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According to threads at AVSForum, HD-DVD players went on sale at Best Buy and the like, and some posters there have bought them and posted pics as proof. Doesn't sound like there's a delay to me.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=66 7248

Actually, there are reports and pictures that people have already gotten a hold of HD-DVD players and discs ahead of the actual release date from their local Best Buy.

See this page for more detalis/pics:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=66 7248&page=1&pp=30

But 1080p as a standard is not fully fleshed out, you have to really hunt to find a TV that will actually accept a 1080p input, and even then it may not accept a non-HDCP input (1080p only being supported via HDMI).

I have.

Now I just need enough space for one...

It already has caught on in a big way for some. I use XBMC to stream audio and video from a media server, and there are other devices out there built to do the same, like MediaMVP, Avel LinkPlayer, D-link DSM-520, and many others. Heck, there's even an entire forum dedicated to such devices over at avsforum.

Read AVS Forum, and hear about some of the problems people are having with their TVs. There are tons of issues out there. Plasma TVs degrade over time (years), for example. Another serious problem (in my opinion) seems to be the rear projection tv's (RPTV's) that have bulb issues (such as dlp tv). $250-$400 per bulb, and some consumers are getting blown bulbs after less than $1000 hours of use (the manufacturer specifically says something ridiculous like 6k+ hours). I want a new TV, but I'm not going to spend $3k on something than needs to be worked on or replaced within years. Also, it is ridiculous that 1080p tv's can only accept a 1080i signal through HDMI (If they say it is an 1080p tv it should take a 1080p signal).

Just remember: "The pioneers take all the arrows"

Someone has done something similar, but used photocells from RadioShack instead of a webcam.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=47 98540&&#post4798540
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=48 07796&&#post4807796 (pic)

Someone has done something similar, but used photocells from RadioShack instead of a webcam.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=47 98540&&#post4798540
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=48 07796&&#post4807796 (pic)

avsforum has a truly massive thread on the Oppo DV971H. Do note throughout that thread's existence, Oppo has updated the firmware several times (you can download and burn an .iso, and update the dvd player from that). It has also replaced the old remote, which was apparently rather horrid, with a newer more functional design.

Not that I've seen. Nor is there something for the Mac. Pity, as a more powerful mini would make a nice HTPC. If you aren't using the AVS forums for your info already, http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f= 26/ has a forum dedicated to both Linux and Mac OS based HTPCs as well as a main forum for Windows based HTPCs.

As for ffdshow, I wholeheartedly agree on quality of the image it can produce on a powerful enough machine. For those that haven't seen ffdshow in use, http://htpcnews.com/main.php?id=ffdshowdvd_1/ has a nice explanation on how to set it up including pics showing the expected results.

JA

Except I'd rather eventually watch King Kong on HD-DVD on a 30" than a 19" monitor. Before you tell me to get an HDTV, I'll point out that most of the lower-end models don't actually do true 1080i, let alone 1080p. Furthermore, I don't have the budget to buy a 1080p HDTV and two 19" LCDs. So the sweet spot in the middle could be the Dell 30".

Oppo is made by a Chinese company that sources a lot of DVD players to other companies. If you don't have DVI or HDMI you are right it might not be the player for you. If all you have is composite video there is a rather different set of choices to make. Because of the MPAA there are very few players if any (there used to be a few but they may not be available any more) that will upconvert over composite.

For an inexpensive analog video player with DVD-A/SACD the Pioneer DV-563A gets a lot of interest at around $160. I am sure there are others. There is a huge forum at:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f= 18

This place is definitely all you can eat with player information in every price category.

It is said that Amir Majidimehr, General Manager & Vice President of Microsoft's Digital Media Division, told to Disney top officials about denial of iHD adoption to the BD spec, "Microsoft would concentrate all resources to react to the threat of the BD. We don't mind to delay the format standardization process and mess up next generation optical disc market". That is, Microsoft's aim is crushing HD video package business itself unless its own technologies, vested interest are adopted in the next gen optical disc.

There are a few. Drop me an e-mail and I can send you some pointers.

The AVS Forum is a vidgeeks church. The info there is second to none. I even tuned my lady's 15" Hello Kitty TV and my jaw drops every time :)

Well, the rule is NORMALLY this:

1080i:
Everyone except ABC and Fox stations and other properties, such as ESPN.

