MrFrankly
Aug 29, 09:05 AM
I think it's ridiculous to not put a Core 2 Duo chip into the Mini. While I'm not waiting for Merom, to upgrade one of your machines with a faster version of the same soon-to-be-out-of-date chip is silly.
I think Apple is more concerned with price for the Mac Mini than speed. Make them just a little bit faster than they are now, but much cheaper.
They're too expensive in the line-up now, with merom they would stay the same price but with Yonah they can make them cheaper again.
I think Apple is more concerned with price for the Mac Mini than speed. Make them just a little bit faster than they are now, but much cheaper.
They're too expensive in the line-up now, with merom they would stay the same price but with Yonah they can make them cheaper again.
QCassidy352
Aug 24, 06:13 PM
the new intel integrated graphics isn't ready, is it? So these will be merom minis with a GMA 950?
Rt&Dzine
Mar 22, 01:47 PM
Yes, it's a company that makes it's own decisions and it's own products. They choose what they will allow and won't allow. If you are a car company you choose to make a mini van or not. Apple chooses what they want, we accept what they give us. If you don't, dont download it or get it, no one is forcing you to have it!
I actually agree. But would you still think this if they didn't allow "Gay B-Gone." Or would you cry that gays always get their way?
I actually agree. But would you still think this if they didn't allow "Gay B-Gone." Or would you cry that gays always get their way?
motulist
Aug 7, 03:29 AM
An image of the new iPhone just came out! I can't reveal the source I got it from, but you have to trust me, this is the real deal!
NAG
Jan 12, 04:41 PM
just because they used Air in their banner doesn't mean its called MacBook Air.. Apple is not stupid.. its all about slim and light..
I'll be the one who'll tell you "I told you so" ;) .. enjoy the show!
http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=4732961&postcount=94
or this..
http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=4733969&postcount=100
:apple:MacBook Lite:apple:
Feb 2008
Not Found
The requested URL /showpost...1&postcount=94 was not found on this server.
Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.
You told us so? ;)
I'll be the one who'll tell you "I told you so" ;) .. enjoy the show!
http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=4732961&postcount=94
or this..
http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=4733969&postcount=100
:apple:MacBook Lite:apple:
Feb 2008
Not Found
The requested URL /showpost...1&postcount=94 was not found on this server.
Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.
You told us so? ;)
cjc343
Apr 4, 07:16 PM
Save Apple!!! Sign MY petition.....
http://www.petitiononline.com/savapple/petition.html
http://www.petitiononline.com/savapple/petition.html
fenixx
Sep 6, 07:38 PM
Even though Apple is Apple, going up against Amazon, which will have more movie options at the time of launch is going to be tough...
unless... they release some sort of new hardware [full screen ipod, plzkthx] that will take the spotlight.
Here's hoping for "one more thing"... on Sept 12.
unless... they release some sort of new hardware [full screen ipod, plzkthx] that will take the spotlight.
Here's hoping for "one more thing"... on Sept 12.
andrewbecks
Apr 19, 11:38 PM
While technically correct, you should provide context.
While SSDs DO have a finite number of write available, an SSD that's 256 GB (a modest drive size) with 10,000 writes = 2,560,000 GB of writing capacity (or 2.56 * 10^6 ;))
That means you could write 100 GB of data PER DAY for slightly over 70 YEARS!
Feel free to be amazed. :D
That is amazing. Thanks for putting that whole issue into context. I imagine that, all things considered, some SSDs might even last longer than traditional hard drives. How if we can just bring the price down! :-)
While SSDs DO have a finite number of write available, an SSD that's 256 GB (a modest drive size) with 10,000 writes = 2,560,000 GB of writing capacity (or 2.56 * 10^6 ;))
That means you could write 100 GB of data PER DAY for slightly over 70 YEARS!
