HD Holiday Guide

2007 has been a tumultuous year for High Definition Media. HD DVD started things out with great buzz and superior content. Blu-ray quickly closed the gap, with major studios like Disney releasing a slew of high quality titles. Paramount shocked the world by announcing HD DVD exclusivity, while Toshiba recently made a stir by offering their HD-A2 at $99 for a limited time at certain large retailers. Blu-ray shot back with a string of unbeatable Buy Two Get One Free and Buy One Get One Free sales on their software. Now, as we go into the holiday season, many studios are taking a close look at the sales of both formats, perhaps to even determine where they will will place their final allegiances.

So what does this mean for you, the consumer? As I've said before, I think that the format war has helped us far more than it has hurt us. We wouldn't be seeing any of these great deals had there been one unified format. All the players would have been over $1,000, and the software would have been in the $30-$40 range on average. With Christmas right around the corner, now is the time to take advantage. Sales are popping up left and right. If you've been waiting to dip your toes into the HD waters, go for it! If you know someone who's been hankering for HD goodness, treat them to it. We need to let the studios know that we want, nay, we demand high quality HD content in our homes. The best way to do that is with our dollars.

To that end, we here at DVD Talk have put together a little buying guide. We'll be giving you our thoughts on suggestions on players and titles for both formats. If you see something you like, don't hesitate. This is the best time to buy into one or both formats.

This guide is separated into a Blu-ray section and an HD DVD section, each with their own subcategories. We'll start with Blu-ray.

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Hardware
Blu-ray players come in many shapes and sizes. Several of the early players were criticized for limited functionality, and while the current crop are a step forward, many of them still lack certain features. Some players don't offer onboard decoding of lossless audio, for example. And with new hardware profiles being introduced, many of the players will not be able to access every special feature on the discs they buy.

There is currently only one player on the market that offers the latest Blu-ray profile, known as 1.1 or Final Standard Profile. The biggest advantage to this upgrade is the ability to have a player decode two simultaneous video streams, which allows for picture-in-picture functionality. If you're looking to use this, there's only one option at the moment: the Panasonic DMP-BD30K (pictured above). It comes out of the box with Final Standard Profile, and has a good deal of other useful features. However, there are two issues that I've found with this particular model. For one thing, even though it has 5.1 analog outs, it will only send lossless audio (except PCM) as a bitsream, which requires a receiver with an HDMI 1.3. The other issue I see is that it has no ethernet port, which means it will never be upgradeable to Profile 2.0, an optional update that would allow web connectivity on discs. However, with prices starting at $499, this is cheaper than many other players on the market.

Those willing to wait a little may be interested in the upcoming Samsung Duo BD-UP5000. While the asking price is higher ($849 to be exact), the player is fully featured in a way that blows away the competition. It's 1.1 compliant, has onboard decoding of all lossless audio, and has 7.1 analog outs that allows users with HDMI-less receivers to hear the sound. It also offers bitstreaming for people who do have that capability. The player also offers 1080p/24 playback, for those whose TVs can take advantage. Oh, and did I mention it plays HD DVDs as well? That's right, the BD-UP5000 is the world's first fully capable combo player (a previous combo by LG did not have the full HD DVD spec). And since HD DVD requires an ethernet connection be included on every piece of hardware that carries the logo, that means there is hope that the Samsung might be able to offer an upgrade to Profile 2.0 in the future. Exciting stuff indeed.

I do think, though, that the best deal on a Blu-ray deck is still the Sony Playstation 3. It is by far the most popular and thus widely supported player. The playback is fantastic, and many discs that have had problems on standalones (such as Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Spider-Man 3) have had no issues on the PS3. Currently Sony is offering a system with a 40GB hard drive and a free copy of Spider-Man 3 on Blu-ray for just $399. The only downside to the PS3 is that without analog outs, you have to have an HDMI capable receiver in order to get lossless sound. Currently the system is not 1.1 compliant, but many are expecting it to be upgraded sometime in the future.

