By attending this year's Consumer Electronics Show, I achieved an important milestone: this was my 10th CES. I've been making the annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas to witness the latest and greatest in 110V for a decade. In 1996, VHS was reaping billions and laserdisc was still the enthusiast's darling. But there were rumblings of a new format that would set the CE world on its ear. The first prototypes weren't that impressive and even though a format war had been averted, no one was sure that something called a DVD could hold an entire movie on a disc no bigger than a CD -- and have it look and sound good. Wow, what a difference 3,650 days make!
Now here we are in 2006. What's happened? DVD replaced VHS as the worldwide standard for packaged audio/visual media. Broadcast HDTV became a reality. HD sets that were $10,000 five years ago are now below $2,000 and offer better performance and features. Home theater went from two-channel matrix surround to 5.1 discrete surround with optional additional rear channel processing. The digital revolution truly revolutionized the way people receive their entertainment. And guess what? We're about to be transformed again.
Yes folks, the holy grail of home entertainment was evident everywhere at CES: true high-definition audio and video has arrived and is ready to invade our living rooms, dedicated home theaters and just about any personal space you can imagine. Before I start jumping into particulars, let me be clear from the outset: I WANT HIGH-DEFINITION DVD! And once you've seen and heard what I have, you'll be hooked too!
Again, as in years past, let me iterate my perspective with this analysis. What follows is a general overview of the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, an annual gathering that re-defines the Shakespearean concept of "full of sound and fury." Rather than get bogged down in the minutiae of component model numbers, technical specifications, price points and availability timetables, I hope to provide a "fly-on-the-exhibit" flavor for what was announced, presented and demonstrated at CES, with specifics presented when appropriate. If you are seeking an itemized report of product lines sorted by manufacturer, you will find only disappointment here. And away we go…
Both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray made it official: both will be arriving this year to a store or retail website near you. If there was one dominant theme of the 2006 CES, that was it. Everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE - there were posters, banners, monitors, flyers and strollers, all proclaiming the arrival of packaged high-definition video.
HD-DVD, championed by a hardware consortium led by Toshiba Electronics, and Blu-Ray, developed by Sony Electronics, both promise to deliver true high-definition video to all those HDTVs sitting in home theaters and living rooms across the country and both made huge splashes at CES, with flashy demonstrations, elaborate press conferences and numerous hardware and software announcements. Let's start with HD-DVD.
At last year's CES, HD-DVD boldly pronounced they would be out of the gate first with players and over 100 high-profile movie titles that would be available by the 2005 holiday shopping season. They touted the exclusive backing of such Hollywood heavyweights as Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures and Universal Pictures. And their PR machine had everyone believe that because they had first sprint momentum, they would be the defacto standard for high-definition video. I guess no one in the HD-DVD camp ever read Aesop's little ditty about the Tortoise and the Hare.
Toshiba announced two new HD-DVD players available in March: the entry-level HD-A1 ($499) and the more advanced HD-XA1 ($799). These players will output 1080i HD-DVD via an HDMI output as well as up-convert standard 480i DVD to 720p/1080i. (Component video outputs will output a down-converted 480p signal of a HD-DVD.) They also support the new audio formats for high-definition DVD - Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD (more on them in the next section). Other manufacturers unveiling HD-DVD players included RCA's HDV500 player, identical in appearance and price to the HD-A1, and Sanyo's HD-S100 (price TBA). Computer HD-DVD drives were announced and demo'd by several manufacturers including NEC and Toshiba. Toshiba also announced that Best Buy.com and Amazon.com were online that day with web pages ready to take orders for the players.
There was quite a bit of internet and HD enthusiast debate last year about whether or not high definition DVD players would output their HD content through HDMI (or DVI-D via an adapter) solely or through HDMI/DVI and component video outs. It's quite clear now that in order to experience high-definition DVD, HDTV displays will require HDMI/DVI inputs. With the exception of VERY early adopters, most of the HDTVs sold in the last three years have both DVI and HDMI capability. In today's market, you'd have to look real hard to find an HDTV without one or both connector types.