720p:
ABC, Fox, ESPN. Dunno for sure about DirecTV, but it would make sense as they're owned by Fox.

Now there are exceptions, such as WVEC-13 (ABC) in Norfolk and WFAA-8 (ABC) in Dallas doing 1080i instead of 720p. All Belo stations are doing 1080i, even if they're ABC (they're upconverting it).

On the other hand, WHRO-15 (PBS) in Norfolk and WCBI-4 (CBS) in Tupelo, MS doing 720p instead of 1080i.

Most stations maximize the HD at the expense of the SD, so if you realize that an SD stream will survive with about 3MBPS, you should be able to figure the bitrates.

Now if you want to know what subchannels you have, if you're lucky enough to be near myself or a fellow in Minnesota I have helping me, I've set up a site ( http://www.rabbitears.info/ ) that I've been working on in my spare time. Otherwise, check http://www.avsforum.com/ and look for your market in the Local HDTV forum. Also, you could webmaster email at me rabbitears and dot I info could try to help you out, if you'll give me the city the stations you watch come from.

I honestly can't say I've seen a big difference between 720p and 1080i, though 720p is less likely to "pixelate" in high motion. I have a front-projector that has been well-calibrated and it does 720p, and that's the only thing I've noticed different about the two.

If you have any more questions, feel free.

I don't know about where you are, but here in Austin TX the resolutions are fixed by channel. For example, ABC, NBC, PBS, and WB all broadcast at either 480i or 1080i. The FOX affiliate broadcasts at 480i or 720p. These are OTA only. On the local cable company, everything except FOX and ESPN are upconverted to 1080i - why I don't know. I believe the reason is 1080 is a bigger number than 720 and thus must be better. Finally, everything HD on DirecTV is 720p. Bitrates vary (IMHO PBS usually having the best starting in the evening when they turn off the three other feeds they provide OTA) all the time. The best resource I've found has been the AV Science Forum which has a rather large listing of HDTV information for various cities.

Finally, to add some fuel to the 720p vs 1080i debate - IMHO: it's all about your output device. If your output device is any type of projection (including rear projection TVs) then p is always better than i simply because that's how your device draws the screen anyway. I could be wrong, but at least it seems that way to me.

DRM does NOT and will NOT hold.
If you can get some new über format encumbered with DRM, the same file but *cleaned* will be available for net leechers....

For example check the first HD releases of DVD movies (lie Terminator 3 extreme edition).
It's was pretty new & better at the time, with HD (1080p ?) video content stored on a standard dvd as WMV, *BUT* DRMed to the bone (need to acquire a license on the net every other day, must connect from U.S....)
Well folks have been tinkering with a japanese anti-WMV-DRMv2 soft and now easily manage to remove the DRM.
So now the file you can get on p2p is the same exact pristine video *WITHOUT* DRM.

As TFA says, it's obvious that the only persons not affected by DRM are freeloaders, in this case:
  * you buy the extreme edition, you get f*cked with a brain-dead copy of a movie
  * you install azureus, you get a next gen video file that can be played on *any* platform...

Now i know:

  * I'll never buy next gen dvd if they work like that,
      (what's the use for a disc that can only be played in a windows-based, internet-connected, PC platform ?)
        provided the majors come to an agreement on their prefered DRM scheme in the near future, and actually release some HD content on disc, which is not so sure right now...

  * We can get HD media for free with no hassle rigth now

Media Giants, Get A Clue !

On a side note, the tools to remove DRM are not reserved to tech savvy people, granted the drmv2 remover i mentioned above is horrible to use, but if lots of people feel a need to use it, it'll become a snap.
DeCSS, for example, was in the beginning reserved to linux geeks but quickly made it's way to *every* dvd copier, like the worldwide-used dvd shrink...

Oh, and BTW, if you need to be more persuasive against DRM, as someone posted before in this thread, reread the excellent speech to MS By Cory Doctorow

Though, if your TV is simply unable to accept that resolution, then you might have to go with a more typical 720p resolution (which might not be so bad, if the bezel on your TV chops the couple of extra pixels off anyway).

There's a discussion here. I like the basic concept, RAID-4 without striping, but I'm not rushing to buy their package. I'd like to see an open source driver that does that though.

Check the "Local HDTV Info and Reception" forum for your area at http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f= 45. It may be possible for you to get the HD channels without paying for the digital package if you have your own tuner. Many companies do not scramble the HD locals.