Hot Titles
Blu-ray has the support of Sony, Fox, Disney, and Warner Bros. All of them are keen to maximize the potential of the format with brand new releases. Some of the hottest titles are featured below.

Classics Revisited
In addition to new releases, we've seen some great catalog titles come down the pike, especially from Warner Bros. These discs lay to rest the rumor that only action and sci-fi flicks can benefit from HD.

Action
Of course, the action genre is usually the first thing people think of when they want to watch a high definition movie. After all, the massive explosions and gun fights provide both an amazing visual and aural experience. Here are some of the top ones.

Drama
Even drab dramas and heart-tuggers can benefit from the increased resolution of high definition.

Comedy
Often cited by people as the genre least likely to benefit from HD, many comedies are quite colorful and could very well surprise you.

Sci-Fi
After action, people usually gravitate towards sci-fi. With strange futuristic worlds and bizarre sound designs, it's a no-brainer for a high quality HD experience.

Horror
Horror films usually have a very dark color pallet, which is perfect for HD. More detail in shadows and dark areas can really add to the scares.

For The Kids
With Disney being a Blu-ray exclusive studio, you can bet there are a ton of great children's films on the format.

TV on Blu-ray
One of the great successes of the DVD format has been television shows released in season sets. However, for a long time, studios were reticent to release such content, fearing that expensive multi-disc sets wouldn't sell. They were proven wrong, and thankfully are not making the same mistake with Blu-ray.

Upcoming Titles
Don't forget to put these upcoming titles on your Christmas wish list.

HD DVD

HD DVD Hardware
The choices for HD DVD players are significantly easier than on Blu-ray. There's only one real manufacturer of players, and that is Toshiba. A few other companies have released hardware, but they're essentially repackagings of Toshiba players. Of course, it was Toshiba who, in partnership with Wal-Mart, offered players for under $100. This caused quite a stir, resulting in almost 100,000 players being sold in less than a week. The deck in question, the Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD Player does not typically go for that low. But keep your eyes peeled for other specials as the holidays progress.

The current generation is the A3 line. The only fully featured one (analog outs, bitstreaming of lossless audio, 1080p/24) is the HD-A35. This player is more costly than the lower end decks, but the payoff may be worth it. Again, those seeking to maximize their budget will want to take a look at the Samsung Duo BD-UP5000, which plays both formats and has practically every feature you can get for both.

For those on a budget, there's always the Xbox 360 HD DVD Add-On. With its MSRP lowered to $179, this may be the component to get for those who just want to pop on some discs. My main problem with it is that it has no decoding for any kind of lossless audio, even on the 360's that offer an HDMI cable.

Hot Titles
The major studios supporting HD DVD are Universal, Paramount, and Warner Bros. With Paramount having recently gone HD DVD exclusive from being format neutral, they've really stepped up to the plate with some fantastic new releases.

Classics Revisited
HD DVD also has its share of classics, which will enchant you from start to finish.

Action
The explosions, the car chases, the cheesy one liners! These HD DVDs have them all.

Drama
Ah, those finely crafted dramatic works. They make you laugh, they make you cry, and now they do it in 1080p

Comedy
HD DVD has had a good track record for comedies, especially from Universal, as you can see below.

Sci-Fi
I've always been a sci-fi nerd, so to be able to see some of my favorite science fiction films in sparkling HD is a dream come true.

Horror
Turn off the lights and prepare to be scared stiff by your favorite horror movies in eerily good high definition.

For The Kids
Without a tentpole studio like Disney, children's fare on HD DVD has not been as prevalent as it is on Blu-ray.

TV on HD DVD
Thanks to Universal and Warner Bros, TV has had great representation on HD DVD.

Upcoming Titles
These future releases will be sure to thrill the HD fan in your home.

Conclusion
DVD Talk is committed to bringing you the leading coverage of both formats. We are entirely format neutral and plan on staying that way. Here at DVD Talk, we care about movies, not the color of a disc's case. Join the discussion about HD DVD in our HD Talk Forum and share your thoughts on the next generation of home entertainment.

-Daniel Hirshleifer