BluRay announces Profile 2.0 and BD-Live Discs
In case you live under a rock, BluRay won the Civil War of High Def DVD Formats™. So now you can relax, and go out and get yourself a new toy. But you might want to wait for Profile 2.0 Players for special edition BD-Live discs.
What is BD-Live?? Yahoo News tells us:
The musical spoof “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story” and the Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi thriller “The 6th Day” will be the studio’s first two BD-Live titles. Their release coincides with the launch of a new software update for Sony’s PlayStation 3 that makes the game console the first Blu-ray player with Internet connectivity, an ability known as “Profile 2.0.”Ultimately, all Blu-ray players will be Profile 2.0. When the format launched in June 2006, Blu-ray players were of the basic Profile 1.0 kind, meaning they could offer neither picture-in-picture nor Internet connectivity, something the doomed HD DVD rival format offered from Day 1.
I am thankful that this Civil War of High Def DVD Formats™ only lasted about two and a half years instead of its predated Format War between VHS and Beta that arguably lasted 13 years. But this new news caught me at two different angles at the same time.
1. Viable improvement.
Like the mighty Borg, resistance is futile. The war is over. But the Borg do not destroy, they consume. Borg integrate beings and cultures into their collective. And I see this “upgrade” as a feature that is dragged out from the spoils of war. BluRay won. They have no offical competition anymore. So why not adapt some of the features of the format it beat out?
2. Money Grab
This was my first reaction to the news. I listed it second because the logic of the first point is making this less of an issue, but it still remains.
BluRay saw a phenomenal increase in sales mere seconds after Toshiba threw in the towel with their HD-DVD. Electronic stores were swamped with the standby enthusiasts who refused to buy one of these next gen formats until the war was over. Hell, US Best Buy stores were offering a token “sorry you lost” $50 gift card program for people who paid piles of money to back the loser.
Now you ran out and got your BluRay player right? You are ready for the future! The war is over, so let’s celebrate and throw our lot in with the invested purchase of a High Definition DVD player that will retail for half that price in a year!
Oops. There is a new BluRay coming out. A George Lucas Special Edition upgraded version of the one you already have. G’head, buy that one too.
But it isn’t so bad. If the upgraded feature to go online for additional content is not an appeal to you, then don’t worry. Your current outdated BluRay Player still works.
Is this move a money grab, or just a much needed improvement to fill the gap of an HD-DVD feature lost with its format?
32 Comments, Comment or Ping
Jay C.
“BluRay saw a phenomenal increase in sales mere seconds after Toshiba threw in the towel with their HD-DVD.”
Not quite.
“HD-DVD Outselling Blu-Ray? Dead Format Flies Off Discount Shelves”
http://www.mp3newswire.net/stories/8002/hd-DVD_outsells_blu-ray.html
Mar 24th, 2008
DJ Machismo
The article says it all.
Just get a PS3, which myself and others have been pushing for a long time. You’ll always have the latest updates that Blu Ray has to offer. Plus a kick ass video game console all wrapped into one.
Mar 24th, 2008
Fred
DJ is right. I’m pretty sure the top selling BluRay player out there is the PS3. Why buy a stand alone player when you can get a video game system and BluRay player all in one?
Mar 24th, 2008
KevinN
I’m not certain why there weren’t finalized Blu-ray 2.0 players to begin with, but I don’t think that Sony rolled out now function limited 1.0 profile players as a completely selfish move. HD DVD came out several months before BD, so it would make sense for a company which already had much invested in Blu-ray to enter the market with ‘fully-functional’ but unfinished spec players. After all, if Sony played things differently the outcome of the hi-def player war may have turned in Toshiba’s favour.
I think Sony made it very clear to both consumers and retailers that BD 1.0 was unfinished; thus, I think the onus should be on those consumers who did not thoroughly research their purchase beforehand, and those retailers who did not educate their customers adequately during the purchase.
