XBOX 360 HD DVD Player & DVD Upscaling FAQ

R

Ruined

CAGiversary!
XBOX 360 HD DVD Player Addon & DVD UPSCALING FAQ
by Ruined
Version 1.1

So with the mass confusion that comes along with the new HD DVD format & 360 addon, here is a nice guide to help people with their HD DVD purchases.

1. What is the difference between DVD and HD DVD in terms of video quality?
A: There happens to be a very large difference. Standard DVD has a native resolution of 720x480. HD DVD, on the other hand, has a native resolution of 1920x1080. As you can see off the bat, HD DVD has much more resolution - and from playing games, you know that more resolution = more detail; the same applies for movies. Standard DVD has 345,600 pixels onscreen compared to HD DVD's 2,073,600 pixels. On top of that, HD DVD offers more space than DVD - while DVD only offers around 4.7gb/layer, HD DVD offers 15gb/layer and most HD DVD releases are dual layer 30gb discs. But, there is more! HD DVD also primarily uses Microsoft's VC-1 codec, which can offer superior quality to DVD's MPEG2 while taking up less than half the space due to being a much more efficient and higher quality codec. Of course, the result of all this is less compression artifacts and better color - say goodbye to the blockiness you see in dark scenes on DVD and inaccurate colors; HD DVD will make movies look lifelike and 3-D.

2. What is the difference between DVD and HD DVD in terms of audio quality?
A: While DVDs primarily use 384/448kbps lossy Dolby Digital or 768kbps lossy DTS, HD DVD uses 640kbps/1.5mbps lossy Dolby Digital and 1.5mbps lossless Dolby TrueHD. HD DVD also supports the new DTS Master Audio lossless format. In simple terms, HD DVD uses less compression in its soundtracks compared to DVD, resulting in better fidelity sound on HD DVD.

3. What is the difference between DVD and HD DVD in terms of functionality & extras?
A: Typically when you pop in a standard DVD and hit the menu button, the movie stops and the menu fills the whole screen - interrupting your playback of the movie. This is not the case with HD DVD. When you hit the menu button on HD DVD, a windowed overlay menu pops up on the side or bottom of the screen - allowing you to pick extras or select a scene without stopping the movie. In addition, HD DVD offers picture-in-a-picture video commentaries, storyboards, and other extras; you can watch the commentary or extra feature in the corner of the screen while continuing to watch the movie on the big screen - and these can generally be toggled on and off anytime. Finally, HD DVD offers more interactivity with HDi, allowing for cool things such as "damage totals" in the Fast and the Furious, where you can see how much damage is incurred on each car crash and have it updated on the side of the screen in realtime as the movie goes on.

4. Does upscaled DVD look just as good as HD DVD? Do I need the HD DVD drive to upscale Standard DVD?
A: Heck no, it looks much worse. While upscaled DVD will look better on your digital HDTV display than standard DVD due to matching the native resolution of the display panel, it will still pale in comparison to HD DVD. Upscaled DVD still has all of the compression artifacts of standard DVD and there is no true detail gained - as you are still using the 720x480 DVD as the source. DVD upscaling does not require the HD DVD drive, it only requires the Fall Dashboard update and a VGA cable.

5. Does the XBOX 360 HD DVD player support the new sound formats you mentioned in #2?
A: Yes and no. It will decode these new sound formats so you know that no matter what soundtrack a movie supports you will be able to play it. However, it will output these sound formats as standard Dolby Digital, meaning that you won't get the benefit of the additional resolution they provide. So while you will get a massive upgrade in video quality with XBOX 360's HD DVD player, you will get sound similar to Standard DVD.

6. What do I need to watch HD DVD on my XBOX 360?
A: To get the full benefit of HD DVD on 360, you first need an HDTV that supports 720p, 1080i, or 1080p. Next, you need the XBOX 360 HD DVD player addon; this addon includes a copy of King Kong as well as a 360 Media Remote for free. The addon connects to the XBOX 360 via an included USB cable; the HD DVD audio/video is routed through the standard XBOX 360 Component/VGA video cables you are currently using.

