Microsoft Xbox 360 HD DVD Player $49

[annaconda]

Link (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8132095&type=product&id=1158321865239&&DCMP=KNC-TLC&ref=25&loc=PGR&srccode=cii_5784816&cpncode=10-68126205-2)


Now at Buy.com: (http://www.buy.com/prod/xbox-360-hd-dvd-player/q/loc/108/203249984.html) the Xbox 360 HD-DVD Player XBOX 360 9Z5-00013 is a low $49.99. Free shipping.
(FREE King Kong HD-DVD Movie bundled) - $10 Off Google Check Out = $39

Get 5 free HD Movies by mail with purchase. Exp 2/28. (http://images.pricegrabber.com/rebates/89872.pdf)

Also at Circuit City for the same price with free shipping. (http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/Search.do?c=1&searchType=user&keyword=Xbox+360+HD+DVD+Player+w%2FKing+Kong+HD-DVD&searchSection=All&go.x=14&go.y=6)

[p05ta1]

I don't think many will be running out to buy one of these now that Hd-dvd is going betamax.

But a good buy if you want hd-dvd movies at a cheap price till there gone.

[XeroHouR]

Would be a good find if HD dvd wasn't on its way out. Grab the titles you love now and enjoy the quality cheap. or put the money towards a blu-ray player...

[bufodr_T]

got one
thanks

[SC385]

I thought this was a repost of the kmart one for a sec. Now I don't have to worry about pricematching BB if I decide to get one.

[SatTech]

In for one...thanks for the link

[Ub3rn00b]

I mean...it could be worth it if all your favorite movies are already in HD-DVD and some of those are not also in Blu-Ray.

[Devil24]

I mean...it could be worth it if all your favorite movies are already in HD-DVD and some of those are not also in Blu-Ray.

Or if you already own a boatload of HD-DVD movies... like me :D... so this is perfect for an HTPC.

[Blazestorm]

Upconverts DVDs... connects to USB to any XP/Vista machine, 6 free movies...

$50 is cheap enough ;)

Snagged one last night w/ the Kmart pricematch, didn't realize everyone would have them...

Oh well :D

[annaconda]

I would love to see Blue-Ray Drives for the same price :D

[thelead]

Upconverts DVDs... connects to USB to any XP/Vista machine, 6 free movies...

$50 is cheap enough ;)

Snagged one last night w/ the Kmart pricematch, didn't realize everyone would have them...

Oh well :D

The drive doesn't upconvert. The 360 upconverts through this or even the built-in dvd drive.

[Charlie Hustle]

it only upconverts only to 480p if you call that hi-def

[Menelmarar]

Nice! weren't these 199 retail at one point not long ago?

Still, last I noticed, since the Toshiba announcement, Ebay has been flooded with cheap cheap drives where people are trying to abandon them.

[Jimmy the Greek]

How do you get the 6 free movies?

[AjFreimuth]

If I lose my auction on ebay I'll hop on this.

[annaconda]

How do you get the 6 free movies?

I don;t think so you can get 6 movies with XBOX HD Player. I thought it was with Toshiba HD DVD Players, i could be wrong can some one confirm it please?

[zero002021]

it only upconverts only to 480p if you call that hi-def
It can upconvert to 1080i/1080p depending on your television and connection. However, the Xbox 360's internal DVD drive will upconvert DVD's as well. This could be worth the $50 to use as a backup drive if you currently own an add-on and are worried about it crapping out.

[NeoGohan]

Man my 360 hd dvd player isn't working anymore. I don't know how much it's gonna cost to get it fixed by microsoft but it looks like buying a new one might be what i have to do. =\ Tried looking up repair costs but couldn't find anything. Maybe just gonna grab a new one.

[Z(+)DIAC]

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?p=1032116797#post1032116797

[Blazestorm]

How do you get the 6 free movies?

Kingkong is included, and you can mail-in for 5 movies.

Must by/submit by Thursday (purchase by thursday, postmark by like monday)

[Charlie Hustle]

It can upconvert to 1080i/1080p depending on your television and connection. However, the Xbox 360's internal DVD drive will upconvert DVD's as well. This could be worth the $50 to use as a backup drive if you currently own an add-on and are worried about it crapping out.

Actually i was stating dvd movies. By law (asci policy i believe) its not allowed to upconvert regular dvds no higher than 480p. My tv play games in 1080i, but when i play a dvd movie through my 360, it always goes down to 480p.
Of course it can upconvert hddvds to 1080i (over component) and 1080p (over hdmi).

[Kmical]

Kingkong is included, and you can mail-in for 5 movies.

Must by/submit by Thursday (purchase by thursday, postmark by like monday)

Actually, the rebate form I'm loooking at right now - http://www.thelookandsoundofperfect.com/_pdf/perfect_hd_dvd_offer_redemption_form.pdf says purchase by 2/28/08, postmark by 3/31/08.

The XBOX HD-DVD drive IS a qualifying player for the rebate :D

[Raines8416]

Not a bad deal for those who are waiting for stores to start pushing their HD DVD stock off the shelves. Give it a couple months and we'll be seeing BB and the like selling their HD DVDs for $10, maybe even less.

[Charlie Hustle]

someone just schooled me that the 360 will upconvert dvd movies to 720p/ or 1080i thru vga connection..

[mrtyphoon]

In for one. This would go great with my HTPC.

[thelead]

someone just schooled me that the 360 will upconvert dvd movies to 720p/ or 1080i thru vga connection..

... and through hdmi and 1080p at that

[RangerXML]

Can these be removed from their housing and put internally into a PC?