I totally agree with DJ Machismo - the PS3 is the way to go. I have one and I am very much biased towards the device. It’s 6 months old right now and I have never regretted buying it, strengthened by the fact that Sony is continuing to improve it through software updates.
Mar 24th, 2008
mojomann
Actually Sony had been talking about profile 2.0 and BD-Live last November and even showcased it CES in January so this isn’t actually big news. As far being a money grab hard to say since they were planning this well before Toshiba dropped out.
Also the on HD DVD side the internet usage was not supported by many releases at day 1 so the feature sat useless for the most part. To be honest I don’t know that it makes to much difference being able to link directly to the internet while watching a movie. The picture in picture should have been on BluRay from the start. Sony probably dropped it to shave cost on initial systems (which were still ridiculously high!)
For anyone that bought a stand alone BluRay player, there will more than likely be a firmware patch for the system. This will give older units at least the ability to do picture in picture. PS3 gets it automaticly because they push out firmware updates on a regular basis. In fact you can’t bypass an update. It will lock you out from going on the internet or PSNetwork until you update which sucks but at least your always current…
Mar 24th, 2008
Rodney
Jay C. The phenomenal increase in sales was for NEW units. Not discounted or discontinued clearance units.
Major chains were selling off old stock of HD DVD players simply because they lowered the price to under $100. Furthermore, the HD player does make a kickass upconverting dvd, and at $100 it was cheaper than a quality upconverting unit.
So yes. BluRay did see a vast improvement in their unit sales immediately after the announcement.
Mar 24th, 2008
TheBigGiantHead
I still think this format is way to expensive. I will stick with the regular dvd format untill the prices come way down. If I do decide to go out and buy one you bet it will be the ps3.
Mar 24th, 2008
Divine Shadow
Dvd’s are just fine. Blu ray is hardly anything I’m going waste my money on.
And if your playing Blu-Rays on your PS3 it will only wear-out sooner.
Enjoy…..
Mar 24th, 2008
alex
dvds look like garbage when compared to blu-ray in 1080p!
it completely blows it away!
have fun living in the last format shadow!
Mar 24th, 2008
Rodney
@Divine… playing dvds in your dvd player will wear it out eventually too.
The PS3 BluRay is actually one of Sony’s highest quality drives. Even without considering the gaming capabilities, the PS3 has a greater comparable value to a stand alone BluRay player.
Mar 24th, 2008
alex
@rodney
not only that im pretty sure its still the cheapest blu-ray player around!
Mar 24th, 2008
DivineShadow
Blu-ray is just the format of the half-decade. It will be replaced with a new format that looks better in about 5 years.
Dvds however play in more devices at this time. Sure Blu-ray looks better but I’m not falling for these format scams.
Hell just 10 years ago the Laser Disc was the ultimate in video format.
I just have better things to blow money on.
Within 3 years the PS3 will be obsolete and blu-ray discs will be 10 bucks new.
But hey I guess your cool if you have a blu-ray player.
Mar 24th, 2008
DivineShadow
600 bucks compaired to 50 bucks.
I’ll keep the dvd player.
I’m also one of those guys that likes to play “games” on my 360 not waste the dvr reader on movies.
Also like the detachable 120G hardrive and you can’t beat vibrating controllers.
(Both these the PS3 dosnt have)…
But hey that’s cool beans.
Mar 24th, 2008
alex
@divine shadow
yeah i have a 360 and i think the games and online are better than ps3,
but still the ps3 has blu-ray and not its NOT 600 dollars, my freind just got one for like 300,
and yes the 360 has some better features then the ps3 but why would u list some extremely crappy ones like vibrating controllers when ps3 has motion sensing controllers and a detacheble HDD when the ps3 has a built in HDD AND the option to attach your own HDD so ya basically it does have a detachable HDD if you really want one, which i see NO need for since i have NEVER detached my 360’s HDD!