I currently pay for nothing but "basic" cable from Time Warner, and I get PBS, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, TNT-HD, Discovery-HD, and a digital mirror of the basic channels from my local provider. I'm using the built-in tuner in my HDTV, and also a Dvico Fusion HDTV5-Gold card in my MythTv DVR.

Also, if all you want is the locals, consider putting up an antenna. I have 2 tuner cards in my MythTV box, and the other one goes to an attic antenna which gets the major networks that I can get on cable, plus UPN and WB which my cable company does not carry. If you don't feel you can handle putting up an antenna, hire an installer. If you drop your cable, the antenna, tuner, and installation will pay for themselves after a few months.

There is software available as part of the Apple FireWire SDK that lets you record MPEG2 streams direct from a firewire enabled cable box. Hmmm....

Check here, here and here: [use this link: http://machdtvtimer.home.comcast.net/%5D for more info.

You might find this thread on 5C copyright protection interesting. Basically, anything other than OTA content is encrypted and set to "copy once" or "copy never" per FCC mandate. Since your Windows or Mac video and MPEG drivers don't support decrypting 5C content, your HTPC can't play back the encrypted premium content. A DVHS deck can, however. And it's likely that new versions of MacOS X and Windows Vista, with DRM enabled HDMI cables out to the display device, will be able to record and playback this content in the near future. But for now, you're shit out of luck. --M

now the thought of TiVo-ing Adult Swim to my iPod video for watching while I commute to/from work is just *too* tempting

Consider ReplayTV, with built-in ethernet. It's got a Java-based platform-neutral controller called DVArchive, and it produces MPGs suitable for transcoding to iPod or PSP with no DRM attached. Oh, and you can share and download thousands of shows from other ReplayTV owners using Poopli.

now the thought of TiVo-ing Adult Swim to my iPod video for watching while I commute to/from work is just *too* tempting

Consider ReplayTV, with built-in ethernet. It's got a Java-based platform-neutral controller called DVArchive, and it produces MPGs suitable for transcoding to iPod or PSP with no DRM attached. Oh, and you can share and download thousands of shows from other ReplayTV owners using Poopli.

now the thought of TiVo-ing Adult Swim to my iPod video for watching while I commute to/from work is just *too* tempting

Consider ReplayTV, with built-in ethernet. It's got a Java-based platform-neutral controller called DVArchive, and it produces MPGs suitable for transcoding to iPod or PSP with no DRM attached. Oh, and you can share and download thousands of shows from other ReplayTV owners using Poopli.

I love my XPMCE network. I don't watch much TV, but I have nearly every movie ripped, 2 HD tuners and 2 SD tuners (had 4 as a test but it recorded too much).

I'm getting HD cable right now. I use timmmoore's Firewire mod and its perfect. I don't believe the firewire input transfers any broadcast flag, which I fear CableCard will.

This is the #1 requested MCE feature. MS came under a ton of angry rants because it was missing from RU2, yet it was the content provider's holdup.

Me? I'll stick to RU1 and Firewire. No DRM, no broadcast flag and gorgeous HD from cable. You can wait until Xmas 2006 if you need official industry support.

I'd love to see HD via an extender (other than the XBox360), or user-sorted Recorded TV.

There's a definite argument that the BluRay Java menuing system is too complicated, too bloated, and more expensive to develop for, when compared to a Javascript-based UI.

Now are you saying that just because it's Java, or because you have been looking over the specs?

First of all, the Java used is J2ME - the same Java that goes into cellphones. It's a whole different ball of yarn as many features and libraries are stripped out. Javascript would actually be a larger burden. It uses the Personal Basis Profile, meant for consumer devices.

The UI is not Swing, or even AWT - it sort of resembles the HAVi system.

Look here for Blu-Ray technical specs - the bits about Java are in "White Paper: BD ROM - Audio Visual Application Format Specifications (Update: March 2005)" near the bottom.

If you really want something to chew on, try reading this discussion - a nice juicy flamewar between BD-J and iHD supporters (the iHD guy being an exec at Microsoft). Plenty of meaty tidbits for those on either side... my own take on a lot of the discussion is that people there are right about Javascript being a LOT slower than Java, so more things would be possible in BD-J (for instance, in BD-J you could theoretically write a whole MP-3 decoder/player. Hardly likely in Javascript...

