the 360 HD-DVD drive thread

[Tan]

i don't see what the big deal is, a hd-dvd add-on is just another peripheral nothing more, people act like it'll determine whether or not a system will die based on it's extra functionality, me? i've never used my ps2 or xbox for movies, nor do those features determine who has better graphics, the gamecube's success or failure has nothing to do with it's media, and the psp isn't selling as many as it is because you can watch movies on a 5inch screen.

the console market and the movie industry are getting too closely intertwined with each other, people make it sound like if the 360 doesn't have hd-dvd games then it's tits up for Microsoft

you know, if the saturn had a laserdisc add-on it would've been king x_x

[Ed Oscuro]

you know, if the saturn had a laserdisc add-on it would've been king x_x :villagepeople:

The difference is that the Saturn wasn't up against a console that had a DVD drive.

[Ed Oscuro]

Until then it'll be neck and neck. That's when a new Xbox will be released; when it can't compete with the PS3 any longer. Microsoft has also hinted at all sorts of expansion capabilities.

We'll see. In ten years these should both be retro systems anyways...

Played Fighnt Night 3 yet...?

Haven't played any Fight Night games, actually

They said there won't be a 360 with an internal HD-DVD, great, but if they are going to expand the system (as opposed to simply replacing it), what's the use of selling people an HD-DVD drive that can't play games in the first place? If they ever do, there are going to know the wrath of a million jilted gamers...

Perhaps they've got their eye on downloadable content and hotfixes. Good luck is all I can say.

[njiska]

They said there won't be a 360 with an internal HD-DVD, great, but if they are going to expand the system (as opposed to simply replacing it), what's the use of selling people an HD-DVD drive that can't play games in the first place? If they ever do, there are going to know the wrath of a million jilted gamers....

Cheap HD DVD player, Eddie. That's the point. Remember movies will becoming out on HD too and we're not going to see a winner in that war this year.

[THATinkjar]

Eurogamer today posted fresh details on the forthcoming HD-DVD add-on for the Xbox 360. Apparently, the actual audio and video processing will be done by the console itself (I could have told you that!), making the add-on less expensive (duh).

And Gamerscore Blog has details on how the add-on will integrate into the Dashboard, and I must say - I'm impressed. Simple, but very effective.

[Ed Oscuro]

Ahh, funny to see this thread make a comeback after that strange assertion of mine (obviously was talking about it from a consumer relations standpoint, i.e. "sick of people asking why it can't play HD-DVD games!") long ago...have had some discussions about this device since then

[doomedpeasant]

Well just to get in on this...I'm buying one no matter what, maybe not when they first launch, but more than likely i will within a few weeks of its release. Why? because for some reason ive decided to start collecting for the 360. been debating for awhile now and what finally made up my mind is getting hired at a game store which equals cheap used games. As of right now im only missing a few hardware pieces anyways.

[Anthony1]

This HD-DVD add on, is not going to be the ideal player, from a home theater dudes perspective. There are a number of problems with this drive, but I don't really want to get into all the technical mumbo jumbo about it. The bottom line is that it's going to be a watered down HD-DVD unit, it's not going to really be a top of the line player that a true home theater enthusiast would want.

The main reason, actually isn't so much the lack of HDMI, although that is a big factor. It's the fact that it's using the ATI GPU for the video processing, a GPU that wasn't really designed with that task in mind, and it's audio processing will only be able to do 5.1 Dolby Digital and 5.1 DTS, it won't be able to do anything beyond that. From an audio standpoint, the HD-DVD add on won't provide anything that a regular DVD player couldn't provide, and that's dissapointing. You will only get the video improvement out of this. And speaking of video, it remains to be seen how good the ATI GPU will be up to the task of delivering said video. I'm sure it will look relatively decent, better than regular DVD, but I think a few years from now, the HD-DVD add on for the 360 will be thought of as a pretty horrible HD-DVD player from a video and audio standpoint.