[SirKronan]

Thanks, OP! I bought mine this morning! And here's a link to the printable coupon for the 5 free movies by mail:

http://static.tigerdirect.com/rebates/T24-9114-9146-Feb28_08.pdf

Now, does anyone have a link to a thread about how to make this work on my computer? I don't even have a 360!!! I just did it for the movies because I'd read it works on your PC via USB. :D

[SirKronan]

Can these be removed from their housing and put internally into a PC?

I read that it's easiest to just use it via USB, but again, I don't know where the links are. That's why I'm asking if anybody knows. Heading to google now....

[SirKronan]

[/RIGHT]Can these be removed from their housing and put internally into a PC?

FOUND IT!!!

"When we easily dissembled the beast, where we were encountered by the strangest plug on the back of the Toshiba OEM drive we have ever seen. Obviously, we can’t connect the HD-DVD drive directly into a tower computer, and must work with the USB case that Microsoft provided, so long as it works does it matter?"

Link:
http://uneasysilence.com/archive/2006/11/8303/


Sorry, but looks like the answer's no on that one. Have to use it external .... meh.

[Ockie]

[/RIGHT]

FOUND IT!!!

"When we easily dissembled the beast, where we were encountered by the strangest plug on the back of the Toshiba OEM drive we have ever seen. Obviously, we can’t connect the HD-DVD drive directly into a tower computer, and must work with the USB case that Microsoft provided, so long as it works does it matter?"

Link:
http://uneasysilence.com/archive/2006/11/8303/


Sorry, but looks like the answer's no on that one. Have to use it external .... meh.

That "Strange" "plug" is a high density interface for what they use laptops on. You can get a converter board for it (the same board as you would use on a slim optical drive). You can make this work inside your regular pc, but it will have no bezel and the amount of work you have to do to accomplish this isn't worth the effort.

[RangerXML]

The bezel isn't a problem to take car, the adapter is.

[annaconda]

[/RIGHT]


Link:
http://uneasysilence.com/archive/2006/11/8303/


Sorry, but looks like the answer's no on that one. Have to use it external .... meh.

Thanx for the link.

[Ockie]

The bezel isn't a problem to take car, the adapter is.

Snatch the adapter up on ebay.

[Blazestorm]

Now I gotta pick out which HD-DVDs I want out of this semi-mediocre selection...

Any recommendations? I've only seen Full Metal Jacket... and a couple others I think...

[Thermite Paste]

Now I gotta pick out which HD-DVDs I want out of this semi-mediocre selection...

Any recommendations? I've only seen Full Metal Jacket... and a couple others I think...
Pitch Black was good, but I can't really comment on any of the others because I either haven't seen them or saw them too long ago to remember.

And thanks for the link, I will be picking up one of these on my way home from school today. :D

[RangerXML]

Miami Vice :D

[SC385]

I just went to my local Best Buy and they were sold out(computer said 3 in stock) and circuit city wouldnt pricematch. I drive by another BB and CC so hopefully they have some in stock.

[NOL1M1TMAN]

I just picked on up from best buy online. Great post OP !

[Blazestorm]

Gamestop / Ebgames are closing out their DVD section, which is supposed to have blu-ray and Hd-DVDs...

buy 2 get 4 free... gonna head over today and see if I can't get some realllly cheap HD-DVDs :)

[eclypse]

Call around.. Theres a Bestbuy near my wifes work and i did the store pickup as they show that store has some instock.. Got worried since i didnt get a comformation email and its been over an hour and called the store. They have 6 in stock but i cant pick it up and they cant pull it till i get my damn email.. Stupid. I can see them fly off the selfs at this blow out price.

[Artemis87]

holy crap! Too bad hd dvds got killed

[Ockie]

I just went to my local Best Buy and they were sold out(computer said 3 in stock) and circuit city wouldnt pricematch. I drive by another BB and CC so hopefully they have some in stock.

Did you ask? They kept mine under the customer service counter for some reason :confused:

[RangerXML]

holy crap! Too bad hd dvds got killed

If they hadn't I highly doubt we would of seen this player for so cheap so soon.

[M*A*S*H_4077]

movies that i think Are on hd-dvd only that look good, are Serenity (one of the best) and Matrix series. transformers.
I jumped on this deal just for a backup hd-dvd player beacuse i now have a huge collection of hd-dvd's that are about to be as worthless as beta.

Oh it works great as a player for the pc just need something like win dvd8 to play.

[eclypse]

Gamestop / Ebgames are closing out their DVD section, which is supposed to have blu-ray and Hd-DVDs...

buy 2 get 4 free... gonna head over today and see if I can't get some realllly cheap HD-DVDs :)

Is that used DVDs? or new?

[ultatryon@ecc]

in for 1, its sitting at my local BB waiting for me now. If anything, its a slick little external USB DVD drive.

[Blazestorm]

Is that used DVDs? or new?

Used... mine didn't have any DVD's... they called around and found the only one was 20miles away...

Still buy 2 get 2... so wait until your store says buy 2 get 4...

[RangerXML]

Can this be used as an external DVD, will it be recognized from the get go or can I boot off it? Might be something to look into for installing OS on my EeePC.

[Blazestorm]

Can this be used as an external DVD, will it be recognized from the get go or can I boot off it? Might be something to look into for installing OS on my EeePC.

Haven't tried booting off it yet, I guess I could though... gimme a sec...

[Z(+)DIAC]

Can this be used as an external DVD, will it be recognized from the get go or can I boot off it? Might be something to look into for installing OS on my EeePC.