On the software side, Warner Bros., Paramount and Universal each announced the first wave of HD-DVD titles arriving concurrent with the Toshiba players. Most of the titles were contemporary action-adventure spectacles (no surprise there) with the announcement that Studio Canal and the Weinstein Company were also committing product. The first high-definition films will include "Cinderella Man," "Jarhead" and "Van Helsing" from Universal, "Batman Begins," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Constantine" from Warner Bros. and "Aeon Flux," "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" and "The Italian Job" from Paramount. BTW, the same titles announced by Warner Bros. and Paramount will also be available on Blu-Ray.
While HD-DVD missed out on getting aboard the Microsoft Xbox 360, Toshiba announced that an external HD-DVD peripheral for the gaming platform will be available in the latter half of the year. Big whoop.
Now, let me take a moment to share how Toshiba presented HD-DVD to the global worldwide press. On Wednesday night, January 5, I attended a highly-touted press conference boasting "Dinner and a Screening @ CES" at the Margaux Room at the Wynn Hotel. After checking in, I was directed to one of the ballrooms. I walked in to find several rows of empty seats and a stage with a screen - a 4 x 3 screen. WTF? The event started 30 minutes late due to problems with bussing in guests from another press event. Eventually, the room filled to approximately 50% capacity. Once underway, the presentation started with trailers of "Mission Impossible 3," "Miami Vice" and "Poseidon," presented in 4x3 letterbox AND the video signal showed power-line interference! Also, the audio emanated from left-right front speakers only. So much for that thrilling lossless high-definition surround sound! When the clips ended, Nancy O'Dell of "Access Hollywood" took the stage and proceeded to greet everyone as if they were right in front of her. I then realized what was happening - I was watching a video feed of the presentation that was happening somewhere else! I guess DVDReview.com wasn't good enough to merit seeing and hearing the actual press conference! But nothing - and I mean NOTHING - compared with the moment when - on stage for the attending global press - Kevin Collins from Microsoft popped in an HD-DVD, pressed "Play" and - nothing happened! But as Toshiba's Mr. Yoshihide Fujii kept saying during the event: "HD-DVD is now playing." Just not there.
As for Blu-Ray, several manufacturers announced dedicated Blu-Ray players to hit store shelves in the next six months. Pioneer showed off its Elite-branded BDP-HD1, clocking in at a ripe $1,800. Samsung's BD-1000 will arrive in April at $1,000 with Phillips and Sharp showing BD players with prices TBA. Sony's BDP-S1 will be the label's flagship BD player, available starting in June. However, the big, BIG buzz was about Sony's Playstation 3, the next generation gaming platform that includes BD technology built-in. While Sony was mum on an actual price, buzz is that the PS3 player will run in the $400 - $500 range. And anyone who buys a PS3 - promising full high-definition graphics via two HDMI outputs (at least on the prototypes on display) -- automatically gets a full-blooded, genuine BD player. In short, the day PS3 goes on sale, Blu-Ray enters the home entertainment arena without even trying.
Sony announced over 20 initial Blu-Ray titles available starting in May (I think we can safely assume that month will premiere PS3), ranging from "Charlie's Angels Full Throttle" (the first Blu-Ray title mastered), "House of Flying Daggers," "Bram Stoker's Dracula," "Robocop," "The Last Waltz," "Desperado" and even "Bridge on the River Kwai." (Interestingly, the Warner Bros., Paramount and Universal hi-def titles contain very few "classics.") Fox will release a handful of Blu-Ray titles starting in April with "Fantastic Four," Ice Age" and "League of Extraordinary Gentleman" for starters.
Now, regarding the packaging for both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray discs… There's a cosmic joke lurking somewhere there, because with the exception of jacket color they are identical! It's as if the supplier went to the HD-DVD camp on Monday and visited the Blu-Ray camp on Tuesday. For the time being, the only way to visually differentiate the two formats packaging - HD-DVD is red, Blu-Ray is, surprise, blue. Something's gotta give on this one.