7. I heard there are lots of different resolutions. What resolutions do Component/VGA support?
A: This is where things get a bit complex. Here is a quick chart to help out:

XBOX 360 HD DVD:
Component Output: 720p, 1080i
VGA Output: 720p, 1080i, 1080p

XBOX 360 Standard DVD:
Component Output: 480p
VGA Output: 480p, Upscaled to 720p, Upscaled to 1080i, Upscaled to 1080p

8. Darn, I want to buy the HD DVD addon but I also want to watch upscaled DVD over Component!
A: You need to buy a VGA -> Component adapter. This will bypass the Digital Rights Management and allow you to watch Upscaled DVD over component.
Audio Authority makes a good one: https://www.audioauthority.com/index.php?p=productMore&iProduct=2
Of course, this will cost you quite a chunk of change and you probably won't be too thrilled with upscaled DVD after you see how amazing HD DVD looks.

9. Should I just set my XBOX 360 to output the highest resolution to my HDTV?
A: No. If you have a 720p HDTV, set the XBOX 360 to output 720p. If you have a 1080i HDTV, set the XBOX 360 to output 1080i. If you have a 1080p HDTV, set the XBOX 360 to output 1080i or 1080p depending on whether your HDTV has Component or VGA input.

10. What is the deal with 1080i and 1080p?
A: With HD DVD, 1080i and 1080p will likely look exactly the same on your 1080p HDTV. Most modern 1080p HDTVs can deinterlace 1080i to 1080p, and they use a sequence known as Inverse Telecine to reconstruct a 1080p frame from 1080i output without quality loss. What this means is that you will most likely be able to run 1080i Component to your 1080p HDTV and get full 1080p quality. Therefore, in most cases you will not have to worry about using the VGA output for HD DVD. Even cheaper new flatpanels support Inverse Telecine like the Toshiba REGZA series.

11. I heard the new high definition standalone players can be slow. What about the 360 player?
A: The 360 HD DVD player is very fast, almost as fast as a standard DVD player.

12. What about the XBOX 360 HD DVD player not having HDMI? Won't the picture look worse?
A: Not necessarily. HDMI is a digital interconnect, however Component and VGA analog interconnects can deliver just as stunning of a picture to a digital device. Just like people hooked up CD players to their stereo with the red/white analog RCA jacks before digital output CD players came out (and most still hook them up this way for that matter), you can hook up XBOX 360 to your HDTV via Component or VGA output. HDMI's main benefit is to the studios - you can't easily copy an HDMI signal. HD DVD was originally supposed to use the Image Contraint Token, which would have restricted high definition output to HDMI - but this has been delayed to 2010 and perhaps indefinitely due to the huge amount of HDTV owners that don't have HDMI. Therefore, this is not something to worry about as you will likely be using a newer HD DVD player by the time 2010 rolls around.

13. Do HD DVD discs play in Standard DVD players?
A: Only the discs which are marked "HD DVD and DVD Combo Format" at the top of the case play in Standard DVD players. These "combo" discs have the HD DVD version on one side and the standard DVD version on the other side. You can actually start to buy these "combo" discs right now and play them in your standard DVD player in anticipation for the XBOX 360 HD DVD Player release - at which point you can flip them over and see the big difference HD makes! Other HD DVDs which are not in the "combo" format will not play in Standard DVD players. Standard DVDs will play in all HD DVD players, though.

14. What about Blu-Ray on PS3?
A: Blu-Ray is Sony's attempt to get their own proprietary format to be the next-generation of high-definition, making more money in the process. Similar to BETAMAX, Sony's plans to release Blu-Ray has created a "format war." Blu-Ray since its inception has had inconsistent video quality on its releases and traditionally less extras than HD DVD. While Sony boasts about higher disc capacity, the discs that do have higher capacity are very difficult and expensive to make, resulting in the majority of Blu-Ray titles residing on 25gb discs - which have 5gb less space than HD DVD's common 30gb discs. In addition, Sony insists on using the outdated MPEG2 codec since they again will make more money from using this codec instead of Microsoft's VC-1 - even though MPEG2 looks worse than VC-1 in general. That being said, even other studios that have moved to VC-1 on Blu-Ray have used the exact same transfer on HD DVD and Blu-Ray, resulting in identical video quality. Blu-Ray also has more intrusive copy protection and does not have "combo" discs as listed in #13, both a bad thing for the end user. Sales of Blu-Ray have been historically poor compared to HD DVD. Therefore, you can be confident that you are not only getting the superior product with HD DVD, but also the product which is selling the best too!