Yes, it can be utilized as an external drive. Someone at CAG forums mentioned that they were able to read their EEE OS disc on it...

[eclypse]

in for 1, its sitting at my local BB waiting for me now. If anything, its a slick little external USB DVD drive.

How long did it take for you to get your comformation email? Thats if you bought it online with the pickup option.

[RangerXML]

So in for one now :D

[Devil24]

How long did it take for you to get your comformation email? Thats if you bought it online with the pickup option.

I ordered mine with the in-store pick-up option a little before 9AM and didn't get the second email (the one that matters) until almost 1:30PM.

[annaconda]

It is good to see people figure out how to use it with PCs.

[eclypse]

I ordered mine with the in-store pick-up option a little before 9AM and didn't get the second email (the one that matters) until almost 1:30PM.

Thanks for the info.. Thats crazy. I doubt it will still be instock when someone gets off there but and goes and gets it off the self. Only 6 in stock. I ordered 1 online just to make sure i get one as well.

[eclypse]

In the morning there was 4 stores around me that showed in stock.. not only 1. The place i bought it from with store pickup now says no stock! WTF! Calling now.

EDIT: All good.. I had to call and speak to a manager and he told me not to worry its at the serice desk. Thank god!

Strange i have still yet to receive my second freakin email so i can pick it up but its ready to be picked up at the store.

[SirKronan]

In the morning there was 4 stores around me that showed in stock.. not only 1. The place i bought it from with store pickup now says no stock! WTF! Calling now.

I picked up mine this morning. My Kmart only had one left after I was done. I'll see how many my Best Buy has left tonight. I've also read that it works plug and play in Vista!! Yay!! Pretty much all of my personal computers and about half my family's computers are running vista already.

Where have you guys seen the best HD DVD sales so far? I'd love to pick up the Matrix set and transformers and Serenity!!!

[Centauri]

I snagged one from my BB. They had at least 30-40 of these in stock.

[eclypse]

I snagged one from my BB. They had at least 30-40 of these in stock.

Might help telling people where you live.

[Thermite Paste]

I just got back from the BB in East Hanover, NJ, and they had 5-6 left in a locked cage. There wasn't a price listed either, so they'll probably be there for a while :D I got the $49.99 price with no problems after an employee looked it up.

Now to find some cheap HD-DVD's...

[ctcsoft]

picked up one. why not for $50. free dvds can be sold to recoup the $50 if i want.

big deal. buy one. wish it could burn cds dvds or something though other than just play.

[NeoGohan]

10% best buy coupon work with this?

https://moversguide.usps.com/img/coupon/bestbuy/200802_clientarea.gif

[SirKronan]

10% best buy coupon work with this?

https://moversguide.usps.com/img/coupon/bestbuy/200802_clientarea.gif

Nope. "Markdowns taken from regular prices." You can have the 10% off the regular price, or just buy it for the $50 clearance price. Maybe some stores will let it slide, but I wouldn't in my store... ( ok, maybe an exception for you NeoGohan;) )

Any good HD DVD buys out there in stores, other than online ones? Please post!!!

[ctcsoft]

10% best buy coupon work with this?

https://moversguide.usps.com/img/coupon/bestbuy/200802_clientarea.gif

don't see why not.

[SirKronan]

don't see why not.

Technically they shouldn't honor it, but like I said, some might let it slide.

[ctcsoft]

Is there a list somewhere of all HD DVD movies released?

I would like to see a full list if possible... Are there going to be anymore released at all? Or is American Gangster the last one?

[gtg465x]

Is there a list somewhere of all HD DVD movies released?

I would like to see a full list if possible... Are there going to be anymore released at all? Or is American Gangster the last one?

Here's a list. I doubt they're all here, but this is a lot of them (over 400).

http://www.bestprices.com/cgi-bin/vlink/hddvd_index.html

[eclypse]

Check www.amazon.com . Sales going on there for HD movies as well.

[NeoGohan]

Nope. "Markdowns taken from regular prices." You can have the 10% off the regular price, or just buy it for the $50 clearance price. Maybe some stores will let it slide, but I wouldn't in my store... ( ok, maybe an exception for you NeoGohan;) )

Woohoo! I feel loved :P

Barnes and noble have some stuff online. I don't know of any stores other an online that have any deals unfortunately.

[gtg465x]

10% best buy coupon work with this?

https://moversguide.usps.com/img/coupon/bestbuy/200802_clientarea.gif

Yep, worked for me, but the girl had to type in 10% off manually.

So $44.99 for an external CD/DVD/HD-DVD drive, a universal tv remote, and 6 HD-DVD movies! It doesn't get much better than that.

[junglicious]

Had over a hand full left in the Fresno, Ca area today. Ironic, I went yesterday to try to have them PM Kmart and the CSR manager said it was too low to PM. I wanted to buy an extra drive just to throw it in his face with the receipt in tack; that would of been worth $54. What got to me was I called before I went and one of th CSR said they could do it. Long story short, B&M retail shopping is horrible. I guess you can't expect much from minimum wage, no offense to anyone.

This deal is worth $54 with the free movies. Ones to consider are Swordfish, FMJ, Troy, Pitch Black, and Italian Job. Even the cashier girl said I got it for free after she saw my rebate form on the receipt.

[Blazestorm]

Yep, worked for me, but the girl had to type in 10% off manually.

So $44.99 for an external CD/DVD/HD-DVD drive, a universal tv remote, and 6 HD-DVD movies! It doesn't get much better than that.