Yes folks, the holy grail of home entertainment was evident everywhere at CES: true high-definition audio and video has arrived and is ready to invade our living rooms, dedicated home theaters and just about any personal space you can imagine. Before I start jumping into particulars, let me be clear from the outset: I WANT HIGH-DEFINITION DVD! And once you've seen and heard what I have, you'll be hooked too!
Both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray made it official: both will be arriving this year to a store or retail website near you. If there was one dominant theme of the 2006 CES, that was it. Everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE - there were posters, banners, monitors, flyers and strollers, all proclaiming the arrival of packaged high-definition video.
Toshiba announced two new HD-DVD players available in March: the entry-level HD-A1 ($499) and the more advanced HD-XA1 ($799). These players will output 1080i HD-DVD via an HDMI output as well as up-convert standard 480i DVD to 720p/1080i. (Component video outputs will output a down-converted 480p signal of a HD-DVD.) They also support the new audio formats for high-definition DVD - Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD (more on them in the next section). Other manufacturers unveiling HD-DVD players included RCA's HDV500 player, identical in appearance and price to the HD-A1, and Sanyo's HD-S100 (price TBA). Computer HD-DVD drives were announced and demo'd by several manufacturers including NEC and Toshiba. Toshiba also announced that Best Buy.com and Amazon.com were online that day with web pages ready to take orders for the players. 
On the software side, Warner Bros., Paramount and Universal each announced the first wave of HD-DVD titles arriving concurrent with the Toshiba players. Most of the titles were contemporary action-adventure spectacles (no surprise there) with the announcement that Studio Canal and the Weinstein Company were also committing product. The first high-definition films will include "Cinderella Man," "Jarhead" and "Van Helsing" from Universal, "Batman Begins," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Constantine" from Warner Bros. and "Aeon Flux," "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" and "The Italian Job" from Paramount. BTW, the same titles announced by Warner Bros. and Paramount will also be available on Blu-Ray. 
As for Blu-Ray, several manufacturers announced dedicated Blu-Ray players to hit store shelves in the next six months. Pioneer showed off its Elite-branded BDP-HD1, clocking in at a ripe $1,800. Samsung's BD-1000 will arrive in April at $1,000 with Phillips and Sharp showing BD players with prices TBA. Sony's BDP-S1 will be the label's flagship BD player, available starting in June. However, the big, BIG buzz was about Sony's Playstation 3, the next generation gaming platform that includes BD technology built-in. While Sony was mum on an actual price, buzz is that the PS3 player will run in the $400 - $500 range. And anyone who buys a PS3 - promising full high-definition graphics via two HDMI outputs (at least on the prototypes on display) -- automatically gets a full-blooded, genuine BD player. In short, the day PS3 goes on sale, Blu-Ray enters the home entertainment arena without even trying. 
Sony announced over 20 initial Blu-Ray titles available starting in May (I think we can safely assume that month will premiere PS3), ranging from "Charlie's Angels Full Throttle" (the first Blu-Ray title mastered), "House of Flying Daggers," "Bram Stoker's Dracula," "Robocop," "The Last Waltz," "Desperado" and even "Bridge on the River Kwai." (Interestingly, the Warner Bros., Paramount and Universal hi-def titles contain very few "classics.") Fox will release a handful of Blu-Ray titles starting in April with "Fantastic Four," Ice Age" and "League of Extraordinary Gentleman" for starters. 
Now, regarding the packaging for both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray discs… There's a cosmic joke lurking somewhere there, because with the exception of jacket color they are identical! It's as if the supplier went to the HD-DVD camp on Monday and visited the Blu-Ray camp on Tuesday. For the time being, the only way to visually differentiate the two formats packaging - HD-DVD is red, Blu-Ray is, surprise, blue. Something's gotta give on this one.