15. Will I benefit from HD DVD if I don't have an HDTV?
Yes and no. The primary gain from HD DVD is in its High Definition video, and this cannot be viewed at full resolution without a High Definition TV. That being said, even on a standard definition TV there are two significant advantages you will have with HD DVD over Standard DVD; those advantages are elimination of compression artifacts (blockiness/noise) seen on Standard DVD, along with more exciting and interactive extra features. Whether this is worth the money to you is really your call, but I would lean towards not recommending HD DVD without an HDTV.

16. Will Microsoft release video games on HD DVD?
A: No. Video games will only be released on Standard DVD (Dual Layer, DVD-9) while movies will be released on HD DVD. That being said, HD DVD/Blu-Ray are unnecessary and not truly beneficial for video games at this point due to the comparitively small amount of RAM on the XBOX 360 & PS3. Both of these next-gen consoles only have 512MB of RAM, meaning that at one time (one level, for instance) no more than 512MB of data can be stored in memory at once. Therefore, claims that a higher capacity discs will benefit textures and "world size" are primarily driven by marketing rather than fact - as both XBOX 360 and PS3 are limited to a much smaller amount of data due to their memory size. If XBOX 360 and PS3 had 4GB of RAM, then perhaps a larger disc size would be appropriate - but as it stands formats such as HD DVD and Blu-Ray would be overkill for a console that is limited to only 512MB of assets loaded into memory at once. The only thing higher capacity discs could bring to the videogaming table in this case would be high definition in-game movies with less compression artifacts; however with the evolution of VC-1 compression for movies and compression for other media forms (texture, voice, etc) even in this case it is somewhat overkill. The only place you might see an actual HD DVD on XBOX 360 is on a supplemental making-of disc; for instance, it would be possible to have the Bonus Movie DVD disc of Gears of War to be a dual-sided release with HD DVD on one side and DVD on the other side. This would allow users with the HD DVD addon to watch the supplemental making of movies in high definition while users without the addon could watch the Standard DVD side in standard definition. In terms of an actual video game disc, though, you will only see Standard DVD on the XBOX 360.

17. Okay, I'm sold. What do I get with the XBOX 360 HD DVD player?
A: You get the player addon, King Kong HD DVD, XBOX 360 Media Remote, and an additional 2 USB ports for your XBOX 360.

18. What's the cost and when will it be available?
A: The XBOX 360 HD DVD player will be available in Fall 2006 for $199. Around the same time, two new standalone HD DVD players will also be released, the Toshiba HD-A2 ($499) and Toshiba HD-XA2 ($999). As you can see, you are getting quite a bargain with the XBOX 360 HD DVD player!

19. Where can I see more about HD DVD or buy/rent HD DVD movies?
http://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/news/events/e32006/articles/20060507-hddvdexplained.htm
http://www.xbox.com/en-US/community/news/events/e32006/articles/hddvdplayer.htm
http://www.gamestop.com/product.asp?product%5Fid=802558
http://thelookandsoundofperfect.com
http://www.toshibahddvd.com/
http://www.dvdempire.com/index.asp?tab_id=61&site_id=68&site_media_id=0
http://www.amazon.com/HD-DVD-Store-High-Definition-DVDs/b/ref=amb_link_844112_61/002-3491212-5125608?ie=UTF8&node=16297241
http://www.bestbuy.com/olspage.jsp?id=pcmcat87100050018&type=category
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product_listing.gsp?cat=486303
http://www.blockbuster.com/catalog/LoadCatalogList.action?listID=1099123&listType=Movie%20List&cctr=DVDCollections
http://www.netflix.com/BrowseSelection?sgid=2442&hnjr=3
 
Awesome job.
The ONLY thing I would suggest is the answer to Question 6 seems kinda weird.