Feel free to be amazed. :D
That is amazing. Thanks for putting that whole issue into context. I imagine that, all things considered, some SSDs might even last longer than traditional hard drives. How if we can just bring the price down! :-)
MagnusVonMagnum
Oct 24, 05:22 PM
First off, Consumer Reports makes money by selling subscriptions which means free press is good for them. Sensational popular bad reviews gets them publicity - good reviews get them nothing.
Bullcrap. WTF looks through CR to read bad reports? I look in it to find the BEST performing and quality products, not the worst. I only care about the worst if it was something I was considering at which point I take a much closer look.
Second, the Suzuki Samarai is not a Chinese vehicle - Suzuki is a Japanese company.
I wasn't referring to a specific product, but the fact that most crap comes from China these days (vehicles are one of the few exceptions).
Third, save your political slant for some other forum - we talk tech here - not politics.
Sorry, but EVERYTHING is politics. You cannot discuss economics and manufacturing without bumping into it.
Fourth, hate China much?
I hate their government. They are nuclear armed Communists and Communism goes against most of the things I believe in from all forms of freedom dictatorships. Admittedly corrupt democracies aren't night and day better, but they're still better. You apparently like Communism (so long as it's good for the wallet?)
Fifth, I personally tried to verify Consumer Reports claims in multiple iPhone-4 units to no avail. I'm still holding off for iPhone-5 to save my budget, but all I can say about iPhone-4 is that it's the best phone I've ever seen.
Most people take warnings as warnings. You apparently think the rest of the review (highest rated smart phone ever) doesn't even exist. You'd rather waste your time arguing about a magazine that most people find useful at times.
Bullcrap. WTF looks through CR to read bad reports? I look in it to find the BEST performing and quality products, not the worst. I only care about the worst if it was something I was considering at which point I take a much closer look.
Second, the Suzuki Samarai is not a Chinese vehicle - Suzuki is a Japanese company.
I wasn't referring to a specific product, but the fact that most crap comes from China these days (vehicles are one of the few exceptions).
Third, save your political slant for some other forum - we talk tech here - not politics.
Sorry, but EVERYTHING is politics. You cannot discuss economics and manufacturing without bumping into it.
Fourth, hate China much?
I hate their government. They are nuclear armed Communists and Communism goes against most of the things I believe in from all forms of freedom dictatorships. Admittedly corrupt democracies aren't night and day better, but they're still better. You apparently like Communism (so long as it's good for the wallet?)
Fifth, I personally tried to verify Consumer Reports claims in multiple iPhone-4 units to no avail. I'm still holding off for iPhone-5 to save my budget, but all I can say about iPhone-4 is that it's the best phone I've ever seen.
Most people take warnings as warnings. You apparently think the rest of the review (highest rated smart phone ever) doesn't even exist. You'd rather waste your time arguing about a magazine that most people find useful at times.
gnasher729
Apr 21, 06:06 PM
So somebody sues you for (insert nefarious activity of your choice) and you deny it saying you were nowhere near Location-X at the time. Then, under rules of disclosure, they subpeona your iPhone/iPad/MBP/TC to obtain your data. The data shows you were at least in the vicinity of Location-X and so had the opportunity to perform (aforesaid nefarious activity). They win their case and you are required to pay $250K in damages, not to mention the $50K you already spent in legal fees. Did you do it? Maybe not... but it doesn't matter, they won and you lost.
If the lawyer that you spent $50K on is too stupid to ask a simple question: What evidence, other than guesswork, is there that locations in this file are in any way related to positions where the phone has been?
On the other hand, what you describe here is not a scenario where you are damaged by some privacy violation, it is a scenario where you are damaged by the existence of forensic evidence that can be used against you. That's a completely different matter. Would you complain if your car was photographed by a speeding camera near that location? What if your car was photographed by a speeding camera that was setup incorrectly to the wrong speed limit?
If the lawyer that you spent $50K on is too stupid to ask a simple question: What evidence, other than guesswork, is there that locations in this file are in any way related to positions where the phone has been?