That is so tempting just to see if I can buy it at bestbuy then return it circuit-city for $10 off...

:o

$45 + my $15 return means I pay $30...

Although I've probably spent $10 in gas just driving to and from BB and CC... they're 10-15 miles from me and I've made 4-5 trips in the past couple days...

[UnlnvlslblE]

Picked mine up this afternoon.

I hooked it up to my PC and it auto installed all the drivers. I just had to download Cyberlink Power DVD to play the HD-DVDs.

On a side note, does anyone know if the remote it came with will control media center on the PC? I'm thinking of picking up some sort of IR receiver to try it out but I don't know if it is possible. Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get it to control media center?

[Brock]

I got mine today.
Took in a $10 Reward Zone cert and the 10% off coup, got it all. WOO :D

[Techx]

even at $50 i wouldn't waste my money, in no time blu ray stand alones will be reasonable enough for the average consumer.. then you'll actually have something well worth your money, as opposed to something that can only play old shit lol

[Viper87227]

Snagged one. I really don't care that there will be no new movies. My DVD collection is sorely lacking, and there are easliy 50+ movies I'd like to get for HD-DVD. Concidering I'll be able to find them at bargin bin prices, I'd say I can more than get my monies worth.

[gtg465x]

even at $50 i wouldn't waste my money, in no time blu ray stand alones will be reasonable enough for the average consumer.. then you'll actually have something well worth your money, as opposed to something that can only play old shit lol

By "in no time" do you mean a year? The 6 free movies alone make it worth it, especially for those of us who have an HD-DVD collection that we want to rip to our hard drives so we can transfer them to Blu-Ray later.

[junglicious]

even at $50 i wouldn't waste my money, in no time blu ray stand alones will be reasonable enough for the average consumer.. then you'll actually have something well worth your money, as opposed to something that can only play old shit lol


Let us know when you find a BR player for that price and the price drops on BR disc. It will be in time for sure but how long? There are a lot of old favorites out there that I want and I don't care what format its in, either BR or HD, I'll buy the cheaper version. I won't call it "old shit" either. People are still buying regular DVDs.

I tried the 10% coupon and the cashier even tried to put it in manually but it wouldn't take it. Then she said that the Xbox player was consider in the game category so the system would not accept the coupon. I didn't bother since it was still a good deal already.

[kent]

Kronan - Hot Fuzz is often regarded as a 5/5 PQ. It's incredibly sharp. Matrix is also wonderful.


Picked up my 3rd HD DVD drive, this one though, goes on eBay. I'm only interested in the 5 free movies.

[lifeinchains]

Picked mine up this afternoon.

I hooked it up to my PC and it auto installed all the drivers. I just had to download Cyberlink Power DVD to play the HD-DVDs.

On a side note, does anyone know if the remote it came with will control media center on the PC? I'm thinking of picking up some sort of IR receiver to try it out but I don't know if it is possible. Does anyone have a recommendation of how to get it to control media center?

No unfortunately the remote wont control a media center pc. It uses different button codes (i think?) than the media center remotes so i don't think its possible. When I first got my drive I thought it might work because it has the green button but apparently that is only for the media center extender in the 360.

[gtg465x]

No unfortunately the remote wont control a media center pc. It uses different button codes (i think?) than the media center remotes so i don't think its possible. When I first got my drive I thought it might work because it has the green button but apparently that is only for the media center extender in the 360.

A quote from http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360universalremote/

"Windows® XP Media Center Edition Button and Media Center Edition functionality are included"

[SirKronan]

A quote from http://www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360universalremote/

"Windows® XP Media Center Edition Button and Media Center Edition functionality are included"

IF you use it on the 360. The 360 can use media center.

[NeoGohan]

Hehe, picked mine up today at Best Buy in Vacaville, CA. They had 2 left after I grabbed one. I can finally watch HD DVDs again! Oh how I miss thy crispness. XD Never had a chance for the 5 free movies deal since I bought my HD DVD drive December of '06 but now I can finally get that opportunity :D

Just finished watching the Hurricane! I need to find more cheap movies! Gahhh my wallet!

[SC385]

Does anyone know how long it takes for the 5 free movie to come?

[soccermatt34]

Jumping on this and using an old $30 GC. For $20 you cant beat 6 high-def movies :-)

[Ockie]

Does anyone know how long it takes for the 5 free movie to come?

A long long time. I believe about 5 months. It may start arriving quicker with the demise of HD-DVD

[Farseer]

I picked one up last night. You just can't been the price. As a portable USB DVD drive it is worth it and the movies are a bonus (I no longer have to keep a seldom used DVD drive in my server). Plus, if the movies you want are on HD DVD, you can now pick them up for 1/3 of the price of their Blu-ray versions.

[FromTheLou]

A long long time. I believe about 5 months. It may start arriving quicker with the demise of HD-DVD

I sent in my 3 rebates at the end of November and got all 15 movies by the end of January.

5months seems pretty extreme and I can only hope that isn't the norm.

[kent]

Sent in the prior offer (the one before Aeon Flux/Babel/Italian Job) in August. Received my movies I want to say in November or so.

[SirKronan]

Slapped my new HD DVD player (xbox 360) onto my HTPC. It has windows Vista 32-bit and installed the drivers automatically in like 5 min. I installed Power DVD deluxe (You can buy it online for $69 and it will have all the video and audio codecs you need!) and now I'm watching King Kong in all of its HD glory (I've only got a 720p TV right now, but it looks fantastic anyways!)

Didn't even need to reboot!

Anyone know how to get it to work in Media Center, too?

