[SET Man]

Hey!

   Man! If I had a Hi-Def player I will definitely get a set of these discs.

http://shopping.discovery.com/product-65763.html?rel_productId=65709

   I watched the show on Discovery Channel and it was excellent. The cinema photography on this production is simply stunning.

   I'm sure it would looks even better on Hi-Def disc. Anyway, just want to share this with you guys.

Take care,
Buddy

[JoshK]

I haven't seen it yet.  However, I bought a 1080p 58" plasma that gets delivered Thursday (killer deal through work).  I've been eye'ing a Sony BDP-S300 and the blu-ray version of that set. 

[SET Man]

I haven't seen it yet.  However, I bought a 1080p 58" plasma that gets delivered Thursday (killer deal through work).  I've been eye'ing a Sony BDP-S300 and the blu-ray version of that set. 

Hey!

   Congratulation on your new huge screen plasma TV! Man! now I feel so tiny around here with my 27" LCD TV.... with only 720p native but dose support 1080i 

    Anyway, if you are getting the Sony play do get the disc set. If the Hi-Def production is as good as it claimed. Then it would be stunning. These show are one of the best nature documentary I've ever seen. Seem like they are obsessed with getting the right shots

     Actually the show look pretty good over the cable, but I would love to watch it again on Hi-Def

Take Care,
Buddy

   

[mjosef]

Cable does show it in HD on the DiscoveryHD channel.
Looks great and sounds great in 5.1 surround sound.

[SET Man]

Cable does show it in HD on the DiscoveryHD channel.
Looks great and sounds great in 5.1 surround sound.

Hey!
 
   Well, I'm embarrass to say that I don't have Hi-Def cable yet! 

   I will get it soon.

Take care,
Buddy

[mjosef]

I think if you subscribe to their digital plan (additional 9-10$) you can simply walk into their office and trade your old cable box for a HD box no charge. And the HD channels are also free, once your plan includes the corresponding standard channel...or something like that.
I have cablevision, and all the HD channels are free once you have the standard channels of that particular station.

[brj]

However, I bought a 1080p 58" plasma that gets delivered Thursday (killer deal through work).

Which plasma did you pick up, Josh?  I'd like to pick one up at some point, but I've been content to let the prices fall while the transition to high-def works itself out.

(Although from the little bit of "Planet Earth" that I saw on standard def cable, I can't image what it looks like on a big HD screen.)

[zybar]

Cable does show it in HD on the DiscoveryHD channel.
Looks great and sounds great in 5.1 surround sound.

Hey!
 
   Well, I'm embarrass to say that I don't have Hi-Def cable yet! 

   I will get it soon.

Take care,
Buddy

No hi-def...that's like listening to mono!!   

George

[ctviggen]

Widescreen review gives this a rating of 4.5 for picture and 4.0 for sound for blu-ray and HD-DVD and 3.5 for picture and 4.0 for sound for DVD.

I've been thinking of picking up a Blu-ray or HD-DVD player, but still haven't due to trying to see which one will prevail.  Plus, then I'd have to start my collection over again, as I'd probably be unhappy with DVD after watching the higher definition.

[PeteG]

This series looks amazing on both HD DVD & Blu-ray. I rented it from Netflix's and will buy it soon.

[samplesj]

I've been thinking of picking up a Blu-ray or HD-DVD player, but still haven't due to trying to see which one will prevail.  Plus, then I'd have to start my collection over again, as I'd probably be unhappy with DVD after watching the higher definition.

Why?  I really don't understand this sentiment.  You can wait forever for the next best thing.  Life is short so enjoy what you can when you can.

You can get both for much less than an audiophile approved dvd and dvda/sacd player.  I couldn't tell that much difference in the upsampling from my old Denon 3910 vs the Toshiba HDA1.  My HD-A1 and PS3 together cost less than the 3910 and I got a decent price on the 3910.  I almost got as much from selling the 3910 as I spent for BOTH other players (and I wanted a PS3 for games anyway so I feel like I came out much ahead).  A 1080i HD-A2 can be gotten for $250 or a 1080p HD-A20 can be gotten for $350.  A PS3 is $600, but you get a console out of the deal too, or you can just buy the cheaper $500 sony blu player. 