On the other hand, what you describe here is not a scenario where you are damaged by some privacy violation, it is a scenario where you are damaged by the existence of forensic evidence that can be used against you. That's a completely different matter. Would you complain if your car was photographed by a speeding camera near that location? What if your car was photographed by a speeding camera that was setup incorrectly to the wrong speed limit?
toddybody
Mar 24, 09:52 PM
So has anyone stuck a 6970 in a mac pro yet?
PS for the people who don't know apple does not support Crossfire or SLI in mac os x so the 6990 which is a dual GPU on a single card solution will not and can not be supported until they change how osx works.
Well then, Apple is gonna confuse alot of people with the 5770 crossfire MP upgrade. Look it up folks, crossfire is supported
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_mac/family/mac_pro?mco=MTg5MTY5NDQ
PS for the people who don't know apple does not support Crossfire or SLI in mac os x so the 6990 which is a dual GPU on a single card solution will not and can not be supported until they change how osx works.
Well then, Apple is gonna confuse alot of people with the 5770 crossfire MP upgrade. Look it up folks, crossfire is supported
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_mac/family/mac_pro?mco=MTg5MTY5NDQ
Multimedia
Aug 31, 12:32 PM
What about this report of a silent mini update already in the pipeline on the French HardMac website? (http://www.hardmac.com/news/2006-08-31/#5869) :)
"I have ordered a Mac mini Core solo with 1GB of RAM last Saturday to use it as a server, and what a surprise when I received the box!
My Mac mini has been upgraded:
- Core Duo 1.66GHz instead of Core Solo 1.5GHz
- HD 100GB instead of 60GB
- and a SuperDrive instead of a Combo!
Thanks Apple !
On the box, the specifications are those of a Mac mini Core Solo..."Wow! Fantastic for $599. Awesome! Exactly what I was hoping for - esp the 100GB HD. Looking great. I wonder why the Apple Website Store hasn't been updated to reflect this change? :confused: Surely all in the pipeline that were 1.5 solo are now 1.66 duo. Perhaps Apple doesn't want Joe Blow to know so the rest of the solos can GO with the Blows? :D
That's gotta be the biggest increase in power in recent Apple history for no additional cost - twice the cores running faster than the previous one. Maybe back in the G4 days something like this happened. But it wasn't at the bottom of the line for $599. And it CERTAINLY wasn't unannounced and not even on the packaging!
I'm very excited for all the mini buyers out there. Congrats if you get one like this before Apple admits they are in the pipeline.
"I have ordered a Mac mini Core solo with 1GB of RAM last Saturday to use it as a server, and what a surprise when I received the box!
My Mac mini has been upgraded:
- Core Duo 1.66GHz instead of Core Solo 1.5GHz
- HD 100GB instead of 60GB
- and a SuperDrive instead of a Combo!
Thanks Apple !
On the box, the specifications are those of a Mac mini Core Solo..."Wow! Fantastic for $599. Awesome! Exactly what I was hoping for - esp the 100GB HD. Looking great. I wonder why the Apple Website Store hasn't been updated to reflect this change? :confused: Surely all in the pipeline that were 1.5 solo are now 1.66 duo. Perhaps Apple doesn't want Joe Blow to know so the rest of the solos can GO with the Blows? :D
That's gotta be the biggest increase in power in recent Apple history for no additional cost - twice the cores running faster than the previous one. Maybe back in the G4 days something like this happened. But it wasn't at the bottom of the line for $599. And it CERTAINLY wasn't unannounced and not even on the packaging!
I'm very excited for all the mini buyers out there. Congrats if you get one like this before Apple admits they are in the pipeline.
MattG
Nov 28, 12:05 PM
Heh.
Suck it, Microsoft :cool:
Do you have anything to support that MS lost billions on the xbox, I heard it was more like they broke even...