Mar 24th, 2008
PolyNate
Divine has a 360. That pretty much explains his past posts.
Vibrating controllers? What’s so ‘cool’ about that? Are you a woman?
Mar 24th, 2008
DivineShadow
What took you so long polynate?
Mar 24th, 2008
HisDivineShadow
Vibrating controllers you know PolyNate like
the ones on the PS2.
Oh yeah until
Sony got sued and had to change their design at the last minute….. To protect the blu-ray scam. (Enjoy).
That’s one thing Xbox has over Sony.
(And allways will).
Xbox focuses on the
gaming experience. Not the dvd playback…
If it wernt for the PS3 blu-ray would have lost the format battle.
Mar 24th, 2008
PolyNate
If a vibrating controller is why you bought a 360 over a PS3 then more power to you.
There’s only reason why you should have a vibrating-anything. Fortunately, I don’t have that body part. ; )
Mar 25th, 2008
Rodney
BluRay won the Civil war of Formats simply because they negotiated more studios to go exclusive. They had over 70% of the marketshare on BluRay. Units sold had nothing to do with the decision to stop making the HDDVD.
Toshiba simply recognized that they were too far behind and chose to support the majority purely for costs and customer satisfaction.
Your XBox 360 will have a bluray addon within the year.
Mar 25th, 2008
Fred
You can swap out the PS3 HDD for pretty much any laptop HDD if you wanted. It even has instructions on how to do so in the system manual.
Also, Dual Shock 3 releasing this summer with the new bundle pack announced by Sony:
80 gig PS3 with the Dual Shock 3 controller and Metal Gear Solid 4; price $499 USD.
You can swap out the PS3 HDD for pretty much any laptop HDD if you wanted. It even has instructions on how to do so in the system manual.
@Polynate
I can see where he’s coming from when he mentions the vibration (force feedback). Force feedback is a big part of gaming now. I remember when I first got a Wavebird controller for my Gamecube. I was playing Zelda when I noticed it had no force feedback when I would charge my sword up for the spin attack…after that I barely used that controller again heh. Just this weekend I was over at a friend’s place playing R6 Vegas with him on his PS3 and the lack of rumble just didn’t feel right. But, as I said, the Dual Shock 3 is coming this year so all that will be fixed :D
Mar 25th, 2008
Colin
I think I’ll take lack of a vibrating controller over a 1 in 3 failure rate any day of the week, thank you very much.
Mar 25th, 2008
DJ Machismo
I didn’t realize gaming fanboyism spread to the movie blog, crazy.
He can do whatever he damn well pleases, its his money.
Personally I’m glad I watch Blu Ray movies on the nice 1080p projection screen that my PS3, 360 and Wii are hooked up to.
DVDs are still kick ass, just got a shipment of a few in this week, Blu Ray are still a tad expensive but Amazon.com has been doing a lot to alleviate that. Still, he’s right, in 3 years Blu Ray discs will be cheaper and more accessible, how this is supposed to be a bad thing though I will not know. I just hope that they start packaging Blu Ray discs with DVDs of the same title. Being able to have my 1080p experience along with getting the technology that is still prevalent in most homes to be able to take it anywhere (watch at a friends house, in the car on long trips, etc.) will be a pretty good idea. Especially since HD DVD could do the same idea on the same disc. I’d like to see if the double disc packaging becomes a reality.
As far as wearing out the player in the systems… I still have a launch PS2 that I play games and watch movies on, still going strong. I’m not too worried about the ramblings of a fanboy who is just a bitter antagonist on these comment boards.
Love peace and chicken grease!
Mar 25th, 2008
Chark
“Blu-ray players were of the basic Profile 1.0 kind, meaning they could offer neither picture-in-picture nor Internet connectivity, something the doomed HD DVD rival format offered from Day 1.”
Nitpick… Not sure how it doomed HDDVD from day one, considering HDDVD had “2.0″ specs built in from the start and it’s just now that Sony has caught up (and on the PS3 only- players aren’t due for another few months).