So for $750-1000 you can be enjoying REAL 720p, 1080i, and 1080p signals instead of upsampled DVDs.  Even if you just bought a $250 HD-A2 you'd still get 720p/1080i capability and a pretty good upsampler.  Even if HDDVD tanked you'd still have what you bought and it'd still upsample just fine.

Even when I was still running 720p I wouldn't have hesistated to get a cheap HDDVD player.

[ctviggen]

Life is too short to spend $500 or $1000 on a player that will be obsolete in a year.  Life is too short to spend $20-$30 per movie only to have to spend that money again to support whichever format actually wins.  Life is too short to have to buy another preamp that supports whatever audio format is supported by the player I just bought.  Life is too short to buy an HDMI switcher.   Buying a player has consequences that transcend just the cost of the player.  I currently have an old HDTV without DVI/HDMI.  My preamp has no HDMI/DVI/component switching.  I use the inputs of the TV to switch the video and inputs of the preamp to switch the audio.  If I want to actually use the fancy outputs provided by these players, I have some substantial upgrading to do.  Of course, I could buy the players and still use component video, but that would give me three sets of component video when I have only two component video inputs for my TV and no capability to switch component video inputs. 

So, upgrading to HD-DVD/Blu-ray could be hundreds or thousands of dollars beyond the mere cost of the player.

Not to mention that my life is so busy that I've seen -- at most -- maybe five movies on my system this YEAR.  Why should I pay a minimum investment of $600 for a player and a few videos (and may component cables), when I currently rarely use my system?  Why shouldn't, given these circumstance, I wait to see which one wins the format war?

Now, do you understand?

[samplesj]

Life is too short to spend $500 or $1000 on a player that will be obsolete in a year.  Life is too short to spend $20-$30 per movie only to have to spend that money again to support whichever format actually wins. 

No, the player will continue to play any movies purchased until it dies.  Even if you buy no new movies in that format, its silly to rebuy when you have them for the other player already.

Life is too short to have to buy another preamp that supports whatever audio format is supported by the player I just bought.  Life is too short to buy an HDMI switcher.   Buying a player has consequences that transcend just the cost of the player.  I currently have an old HDTV without DVI/HDMI.  My preamp has no HDMI/DVI/component switching.  I use the inputs of the TV to switch the video and inputs of the preamp to switch the audio.  If I want to actually use the fancy outputs provided by these players, I have some substantial upgrading to do.  Of course, I could buy the players and still use component video, but that would give me three sets of component video when I have only two component video inputs for my TV and no capability to switch component video inputs. 

So, upgrading to HD-DVD/Blu-ray could be hundreds or thousands of dollars beyond the mere cost of the player.

And now you see why its a bad idea to merge 2 channel and HT.    Good sounding audio gear usually doesn't support most recent HT tech (at least not reasonable priced stuff).   

However the extra $ you mention is required even once the "war" is over.  Waiting until its over will still cost that extra amount also.  Sorry if my question seemed hostile, I didn't meant it that way.  I wasn't saying I didn't understand why someone wouldn't upgrade, but rather not to just because of the "war".  You aren't not upgrading because of the war, but because of other reasons.

[SunnyDay]

I have seen the Planet Earth show on Discovery HD channel. It is amazing...Once you see it in HD format, you don't want to watch anything else. )

As far as the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD war goes, I am sitting it out. I just bought a Denon 2930CI to use it as a upsampler on my recently bought Sharp Aquos 1080P LCD TV...I believe that Blu-Ray might win though, as the news indicated that Blockbuster stopped carrying HD-DVD format, as their research shows that Blu-Ray discs are more widely available, and are rented much more frequently than HD-DVD format. That could be a turning point, and other players might follow Blockbuster's move...Just my 2 cents...