I watched a television show on the history of video games a couple of weeks ago. I forget what channel it was on...History or Discovery or something like that, but I specifically remember them saying that Microsoft lost a lot of money on the xbox, but that they didn't care...they just wanted to get their foot in the door.
I think it was this show:
http://games.ign.com/articles/744/744878p1.html
Suck it, Microsoft :cool:
Do you have anything to support that MS lost billions on the xbox, I heard it was more like they broke even...
I watched a television show on the history of video games a couple of weeks ago. I forget what channel it was on...History or Discovery or something like that, but I specifically remember them saying that Microsoft lost a lot of money on the xbox, but that they didn't care...they just wanted to get their foot in the door.
I think it was this show:
http://games.ign.com/articles/744/744878p1.html
Josias
Nov 27, 01:49 PM
Don't they already make one? Its called a 17" MacBook Pro... :)
Yes, they also make an iMac.
No way people get a MacMini and a MacBook Pro. Pull out the display, hack it in a dell casing etc...:confused:
BTW, with the intro of the low end iMac, I find this to be bogus.
Yes, they also make an iMac.
No way people get a MacMini and a MacBook Pro. Pull out the display, hack it in a dell casing etc...:confused:
BTW, with the intro of the low end iMac, I find this to be bogus.
MatthewCobb
Jan 2, 10:50 AM
Or basically all rumors are messed up. No one knows whats coming except iLife and OS X preview. Talk about all the time wasted on these rumors :(
What's this site called again? Oh.
What's this site called again? Oh.
bobbleheadbob
Mar 25, 04:55 PM
This will make a great game even better.
pmd
Nov 30, 07:50 AM
How do you record channel 105 from 5:30PM to 6:30PM on Friday? Damn...that would take forever with 4 buttons.
I assume you've not used a TiVo then? The TiVo interface allows you to set manual channel and time recordings with just up,down,left,right and select, which is exactly what the Apple Remote has. It works just fine.
But on the TiVo, you rarely need to make a recording like that - you just select the program in the guide.
I assume you've not used a TiVo then? The TiVo interface allows you to set manual channel and time recordings with just up,down,left,right and select, which is exactly what the Apple Remote has. It works just fine.
But on the TiVo, you rarely need to make a recording like that - you just select the program in the guide.
Multimedia
Aug 29, 10:25 AM
http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)
Think Secret claims (http://www.thinksecret.com/news/0608macmini.html) to have information on the rumored revision (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2006/08/20060824183848.shtml) to the Mac Mini. According to the site, Apple will replace the existing Core Solo model with the existing 1.66 GHz Core Duo model, and add a 1.83 GHz Core Duo model, effectively eliminating all single-core CPUs from Apple's computer product line.
The new systems are said to be "ready for production." Think Secret believes the models will be introduced in a few weeks time with little fanfare, although not totally under the radar like the last Mac Mini update (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2005/09/20050930023909.shtml).Not Core 2 Duo??!! :eek: :confused: :( I can't beleive they are not going to go Core 2 Duo in the mini before Thanksgiving.Only if they don't drop prices. Just depends what they charge, if they had core solo for $399 sales would go through the roof.And Apple would be losing money with every sale. :rolleyes:
And for all you Yonah FanBoys out there I say you are completely out of touch with reality living in some sort of parallel dimension where old obsolete stopgap technology prevails beyond it's short useful lifespan. :) It makes no sense to me why would a laptop be more powerful than a desktop. If you're gonna stay with core duo why not just make the mini a 1.83 & 2.00 GHz Core Duo machine like the macbooks. 1.66 & 1.83 on a core duo is pathetic in my opinions and solidifies my believe that the mini and i will never get along....at least for now. Thats just too much crippling to handle.Here here. I totally agree. Staying with Core Duo is insane, rude and greedy.
Think Secret claims (http://www.thinksecret.com/news/0608macmini.html) to have information on the rumored revision (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2006/08/20060824183848.shtml) to the Mac Mini. According to the site, Apple will replace the existing Core Solo model with the existing 1.66 GHz Core Duo model, and add a 1.83 GHz Core Duo model, effectively eliminating all single-core CPUs from Apple's computer product line.
