How to future proof your HD DVD collection
The good news for HD DVD fans is that although Toshiba isn't going to continue to manufacture HD DVD players, the ones already out there are sure to last a long time. But eventually a day will come when it just becomes impossible to keep your player working, and luckily since it's possible to rip HD DVD movies, you can convert them to Blu-ray. The Wired Wiki has a page up with the basics, but it's certainly not for the faint of heart and it's not step by step. It does include just about all the information you need to get started though, which is made up with three steps; rip, convert and burn. A dual format burner will be a must for this project as well as a fast machine and some software (not all free). This sounds like fun to us, but considering it looks like a lot of work, we'd rather just wait 'til the movie was released on Blu-ray and spend our time working on writing more posts.[Via TVSnob.com]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
shawnmos @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:25AM
Why bother? Just play them on your HD DVD player. They are cheap enough to buy a spare if you are that worried.
Phour ZwanZig @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:34PM
Shawnmos, they are talkin when you HD-DVD player dies, not the death of HD-DVD itself.
Basically, What to do if your HD-DVD player dies and you dont wanna re-buy the movie on BluRay when you own a copy that works just fine, the player doesnt.. You cant quite send in your player for repairs, maybe find a used player if lucky (then again, how offen do you see a betamax/8-track/laserdisc players for sale used) but if you cant what do you do with the disc.
Like me, I have 4 laserdiscs but the player died (didnt buy was a hand down) but laserdiscs dont fit my my DVD or floppy disc drive so I have 4 dust collectors, this would atleast let you put them to use in a way simular to my audio CD collection; rip'd to PC, boxed away.
DrXym @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:32AM
I think that if the 360 add on is dropping in price (again) it would be a sound investment for anyone with an HD DVD collection. It means you can rip movies to a PC, and remux or transcode them to play on the PC, or on pretty much any other device. That would include BD players by burning them to BD or DVDs (using BD9). The PS3 would also let you play them as .mp4 files though I think it doesn't support full surround sound.
Asgiov @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:36AM
Seems like it would cost a lot more to convert your HD-DVDs than to just wait for the re-releases on Blu-Ray and buying the movies again.
I'd say it would be best to
just sell what HD-DVD you have and then just wait to rebuy most of your movies after they've been out on blu-ray for a while at discounted prices.
Mr. E @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:50AM
Yeah, a better bet would be to wait until the hardware, software, and blank media come down substantially in price in a few years, if you're really THAT worried about it.
I agree that unless you have a really big collection, it's not worth the trouble anyway--just buy them again later on Blu-ray whenever your HD DVD player fails.
XDragon @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:38AM
At the end of the day, your HD-DVD player will still play your HD-DVD discs.
By the time the player actually dies (a crazy long time if well maintained), if you still like the HD-DVD movies you have, then you can get the version of choice at that time.
Ripping them and possibly converting them is cool and all, but its a lot of work that seems good more for people who would be abandoning their HD-DVD hardware and discs.
David (phidjit) @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:38AM
Just picked up a HD-A35 for $170 from Tiger. 9 Free movies (not all good) but now my HD-A2 becomes a backup unit.
Mitchell @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:43AM
dude, your crazy...i would of atleast bought it off ebay. $170! for a second player! I have a A2 but i am surely not buying another player.
Mitchell
Soybean @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:55AM
Yeah, that is pretty crazy for a second player. I'll get backup when they're like $20 on eBay. Otherwise, I agree with the poster above in that you just enjoy your HD DVD player until it finally dies, and then rebuy them in whatever format is prevalent at the time.
John B @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:07AM
David, ignore them. You're not crazy. It's YOUR money to do with as you please. If you get value from what you're purchased, that's all that counts. Too many people on this site think that COST and PERSONAL VALUE on an item are the same thing.
JVirg1 @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:41AM
I have 9 hd dvd movies, 6 of which are combo discs. By the time they are no longer playable on my HD DVD player they will be on a clearance rack for 4.99 on Blu-Ray. Nothing to lose sleep over.
Anthony Pivac @ Feb 22nd 2008 9:57AM
As a Blu-ray supporter, I would have to agree that HD DVD owners will get many years out their products. And places like Costco are selling units for $79. So just buy a back up. Probably cheaper than the software to make these copies and a hell of alot easier.
CassilineKnight @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:02AM
Or you could just sell them really cheap on Amazon to the diehard HD DVD losers like TT or nfinity (who I'm sure have amassed a huge load of them) and use that money to buy the Bluray versions...
Plus I honestly don't see why anyone in their right mind would drop money on HD DVD right now.
I mean the war is over. Everything is/will be Bluray from this point on. Why not save that money and put it towards a product that umm isn't discontinued?
I'm saving up for my own personal HDTV (right now theres only 1 in our house and its for the family). So I know I'm gonna need around $2,500 for the TV alone (considering the Samsung LN-T4681F or Samsung LN-T4671F). Then of course I'll probably need about $500 (max I'm willing to spend) on a Bluray Player thats fully features and future proof (which I'm confident will be the case by Holiday 08 or even Summer if we'ere lucky).
Hell the $99 one could waste on an HD DVD player could be used on MOVIES.
BTW does anyone own one of the Samsung tv's I mentioned above? What do you think of them in terms of quality and performance?
