http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/ Engadget HD Comments for Microsoft moves 92,000 HD DVD add-ons over the holidays http://www.engadgethd.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadgethd.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 15th 2007 9:52PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 2:16PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 15th 2007 9:54PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
It is fair to compare the number of Blu-ray players vs HD DVD players on the market.]]>Jan 15th 2007 9:57PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 15th 2007 10:03PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
92k in North America in 2 months isn't good sales? Then explain why if you take out PS3 sales Blu-ray has only mustered 25 thousand sales.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070115-8625.html

According to NPD data. Blu-ray is the PS3 and currently the demand for the PS3 is waning fast. They've shipped a Million units worldwide and the interest is fading. Clearly Sony would have never hit their hyped up 4 million units in North America even if they had the product available. You can forget a price decrease, Sony's losing hundreds on both units.

Keep in mind that the 92k doesn't reference Europe where the sales are brisk. MS is quoting that they've shipped 150k units total. They still have 10 million Xbox 360s to market to. I haven't bought mine and I have a friend that's looking for one as well for her Xbox. We're just started buddy. ]]>Jan 16th 2007 4:12AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
As to why it would be an unfair conclusion -
Every HD DVD add-on sold guarantees that that add-on will be used for HD DVD movies. There is no guarantee (much less guesstimates) on how many PS3s are used as Blu-Ray players.

As mentioned, there wasn't any noticeable impact on Blu-Ray or HD DVD movie sales from the time the add-on and the PS3 were released.]]>Jan 15th 2007 10:24PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 15th 2007 10:24PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 6:44PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 15th 2007 11:41PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
I suppose I will pick-up the HD-DVD addon. Sony's past with a multitude of mistakes, junky products (batteries? CCD chips?), and what seems to be a lack of care for the consume has swayed me away from Blu-ray altogether. Even if it were to come out on top, it would take me some time to willingly start buying a product that Sony holds a huge influence on.]]>Jan 16th 2007 12:18AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
-Sega CD
-Sega 32x
-Atari Jaguar CD-ROM
-Nintendo 64 Disk Drive (never even got released!)

This list is probably not even exhaustive, but you can see that the Xbox 360 HD-DVD add-on drive stands to be more successful than any of these.
]]>Jan 16th 2007 12:39AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/

The reason add on's didn't work is it was for games and not enough sega cd's were sold to support a game company to program games that only a few could play. The HD DVD add isn't the only way to watch HD DVD movies so not the same thing.]]>Jan 16th 2007 3:10AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 2:52PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 10:29AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 7:12AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
25,000 standalone blu-ray players sold
120,000 standalone hd-dvd players sold

That's a lot more dedicated hd-dvd players sold!


Yet only 25,000 of those Blu-ray players were purchased as standalone units (that is, dedicated Blu-ray players), with the other 400,000 coming in the form of the Sony PS3. The big question here is whether or not PS3 purchases are signs of consumer interest in Blu-ray, per se. Compare this situation to HD DVD: 120,000 units were purchased as standalone players, with another 150,000 units coming in the form of HD DVD upgrade kits on Xbox 360s. (The Xbox 360 does not come with HD DVD, but a $200 HD DVD addon appeared on the market shortly before the 2006 holiday season.)


]]>Jan 16th 2007 7:25AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 9:59AMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
BTW HD-DVD's are still outselling Blu-ray films at least on amazon so perhaps that answers the question of who's actually buying movies for the formats.

http://www.hdgamedb.com/amazon/history.aspx?TYPE=100&SPAN=14

Top 100 sales over the last 2 weeks on Amazon for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.]]>Jan 16th 2007 12:02PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
I hear your argument that many people who buy the PS3 aren't buying it for blu-ray.

Well, you are partially correct.

However, when owners of the PS3 are ready to adapt this next gen dvd technology, they will already have a blu-ray player in their homes in the PS3. That makes for a huge lead over HD-DVD no matter how you guys spin it.]]>Jan 16th 2007 1:34PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
It's funny that you call us blind and then you ramble off some pie in the sky theory that PS3 owners will suddenly get an epiphany about their PS3 players. Yeah, you go ahead and keep that hope alive. I'll keep my blindness thank you. ]]>Jan 16th 2007 2:34PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/available ANYWHERE for a LONG time, it was for a moment in December,
at least on Amazon.de. I've checked with some retailers and they said
they're out of them and they don't know when they'll get more. I would
definitely buy one, just for fun to see how it works on my computer.
Who knows, might someday get myself a 360:) I don't know if it's a
more wider spread problem with the availability but amazon.uk has
also been out of it for a longer time too. Worth to mention is that
Amazon.de has dropped the price of the Tosh XE-1 from €949 to
€539, the E-1 (only) €649 to €535!]]>Jan 16th 2007 2:40PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/
This suggests that few ps3s are being used as a BD player, so the strategy Sony is trying is clearly not working right now. That PS3 owners may suddenly "wise up" is the only hope SCEA can have in the face of these numbers. They ought to be worried.


]]>Jan 16th 2007 7:57PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/HD_DVD_Studio_Support]]>Jan 16th 2007 9:30PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 16th 2007 9:43PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/hd-dvd uses vc-1 which simply is better than mpeg-2( right now )
BUT, blu-ray will be shipping mpeg4 movies soon, the first movie being casino royale
if you want to see the diff between vc-1 and mpeg4, it is the diff between using quicktime to watch videos versus windows media player.
notice that quicktime movies of the same clip and resolution actually take more space. this is why it is neccesary for blu-ray to be 50GB( most blu-ray movies right now are single layer, thus they use the mpeg2 because it takes less space.)

unfortuntly for hd-dvd, they are starting to ALREADY max out on capacity. the hd-dvd title KING-KONG was limited to 30gb, and thus they had to take out high quality audio to sacrifice space usage.

personally, i think that blu-ray has much better future value than hd-dvd.]]>Jan 18th 2007 11:50PMhttp://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/01/15/microsoft-moves--92-000-hd-dvd-add-ons-over-the-holidays/Jan 19th 2007 6:22PM