Release date for HD-DVD in UK

[AnnatarUK]

I contacted Toshiba regarding the release date in the UK, here is the response......

Thank you for you recent enquiry. In response to your query I can let you
know that HD-DVD has a tentative release date of September. this is subject
to change.

If you have any further queries please don't hesitate to contact us on
08704 424 424

David Lickers
Toshiba Customer Service Representative

[Kryten]

More interested in the release dates for the multi-format players, I'm not betting one one format so will wait for the ones which play both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. Will probably wait another year anyway until I can afford a HD display with 1080p.

Still, that's good to know as it means that there should be UK available HD titles from around the same time :)

[Space Duck]

The first Blu-Ray players... well display models seem to support the old DVD format but they're HUGE!!!!! How they're gonna fit a Blu Ray thingy in a PS3 I don't know....

[ShakeyJake]

The PS2 was pretty small compared to the DVD players of the same time. My Pioneer 340 is pretty big and a fair bit newer than the PS2, I'm sure they can fit one in the PS3 and keep it a reasonable size

[Kryten]

Well my Pioneer 717 DVD Player (I still have it as a bedroom player!) was pretty darn big, but generally all the top end players still are pretty big as they employ strong heavy chassis to reduce vibration, high quality transformers, multiple DAC's etc, its not that they can't make them smaller its just that quality suffers and these early players are going to be for the audio/video-philes out there who want the best possible quality.

[ShakeyJake]

There were some photos of a PC HD-DVD drive a while back and that was the same size as any other CD/DVD drive. So the drive itself is probably pretty small, what makes it big must be all the other other gubbins. I'd guess the PS3 will use software to decode the video/audio like the PS2 does for DVD and won't have all the high-end bits and pieces of a standalone player.

[Kryten]

The PS3 will be using part of the cell chip to do the decoding work, the stadalone will hae seperate chips for the decoding like most decent DVD players

[DK_UK]

I think its amazing and crazy that there are so few 1080i or p screens out there to take advantage of these new hi def formats.

[zantarous]

I think its amazing and crazy that there are so few 1080i or p screens out there to take advantage of these new hi def formats.

They are on the way this year, but you are right they really should have been pushing these from the start instead of non HD flat panels, then 720p and next 1080p. Electronic manufactures do like to squeeze every possible penny out of consumers.

[DK_UK]

They are on the way this year, but you are right they really should have been pushing these from the start instead of non HD flat panels, then 720p and next 1080p. Electronic manufactures do like to squeeze every possible penny out of consumers.

Indeed, I have refused to buy one of the flat screens for the very reason that no decent 1080 screen was available. Now that they are starting to appear, I can pick and choose, price depending of course.