I stand corrected.

However, for the Great grandparent's posts purposes, it is argued that sports look better in progressive scan opposed to the flicker of interlacing. (See question two in the first link)

http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6449-6361600-1.html
http://www.avsforum.com/hdtvfaq/HDTV-FAQ.htm

2.35:1 is not unwatchable, especially if you have a constant height setup. Usually this sort of thing involves a 16:9 projector, equipped with an anamorphic lens, and some sort of digital scalar.

Star Wars is a good example of a 2.35:1 film.

AVS Forum gets down'n'dirty...

Same for the ReplayTV -> PSP...

AVS Forum gets down'n'dirty...

Same for the ReplayTV -> PSP...

aah. forgot the link

If I want to get an episode of Lost on my Archos device, I have to get ABC, and I have to have the forethought to set up recording before it airs.

Most DVRs will record entire runs of shows (including repeats, if you want) and only delete them when you run out of space or on pre-designated schedules. At least, that's how my ReplayTV works and I assume the Dish boxes have something similar.

And as for downloading shows, maybe I've been spoiled for years, but with the ReplayTV's Poopli, I get to snarf thousands of available shows straight from the hard disks of other ReplayTV owners. It's pretty sweet. I still prefer BitTorrent though, for one major reason: HDTV quality downloads, and my 10MBps RCN download pipe.

You need to research the TIVO Hacks that are out there.

I have ReplayTV. I don't need to engage in remote control shenanigans and time-consuming hacking to network share or stream my shows or auto skip adverts. ReplayTV just works, out of the box, no fiddling required. No DRM. Wife-approved.

Er, sorry, actually QAM is here. Poke around the forum for a few more short threads on the topic.

The HD thing is what kills mythtv for me. There aren't any cable/satellite capable HD=capture cards that I'm aware of. There's just the one OTA (over-the-air) card that may (will?) die when the FCC gets its broadcast flag. ... if anyone knows differently I'm all ears...

There are couple of cable (QAM256) capable cards with recent support in Linux and Myth.
Here's a thread on the topic.

I purchased the Westinghouse LVM-37w1 a few months back from Best Buy for the then-low price of $1850 (I also got 18-months same-as-cash and $120 in gift certificates).

Most slashdotters would probably be surprised to find out that connecting their PC using the RBG or DVI inputs of most HDTVs isn't all it's cracked up to be. I probably spent a year or so researching my next television and something I learned (by visiting AV Science forums) was that using the analog input on most TVs limits you to to a 4:3 resolution of 1024 x 768 or 1280 x 1024. Using DVI was hit and miss: Depending on the make and model of the television, you'd either get a blank screen or be limited to 4:3 resolutions.

There didn't seem to be a television that was completely PC-friendly. Samsung DLPs seemed to be the closest to plug-and-play as you could get. You had to change some settings on the TV and mess around with your display drivers, but you could make full use of every pixel on the screen. The same couldn't be said with most other HDTVs on the market.

Until I'd come across this thread.

Anyway, when I went to check the Westy out it was next to a 37" Sharp AQUOS which is considered by many to be "the best" in it's category. But you know what? After I spent 40 minutes twiddling around with the settings on both televisions I came to the conclusion that while the Sharp had the better picture quality, it wasn't $2000 better. (The 37" Sharp was being sold at $4000 at the time.) There were other factors as well. The native resolution of the Sharp was 1366 x 768 (whereas the Westinghouse runs at 1920 x 1080) and from what I've read at the AVSForums, all the Sharp LCDs are unable to be used as PC monitors without purchasing a Gefen HDCP compliant DVI switch which "fixes" the EDID data coming from the display.

As a television, the "Westy" doesn't have the best picture quality I've seen. (It's black-levels could be better.) But it's not bad, either. As a PC monitor, it's untouchable. It's useful to have so much screen real-estate for coding. And for gaming? Well, Half-Life 2 at 1920 x 1080 is incredible.

Note: The westy doesn't have a tuner (HD or otherwise), hence why it's labeled as a "Video Monitor".

I purchased the Westinghouse LVM-37w1 a few months back from Best Buy for the then-low price of $1850 (I also got 18-months same-as-cash and $120 in gift certificates).