The new systems are said to be "ready for production." Think Secret believes the models will be introduced in a few weeks time with little fanfare, although not totally under the radar like the last Mac Mini update (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2005/09/20050930023909.shtml).Not Core 2 Duo??!! :eek: :confused: :( I can't beleive they are not going to go Core 2 Duo in the mini before Thanksgiving.Only if they don't drop prices. Just depends what they charge, if they had core solo for $399 sales would go through the roof.And Apple would be losing money with every sale. :rolleyes:
And for all you Yonah FanBoys out there I say you are completely out of touch with reality living in some sort of parallel dimension where old obsolete stopgap technology prevails beyond it's short useful lifespan. :) It makes no sense to me why would a laptop be more powerful than a desktop. If you're gonna stay with core duo why not just make the mini a 1.83 & 2.00 GHz Core Duo machine like the macbooks. 1.66 & 1.83 on a core duo is pathetic in my opinions and solidifies my believe that the mini and i will never get along....at least for now. Thats just too much crippling to handle.Here here. I totally agree. Staying with Core Duo is insane, rude and greedy.
gnasher729
Jul 18, 03:11 AM
If I'm going to spend all that time downloading a movie, I should at least be able to keep it. Bah.
There is another possibility that wouldn't require any downloads at all. In the UK, many newspapers come with free CDs or DVDs quite often. It would be possible to ship a DVD with the latest movies that way (and you can fit quite a bit of material in H264 format on a double sided DVD), and the rental from iTMS would just unlock the material on the DVD. If you put trailers and promotional material on the DVD in a way that can be accessed directly, this would make many people rent the movies.
And if you want to watch the movie again in a few years, just put in the DVD again and rent it again; no download needed. In the end, even today harddisks are not yet quite big enough that you would want to keep all your rented movies on your harddisk.
There is another possibility that wouldn't require any downloads at all. In the UK, many newspapers come with free CDs or DVDs quite often. It would be possible to ship a DVD with the latest movies that way (and you can fit quite a bit of material in H264 format on a double sided DVD), and the rental from iTMS would just unlock the material on the DVD. If you put trailers and promotional material on the DVD in a way that can be accessed directly, this would make many people rent the movies.
And if you want to watch the movie again in a few years, just put in the DVD again and rent it again; no download needed. In the end, even today harddisks are not yet quite big enough that you would want to keep all your rented movies on your harddisk.
ErikGrim
Mar 30, 11:33 PM
Update isn't showing up in App Store for me. Any ideas? :(
Eolian
Sep 24, 03:25 AM
Hi, everyone.
I'm new iPod Touches, though I've had some other iPods over the years. I'm a teacher, and decided that I'd use the Bento app on it to keep track of my students' progress at school. My niece rolled her eyes and informed me that I'd need a case and screen protector. So, I went to Best Buy today and got the Griffin Gloss and the Invisishield. I put on the case, which seems to work fine. Then I opened the shield and got a good look at it. It immediately occurred to me that I'd probably need to take off the case, put the shield on, then put the case back on. However, the case--which consists of two pieces of hard plastic that intersect in the middle after installation--won't budge. I'm sure I could get it off, but I'm not sure I could do so without doing significant damage to the case. These things are supposed to be removable, aren't they? Also, would it be a big deal not to have a screen protector on it? I'm going to be using it a lot in multiple locations. It's probably going to get bounced around on a regular basis.
Thanks,
Pete
The Griffin hardshell will come apart without damage, it is just VERY :cool: snuggly fit together.
I got a fingernail into the seam, then some steady force pulling the lower section straight back did the trick. It's a nice case with a beautiful fit.
I did not opt for a screen protector, no second thoughts. I've found these often get pretty mucked up themselves on other devices, and that by itself would be a shortcoming on this amazing display.
