programming and human factors
by Jeff Atwood
I've been monitoring the progress of high-definition video playback on the PC for quite a while now:
It's been almost two years since I wrote that series, and I think we're dangerously close to viable high definition video playback on typical, mainstream PCs. One metric I follow closely is the price of the hardware, and OEM Blu-Ray drives are now only $99 shipped.
This drive is a DVD burner, in addition to playing HD-DVDs, Blu-Ray, and obviously DVDs -- and it also has very positive customer reviews. I couldn't resist, so I bought one.
I have no need for a standalone Blu-Ray player, but a cursory look tells me those are down to around $250 for decent models. And then of course there's always the PlayStation 3 option.
It's a shame OS X and Vista don't natively support HD playback of any kind (although Vista does include some copy protection mechanisms specific to high-definition video playback, which was the source of great hue and outrage). When you pair this $99 drive with some third party playback software like PowerDVD HD or WinDVD HD, you're set.
I'm particularly interested in high definition PC playback because the home theater PC I recently built is more than capable:
Also, I finally own a true 1920 x 1080 HDTV now -- yes, you can all stop making fun of me for using a creaky old brass and steam powered 852 x 480 EDTV -- so all the pieces are now in place for me to adopt Blu-Ray. I switched my Netflix account over to Blu-Ray this morning.
I'm not quite a high definition video early adopter, but I'm still on the leading edge of the curve. Funny how technology cycles repeat themselves. I distinctly recall being an early adopter of DVDs back in 1998, almost exactly 10 years ago. The 720 x 480 resolution and Dolby Digital sound seemed so impressive back then. I remember marvelling at the fancy interactive menus on the Austin Powers DVD. Of course, DVD quality is pretty pedestrian by today's standards. We've almost gotten to the point where DVD-level video quality is available worldwide in a typical web browser, not necessarily through YouTube, but through Vimeo and other alternatives.
With that in mind, I wonder how quaint Blu-Ray will seem in 2018?
Blue Ray will come and go. Moving parts are always expensive and unreliable - your next format will be SD chip or similar. I still have my collection of of CED movies, and I know people who have Beta! JAF (just another format).
N Morrison on February 6, 2010 11:13 PMI just posed this question at work about 2 weeks ago after I bought a 1080 HD TV, and the majority answer was only the PS3 option was worth it.
First - You need a 1080 TV. Many stores are still selling 720 sets to get rid of inventory. So, unless you buy a 1080 (Full HD TV), no blue ray for you.
Second - The cost of the player. Most players average around $250, so the only decent option is the PS3. Unless you get one for Christmas, the player is expensive as well and not worth it.
Third - Buying movies. Now I have a kid, and we probably got around 50 or so kids DVDs (Barney, Shrek, Wiggles, Kung Fu Panda, etc). Will he care if they are in Blue ray format? Probably not. Do I want to shell out the extra cash so he can watch the Wiggles in Full HD? No thanks. DVDs just fine.
Fourth - Get a good HD package. Cable, Dish, and Satellite are pushing more and more HD format. Get more from your provider. We use Comcast with DVR option so we can record a certain amount of programming for repeat use. Additionally, more and more movies are coming over as HD which can be viewed as well. So, this makes a blue ray player less viable in my opinion as we have a lot of HD content coming in from the provider. Would I like more, yes, but there is a good amount already.
Price points have ot come down before I would consider getting one. Unless your a movie buff with lots of disc media, I would hold off for a while.
Jon Raynor on February 6, 2010 11:13 PMThe comments to this entry are closed.
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