Most slashdotters would probably be surprised to find out that connecting their PC using the RBG or DVI inputs of most HDTVs isn't all it's cracked up to be. I probably spent a year or so researching my next television and something I learned (by visiting AV Science forums) was that using the analog input on most TVs limits you to to a 4:3 resolution of 1024 x 768 or 1280 x 1024. Using DVI was hit and miss: Depending on the make and model of the television, you'd either get a blank screen or be limited to 4:3 resolutions.

There didn't seem to be a television that was completely PC-friendly. Samsung DLPs seemed to be the closest to plug-and-play as you could get. You had to change some settings on the TV and mess around with your display drivers, but you could make full use of every pixel on the screen. The same couldn't be said with most other HDTVs on the market.

Until I'd come across this thread.

Anyway, when I went to check the Westy out it was next to a 37" Sharp AQUOS which is considered by many to be "the best" in it's category. But you know what? After I spent 40 minutes twiddling around with the settings on both televisions I came to the conclusion that while the Sharp had the better picture quality, it wasn't $2000 better. (The 37" Sharp was being sold at $4000 at the time.) There were other factors as well. The native resolution of the Sharp was 1366 x 768 (whereas the Westinghouse runs at 1920 x 1080) and from what I've read at the AVSForums, all the Sharp LCDs are unable to be used as PC monitors without purchasing a Gefen HDCP compliant DVI switch which "fixes" the EDID data coming from the display.

As a television, the "Westy" doesn't have the best picture quality I've seen. (It's black-levels could be better.) But it's not bad, either. As a PC monitor, it's untouchable. It's useful to have so much screen real-estate for coding. And for gaming? Well, Half-Life 2 at 1920 x 1080 is incredible.

Note: The westy doesn't have a tuner (HD or otherwise), hence why it's labeled as a "Video Monitor".

I really want to sell the whole thing that cost me over $400 to build and switch to a Tivo.

Tivo has some nasty approaches to DRM and content expiration. If you like Myth, you'll probably be happier with a networked OOBE, DRM-free thing like ReplayTV.

AVS

Planet Replay

I see that you have been fooled by the marketing gimmicks. Let me clarify for you, so you don't get duped into thinking you're buying HD, when you actually are not.

Look at that link you provided and go to the line that says "Native" resolution. Notice that it says 1024x768. That means there is an array of mirrors on the DLP chip that is 1024 mirrors wide by 768 mirrors tall. Each one of these mirrors can display one pixel (ie, the color reflected off that mirror is the color of the pixel on the screen**). So the full 1024wide x 768tall represents the full picture on the screen. You can never get any more pixels in the width or any more pixels in the height, because you don't have any more mirrors on the DLP chip to give you those pixels.

Now, let's look at a 720p signal. A 720p signal is (digitally) 1280 pixels wide x 720 pixels tall. So, if you lay the 720p signal directly onto the mirrors on the DLP chip, 256 pixels would be hanging off the side, with no mirror to display them on the screen. The DLP chip is 1024 mirrors (pixels) wide, and the signal is 1280 pixels wide. Even though the signal is sending you more than 1024 pixels in width, it is physically impossible to display more than 1024 of those pixels ... you just can't, there are no mirrors to display them. So, what do we do, and what does the projector do?

The projector uses an internal scaler to remove some pixels, and remix the colors on other pixels. So, the scaler takes a 1280x720 signal, removes a bunch of pixels, remixes a bunch of other pixels, and gives you a new signal: 1024x576***. Hooray, this new signal is small enough to be displayed within our 1024x768 mirrors on our DLP chip. Sure, we are wasting some mirrors on the top and bottom (we need to retain the original aspect ratio so that the signal doesn't appear squished), but at least we can display the signal. These wasted pixels are the black bars on top and bottom that you see on the screen.

So you might ask, why is this not HD? Well, it's not HD because you've compressed the signal and lost some of the information from the original 720p (HD) signal. Heck, if you compress the signal even further, you can get a 853 x 480 signal (480p). Or you can compress even further and get a 64x36 pixel signal ... is that HD? Hell no. You could barey discern one blob from another in that signal.

So there you have it, hope this helps you out in your quest for HD. Just because it says it can display 1080i, doesn't mean the native resolution is 1920x1080. DLP projectors that can actually (truthfully) display a 1080i signal cost a minimum of $20,000.

