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dual-format posts

Surround Records decides to go dual-format

by Darren Murph posted Jan 31st 2008 at 4:31PM

While it seems that most of the industry is going Blu-ray exclusive or simply staying put, indie distributor Surround Records has decided to go format agnostic. Previously, the firm was dishing out multichannel audio releases on DVD-Audio discs and HD DVD, but now HighDefDigest is reporting that it will soon start supporting Blu-ray. Unfortunately, there's no details on how when exactly the outfit will start churning out releases on BD nor any word on what titles will be available on both formats, but this choice certainly throws an unexpected (though likely insignificant) splash of purple into the mix, now doesn't it?

[Thanks, Kiwi616]

Samsung's DB-UP5000 HD DVD / Blu-ray player: $799, shipping mid-to-late December

by Thomas Ricker posted Dec 6th 2007 at 5:10AM

Good news. This time, we won't be burdening you with more talk of delays to Samsung's DB-UP5000 dual format player. On the contrary, a Samsung spokesperson told Dealerscope that the much anticipated HD DVD and Blu-ray player is on target for a "mid-to-late December" launch. Better yet, the price is down from $999 to a more reasonable $799. That is, until you consider the combined cost of a $499 $399 PS3 and sub-$200 HD DVD player.

Samsung announces more details on 3rd-gen and dual-format players

by Erik Hanson posted Jul 25th 2007 at 12:39PM

Samsung BD-UP5000 dual-format HD DVD and Blu-ray player
Samsung has released more details about the company's third-generation Blu-ray player lineup, including a home theater-in-a-box system, and the Duo HD dual-format HD DVD / Blu-ray player. We learned about the two Blu-ray players earlier this month, and we can add to that info support on both players for 24 or 60fps playback at 1080p. The BD-P2400 also adds 7.1-channel output, with the BD-P1400 sporting 5.1 outs. The dual-format BD-UP5000 was also announced back in April, and now we know that it will play back both of the high-definition formats at 1080p and includes the HQV upconversion processor chip found in the BD-P2400. It includes the same feature set as the BD-P2400, with Blu-ray playback at 24 or 60fps, 7.1-channel out, and Dolby Digital Plus and DTS HD support. It also has HD DVD-specific features like local storage and picture-in-picture support, while staying fully compatible with both the HDi and BD-J interactive specs. The HT-BD2 home theater system includes an 1,100-watt receiver and the same media playback features as the BD-P1400. It also includes five tower speakers, two rear satellites, and a powered sub. The BD-UP5000 will retail for $1,049, and the HT-BD2 will ship for $1,499, both in the fourth quarter of this year.

Digital Video Essentials calibration tool launches on HD DVD

by Darren Murph posted Apr 17th 2007 at 10:25AM


We certainly can't say that this one arrived a moment too soon, as all of you early adopters of HD DVD drives have probably been frustrating yourself with manual color calibration techniques that just never turned out quite right. Thankfully, the highly-anticipated (and perpetually delayed) HD DVD version of Digital Video Essentials is finally available for sale, and interestingly, the disc will actually be of the dual-format variety for those still keeping a vanilla DVD player around the house. Users will be graced with both 1080p and 720p VC-1 encoded material, NTSC and PAL compatibility, 6.1-channel Dolby Digital Plus and Dolby Digital True HD tracks, built-in color filters, and of course, widescreen / standard options. So if you've been yearning to get your HD DVD calibration on, the time has finally come, at least for those willing to shell out the $34.95 required to pick DVE up.

Blu-ray / HD DVD stalemate boosting interest in combo player?

by Darren Murph posted Dec 16th 2006 at 2:19PM

Nothing like a little false hope to brighten your Saturday, right? Of course, we hope the current stalemate in the Blu-ray / HD DVD war actually yields a combo player, but after the on-again / off-again (and again) love affair with the idea, we're not holding our collective breath. Nevertheless, it seems that the current state actually doesn't have one format trouncing the other as many believed would happen after a few months unfolded. Essentially, consumers are "generally indifferent" to the two, and considering there's just seven more HD DVD titles currently available than BD titles, it doesn't look like one or the other will win on sheer studio popularity. While we've seen the Blu-ray-equipped PS3 outsell Microsoft's HD DVD drive 5 to 1, there isn't much substance in such a statistic, but apparently Taiwan-based manufacturers are rethinking their previous denials of unleashing a player that handles both discs. DigiTimes has it that Samsung is "planning to offer dual-format recorders that can record and play back BD and HD DVD movies," while Hitachi (a devout member of the BDA), is also "considering production of dual-format devices." They also went so far as to point out the obvious when noting that a "dual-format device would be more expensive than a single-format unit" -- but hey, it's likely cheaper than buying one of each, eh?

Toshiba & Memory-Tech unveil new triple-layer DVD TWIN disc

by Richard Lawler posted Sep 11th 2006 at 7:59AM

Toshiba has unveiled a new flavor of HD DVD that they plan to present to the DVD forum, a single-sided triple layer HD DVD/DVD disc, capable of either a dual-layer 30GB HD DVD and single-layer 4.7GB configuration or single-layer 15GB HD DVD and dual-layer 8.5 GB DVD. This is a change from the original DVD TWIN standard that only allowed for two layers, one HD DVD and on DVD, on the same side of the disc. This is also different from the combo discs released by Warner and Universal here in the US, as those discs are dual-sided. DVD TWIN format movies have only been released in Japan by publisher Pony Canyon, at least partially due to concerns that not all DVD players will be able to read them without problems. As such, we probably will continue to not see these released over here, either way, if they want dual-format discs to to speed HD DVD growth having discs that don't require flipping to view DVD extras is a welcome advance but how about lowering the price?




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