD compressed and using VC9 are not full HD resolution. You think and extra 6 GB is going to get you there all the way???

    Blu-Ray starts out with 25 GB single layer and 50 GB for double.

    Even with the Mpeg 4 encoding, the makers will be struggling to get true full HD on the disks for 2 hour plus movies and forget the bonus features.

    HD-DVD used to have 2/3 the storage of Blu-Ray, now it will have 1/3 (1/12 if Blu-Ray delivers on 8 layer media)

    Might as well just release HD on multiple regular double layer DVD and have a tray switch disks when last disk is done.

    What seems like an advance is really just going to make certain the majority of HD-DVD content will be over compressed and crappy compared to Blu-Ray. Plus it is unclear the HD layer will not be overly affected by interference from the regular DVD layer (I am assuming larger standard DVD pits might create more optical interference for the lower layer than if an HD-DVD layer were above), thus more prone to failure and damage.

    The sad thing is I can't deny the marketing genius of it.

    • You're ignoring the fact that this is meant for dual-compatible discs. A full DVD on one layer, an HD-DVD on the other. See, we're not even talking about disc-flipping here. It's like the disc will just *magically* look nicer on HDTV to the average person.

      A true HD-DVD will have 30 gigs of space, which isn't as bad, and is definitely not as bad when you consider MPEG-4 encoding, which will make STRIDES in saving space.

      Of course, I say this 'cause most of my HD-DVD purchases will be anime, which is a lot m
    • I wonder if eventually someone could use this and invent some sort of a codec where standard DVD data is on the 4.6GB layer, but High Def would use the bits on the DVD layer for low resolution info and the additional bits on the new layer are used to supplement the DVD layer to achieve higher resolution. Resulting in not having to waste the DVD layer for those who only want to use the disk in an HD player.

      It may be more complicated, and the codec may not be codec with existing HD-DVD standards, however, i

      • where standard DVD data is on the 4.6GB layer, but High Def would use the bits on the DVD layer for low resolution info

        That would most certainly be useless... The DVD-compatible layer would have to be MPEG-2, which means it's using up something like 4Xs as much space for video than it would in AVC/VC-1/VP6. So, it'll still be vastly wasteful, and that's in addition to this scheme of yours being nearly impossible in the first place...

        If the low-res layer was the bottom 1/4 of the pictue, it might be poss

    • A 4.6 GB DVD layer And a 15 GB HD-DVD Layer

      If Memory-Tech and Toshiba have a working dual-layer DVD/HD-DVD disk, doesn't this mean it will also soon be possible to put HD-DVD on both layers? That would be 30 GB for dual-layer HD-DVD.

      Blu-Ray starts out with 25 GB single layer and 50 GB for double...

      HD-DVD used to have 2/3 the storage of Blu-Ray, now it will have 1/3 (1/12 if Blu-Ray delivers on 8 layer media)

      Why are you comparing single-layer HD-DVD to dual-layer Blu-Ray? Dual-layer HD-DVD (30 GB) is

    • 15GB is plenty (Score:1, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      The few movies released in HD on DVD compressed and using VC9 are not full HD resolution
      T2 is less than 15GB and it is encoded at 816p - which IS full HD resolution for a 2.35:1 aspect ratio movie - it's the equivalent of 1080p at 1.85:1. DRM on this disc sucks ass, but it video quality is fantastic.

    • Re:ONLY 1/3 THE STORAGE (Score:5, Informative)

      by Elwood P Dowd ( 16933 ) <judgmentalist@gmail.com> on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @07:57PM (#11037878) Journal
      The few movies released in HD on DVD compressed and using VC9 are not full HD resolution. You think and extra 6 GB is going to get you there all the way???

      Yes. Haven't you been paying attention to your Apple PR?

      H.264 to the rescue:
      As shown in a preview at the National Association of Broadcasters convention in April, video encoded at full high definition resolution (1920x1080 24p) was played back between 6.8 and 8 Mbps on a dual-processor Power Mac® G5 delivering full HD quality at up to half the data rate of MPEG-2.
      They say it's good enough that "at today's SD DVD data rates, H.264/AVC can deliver full HD." So yes, I think they can do it in 15GB.
      • Why settle for what's *only* barely "good enough" for our current needs when we could pick a format that has real room for growth and can accomodate our needs today and tomorrow?

        Blu Ray holds more data, layer for layer, than HD-DVD and therefore can hold more data at equivilent compression levels, or, more beneficially, *better* data at lower compression levels.

        Why settle for a lesser amount of storage? Blu Ray makes more sense for data storage as well. Even 50GB per disc is weak compared to tape, but i
        • > pick a format that has real room for growth and can accomodate our needs today and tomorrow?