For a lot of traveling, maybe an inexpensive slip case? Best luck.
I'm new iPod Touches, though I've had some other iPods over the years. I'm a teacher, and decided that I'd use the Bento app on it to keep track of my students' progress at school. My niece rolled her eyes and informed me that I'd need a case and screen protector. So, I went to Best Buy today and got the Griffin Gloss and the Invisishield. I put on the case, which seems to work fine. Then I opened the shield and got a good look at it. It immediately occurred to me that I'd probably need to take off the case, put the shield on, then put the case back on. However, the case--which consists of two pieces of hard plastic that intersect in the middle after installation--won't budge. I'm sure I could get it off, but I'm not sure I could do so without doing significant damage to the case. These things are supposed to be removable, aren't they? Also, would it be a big deal not to have a screen protector on it? I'm going to be using it a lot in multiple locations. It's probably going to get bounced around on a regular basis.
Thanks,
Pete
The Griffin hardshell will come apart without damage, it is just VERY :cool: snuggly fit together.
I got a fingernail into the seam, then some steady force pulling the lower section straight back did the trick. It's a nice case with a beautiful fit.
I did not opt for a screen protector, no second thoughts. I've found these often get pretty mucked up themselves on other devices, and that by itself would be a shortcoming on this amazing display.
For a lot of traveling, maybe an inexpensive slip case? Best luck.
noriyori
Nov 29, 03:02 PM
I would just hope they would have video streaming like the slingbox so you can access all of your content from where ever you may be around the globe.
GregA
Mar 22, 04:32 PM
A price drop and some minor update (such as wifi, bluetooth capabilities, ios capable) might happen. I think updating the classic's internal's and functionality might be feasible. But I doubt they will touch the physical appearance of it.
But re-inventing the classic would defeat the purpose of calling it 'classic'.
The Ipod Touch is their outlet for innovations now. Though, I wonder when the touch, would simple be called the iPod (drop the touch from the name).
I was referring more to the benefit of having a large storage portable device, in conjunction with Apple's rumoured portable logins.
But yes if they make it look like an iPod Touch, then it wouldn't really be an iPod classic. I'm not sure how they would add iOS though without changing the look, unless iOS was purely for the background features. Or perhaps a click wheel AND touch screen would still be a "classic".
But re-inventing the classic would defeat the purpose of calling it 'classic'.
The Ipod Touch is their outlet for innovations now. Though, I wonder when the touch, would simple be called the iPod (drop the touch from the name).
I was referring more to the benefit of having a large storage portable device, in conjunction with Apple's rumoured portable logins.
But yes if they make it look like an iPod Touch, then it wouldn't really be an iPod classic. I'm not sure how they would add iOS though without changing the look, unless iOS was purely for the background features. Or perhaps a click wheel AND touch screen would still be a "classic".
TerryJ
Jul 14, 10:28 AM
First of all, Blu-Ray discs are a completely new material and fabrication process, so highlighting the fact that they've only made 25GB discs (which were stable-ly created long before almost ANY HD-DVD's) and can't produce a disk which is far above the specs of the competition, is like saying screw the russians cuz they're space program hasn't sent a man to mars (nobody's done it yet, anyway). You can't blame Blu-Ray for not being able to deliver 50 GB yet, the meat of the war is just beginning anyway.
It is true that we don't know what will be delivered in the future. I am sure 50gb+ discs will be available at some point. How soon, however, is important, especially considering there is a format war. If Blu-ray can get those discs out fast with good yields, then obviously that changes things. But reports are they are not at this point, with no timetable on when they might. Add to this the fact that it is a new fabrication process... this can only mean that prices most likely will stay higher longer, as opposed to a cheaper/easier fab process for HD DVDs.