As for PS3, it still doesn’t play the full gamut of HD audio- ie, DTS HD. It’s a pretty sweet Blu Ray player (ESPECIALLY with Sony’s constant support), but it’s not flawless if you care about audio or even better “upconverted” DVD playback.
Mar 25th, 2008
Chark
Adendum: And while I understand holding to DVD while Blu-Ray prices drop, you are missing out on a better, more movie-like format, no doubt about it.
Mar 25th, 2008
Rodney
@chark,
They article doesnt claim that those features were responsible for dooming the HDDVD format. Simply that the HD format has met its doom.
There will forever be people who say that BluRay won while HD-DVD was “better” just like there are still people who want to rant that Beta was better.
Its over Browncoats. The Alliance is in control. Live with it.
Mar 25th, 2008
HisDivineShadow
Boy rodney your really plugged into the matrix.
Geessh.
Mar 25th, 2008
eduardo
never knew so much gamers were in here..
i myself don’t have any blu ray that uses profile 2.0… but progress is always good. i got myself the 2.0 and i am happy with my blu ray movies…
it’s not about who is or was better or not.. its about who won at the end. history classes don’t tell the presidentts that lost in the election, they just tell you about the chosen one :D… (bad metaphor but hope it explain itself hm*)
@rodney
There will forever be people who say that BluRay won while HD-DVD was “better” just like there are still people who want to rant that Beta was better.
AMEN :)..
Mar 25th, 2008
HisDivineShadow
Hey rodney your really plugged into the matrix.
Gheeshh
Mar 25th, 2008
HisDivineShadow
Sorry for that double post
I did however need to spell check
Ghessh.
Rodney I have nothing against Blu-ray but the 360 is soooooooooooo far ahead of gaming then the Ps3.
Btw I don’t have the first gen 360′ I have an Elite. The bug have been worked out.
+ you can’t play Halo on a PS3.
Congrats for the blu-ray but I doubt you’ll ever see a blu-ray upgrade for the 360.
Blu-ray has won the battle but not the War. Blu-ray still has a long way to go to beat out dvds.
By the time blu-ray gains momentum in the marketplace, online downloads will be its compatition. If blu-ray even lasts that long.
Flash-disc’s are even more high+tech and coming soon.
Mar 25th, 2008
Fred
I don’t see where this turned into a discussion trying to get Rodney into buying the “better” gaming system….I’m pretty sure it was about BluRay players and as you said Shadow, it’s doubtful that microsoft will adopt a BluRay add-on for the 360. But I have heard that microsoft is apparently in talks with Sony about it, nothing confirmed on that though, just rumours right now.
As for me, I don’t pick a side in gaming, I just play them all. At the moment I own a 360 Elite, but I don’t play Halo 3 anymore, I pretty much forgot about that before Christmas :P I’m all about Call of Duty 4 now and Burnout Paradise…which are both multiplatform I might add :D I plan on adding a PS3 to my gaming when Metal Gear Solid comes out.
Mar 26th, 2008
Chark
“@chark,
They article doesnt claim that those features were responsible for dooming the HDDVD format. Simply that the HD format has met its doom.”
Boy, did I misread that paragraph. You’re right, Rodney.
Ultimately, despite it’s shitty and totally unprepared out of gate start (another casualty of the format war), Blu-Ray is fine by me. It’s all going to be sixes by 2009 anyway. So Blu-Ray Blu won, it’s finally coming “up to spec” and all is well.
Just don’t give me the excuse it’s not much different than DVD. That’s a weak justification– it’s better in every way both aurally and visually. Can’t afford it yet, fine. But HD isn’t better enough to switch and you’re getting a comparable experience from DVD? Not even.
Mar 26th, 2008
Chark
Adendum: …errr… unless you’re watching Blu-Ray on a standard def or small flatscreen/no surround.
Mar 26th, 2008
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