"Next, you need the XBOX 360 HD DVD player addon, which comes free with a copy of King Kong and the 360 Media Remote."

To ME, it seems as if you're saying the HD Addon comes Free with purchase of King Kong and the Remote. Maybe you should say '...which includes a free copy of...." instead? Just a suggestion. Otherwise you did anawesome job!
 
great job, very informative.

I'd like to see your thoughts on whether it's worth it for a non-HDTV without component. all I have is S-video at the moment....don't laugh, it's not funny ;)
 
[quote name='Apossum']great job, very informative.

I'd like to see your thoughts on whether it's worth it for a non-HDTV without component. all I have is S-video at the moment....don't laugh, it's not funny ;)[/QUOTE]

You would not notice a single difference from using a HD addon. Is youre TV even Widescreen?
 
[quote name='gizmogc']You would not notice a single difference from using a HD addon. Is youre TV even Widescreen?[/QUOTE]


nope. thx for the answer!
 
[quote name='Apossum']great job, very informative.

I'd like to see your thoughts on whether it's worth it for a non-HDTV without component. all I have is S-video at the moment....don't laugh, it's not funny ;)[/QUOTE]

I wouldn't say its worth it, no - as you will not get the resolution benefit of HD DVD.

However, you will still benefit from the increased interactivity of HD DVD, stuff like In-Movie-Experience (Video Commentary PIP) and U-Control extras. In addition, you will be able to enjoy your movies without the MPEG2 artifacting seen on Standard DVD. That being said, I'd only go for it if you plan to get an HDTV within a month or two after buying the addon.
 
Very thorough and incitefull. Thanks OP! Now when I finally get an LCD tv next month, I can think about this as my next purchase!
 
I think, for an FAQ, you should really remove all traces of bias. Especially when that bias is used to spread misinformation.

Not only that, the differences between MPEG2 and Vc-1 are only that of efficiency, it has nothing to do with quality. MPEG2 can achieve the same picture results as Vc-1, the only drawback being the the amount of space occupied on the disc.
 
[quote name='Ugamer_X']I think, for an FAQ, you should really remove all traces of bias. Especially when that bias is used to spread misinformation.

Not only that, the differences between MPEG2 and Vc-1 are only that of efficiency, it has nothing to do with quality. MPEG2 can achieve the same picture results as Vc-1, the only drawback being the the amount of space occupied on the disc.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. So tired of all the Sony bashing. So you don't like Blu-ray, let it go man. Don't buy and leave it at that. And why does this deserve a sticky but not the penny guide thread or Shipwreck's awesome trick to get half priced Xbox live arcade games?
 
[quote name='Purkeynator']Agreed. So tired of all the Sony bashing. So you don't like Blu-ray, let it go man.[/QUOTE]
So tired of people thinking that presenting the facts is just throwaway "Sony bashing."

HD-DVDs, thus far, for the most part, have been more impressive than Blu-Ray as far as picture quality. If you're upset about that, yell at Sony for insisting on using an outdated compression method - don't shoot the messenger.

Now, whether or not Blu-Ray will eventually surpass HD-DVD in picture quality is a different story - if it lasts long enough, I'd expect it would. There's nothing that was said about the two formats that most unbiased videophiles wouldn't agree with.
 
[quote name='Purkeynator']Agreed. So tired of all the Sony bashing. So you don't like Blu-ray, let it go man.[/QUOTE]
So tired of people thinking that presenting the facts is just throwaway "Sony bashing."

HD-DVDs, thus far, for the most part, have been more impressive than Blu-Ray as far as picture quality. If you're upset about that, yell at Sony for insisting on using an outdated compression method - don't shoot the messenger.

MPEG2 can achieve the same picture results as Vc-1, the only drawback being the the amount of space occupied on the disc.
Click to expand...
So how does that make Blu-Ray "the same?" If I have to pay more for a multilayered Blu-Ray disc to look as good as a HD-DVD disc, that doesn't strike me as equal. I can get to the gas station down the street two miles by walking or driving - the end result is the same but one is a lot more efficient.