[RangerXML]

360 HD DVD + Windows Vista + K-lite Mega Codec Pack (free with all the codecs) + 1080P = HD Glory

[NewShockerGuy]

someone just schooled me that the 360 will upconvert dvd movies to 720p/ or 1080i thru vga connection..

So your saying if I play a normal dvd in my 360 and use my vga cable that I have I will get 720 or 1080p resolution?

With nothing else to purchase?



--------------------


I think this is worth it but I feel that buying a freaking HD player when I only have 1 HD movie isn't worth it... but again it could be used as a spare optical drive... darn it...lol

If only I had an HD collection I would not think and just buy this... since I don't it's like wasting $50 on floppy disks to me?


On another note the rebate that are offering the free hd dvds... are they worth it or can you actually SEE a difference in the moves compared to the normal dvds?
I've see some HD dvds both blue ray and HD and some older movies I couldn't tell a difference...

-Nigel

[kent]

If you can't tell a difference between 480i/p material and 1080p, you need your eyes checked.

Please tell me what town you live in so I can avoid driving there. Wouldn't want you to crash into me thinking I'm a parking spot.

[SC385]

^^^ LOL.

I just got back from ebgames and picked up Friday Night Lights, Batman Begins, Transformers, and Fearless to go with my new drive. I've also been looking on ebay for some good used movies on the cheap.

[Blazestorm]

I might call my EBgames, they're ~20 mile drive, but if they have 4-6 HD-DVDs for under $10 (buy 2 get 2... 4 for $20) I might make the drive...

[SC385]

My ebgames was selling them for 14.99 which was still a good deal to me since I got the 2 free. Mine also wasn't doing the 2 for 4 like the store in the mall. The store in the mall also only had king kong and some other crap movie on hd dvd since they are the one of the stores set to get rid of all of the dvds.

[NewShockerGuy]

I can tell a difference between certain movies..etc. But some of the older movies that are in hd aren't that HUGE of a difference comapred to say Transformers..etc.

Is there a website that ranks the HD dvds/ Blue ray discs?

IE: Out of the high def movies these looked the best... these didn't look that much better than the normal dvd..etc?

I ended up going to BBY and picking up the hd player..lol :-)

-Nigel

[J Macker]

I sent in my 3 rebates at the end of November and got all 15 movies by the end of January.

5months seems pretty extreme and I can only hope that isn't the norm.

Mine's taking a LONG time. Mailed it just before Christmas and I still haven't gotten them.

[eclypse]

You will be able to tell the difference with just the HD it comes with "King Kong"

Hell my 63 year old man with not the greatest eye site was blown away durring the movie when i showed it to him.. he kept saying WOW over and over.

[Dave159]

it only upconverts only to 480p if you call that hi-def

techniaclly any up converting cant be called hi def

[gtg465x]

I can tell a difference between certain movies..etc. But some of the older movies that are in hd aren't that HUGE of a difference comapred to say Transformers..etc.

Is there a website that ranks the HD dvds/ Blue ray discs?

IE: Out of the high def movies these looked the best... these didn't look that much better than the normal dvd..etc?

I ended up going to BBY and picking up the hd player..lol :-)

-Nigel

:eek: There is such a place that ranks the picture quality of different HD-DVD and Blu-Ray titles. Here's the HD-DVD ranks: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=942015

There is a section for Blu-Ray too.

[junglicious]

:eek: There is such a place that ranks the picture quality of different HD-DVD and Blu-Ray titles. Here's the HD-DVD ranks: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=942015

There is a section for Blu-Ray too.

thank you for the thread, been on avs but I guess I didn't look for this.

[gdonovan]

Purchased from Buy.com and used Google checkout- $39.99 shipped!

Apply the movie offer coupon and you have a pretty sweet deal for $40

[annaconda]

Now @ Buy.com and CircuitCity. Check the First Thread i posted links in there.

5 free Movies + KingKong HD DVD Bundle.

[gtg465x]

Guys, don't forget that you'll also need to get PowerDVD Ultra to play Blu-Ray and HD-DVD on your computer, which is another $100. Unless of course you happen to stumble upon a certain 168 MB torrent download.

[annaconda]

Keep in Mind @ Buy.com you can get it for $39 by using Google CheckOut.


I was thinking we can alway convert Blue-ray DVDs to HD-DVDs. Then i make sense to buy this HD-DVD for PC.

[SC385]

why would you try to convert BluRay to HDDVD? I don't even think there is a HDDVD burner or media

[eclypse]

why would you try to convert BluRay to HDDVD? I don't even think there is a HDDVD burner or media

Theres a blu-ray burner and media out.. The burner is around $300+.

[Ockie]

Theres a blu-ray burner and media out.. The burner is around $300+.

We know that, but it does not address the comment posted in which the poster said "we can alway convert Blue-ray DVDs to HD-DVDs"

[RangerXML]

Guys, don't forget that you'll also need to get PowerDVD Ultra to play Blu-Ray and HD-DVD on your computer, which is another $100. Unless of course you happen to stumble upon a certain 168 MB torrent download.

As mentioned before, download the k-lite mega codec pack that is free and you can watch the movies. There are also a couple of other free alternative that can support HD playback a hell of a lot better the PowerDVD.

http://www.codecguide.com/

[gtg465x]

As mentioned before, download the k-lite mega codec pack that is free and you can watch the movies. There are also a couple of other free alternative that can support HD playback a hell of a lot better the PowerDVD.

http://www.codecguide.com/

I'm pretty sure you're dead wrong. Have you actually done it on YOUR system or just heard about it? I know some codec packs and ffdshow support VC1, the video format used by Blu-Ray and HD-DVD, but they still can't play them because of the copy protection. I should know because I've tried.

