[The Stainy Yak]

Originally Posted by Oeshon

Mine hasnt broke down and i know about 10 other people irl with 360s who havent had any problems.

10 people in Geelong with a 360? BLATANT LIES

[Salmonella]

Originally Posted by Aas Gutú Adéli

MS has repeatedly made statements that they will not ever include bluray.
It would require a system redesign.
They weren't willing to do it with their own format.

There hasn't even been legit talk of an external bluray drive.

So I have my doubts.

I have no interest (at this time) for metal gear. (or ****l, as you call it...)

bluray player + games is a good package.
but the 360 exclusives are pretty sweet (but it has been pointed out that they are available on PC, too...)

It's not entirely solid, but G4 is reporting that a Chinese company claims they are producing Blu Ray drives for the 360. They also note the BR drive will probably be external and games will not be produced on the BR discs.

G4 - The Feed - More Xbox 360 Blu-Ray SKU Rumors Surface

[Salmonella]

Originally Posted by Aas Gutú Adéli

So my decision is:
Is bluray "better enough" than dvd to justify wanting a player (especially when you figure that DVDs go for $5-$20, when blurays go for $25-$35)

If you have a HDTV (preferably 1080p), Blu Ray is worth the cost over DVD. The picture and sound quality improvement is enormous. If you have a standard TV set, the difference is not good enough to warrant the cost in my opinion.

[Oeshon]

Originally Posted by The Stainy Yak

10 people in Geelong with a 360? BLATANT LIES

i know im suprised aswell! :p

[Aas Gutú Adéli]

Originally Posted by Salmonella

It's not entirely solid, but G4 is reporting that a Chinese company claims they are producing Blu Ray drives for the 360. They also note the BR drive will probably be external and games will not be produced on the BR discs.

G4 - The Feed - More Xbox 360 Blu-Ray SKU Rumors Surface

Interesting.
That story just won't die.

Again, my 'waiting' policy seems solid.

It was my understanding that MS wants to push 'home media server' services and downloadable content.

Patience.

[Aas Gutú Adéli]

Originally Posted by Salmonella

If you have a HDTV (preferably 1080p), Blu Ray is worth the cost over DVD. The picture and sound quality improvement is enormous. If you have a standard TV set, the difference is not good enough to warrant the cost in my opinion.

47" hdtv, 1080p with dual HDMI ins.

I just upgraded to hd cable last weekend (1080i content).
Huge leap over standard def.
Decent leap over standard DVDs (which get upscaled and do look very pretty).

I just wonder if 1080p bluray will feel worth the additional price per disc and the forfeiture of 360 exclusives.

It sounds like you'd say 'yes.'
I suppose netflix is another way to increase its value for me.

[The Stainy Yak]

Originally Posted by Oeshon

i know im suprised aswell! :p

I have a few theories on how people from Geelong might obtain a 360.

1) Competition on slabs of VB

2) Burglarised from Melbourne and smuggled over the Westgate in the boot of a HQ

3) Centrelink scam

[Salmonella]

Originally Posted by Aas Gutú Adéli

Interesting.
That story just won't die.

Again, my 'waiting' policy seems solid.

It was my understanding that MS wants to push 'home media server' services and downloadable content.

Patience.

MS is definitely moving in the downloadable content direction, but I'm not sure the market is ready for it just yet. People still want to be able to own a copy of their movie/tv show/game on portable media, mostly for the fact that it is easily transferable to other devices. HD movies on demand especially penetrating the marketplace is a few years down the road. Since HD-DVD is dead, MS has to fill the gap with the high def media war winner.

[Salmonella]

Originally Posted by Aas Gutú Adéli

47" hdtv, 1080p with dual HDMI ins.

I just upgraded to hd cable last weekend (1080i content).
Huge leap over standard def.
Decent leap over standard DVDs (which get upscaled and do look very pretty).

I just wonder if 1080p bluray will feel worth the additional price per disc and the forfeiture of 360 exclusives.

It sounds like you'd say 'yes.'
I suppose netflix is another way to increase its value for me.

I have a similar set -- once you hook up a BR player using the HDMI input, standard def DVD is difficult to go back and watch. It's like trying to go back to VHS after owning a DVD player. I highly recommend the PS3 for that reason. If you're an avid gamer and can wait for the possibility of a 360 Blu Ray add on (supposedly coming in the fall), that might be the better choice. It is definitely worth losing the 360 exclusives for me because I play video games rather infrequently but watch a lot of movies.

Perhaps waiting is the better choice indeed haha.

And yes, Netflix is the way to go if you have a BR player, watch a lot of movies and don't want to spend a ton of money on BR movies. I'm on the plan myself.

[Aas Gutú Adéli]

Originally Posted by Salmonella

MS is definitely moving in the downloadable content direction, but I'm not sure the market is ready for it just yet. People still want to be able to own a copy of their movie/tv show/game on portable media, mostly for the fact that it is easily transferable to other devices. HD movies on demand especially penetrating the marketplace is a few years down the road. Since HD-DVD is dead, MS has to fill the gap with the high def media war winner.

Could be the case.

CDs rock because I can buy them, rip them and move them around.
Liberating the information from the media.

DVDs you can do that, too.
I bought an external HD that plays media. So I can plug it into a TV and it'll shoot out the compressed 'backup' videos.

Blurays on the other hand, are very much bound to the media. That highdef movie is stuck on the disc. There are ways to 'liberate' but the data is ponderous and when you compress it down, is it still pristine HD?

The market at large might not be ready for downloadable content, but MS is well positioned to push it. Especially if their rumored deal with netflix comes to be (streaming near HD after brief prefetch to the 360 for netflix subscribers).