Now, whether or not Blu-Ray will eventually surpass HD-DVD in picture quality is a different story - if it lasts long enough, I'd expect it would. There's nothing that was said about the two formats that most unbiased videophiles wouldn't agree with.
 
[quote name='Purkeynator']Agreed. So tired of all the Sony bashing. So you don't like Blu-ray, let it go man.[/QUOTE]
So tired of people thinking that presenting the facts is just throwaway "Sony bashing."

HD-DVDs, thus far, for the most part, have been more impressive than Blu-Ray as far as picture quality. If you're upset about that, yell at Sony for insisting on using an outdated compression method - don't shoot the messenger.

It may not even matter - some people WON'T be able to tell the difference - more power to them. I sometimes wish I couldn't.

MPEG2 can achieve the same picture results as Vc-1, the only drawback being the the amount of space occupied on the disc.
Click to expand...
So how does that make Blu-Ray "the same?" If I have to pay more for a multilayered Blu-Ray disc to look as good as a HD-DVD disc, that doesn't strike me as equal. I can get to the gas station down the street two miles by walking or riding a bike - the end result is the same but one is a lot more efficient.

Now, whether or not Blu-Ray will eventually surpass HD-DVD in picture quality is a different story - if it lasts long enough, I'd expect it would. There's nothing that was said about the two formats that most unbiased videophiles wouldn't agree with.
 
[quote name='Purkeynator']Agreed. So tired of all the Sony bashing. So you don't like Blu-ray, let it go man.[/QUOTE]
So tired of people thinking that presenting the facts is just throwaway "Sony bashing."

HD-DVDs, thus far, for the most part, have been more impressive than Blu-Ray as far as picture quality. If you're upset about that, yell at Sony for insisting on using an outdated compression method - don't shoot the messenger.

It may not even matter - some people WON'T be able to tell the difference - more power to them. I sometimes wish I couldn't.

MPEG2 can achieve the same picture results as Vc-1, the only drawback being the the amount of space occupied on the disc.
Click to expand...
So how does that make Blu-Ray "the same?" If I have to pay more for a multilayered Blu-Ray disc to look as good as a HD-DVD disc, that doesn't strike me as equal. I can get to the gas station down the street two miles by walking or riding a bike - the end result is the same but one is a lot more efficient.

Now, whether or not Blu-Ray will eventually surpass HD-DVD in picture quality is a different story - if it lasts long enough, I'd expect it would. There's nothing that was said in the OP about the two formats that most unbiased videophiles wouldn't agree with.
 
[quote name='Ruined']I wouldn't say its worth it, no - as you will not get the resolution benefit of HD DVD.

However, you will still benefit from the increased interactivity of HD DVD, stuff like In-Movie-Experience (Video Commentary PIP) and U-Control extras. In addition, you will be able to enjoy your movies without the MPEG2 artifacting seen on Standard DVD. That being said, I'd only go for it if you plan to get an HDTV within a month or two after buying the addon.[/QUOTE]


cool, thanks for the input. don't even know what U-control or MPEG2 artifacting is but commentary PIP definitely doesn't make it worth it for me since I never listen to commentary on reg dvds.

I'll probably own an HDTV about 4 years from now and hopefully this thing will be cheaper by then.
 
Kanerobot- I am just saying this arguement has been done a million times. I am sure many others agree with me that this arguement of Blu-ray vs Hd DVD is tired and old. Find something else to bitch about.
 
There's no reason that "Blu-Ray" should ever appear in an XBox 360 HD-DVD Player & DVD Upscaling FAQ. This article has a lot of useful information, but there is zero reason to compare and contrast against the Blu-Ray player in an FAQ.

People are coming here for info about the 360 HD DVD and nothing else. If they want to know the comparisons between the 360 and the bluray, then a separate thread should be started in one of the two forums and people can bash and forecast and argue all they want in that one.

Including that bit in the top is just going to de-rail this FAQ and turn it into a Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD sparring match and no one wants that, especially in a stickied thread (look, it's happening it already). Stick to the FACTS and this thread will actually be useful. Start incorporating opinions and this is going to be a series of fanboy posts with made up numbers and subjective video quality reviews. The topic has been beaten to DEATH.
 