[lifeinchains]

That sounds about right. I was wondering how I missed hearing about a bloated codec pack that could do something I had pay $70 for.

[annaconda]

Nero ShowTime plays HD-DVD & Blue-Ray perfectly. As for the coverting goes from Blue-ray to HD-DVD i have done it, and it work fine. Corel Studio 11.5 can convert Blue-ray to HD-DVD, HD-DVD to Blue-Ray, AVCHD to Blue-Ray + HD-DVD.

[FromTheLou]

Nero ShowTime plays HD-DVD & Blue-Ray perfectly. As for the coverting goes from Blue-ray to HD-DVD i have done it, and it work fine. Corel Studio 11.5 can convert Blue-ray to HD-DVD, HD-DVD to Blue-Ray, AVCHD to Blue-Ray + HD-DVD.

Great info!

[Varmint]

Nero ShowTime plays HD-DVD & Blue-Ray perfectly. As for the coverting goes from Blue-ray to HD-DVD i have done it, and it work fine. Corel Studio 11.5 can convert Blue-ray to HD-DVD, HD-DVD to Blue-Ray, AVCHD to Blue-Ray + HD-DVD.

You're still gonna need an HD-DVD burner to make use of this XBox player though.

[Varmint]

You will be able to tell the difference with just the HD it comes with "King Kong"

Hell my 63 year old man with not the greatest eye site was blown away durring the movie when i showed it to him.. he kept saying WOW over and over.

King Kong is the best looking HD-DVD, it's all downhill from there. :) But even the worst ones look pretty good, and better than upscaled DVD.

[Apallohadas]

Just picked mine up, but having a hell of a time getting it up and running.

I've tried Nero Showtime and that was a no-go. Which version of the k-lite pack should I use?

[gtg465x]

Just picked mine up, but having a hell of a time getting it up and running.

I've tried Nero Showtime and that was a no-go. Which version of the k-lite pack should I use?

None, the stupid K-Lite codec pack won't play HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. I've said it before and I'll say it again... PowerDVD Ultra is the best way to go as of now. It costs $100 on their website. Not that I condone such activity, but it's also extremely easy to download the 168MB file from torrents. 7.3.3730 is the newest version. PM me if you need to.

[Apallohadas]

Thanks bro! I found that 'solution' and a proper keygen. works GREAT now.

The BestBuy in Noho, Manhattan, NY still has a bunch left.

[annaconda]

Just picked mine up, but having a hell of a time getting it up and running.

I've tried Nero Showtime and that was a no-go. Which version of the k-lite pack should I use?

Sorry i should have made it clear Nero 8 and up will work, and also other guy is right PowerDVD works too.

[calikool]

I pulled the trigger and bought one from Circuit city. It will be awhile before I'll get it. Plus it will be a long while before I get my free HD-DVDs. I already have the powerdvd 7 deluxe so it is $59.99 to upgrade. Kind of pricey. Maybe the next I'll get it when my HD-DVDs come in.

[gdonovan]

What the hell- I installed the drive on an XP machine, installed PowerDVD and it states that the included King Kong movie is an unsupported disc. Anyone else have this problem?

[Blazestorm]

What does the error say exactly?

I'm guessing it's an HDCP issue...

[soccermatt34]

Anyone know if this can upconvert DVDs over DVI or VGA to a monitor?

[gtg465x]

What the hell- I installed the drive on an XP machine, installed PowerDVD and it states that the included King Kong movie is an unsupported disc. Anyone else have this problem?

Did you use PowerDVD Ultra? Version 7?

Did you do the appropriate hacks to get it working on XP? It's plug and play with Vista, but not with outdated XP.

[gtg465x]

Anyone know if this can upconvert DVDs over DVI or VGA to a monitor?

No, it cannot upconvert DVDs. The drive is just a reader, not a player. The software on your computer is the player and thus software on your computer would have to do the upscaling.

[gdonovan]

Did you use PowerDVD Ultra? Version 7?

Did you do the appropriate hacks to get it working on XP? It's plug and play with Vista, but not with outdated XP.


Power DVD 7 deluxe.

XP was pretty much plug and play, plays normal DVD's with no problem.

I'm tinkering around now, I'll post results later.

[kent]

Search for UDF 2.5 file system

In other news, today I'm looking at a pontiac TORRENT
Anyone know if the TORRENT is a good car

[Blazestorm]

Search for UDF 2.5 file system

In other news, today I'm looking at a pontiac TORRENT
Anyone know if the TORRENT is a good car

I hear pirates like driving their TORRENT's

[gtg465x]

Power DVD 7 deluxe.

XP was pretty much plug and play, plays normal DVD's with no problem.

I'm tinkering around now, I'll post results later.

Well there's your problem kiddo. You need PowerDVD 7 Ultra, not Deluxe. Like the last two guys said, torrents are your friend.

[dexx]

Ive read a couple of guides that say this drive will automatically find its drivers under XP. This hasnt been my experience. When my PC searches, it comes back saying driver not found. Does anyone know where i can download the hddvd driver (not the udf 2.5 driver)?

[kent]

I hear pirates like driving their TORRENT's

It's a fucking file system driver, not a $600 Adobe program.

Get. Off. Your. Highhorse. Mr. I. Buy. Everything.


I've got a wall full of HD DVDs and Blu-Rays. Kiss my ass.

