An Armistice in the Format War?
Okay, here's a wrinkle to the high-def DVD format war I absolutely did not see coming: Engadget is reporting that Warner has just patented a DVD capable of containing Blu-ray, HD-DVD and conventional DVD content on a single flippable platter.
It's brilliant, really: The different refraction levels of the HD-DVD and Blu-ray lasers -- which are the reason a player designed for one format cannot read discs pressed in the other -- make it possible to burn both types of content onto the same side of a disc that can be played in either machine.
An HD-DVD player's laser won't "see" the Blu-ray layer, focusing right through it to read the HD-DVD information, while the Blu-ray player will simply find the Blu-ray layer first, and not need to look any further. (Using the same strategy as Warner's current HD-DVD hybrids, the standard DVD layer is on the other side of the disc.)
I always figured this format war would be won by whatever hardware manufacturer was first with a combo player, but assuming this tribrid disc is competitively priced, it changes the game in an entirely different way -- a lot of people will buy these discs, and then look for the cheapest possible high-def player. And last I checked, HD-DVD machines were selling for about half the price of their Blu-ray brethren ...
... time to slash those prices, Sony!
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It's brilliant, really: The different refraction levels of the HD-DVD and Blu-ray lasers -- which are the reason a player designed for one format cannot read discs pressed in the other -- make it possible to burn both types of content onto the same side of a disc that can be played in either machine.
An HD-DVD player's laser won't "see" the Blu-ray layer, focusing right through it to read the HD-DVD information, while the Blu-ray player will simply find the Blu-ray layer first, and not need to look any further. (Using the same strategy as Warner's current HD-DVD hybrids, the standard DVD layer is on the other side of the disc.)
I always figured this format war would be won by whatever hardware manufacturer was first with a combo player, but assuming this tribrid disc is competitively priced, it changes the game in an entirely different way -- a lot of people will buy these discs, and then look for the cheapest possible high-def player. And last I checked, HD-DVD machines were selling for about half the price of their Blu-ray brethren ...
... time to slash those prices, Sony!
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