Sorry if this was already awnsered, but I didn't see it when I read through this. I don't have an HDTV, but I do have my 360 hooked up through my tv's component cables. My dvds look great when played through the 360 like this, but will I see any improvement if I get this HDDVD player? If it helps, I am using a 27 inch Sony Wega
 
[quote name='Nightfall']Sorry if this was already awnsered, but I didn't see it when I read through this. I don't have an HDTV, but I do have my 360 hooked up through my tv's component cables. My dvds look great when played through the 360 like this, but will I see any improvement if I get this HDDVD player? If it helps, I am using a 27 inch Sony Wega[/QUOTE]
You won't see a significant improvement, if any.
 
[quote name='Ugamer_X']Did you even bother reading the feedback?[/QUOTE]

Yes. I updated the Blu-Ray section a bit to address some of the comments. Home movie formats are not like video games where 3 companies can all sell a product successfully; generally one format succeeds and one fails in the end as studios tend to like to only support one of them in the long run. People know this, therefore you cannot simply pretend Blu-Ray does not exist, so the facts about HD DVD outselling Blu-Ray by far and the video codecs on each was provided. If MPEG2 requires twice the space to look as good as VC-1 and even with that greater amount of space fails to exceed VC-1 in quality, then its an inferior codec, period - and this has been exactly the case so far. Also, the sales statistics provided by Amazon and Neilsen backup my points about sales.
 
[quote name='Ruined']Yes. I updated the Blu-Ray section a bit to address some of the comments. Home movie formats are not like video games where 3 companies can all sell a product successfully; generally one format succeeds and one fails in the end as studios tend to like to only support one of them in the long run. People know this, therefore you cannot simply pretend Blu-Ray does not exist, so the facts about HD DVD outselling Blu-Ray by far and the video codecs on each was provided. If MPEG2 requires twice the space to look as good as VC-1 and even with that greater amount of space fails to exceed VC-1 in quality, then its an inferior codec, period - and this has been exactly the case so far. Also, the sales statistics provided by Amazon and Neilsen backup my points about sales.[/QUOTE]
Look, I'm not going to argue tit for tat here, but many of your comments are obviously weighted. It is possible to discuss Blu-Ray in an HD-DVD FAQ, but only if it's done objectively, which is obviously not the case here. The fact remains that this isn't a Hybrid FAQ, and realistically the only thing that should be discussed here is HD-DVD.

Furthermore, mentioning sales data concerning products in their infancy with a significant price disparity is unecessary and ridiculous. Especially when the supporting data linked focuses on unreliable niche data (http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Sales/HD_DVD_Camp_Touts_Sales_Data,_Attach_Rates/302)

So, you can either hide behind the notion that you're doing the readers of this page a "service" by discussing Blu-ray negatively, or you can recognize the problem with your FAQ and fix it accordingly.
 
[quote name='Ugamer_X']Look, I'm not going to argue tit for tat here, but many of your comments are obviously weighted. It is possible to discuss Blu-Ray in an HD-DVD FAQ, but only if it's done objectively, which is obviously not the case here. The fact remains that this isn't a Hybrid FAQ, and realistically the only thing that should be discussed here is HD-DVD.

Furthermore, mentioning sales data concerning products in their infancy with a significant price disparity is unecessary and ridiculous. Especially when the supporting data linked focuses on unreliable niche data (http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Sales/HD_DVD_Camp_Touts_Sales_Data,_Attach_Rates/302)

So, you can either hide behind the notion that you're doing the readers of this page a "service" by discussing Blu-ray negatively, or you can recognize the problem with your FAQ and fix it accordingly.[/QUOTE]

