wow i like the use of the term 'relegated' almost like Premier League football teams 'relegated' to division one. I hope that is your wording and not Mediaplex's


wow .... what a statement yet the cheapest "BD player" PS3 is the one who is slashing its price by 20% just 3 months after its launch in the product's strong hold in JAPAN !!

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Added on February 11, 2007, 1:47 amThe LG so called 'combo' is already available in the market. Albeit as String has put it, it doesnt carry the HD DVD logo because it doesnt support the MANDATORY interactive feature of HDi. Meaning you can watch a HD DVD movie on it but you wont be able to change the car colour in Tokyo Drift for example.



I agree. Furthermore, it doesnt exhibit or represent the true capability of HD DVD. And oh you can get a PS3 and a HD DVD A2 for less than $1K so why on earth would you pay $1199 for the LG player?

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Added on February 11, 2007, 1:55 am

well if you have a 1080p display yes. PS3 will play Blu-ray 'perfectly well'. If you only have a 1080i or 720p display that does 1080i , then you are screwed because PS3 does not let you do 1080i. Anything below 1080p will be downconvert to only 720p.

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Added on February 11, 2007, 2:00 amand not to mention that if you do not have a HDMI receiver, mandatory 5.1 PCM lossless soundtracks on each Blu-ray disk will be channeled via toslink optical as a 2.0 channel of sound only. Its worst if the blu-ray title doesnt come with Dolby Digital or DTS track as you will be stucked with only the mandatory PCM at 2.0 channels. All this is because advance audio codec such as Dolby Digital Plus/ TrueHD and DTS HD/DTS HD Master is not mandatory in Blu-ray. Dolby Digital Plus and the lossless track of TrueHD are MANDATORY on HD DVD titles

This post has been edited by g5sim: Feb 11 2007, 03:46 AM

i think someone is selling the Sharp 1080p display at $12,000. Or maybe its the 42in 1080p. check the bulk sale thread. maybe you can nego the price using the price in the thread

just call it a balancing of BD hypes and misconceptions and you are helping spreading. Consumers deserve to hear both side of the story. Not one side selling overpriced product by means of intimidation. There is a ignore button feature you know

Basically it depends on what your are having and what your expectations are. Toshiba has several HD DVD players model that would fit everyone current HT set ups. Meaning you do not that to pay more for features that you are not going to be able to enjoy. Their players range from STREET PRICE - $350-$799 and currently have 6 models in the market and one upcoming model. The models are as following:

HD XA2: 1080p 5.1 Analogue output - Street Price: $799, MSRP: $999 (featuring Silicon Optic's Reon video processor)

HD A20: 1080p (no Analogue output) MSRP: $599 (upcoming in spring)

HD A2: 1080i (no Analogue output) Street Price: $429 MSRP: $499

HD XE1: 1080p 5.1 Analogue output (European version of the US HD XA2)

HD E1: 1080i (no Analogue output) (European version of the US HD A2)

HD XA1: 1080i 5.1 Analogue output - Street Price: $460 MSRP: $799

HD A1: 1080i 5.1 Analogue output - Street Price <$399 MSRP: $499


Take these into consideration deciding on a model. If you have a 1080p display or projector, feel free to pay more for the 1080p models. If you dont and do not plan to get one in the near future, a 1080i player would be sufficient. Same applies to the audio. If you have a HDMI receiver, you DO NOT need pay more for the models with Analogue output.

sumary:

if you have a 1080p display (especially bigger than 42in) or projector, the most matching models are the XA2 or A20. If you dont have a HDMI receiver and do not plan to get one (u know if you have just invest in a receiver without HDMI) then you would need the analogue output of the XA2. If you already have a HDMI receiver, the A20 would be more than enough.

Mind you that the general consensus among the early adoptor is that the XA2 is the BESTest ever upconvert player for Standard DVD in the market. Its unbeatable in whatsoever price range . Do basically if you get this one, there is little reason to replace your Standard DVD library with hidef one. You only need to get new titles on hidef.

This post has been edited by g5sim: Feb 13 2007, 12:36 PM

if they cant ..you can always order for bhphotos.com .. they have Xa1 and A2, they might add Xa2 soon

you guys should get sales comission from MP ... or atleast purchases at dealer cost at MP

tell him that its six time more pixels than regular dvd. The players are doing interactivities that we only see in futuristic science fiction movies .. u know .. painting different colours to racing cars in Tokyo Drift for example. Basically these are the two things that consumers would notice. Making bookmarks and transfer it through the internet to another player ... . video commentaries ... On the sound thingy .. i dont think every consumer can different PCM, TrueHD and HD Master vs their younger brothers, Dolby Digital and DTS.

the panny 1080p projector is like RM14K ... plus you can spread the baby to a 100' screen ...

opps PS3 launches in Singapore at S$799 ...

yeah .. yours !!