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Posts with tag high definition

Netflix Not Stocking Enough Blu-ray Discs?

by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Feb 25th 2008 at 2:00PM


Excited to see all the Academy Award winners you missed over the last year? Want to see them on your new Blu-Ray payer? Psyched to check out all the new releases in high-definition? Sure you are, so you hit up Netflix to add them to your queue and wait for them to arrive. The only problem? It seems Netflix isn't stocking enough Blu-Ray discs, and your queue looks something like the one above.

We've been aching to say something about this apparent Netflix Blu-Ray shortage for a while, but before we went off on some wild accusatory tangent, we decided to wait for a couple weeks to see if the death of HD-DVD would get Netflix to stock more Blu-Ray discs. You know, to be fair to Netflix. It seems the problem hasn't let up, however.

The above picture is what our queue has looked like for the past couple weeks. See all those "Short Wait, Long Wait, and "Very Long Wait" messages? Those mean those discs are not in stock at Netflix, they're not sure when they will be, and we'll just have to wait for other customers to return their discs. And in the afterglow of the Academy Awards, we're not confident the problem will let up any time soon.

Isn't it time for Netflix to stock more Blu-Ray discs? With the rising popularity of the format, the end of HD-DVD as we know it, and the oncoming rise in Blu-Ray releases (just take a look at the Blu-Ray association's web site that lists upcoming releases), we think it's time for Netflix to stop treating Blu-Ray like a niche product and let us have the HD goodness we're (apparently) waiting for.

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Canon's New 'Vixia' Camcorders: A Quick Look

by Will Safer, posted Jan 11th 2008 at 9:01AM

Canon VIXIA HF10


Canon this week introduced a lineup of new consumer camcorders with the moniker "VIXIA". This line includes a dual solid state (no hard drives or moving parts) unit that on the face of it is quite impressive.

The HF10 Dual Flash Memory camcorder uses both a 16 gigabyte internal flash drive and a removable SDHC memory card to store your captured video and still images. Flash memory is good because unlike a hard drive, optical disc, or video tape, there are no moving parts in that part of the camcorder mechanism, so it requires less energy and has less chance of failure (with normal use). The internal memory can capture up to six hours of high definition video.

The HF10 and another unit, the HF100 (which only has the SDHC card slot), both feature 24p cinema mode for capturing movie-like images and a 30p progressive mode, which is good for capturing fast-motion action like sports.

The HV30 HD camcorder introduced here seems almost quaint in that it uses MiniDV cassette tapes, although its predecessor, the HV20, did a nice job with high definition video capture.

The HF10 Dual Flash Memory will be available in April for $1,099. The HF100 is also coming in April and will carry an $899 price tag. Finally, the HV30 is coming out in February and will set you back $999.

We'll let you know what we think once we get our hands on the set for testing.

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HD-DVD Players Drop to Sub-$200 Price Tag

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Oct 29th 2007 at 12:31PM


While next-gen disc format Blu-ray languishes in the overpriced gadget ghetto, competing format HD-DVD and the players that play it are breaking free by dropping in price to a popular holiday gift level. ar. Hot on the heels of the release of the Toshiba HD-A3 HD-DVD player, retailers across the country are dropping the price of the previous-generation HD-A2 below the all important $200 mark.

At $198 in Wal-Mart and $197.99 in Circuit City, the HD-A2 is the first high-definition video player to approach commodity pricing. The only down side of the HD-A2 is that it falls short of "full HD" resolution or 1080p, topping out at 1080i, but it's the kind of thing that no one notices when sitting more than a seven or eight feet away from a TV set, or on any screen 42-inches or smaller.

Your turn Sony/Blu-ray camp.

From Ars Technica

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Headaches for Blu-ray Owners

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Oct 8th 2007 at 1:29PM

Headaches for Blu-ray Owners
With each camp constantly trying to upstage the other with endless freebies and shouts of victory, the battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD over our hi-def movie hearts is never a dull one. Today's news from the front is a blow for Sony. After its Blu-ray format seemed to be taking a definitive lead, it's now suffering a series of setbacks due to widespread issues with new movies freezing up older players.

Many of the latest Blu-ray releases, including 'Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer' and 'The Day After Tomorrow,' are reportedly choking during playback. Many players are simply not playing the discs at all, while others crap out about 30 minutes into the movie. Even the PS3's Blu-ray player isn't free from problems, though many users have seen the playback issues resolved with the latest firmware update for the console.

Currently, Fox is suspected to be the source of the problems thanks to a couple of its new technologies for copy-protection and for adding extra interactive features. Fox has acknowledged the issue, but is blaming the hardware manufacturers, which, according to AVS Forum users, include LG and Samsung. For its part, Samsung has said it has no timetable for delivering a fix.

This has consumers asking, "Now that we've spent tons of money on these things and chosen our side in the war, is it too much to ask that they simply work?"

From BetaNews

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Wait Until After the Holidays to Buy a New TV, Analysts Say

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Aug 28th 2007 at 2:18PM


If you've been thinking about getting a fancy new HDTV, you might want to wait unitl after the holidays to make your purchase -- at least that's the advice several analysts have given to the New York Times. Over the past couple of years, flat-panel prices have plummeted (and subsequently) so have profits.

As a result, retailers are focusing less on the affordable brands (Vizio, Norcent, Olevia) and more on pricier name-brand models (Pioneer, Sony, Sharp). Best Buy, Circuit City and even Costco are not only pushing higher-end models with the latest features like 1080p and HDMI 1.3, but also high-profit additions like extended warranties and professional installation

The relentless push for higher profits will likely let up after the holidays. Many retailers also have large post holiday sales events. So if you're in the market for an HDTV, wait until Dec. 26th. In the meantime, you can always check sites such as dealnews.com to find the latest promotions that may in fact exist before or after the holidays.

From The New York Times

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How to Hook Up Your New HDTV

by Switched Staff, posted Aug 7th 2007 at 12:32PM



Now that you've shelled out for a nice new HDTV, it's time to learn how to get the best possible sound and video out of it. Switched explains just what all of those inputs on the back of your set are for, how to connect them, and which ones will maximize your home theater experience.

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