Blu-Ray is being discussed negatively because it has gotten a negative reaction from virtually every home theater forum that exists. A perfect example is the biggest Home Theater forum on the internet, AVSFORUM.COM. The trend continues with other sites, DVDFILE.COM, HOMETHEATERFORUM.COM, etc. All have much bigger HD DVD fanbases because Blu-Ray cost more and delivered far less; even now, the very best Blu-Ray discs fail to match HD DVD in interactivity/features (no IME, no U-Control, no Standard DVD on the same disc, etc). Also, using the same site you just quoted your press release from (and btw, Videoscan/Nielsen is one of the most popular sales sources for home video), you can click through all of their Blu-Ray reviews and find out that over 50% of them are "disappointing" as per the professional reviewer - and those that are good never actually significantly exceed their HD DVD counterparts in quality while at the same time often having less extra features. Checking the same site for HD DVD reviews finds the reviewer positively talking up over 95% of the HD DVD reviews, clearly a much more consistent product being delivered.

So, there is a very real reason for discussing Blu-Ray negatively, as one of the posters on the first page of this thread mentioned - because it has delivered inconsistent quality & features while costing the end user twice as much money to even get into the game with a standalone player - and adding more restrictive Digital Rights Management (BD+ Advanced Countermeasure) to boot. That is the general consensus by most people who are looking at the situation objectively.
 
Any launch numbers on how many units will ship? Do people think these will be hard to find? I know you can pre-order, but I wanted to get itat Best Buy with RZ coupons.
 
Damn it, I just double checked. My 1080p doesn't have VGA in, it has component, hdmin, and dvi. fuck.

Edit: Looks like there are VGA to DVI adapters online... will I still be getting the 1080p picture using the adapter?
 
[quote name='Ruined']Blu-Ray is being discussed negatively because it has gotten a negative reaction from virtually every home theater forum that exists.[/QUOTE]
I'd just ignore the critics - the FAQ is fine, and there's nothing wrong with what you put. People are so fucking oversensitive now when it comes to their fanboyish tendencies that if something is even remotely "in the corner" of one product over another (even if the facts support your stance, like they do here), they flip out.

HD-DVD doing better right now. That's all there is to it. That said, neither format is doing necessarily "good," and in 6 months Blu-Ray could be turned around and be kicking the shit out of HD-DVD. But right now, that's where it stands.
 
Great post Ruined!
Thanks again.

This may be the wrong place to ask, but I want to verify what resolution I should set my system to? I have a 768P hdtv using the VGA cable and I want to avoid HD lag as much as possible. Is 720P the suggested option, or should I kick it to 1080i. I ask because 720p seems like I would be converting down and 1080i I would be converting up from 768.

Thanks!
 
[quote name='bayushi']Great post Ruined!
Thanks again.

This may be the wrong place to ask, but I want to verify what resolution I should set my system to? I have a 768P hdtv using the VGA cable and I want to avoid HD lag as much as possible. Is 720P the suggested option, or should I kick it to 1080i. I ask because 720p seems like I would be converting down and 1080i I would be converting up from 768.

Thanks![/QUOTE]

I'd try both and see what looks better on your TV - it depends on the scaling/deinterlacing ability of both the 360 drive and/or your specific HDTV depending on what resolution you pick. In your case, I'm guessing that 720p will probably look better simply because it requires less complex processing on the side of your HDTV.
 
I have a 61" Samsung 720p set with PC/VGA input. Is it worth getting this HD-DVD for 720p or should I wait until I eventually get a 1080p set. Also, does the VGA cord/connector come with the HD-DVD?
 
[quote name='bayushi']Great post Ruined!
Thanks again.

This may be the wrong place to ask, but I want to verify what resolution I should set my system to? I have a 768P hdtv using the VGA cable and I want to avoid HD lag as much as possible. Is 720P the suggested option, or should I kick it to 1080i. I ask because 720p seems like I would be converting down and 1080i I would be converting up from 768.

Thanks![/QUOTE]
How do you sei it to 720p or 1080i with the VGA cable?
 
[quote name='dcv2002']I have a 61" Samsung 720p set with PC/VGA input. Is it worth getting this HD-DVD for 720p or should I wait until I eventually get a 1080p set. Also, does the VGA cord/connector come with the HD-DVD?[/QUOTE]
Tricky question - 61" is definitely large enough to tell the difference between 1080p and 720p, but even so...720p HD-DVD will still look way, way better than upscaled DVD on your current set.