Having said all of that, if it's $199.99 or less, I'll probably get it, just because I had the Toshiba HDA1 when it first came out, it cost $500, and I ended up returning it, because it wasn't worth that price. But for $199.99 or less, I could hang with it. $149.99 would be especially nice! I'm thinking $199.99 has to be the price point, but if they could somehow squeze it in for $149.99 that would be even better. Has anybody heard anything about when this drive is going to hit retail?

[doomedpeasant]

Havent heard a date yet but it is listed on the official xbox site with pictures

[Sothy]

It still cant microwave burritos like a PS3.

Go Big or dont go at all lolz

[Trebuken]

One of the noteworty differences of this generation of DVD (Blu-Ray + HD-DVD), is that they are as much computers as they are the set-top devives (VCR's + DVD Players) that we are accustomed to. Many of the hardware limitations can be overcome with software. I believe ATI can potentially provide a better HD-DVD decoding with the Xbox 360 then the HD-DVD player provides, if not it can be worked on, just as Toshiba is working on their player with firmware updates. The lack of HDMI places limits on bandwidth through component or VGA, but theirs likely to be an HDMI 360 eventually, possibly even boxed with the HD-DVD. This should overcome the sound issues as well, hopefully. Currently many report equal picture quality between HDMI and component, though I have not tested component myself.

I believe the Toshiba HD-DVD player has less processing power than the 360, though it may be more dedicated...

Anyways, I do think the 360 player is going to be a solid investment for a few years like Anthony suggested...though I'm looking forward to TrueHD audio (expected to be enabled soon in the HD-DVD player), and hopefully 1080p output...

Later,
Trebuken

[Emuaust]

Seems the combo, while offering similar options although poorer
backwards compatibilty will be infact more expensive then the
cheaper ps3,

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=19588

[slip81]

I will hate it so much if MS releases a 360 with an HDMI port.

Though thankfully if they do, since I have the 2 year warranty through EB I can just take it back and get a new one.

I can't wait for this prepriheral though. I'll most likely be buying it day one (and pre ordering if possible), if it's $200 or less. Because even if the video quality isn't quite as good as the $800 Toshiba machine, it will still look light years ahead of standard DVD.

[business]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8S5CZpNd904

Xbox 360 HD DVD commercial.

B-Boys FTW!

[Anthony1]

Does anybody else find it strange that a release date for this product still hasn't been given? King Kong HD-DVD comes out on November 14th, and the rumor was that this add one would be available day and date with King Kong.


On a side note, King Kong HD-DVD retails seperately for $39.99 (although most places will be selling it for $30 or less) and actually comes included with the $199 add on. I would assume that this thing will come out on November 14th, but considering I haven't heard a single word about it, maybe that isn't the case.

[business]

Does anybody else find it strange that a release date for this product still hasn't been given? King Kong HD-DVD comes out on November 14th, and the rumor was that this add one would be available day and date with King Kong.


On a side note, King Kong HD-DVD retails seperately for $39.99 (although most places will be selling it for $30 or less) and actually comes included with the $199 add on. I would assume that this thing will come out on November 14th, but considering I haven't heard a single word about it, maybe that isn't the case.

Don't worry, I'm almost certain that the hd dvd add on won't be delayed again. Making the product available during the Christmas shopping season is crucial. I'd expect a Nov. 14th release, or a date close to it.

[business]

So, November 7th is the big day, anyone planning on being an early adopter?

I'm still on the fence I think.

[diskoboy]

So, November 7th is the big day, anyone planning on being an early adopter?

I'm still on the fence I think.

I'm basically doing the saem thing I did when regular DVD players came out -

I bought one when Jaws comes out.

There really aren't any movies out that I want yet, except for maybe, The Fugitive..

[business]

So, November 7th is the big day, anyone planning on being an early adopter?

I'm still on the fence I think.

I'm basically doing the saem thing I did when regular DVD players came out -

I bought one when Jaws comes out.

There really aren't any movies out that I want yet, except for maybe, The Fugitive..

Yeah, I may be doing the same. I just hate to pass up the 'limited deal' (King Kong HD and Universal Media Remote) they are doing for the first shipment.

[s1lence]

With all the stuff that is coming out in the next we weeks I'm going to probably end up waiting on this upgrade.