Secondly, what was said about the VC-1 codec is very wrong. Microsoft's VC-1 codec is far worse and more difficult to work with than MPEG 2 or MPEG 4 that sony will probably offer in later versions of Blu-Ray. All this malarky about artifacts doesn't really make sense when you consider that we've been USING MPEG2 IN DVD'S FOR YEARS NOW! There's no way that the algorithim could be to blame for the artifacts! Sure it's fatter, but it's a lighter compression, and as Sony has shown with their PCM Audio on Blu-Ray, sometimes light compression on a bigger disk is better than heavy compression on smaller disks. It will be a lot easier to change to a more efficient codec down the line (which is what we've done with computers time and time again, as well as professional video) so we can get Ultra HD on Blu Ray when it comes out as well.
Watch HD DVD content on a Toshiba HD DVD player vs. BD content on a Samsung BD player... HD DVD content (using VC-1) is consistantly better than BD content (using MPEG2). Not sure what is wrong with the BD stuff exactly, but something is going wrong. And if it's MPEG2 issues, then all those BD discs out now are just stuck being crap. They'd have to reencode and rerelease new versions of the same movies later. That does not help the BD cause.
Remember, HD is over 4x the resolution compared to SD. MPEG-2 was good for SD DVDs. Not sure how good it is for HD if your disc is maxed at 25gb capacity.
I'm sorry, I understand people really want HD-DVD to win because it's easier and cheaper right now, but since when has the easiest option been the best?
If it's cheaper, looks better, sounds better, and has more available titles, then why shouldn't HD DVD win? If BD used a more efficient codec, or at least had 50gb dual layer discs now (so MPEG2 could have a high bit rate at least), and the all the backing studios pumped out more titles, I'd buy it. But that isn't what it's shaping up to be right now. If they can get their act together, this could be a fight... but they are behind.
-Terry
It is true that we don't know what will be delivered in the future. I am sure 50gb+ discs will be available at some point. How soon, however, is important, especially considering there is a format war. If Blu-ray can get those discs out fast with good yields, then obviously that changes things. But reports are they are not at this point, with no timetable on when they might. Add to this the fact that it is a new fabrication process... this can only mean that prices most likely will stay higher longer, as opposed to a cheaper/easier fab process for HD DVDs.
Secondly, what was said about the VC-1 codec is very wrong. Microsoft's VC-1 codec is far worse and more difficult to work with than MPEG 2 or MPEG 4 that sony will probably offer in later versions of Blu-Ray. All this malarky about artifacts doesn't really make sense when you consider that we've been USING MPEG2 IN DVD'S FOR YEARS NOW! There's no way that the algorithim could be to blame for the artifacts! Sure it's fatter, but it's a lighter compression, and as Sony has shown with their PCM Audio on Blu-Ray, sometimes light compression on a bigger disk is better than heavy compression on smaller disks. It will be a lot easier to change to a more efficient codec down the line (which is what we've done with computers time and time again, as well as professional video) so we can get Ultra HD on Blu Ray when it comes out as well.
Watch HD DVD content on a Toshiba HD DVD player vs. BD content on a Samsung BD player... HD DVD content (using VC-1) is consistantly better than BD content (using MPEG2). Not sure what is wrong with the BD stuff exactly, but something is going wrong. And if it's MPEG2 issues, then all those BD discs out now are just stuck being crap. They'd have to reencode and rerelease new versions of the same movies later. That does not help the BD cause.
Remember, HD is over 4x the resolution compared to SD. MPEG-2 was good for SD DVDs. Not sure how good it is for HD if your disc is maxed at 25gb capacity.
I'm sorry, I understand people really want HD-DVD to win because it's easier and cheaper right now, but since when has the easiest option been the best?
If it's cheaper, looks better, sounds better, and has more available titles, then why shouldn't HD DVD win? If BD used a more efficient codec, or at least had 50gb dual layer discs now (so MPEG2 could have a high bit rate at least), and the all the backing studios pumped out more titles, I'd buy it. But that isn't what it's shaping up to be right now. If they can get their act together, this could be a fight... but they are behind.
-Terry
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