If it were me - I'd wait on a TV and get the player now. 1080p TVs are still fairly expensive (although prices have already begun to fall - witness Sony dropping the XBR2/3 price by 500 bucks last week)...if you wait a year they should be very affordable.

Pretty sure neither cable comes with the player, I'm sure if I'm wrong someone will correct me.




The ship date for this is November 7th according to EB...is that recent news or is this something everyone but me has known for a while?
 
[quote name='dcv2002']I have a 61" Samsung 720p set with PC/VGA input. Is it worth getting this HD-DVD for 720p or should I wait until I eventually get a 1080p set. Also, does the VGA cord/connector come with the HD-DVD?[/QUOTE]
Tricky question - 61" is definitely large enough to tell the difference between 1080p and 720p, but even so...720p HD-DVD will still look way, way better than upscaled DVD on your current set.

If it were me - I'd wait on a TV and get the player now. 1080p TVs are still fairly expensive (although prices have already begun to fall - witness Sony dropping the XBR2/3 price by 500 bucks last week)...if you wait a year they should be very affordable.

Pretty sure neither cable comes with the player, I'm sure if I'm wrong someone will correct me.




The ship date for this is November 7th according to EB...is that recent news or is this something everyone but me has known for a while?
 
I read in the newest OXM that ship date was Nov.14th. I know King Kong HD-DVD releases on the 14th....the 7th would be nice though.
 
[quote name='Ruined']XBOX 360 Standard DVD:
Component Output: 480p
VGA Output: 480p, Upscaled to 720p, Upscaled to 1080i, Upscaled to 1080p[/quote]

So...My DVD viewing will improve if I use the VGA cable, correct? How does this apply to games? Does the 360 simply display the highest resolution possible?

Essentially, I'm asking if I should be using the VGA cable over the Component cable.
 
[quote name='Darkside Hazuki']So...My DVD viewing will improve if I use the VGA cable, correct? How does this apply to games? Does the 360 simply display the highest resolution possible?

Essentially, I'm asking if I should be using the VGA cable over the Component cable.[/QUOTE]

Yes, but only if you have money to burn and want everything to be in the highest possible quality.

The main drawback for me about component is it doesn't upscale regular DVDs. That very well may not be a deal-breaker for most, as the difference between regular 480p DVD and upscaled is often negligible. Other than that though the two cables are pretty much on par. Some people (including myself) think the colors get bit washed-out over this VGA cable, but when it comes down to that vs. upscaling I'll take the latter. Like said in the OP, most TVs now can display 1080i content so there is no difference between it and 1080p, so there's no real loss if you're using component to watch your HD-DVDs.

I am going to get a VGA cable because my new TV will support it, and I want to keep my component stuff to a minimum since the wires can get messy. I'll keep my O.G. Xbox on there with component and that's probably it.
 
i have both component and vga cables ...

i prefer component because it just looks sharper and better to me... vga just doesnt look as sharp..maybe its just my tv...

i have my all in one for upscaling via hdmi so im not missing out on much.

im also hoping it ships out on the 7th.
 
Will the XBOX HD-DVD add on upscale current DVDs to near HD quality? or is just going to play old dvds as normal.
 
So I am running the VGA cable on my 360 and did a lot of research before adding it. I found out Samsung TVs, for whatever reason, seem to have less of the color wash out some people get with them. The 360 defnitely looks 10x better on VGA on my TV than component.

My question is, I thought the 360 VGA cable had a max resolution of 720p? Was there a dashboard update that allows you to run 1080i and I just missed it?
 
[quote name='tenzor']Will the XBOX HD-DVD add on upscale current DVDs to near HD quality? or is just going to play old dvds as normal.[/quote]

It will upscale DVDs up to 720p/1080i/1080p with the new fall update only via the VGA cable.

[quote name='Big Papa']My question is, I thought the 360 VGA cable had a max resolution of 720p? Was there a dashboard update that allows you to run 1080i and I just missed it?[/quote]

The fall update will allow upscaling of movies and games up to 1080p.

http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=108641
 
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