          I believe it's because they want to sell you hardware for the new format that's coming out tommorrow. It's engineered to barely support today, so it will be obsolete in a few years, guaranteeing a nice revenue stream.
        • What I find odd about HD-DVD fans is that while they ignore the lower storage capacities, they love to focus on codecs. It's possible to run you favorite codec on any storage media, why settle for a crappier medium to do it?

          You seem to be responding to some other comment. I don't give a flying fuck which format is adopted. Whatsisbucket said that he didn't think an HD movie could be done in 15GB, and I pointed out that he might be wrong.

          So what's your point?
          • I just hate to see HD-DVD gain any support even if its "advanced" codecs can cram an HD movie onto a single 15Gb layer. I'd sooner use less compressable codecs on a larger medium -- less CPU power to decode and encode, and the larger medium is a nice side bennie.

      • And how expensive will the players be when they have to have the equivalent computing power of a dual G5 box? Yikes. Granted, dedicated decoding silicon can do more with less horsepower, but I still doubt it will be anywhere near cheap. But, then again, what new technology ever is?
      • Unfortunately, studios aren't good at encoding for some reason. DVDs use MPEG-2 at insanely high bitrates, yet most DVDs still suffer from blocking (if you remove the high-frequency noise). For whatever reason, they are using grossly ineffecient MPEG-2 encoders, and I can't see any reason that's going to change when they are doing MPEG-4 AVC.
    • Personally, Im waiting for the WRITABLE format to decide which one to go with...

  • Disc sets would be better (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Datasage ( 214357 ) * <.moc.yergsidlroweht. .ta. .egasataD.> on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @06:05PM (#11037033) Homepage Journal
    Most DVDs use the dual layer capacity of current DVDs. Using this technique it would be nessesary to split many movies onto two discs. If your going to do that, why not just package one DVD and one HD-DVD.
    • And voila... instant used market for whatever the unwanted disk is.

      Easy way to subsidize your movie collection through ebay sales.

    • I expect that packaging a standard DVD and a Bluray Disc will be how Sony will reply to this DVD/HD-DVD hybrid disc - if it looks like it will take off of course!

      I don't want more two-disc movies. Especially if they aren't that long, unlike the LOTR parts which are understandably two disc. And if you are going to have to split up onto two discs, then why not just have a DVD and a HD-DVD next to each other in the package, instead of ... this hybrid variant?
    • they don't want you to end up with an extra copy to sell off.
  • If they advertise that hey this costs a few bucks more but you can buy this now and play it on your DVD player and play it in the net generation players without having to repurchase everythings.

    Then they could really be on to something.
  • At least for a while, all of my DVD players at home and on my computers will be high def. I'll probably first have one optimal system with an HD projector with a high-def player hooked up by HDMI on my living room, but still another TV with a regular DVD player in the bedroom, plus my laptop, in-car player, my desktop computer, etc will all have regular DVD. So I will need hybrid discs to be able to watch them not only in the living room.
  • So how do i do backups again?

  • Why do we Need something better than DVD? (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I dont know anybody who owns a HD TV, and I cant even get the best out of my current dvds (no progressive scan). Why on earth would I want a new format when I cant even max out the current one...just so companies can sell me the same movies I own now slight increase in resoultion....Dvds look pretty good why do we need to upgrade?

  • Why Toshiba! WHY?!?!?! (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Anyone who thinks this is a good idea is on CRACK...unless you stand to profit from the sale of HD-DVD's

    Ok, a little background. DVD's, when they first started, were primarily 1 layer, not two, per disc. To start they didn't use two layers but it was part of the spec that they eventually could. Now, transfer technology back then wasnt as refined as it is today, so one of the reasons rereleased discs look better is due to the better restoration techniques and transfering technology

    HOWEVER, the other

  • Adding to their head start (Score:3, Interesting)

    by rkischuk ( 463111 ) on Wednesday December 08, 2004 @11:26PM (#11039222)
    Things like this give HD-DVD an even bigger advantage. What's the initial advantage? Naming.

    Consumers absolutely know what a DVD is. They understand what HD is (although some may not be aware that the DVD format isn't already HD). Thus, it's a simple leap to comprehend HD-DVD - it's a DVD that shows prettier pictures. Consumers have no clue what a BluRay is, though marketing dollars will try to change that.
  • I knew it was only a matter of time before we gave Lucas a reason to produce 'Star Wars: Re-Re-Released, now in HD!'

    And yet the prospect of another extended LoTR release doesn't bother me. Not one bit.

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