**Well, it's actually more complicated than that because the mirrors only reflect white light from the lamp, but then it passes through the color wheel at the right time to project the proper color. But for simplicity of a resolution discussion, we'll leave the color wheel for some other time.

***This is called a WSVGA resolution, do a search for projectors with it ... oddly enough there are a bunch projectors at this resolution ... I wonder why?

More links:

Discussion on why broadcasters are using "i" signals versus "p" signals, ie 1080i, 720p, 480p. Note: DVDs are a 480i signal.

More information on HDTV and broadcasting than you probably care to know.

A

I'm not an authority on the subject, but everything I've read about plasma technology leads me to believe it's a half-life decay. So, yes the initial brightness loss will be the steepest. That's where you get that 5% loss in 2% of the lifetime figure. The standard advice is to run full-screen, non-static images on it for the first 200 hours. After that, static images aren't as big a deal..it's only when the change is rapid, at the beginning of the display's life that you might have a problem.

If you are convinced the brightness diminishes by 5% after the first few hundred hours, and then decays slowly, then what's the big deal? Take your current TV or monitor, and turn it up to 95% brightness. Isn't that over-bright? It is on my monitor, and on my plasma. I think I run my plasma screen at about 65% brightness, so I don't care if I've lost 5% of the potential brightness. It's like complaining my car can only go 120MPH, when I only use it for highway driving at 70-80mph.

Different technologies are going to be useful for different purposes and budgets. My requirements were that I wanted a large (50") HD display I could hang on a wall. CRT and DLP are right out, as they are big and clunky. I have a well-decorated home and don't want my TV to be the center of attention. That leaves plasma and LCD. A high-end, 50" panasonic plasma was $3500, where 50" LCDs were still only on the horizon and were expected to cost $8,000 or so. Even if my plasma is crap after five years (which I don't expect it to be), I can then buy a newer, better TV then for less money. Buy the display that's right for you, but I would really not be concerned about the brightness of a plasma display.

Oh, and if you want more information from people more knowledagable then I, I suggest you visit the avsforum.com forums. These people are insnane...for any piece of audio or video equipment imaginable there's some guy on there who's bought 18 different models and run them through 26 different tests to find out the 'best' one. If you're looking to buy a piece of home theatre equipment, a visit to that forum will give you lots of good advice, and a headache.

You are uninformed and/or prejudiced against plasmas.

Plasmas run hot, and have a severe burn-in problem.

Really? Are you saying a projector runs cooler than a plasma with identical display area? Are there any fanless projectors? There are lots of fanless plasmas.

Modern plasmas (i.e. ones made in the past few years) do not have burn-in problems. Temporary image retention (as long as a few hours in extreme cases) can still occur if an owner is careless and leaves a high-contrast, static image on for a few hours. Phosphor halflife is now approximately that of a standard CRT, meaning the lifetimes are similar.

For that reason, people in-the-know avoid them.

Oh please. Go spend some time getting informed over at AVSForum.com. A true videophile will acknowledge that FP and plasma both have a place in a serious home theater setup. But, if you can only pick one, you'd be crazy to go with the FP-- unless you have blackout curtains you can draw every time you want to watch TV.

Not true. I'm with Comcast/Boston and am able to copy all the cable and premium chanels, except for pay per view. If you're only able to copy OTA broadcasts then your local head-end is misconfigured. There are three levels of copyprotection: none, or unencrypted; copy-once, or encrypted with the right to copy to tape once; and copy-never. Cable and premium chanels are supposed to be set to "Copy Once". Your HTPC can't record these files because they're encrypted and the PC doesn't have a driver with the proper decryption keys. But the D-VHS deck will. Please see this thread over at AVS Forum for details. --M

Speaking only for Fox, we're looking forward to let people view the disc anywhere in the home on a network, or in cars or on business trips," he said. "It's an action item that's desirable, and though implementation hasn't been discussed in an open setting, people can look forward to a lot of flexibility with their content.

If a person buys/rents a DVD and it works, they won't consider the technology crippled

Very True. But the natural progression of marketing this form of technology goes something like this:

1. Format established and publicized.

2. Manufacturers sign on to build the players and begin production. First players released are marketed but they are expensive.

3. Content providers slowly dribble in source content.

4. Ecstatic early adopters embrace the new wiz-bang nerd-porn technology. Willingly forking over their hard earned ca$h for the expensive technology to show off to all the other nerd-porn loving early adopters.