Xyzzy @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:07AM
"I mean the war is over. Everything is/will be Bluray from this point on. Why not save that money and put it towards a product that umm isn't discontinued?"
Do you honestly believe that a lot of the old catalog titles that don't sell well on either format will be released on BD? For example, you think that the old Robin Hood movie will be released on BD in the next few years? Doubtful.
It doesn't make sense to burn them now, since the players still work and the media is expensive, but it could in a couple of years.
CassilineKnight @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:10AM
Well if movies like that aren't released on Bluray then just find the DVD version you like...
Especially since Bluray players will upscale them right?
DrXym @ Feb 22nd 2008 3:24PM
Xzzy, perhaps you're right. On the other hand, if I were a studio with a VC-1 / AVC encode sitting around from an existing HD DVD then I might be tempted to throw it on Blu Ray because most of the work is already done.
Sean @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:20AM
I am waiting for Burners and BD-25 media to drop in price, Id rather keep my 80$ and get the HD-DVD ROM drive for my PC then another HD-DVD player. I plan on converting my HD-DVDs and many other things to a single layer BD in the future.
Loban @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:26AM
Or you can just rip the file to your hard drive or download a torrent copy and then build yourself an HTPC. This optical media stuff is so last decade.
tranzparentl @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:26AM
Especially by the time HD DVD players start dieing and become very scarce, I would expect older used BD discs to go pretty cheaply on ebay.
Also, I think you'd be better of just ripping them to your HDD and leaving them there instead of burning them to Blu-ray. 1080p Media Extenders should be arriving in the next year or so.
DEEZNUTZ @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:39AM
Personally, I'll be future proofing my HD DVD collection by dumping it on Ebay/Craig... My collection isn't that big to begin with, and not including the 5 free by mail, I got 3 free movies at the store +2 in the box when I bought my player. My actual movie purchases were 4 movies, plus the MATRIX trilogy.
indadogghouse @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:57AM
Future proofing? I'd be interested in the process just because I like to tinker.
If my HD DVD player ever dies, maybe in 10 years or so, we may be looking at another format completely and possibly even higher resolution movies, so future proofing is the least of my worries.
Nothing wrong with buying an HD DVD player now, especially when they are the same price as an upscaling DVD player, even cheaper. If BR is just too expensive for you now, it's a good interim solution just to get your feet wet and experience some HD now without breaking the bank.
tbor @ Feb 22nd 2008 12:03PM
I wouldn't count on those Toshiba players lasting very long, if they are anything like the 2 previous Tosh DVD players I had that broke just after warranty period. Buy a cheap backup box or 2 if you want to play your discs in the future.
regeya @ Feb 22nd 2008 1:04PM
Since it looks like you have to transcode anyway, if you're not terribly worried about it being high-quality right now, you could wait on the BD burner and transcode for DL DVDs; sure, you'll lose a great deal of quality (I guess it'd be the high-def equivalent of an SVCD) but big whoop.
Those XBox HD DVD drives are looking more attractive now.
kcmurphy88 @ Feb 22nd 2008 1:41PM
There are 133 listings today for Betamax on ebay. Why keep your own backup machine when someone else will do it for you.
Stephen Wong @ Feb 22nd 2008 2:46PM
Ah... who doesn't love the betamax facial, very original. Except betamax only played betamax tapes. Do you yell at people who buy upscaling dvd players like the oppo (a great player btw) for $200? And just curious, how many of you have actually had to replace your DVD players because they just keep breaking? I can't actually remember any of mine breaking down and having to be replaced. Excuse us for wanting the hidef dvd experience without having to drop $400 for a ps3, we'll be just fine upscaling our current collection with an hd-dvd player, and finding great liquidation deals on the hd-dvds that will surely be dropping in price everywhere (many are selling for cheaper than sd-DVDs). Sony PS3 fanboys let out a huge sigh of relief that their fancy machine actually turned out to be worth the money, congratulations! You gambled and came out on top, no need to shove it in everyone's face when all we want is to enjoy the new hi-def experience in whichever way we can get it, whether it's cheap hd-dvds, blurays, or downloadables.
John B @ Feb 22nd 2008 3:31PM
Eh? You and I read his post very differently.
I read it to mean, "Why bother getting an HD DVD player now when there will still be plenty available on eBay in the future?" Why else would he be showing that Betamax units, which have been "obsolete" for how long now, are still available?
Believe me, I hate BD elitism and I've railed against it plenty of times. But I didn't take this as an example of it.
kcmurphy88 @ Feb 22nd 2008 10:22PM
Considering that I was "red" until sometime in January, when I unhappily starting moving blue, I'd say that John has it right.
There is no reason to panic about there being HD DVD players if yours breaks, as even a 25-year-dead Betamax is available. There's even one "new in box."
And don't knock the Betamax: Beta III was a MUCH better format than VHS. Not that it ever mattered.
John @ Feb 22nd 2008 5:16PM
Convert to BR?! Some of the blank discs cost more than the pre-recorded ones.
HDpurist @ Feb 22nd 2008 5:37PM
eh...
Future proof & HD-DVD = oxymoron
John B @ Feb 22nd 2008 6:21PM
Nice threadcrap, Bluboy. :P