[Apallohadas]

It reads as a Toshiba X807616 USB device. Google for that driver.

[gtg465x]

Ive read a couple of guides that say this drive will automatically find its drivers under XP. This hasnt been my experience. When my PC searches, it comes back saying driver not found. Does anyone know where i can download the hddvd driver (not the udf 2.5 driver)?

Vista said my drive was an "unknown device" and couldn't find a driver for it at first, but then I changed the USB cable and all was well. Mini USB cables royally suck. Only 1 out of 3 that I've owned has worked, so now I'm using the same cable for all three devices.

[Blazestorm]

It's a fucking file system driver, not a $600 Adobe program.

Get. Off. Your. Highhorse. Mr. I. Buy. Everything.


I've got a wall full of HD DVDs and Blu-Rays. Kiss my ass.

http://lousyhero.com/blaze/hdlist.jpg

No really... torrents :D

[gdonovan]

Well there's your problem kiddo. You need PowerDVD 7 Ultra, not Deluxe. Like the last two guys said, torrents are your friend.


Actually the deluxe works, problem was with the video driver which is my bad.

I decided to inflict (test) on a laptop first and the graphics are not up to minimum spec.

Gary

P.S. The Toshiba driver for viewing files in XP is really easy to find via torrent. XP auto downloaded the driver for playing files but not viewing them. The Toshiba driver lets you look around the disc directorys.

[calikool]

How did you get the purchased PowerDVD Deluxe to play the HD-DVD? I thought you had to upgrade.

As many suggested the Torrent method. Is there some tips / tricks website or guide that you need to look at to get this drive to work? Why have to find the Toshiba driver to use this drive?

[kent]

http://lousyhero.com/blaze/hdlist.jpg

No really... torrents :D

Enjoy your 4-6GB rips with subpar sound.

I downloaded Casino Royale once, about a week before I got my BR player and the torrent said 720p and it was the most popular.

Fucker was like 580p

http://kenton.org/movies.jpg

Yeah, that's the rare OOP Pan's Labyrinth and the JDM Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Can't miss my French imports of T2 and Total Recall (using AVC versus the USA MPEG2 BluRay which looks like SHIT)

Obviously, since you've got a FOLDER full of pirated movies money is a problem for you. I can say...that's not a problem we share.

[Blazestorm]

You really confuse me... honestly... I have no idea what you're trying to do, first you get pissed at me because you THINK I'm "on a highhorse"... then... you get pissed when I'm not... what?

I don't get it... you're saying I'm poor? Thanks?

And... actually they're 4-16GB rips... 5.1 Dolby surround... 1.5mbps... but then again beggars can't be choosers :p

Some of that stuff isn't even out on Blu-ray or HD-DVD... HDTV... not great, but for not being available anywhere else... it's pretty good.

[kent]

You claim I'm a pirate because I mention he could get the UDF driver off bittorrent.

I refute, saying I'm not a pirate.

You could've left it alone, instead you post a shot of a folder full of pirated material, with the releasing group tag still left on folder/file names.

I refute, showing you my 70+ HD DVDs and calling you poor because you pirated everything.



The ONLY show I pirate is not produced in the USA, it's Top Gear. I actually support Hollywood, whenever realistically possible.

You're the reason film producers make the same movies over and over, they can't take a risk on anything financially by thinking outside the box because they won't profit on it because of piracy.


Seriously, enjoy your shitty rips. No matter what you say to me, they're shitty rips.

[Blazestorm]

They are shitty rips... but they're free shitty rips... The reason the "group tag" is still there is because I'm still seeding them...

I've already seen the movies in theatres, and or own them on DVD... how many times do I have to pay to watch the same movie... ?

Oh and I did buy the 360 HD-DVD player, already ordered Planet Earth - BBC set... there's a difference between "poor" and "not wasting money"...

[kent]

Paying $9 to watch the movie in the theater grants you a one-time viewing in a theater setting.

Paying $20 to buy the DVD grants you an unlimited viewing at 480p, upconverted to whatever resolution you wish -- over HDMI.

It doesn't grant you the right to download the damn thing.

Seriously, I wish just because I own 400+ SD DVD that gave me the right to hunt down higher quality versions and download them for free.

Unfortunately, it does not work like that.

[gdonovan]

How did you get the purchased PowerDVD Deluxe to play the HD-DVD? I thought you had to upgrade.



Not sure, I'll know after doing some testing. The deluxe version clearly states HD-DVD and Blue Ray support.


As many suggested the Torrent method. Is there some tips / tricks website or guide that you need to look at to get this drive to work? Why have to find the Toshiba driver to use this drive?

The Toshiba driver is not required to play movies, just required to explore the disc.

[gdonovan]

Anyone else trying to run King Kong?

The PowerDVD HD advisor states that my monitor is not DHCP so I get kicked back to the desktop.

[SC385]

download the anydvd trial and see if you can play the movie then.

[Apallohadas]

I already have ANYdvd and it won't play certain movies.

Beowulf and Eastern Promises so far.

So I can watch King Kong and Batman.

[Apallohadas]

Update: Just discovered that Eastern Promises and Beowulf will NOT play if you have AnyDVD running. I turned those two off and it runs FINE now.

[RangerXML]

finally found it, to help make this internal. I'm using Lian-Li bezel.

http://www.interloper.com/products/product-details.php?productid=53700000&cat=53

[gdonovan]

I have AnyDVD trial ripping King Kong to the hard drive I'll let you know how I make out.

Update- The version of Power DVD I have is Ultra, I'm surprised it would not play the disk even when downsampling was checked off in the options.