5. The word slowly spreads about how truly wonderful this new technology is and receives widespread adoption as the technology gets cheap enough for Joe 6-pack.

So what's wrong with this picture? No early adopters - no game. Miss that step and the technology is dead.

Why would early adopters reject this technology?

1. DRM - the subject of this article. 2. Pay for play. 3. HDTV obsolescence. 4. Pissed off about getting burned (again).

Keep in mind that this DRM is there to slip in a pay-for-play strategy long term. Taking control of the box with this specific DRM will allow this strategy to work. The industry (**AA) has come right out and stated this is their goal. They are trying to learn from their mistake with divx and time-lapse degradable DVD's.

But DRM is not the whole story, either. What else other than DRM do we need to kill this technology? The "analog hole." Every HDTV sold before digital interfaces (DVI-HDCP, HDMI-HDCP, broadcast flag, etc.) were invented are dead as well with this technology (both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray will down-rez "analog" component connections to "DVD" quality). These HDTV's are equipped only with component (and some rare cases RGBHV) analog HD inputs.

Guess who the majority of the population that owns those early dinosaur HDTV's are? Early Adopters. This pisses them off and they will state it very loudly with their wallets. BUt they don't even have to be pissed off. Since they can't watch HDTV they simply can't make use of the technology without spending another $3000 (in addition to the $6000 they already spent 5 years ago) for a new HDTV.

Lets face it. This technology (for HDTV only - I'm sure computing/PS3/etc. will make good use of it) is stillborn. No early adopters will accept it as it is. But don't take my word for it. Go to http://www.avsforum.com/ and see what the early adopters are saying themselves.

P.S. there is another great technological failure that draws a lot of parallels here: DAT.

This controversial technology would require that disc players maintain permanent connections to content providers via the Internet,

This would be distrurbing if it were correct. Over at the AVS Forum we have been discussing these formats for some time, and representatives of BOTH sides have specifically stated that no internet connection will ever be needed on a standalone player to play a disc.

There have been a number of questions about the viability of BD+ raised, but the notion that standalone players will require Internet connections has been beaten down so many times it's just not funny anymore.

Now having said that, apparently PC-based players will require periodic key renewal. But even these won't require permanent Internet connections. And this is true for BOTH HD formats, because it is part of the AACS standard.

Apparently you don't know what kinds of things people that use home-built Media PCs want to do.

http://avsforum.com/ has all the info you're looking for. And these people are putting the highest-end "gaming" hardware to use doing video transform functions on their source material before putting it out to their projector/TV

Scale, sharpen, color correction, and a whole lot more. Not to mention that once they have all this taken care of, alot of them go on to play... games on their big screen.

Instead of purchasing a computer just to play DVDs, just buy a better DVD player that skips straight to the movie. I have had a Zenith DVB318 for almost a year that searches for the movie and jumps directly to it. If you are watching TV shows on DVD, however, it will sometimes jump to a different episode.

If you jump to the DVD menu while playing a movie to change some options or move somewhere else, it may display the FBI warning and whatnot. However, it will let you fast forward through them.

It also upconverts to HDTV resolution through component inputs. You will have to downgrade the firmware on newer units to this since they have bowed to the movie industry to disable this functionality.

AVS Forum thread on player

I wrote a long reply but I shortened it to this: Basically all I'm saying is I think you should try it for yourself. I don't think I'm going to scientifically prove it to you no matter what I say or who I reference. I'm just saying you might get some more enjoyment out of your system so why not try it? If you enjoy audio (and it seems you spent some money on your speakers), then it seems like it would be worth your time to check it out. The worst that could happened is I'd be wrong and you'd be right. The best that could happen is you would get more enjoyment out of your system.

For your referece, here is a long (43 page) debate on whether amps sound the same. There doesn't seem to be much debate, however, even by the critics, that outside of an amps linear operating range, amps sound different. This applies to a lot of consumer amps.

I'm guessing, though not certain, that your technics amp goes outside of its linear operating range pretty often. Consumer amps are often not designed for high current draw (inexpensive power supplies and not enough capacitance).

Do All Amps Sound The Same on AVS Forum

Sunny

Encrypted Streaming to Xbox over the Internet, described at AVSForum. All you need is a camcorder and ReplayTV to create your own Television Broadcast Network. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=54 9212