Anyone else have the same problem?

[Apallohadas]

For half of my disks you must turn AnyDVD OFF.

[gdonovan]

For half of my disks you must turn AnyDVD OFF.

I didn't have it on, wasn't even installed in the test PC.

[gdonovan]

Well this is underwhelming- I can run King Kong ripped to the hard drive but not in full screen. If I go to full screen it shows a weird tearing at the bottom.

And to get any picture I have to disable hardware accell in Power DVD Ultra, if I don't I get no screen display.

http://www.3dfx.ch/gallery/d/29300-1/DSCN2176.JPG

http://www.3dfx.ch/gallery/d/29303-1/DSCN2177.JPG

Windows XP-SP2
EVGA 8800GT
PowerDVD Ultra 7.3
Nvidia drivers current
AMD 64 X2 5000+

[Apallohadas]

That's pretty wierd, to say the least.

I used the default settings for PowerDVD, didn't change a thing.

I also have the K-Lite Codec pack installed, but don't know if that makes a difference.

[gdonovan]

Update- I downloaded the latest patch from the PowerDVD folks. It promptly breaks the option to play files off the harddrive. If you can play files off your hard drive now, I'd not upgrade your version of PowerDVD!

So I hooked the Xbox drive back up to the main PC to see if it will play off the drive. Now when it kicks it gives a warning message to route the monitor through D-sub rather than DVI. I break out the DVI -> D-sub adapter and fire things back up.

Now I'm back sorta to where I was- I can now play the King Kong disc right off the HD-DVD but only in a window. As soon as I go full screen the distortion shown in the second screen shot returns. Tried different monitor resolutions to no effect. Normal DVD's are fine.

P.S. I have the K-Lite pack too.

[gtg465x]

Well this is underwhelming- I can run King Kong ripped to the hard drive but not in full screen. If I go to full screen it shows a weird tearing at the bottom.

And to get any picture I have to disable hardware accell in Power DVD Ultra, if I don't I get no screen display.

Well no damn wonder you're having problems. That old CRT of yours doesn't have HDCP, which is required to watch HD movies at full resolution.

[gdonovan]

Well no damn wonder you're having problems. That old CRT of yours doesn't have HDCP, which is required to watch HD movies at full resolution.

Noted above- Ripped to the hard drive with AnyDVD so HDCP protection wasn't present. I have considered it but AnyDVD clearly states that it should not be a problem.

Power DVD states I should be able to go full screen with lesser analog output, just won't have as nice a picture. The HD-DVD advisor even gives the machine a green light with analog output.

[gtg465x]

Noted above- Ripped to the hard drive with AnyDVD so HDCP protection wasn't present. I have considered it but AnyDVD clearly states that it should not be a problem.

Well... any time you're bypassing advanced copy protection you'll find that all bets are off in respect to what's stated. I hate damn HDCP; it's the sole reason I recently bought a new monitor.

[SirKronan]

Anybody know how to zoom in PowerDVD when playing back HD DVD in order to eliminate the black letterbox effect??

[gdonovan]

Well no damn wonder you're having problems. That old CRT of yours doesn't have HDCP, which is required to watch HD movies at full resolution.

Went over to a buddies and he loaned me out his 19" HD TV with HDMI input. Hooked my 8800GT up with a DVI-D to HDMI cable.

Passes PowerDVD HD-DVD check and does the same thing, when you go to full screen the bottom half of the picture is smeared away.

I'm going to try a trial version of something else, Power DVD isn't cutting it for me.

http://www.3dfx.ch/gallery/d/29323-1/hdcheck.jpg

[gdonovan]

WinDVD 8 does *NOT* support HD-DVD playback (even though they imply it does) and I tried another version of PowerDVD with the same results.

I'm trying a set of Nvidia drivers from EVGA (maker of the 8800GT board I have, new version 169.44) and will post the results.

Update: No change.


This is rediculous.

Not the only person with the problem-

http://forums.hexus.net/operating-systems-applications/131661-power-dvd-7-3-winxp-64-problems.html

[gdonovan]

FIXED!

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1150136&page=2

Son of a bitch it works- Set the image quality slider from quality to performance and now I have full screen playback with no distortion.

Update- King Kong ripped to the hard drive plays fine on non-HDCP widescreen LCD monitor.

We have a winner! Time to order up more HD movies!!

Gary

P.S. The HD-DVD drive works fine under Windows 2000 as well if you need an external unit for a Win2k box. It loads a generic DVD driver and plays burned DVD's just fine but can't see HD disks even with the Toshiba driver.

Anyone know how to identify the autoloading driver from XP? I'd like to extract it and try on Win2k for entertainment.

Done- Google is your friend! Testing shortly... The XP drivers extracted from my XP SP2 install and auto downloaded from MS work perfect under Windows 2000. Pity my Socket A media box with a 6200 and 3200+ doesn't have enough juice to run HD-DVD without stuttering like mad.

[calikool]

I pulled the trigger and bought one from Circuit city. It will be awhile before I'll get it. Plus it will be a long while before I get my free HD-DVDs. I already have the powerdvd 7 deluxe so it is $59.99 to upgrade. Kind of pricey. Maybe the next I'll get it when my HD-DVDs come in.

Well I finally received my HD-DVDs. It took a little less than 4 months.

I asked for Pitch Black, Italian Job, Firewall, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Troy.

I received Charlie and Troy. They substituted the 3 other titles.

So I got Transformers, The Departed and Smokin' Aces. Not a bad trade!