Solution for the next-gen DVD wars?

[melancholy]

Trying to bridge the gap between next-generation optical disk formats, Ricoh said it as developed an optical component that reads and writes all disk formats?Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD, as well as DVD and CD?with one pickup and one objective lens.

Ricoh will show the optical device at the International Optoelectronics Exhibition '06 outside Tokyo on July 12-14. The company intends to begin sampling the device with OEMs by year's end.

The component is a 3.5-mm diameter, 1-mm thick round diffraction plate with minute concentric groves on both sides which function as a diffraction grating.

The diffraction plate is placed between lasers and an objective lens. The diffraction grating is designed to adjust a light beam to an optimum incident ray relative to the objective lens so that light focuses on the proper position for each disk format.

Well, perhaps for this generation we just might have two dominating formats and everyone will be happy. I suddenly have some slight hope for the DVD future.

[Lartrak]

Trying to bridge the gap between next-generation optical disk formats, Ricoh said it as developed an optical component that reads and writes all disk formats?Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD, as well as DVD and CD?with one pickup and one objective lens.

Ricoh will show the optical device at the International Optoelectronics Exhibition '06 outside Tokyo on July 12-14. The company intends to begin sampling the device with OEMs by year's end.

The component is a 3.5-mm diameter, 1-mm thick round diffraction plate with minute concentric groves on both sides which function as a diffraction grating.

The diffraction plate is placed between lasers and an objective lens. The diffraction grating is designed to adjust a light beam to an optimum incident ray relative to the objective lens so that light focuses on the proper position for each disk format.

Well, perhaps for this generation we just might have two dominating formats and everyone will be happy. I suddenly have some slight hope for the DVD future.

From what I can recall, a dual Bluray/HDDVD player was in the works but got canned because of legal threats. I hope this doesn't have the same future.

[melancholy]

From what I can recall, a dual Bluray/HDDVD player was in the works but got canned because of legal threats. I hope this doesn't have the same future.

Yeah, I kinda had the same thoughts when I was reading it. Surely such a device would take a hit on Sony's decision to put Blu-Ray in the PS3 considering this company intends on pushing these players out by the end of the year, about the same time PS3 is due to launch. But if Sony would even bother doing a reality check, they would realize that a dual-format player could actually benefit them. Without some way of playing both discs, one format is destined to lose, and Blu-Ray seems to be the one headed that direction. But with a dual-format player, Sony can continue to manufacture and push their line of media and easily have it be a success simply because everyone will be able to use it.

If Sony forces consumers to make a decision, they might not like the decision that's made.

[jaredfogle]

Anyone else forsee this being the last generation of physical mediums for films?

In another decade lacking broadband access will be like lacking a telephone in 1980.

[Disheveled DrFreeze]

i dont see the point in the new gen of formats

for movie content im pleased enough with DVD as it is, and i dont mind the idea of buying a game that spans 2-3 DVDs

im mostly concerned about all the DRM and shit thats going to be in this new format, along with all the crap thats gonna be in Vista

[Smiley]

i dont see the point in the new gen of formats

for movie content im pleased enough with DVD as it is, and i dont mind the idea of buying a game that spans 2-3 DVDs

im mostly concerned about all the DRM and crap thats going to be in this new format, along with all the crap thats gonna be in Vista

I agree with your first statement..I was watching a demo of an hd-dvd movie playing in best buy this past weekend, and other than the listed $30 for the new hd-dvd format, I didn't notice a bit of difference between this new fangled format and regular dvd.

I believe that only tech people, which I'm not, will buy this new format. And unless this new format takes off and all new titles will be released on it, I guess I will eventually buy.

[MulletMan13]

The thing posted in this topic sounds like a godsend, but I think it just might prolong the death of the loser format =\

I wish one format would just die quickly.

[Smiley]

Based on sony's past trying to force fed new formats (mini-disc, beta, etc), I hope the blue ray fails. IN case you haven't noticed, I hate sony. They must die

[ace]

Not to mention the licensing fees would be astronomical.

[jaredfogle]

All this money is bein' put into keeping folks from copying the new formats.

These discs are not going to play on free software, and just like with CSS, this is going to necessitate a breaking of these new encryptions. FS people are ideological and brilliant, they'll always win over businessmen .

[Ex-Cyber]

Here's a solution for the next-get DVD wars that I suspect will be quite popular: ignore them.

[chrisfbt1]

Here's a solution for the next-get DVD wars that I suspect will be quite popular: ignore them.

My thoughts exactly

Did anyone even notice the sacd vs dvda war

[impetus]

Here's a solution for the next-get DVD wars that I suspect will be quite popular: ignore them.

sounds like a plan to me

[melancholy]

Don't get me wrong. I have no intentions of getting a next-gen DVD player until I can buy one for under $100. But I just find it interesting to watch new technology progress and what becomes of it. The rising, the downfalls, the solutions, and even the hacking. It's just cool to see what they think of next.

[Lartrak]

Anyone else forsee this being the last generation of physical mediums for films?

In another decade lacking broadband access will be like lacking a telephone in 1980.

Personally, if I don't have a way of making my films physically permenant, I won't buy films. Same deal with games. I wasn't willing to buy Half-Life 2, for example, until I found out someone had made a hack so you could play the singleplayer without Steam activation. I don't like the idea of my old games or movies becoming unplayable because of a company dieing or technological change. Is there any real guarantee of what things will be like 20 years from now (I DO still play 20 year old NES games, after all)?

But, of course, by the time physical mediums are gone (I am not sure HD-DVD and bluray will be the last, though), hopefully I'll have an HD-DVD or whatever recorder. I already have a DVD recorder.

Based on sony's past trying to force fed new formats (mini-disc, beta, etc)

They did co-create the CD, ya know. And Beta was an excellent format once they got the two hour tapes out, superior in most areas to VHS at the time (longplay recorded beta tapes, which were 4.5 hours long, on my old beta looked as good as most VHS recorders did at SP, which is 2 hours). And, if I recall correctly, Beta came out first - I don't see how that is "force feeding" it to consumers. The only problem was their refusal to license the technology out, which in the end cost them the war as much lower cost VHS players came out.

[melancholy]

Based on sony's past trying to force fed new formats (mini-disc, beta, etc)

They did co-create the CD, ya know. And Beta was an excellent format once they got the two hour tapes out, superior in most areas to VHS at the time (longplay recorded beta tapes, which were 4.5 hours long, on my old beta looked as good as most VHS recorders did at SP, which is 2 hours). And, if I recall correctly, Beta came out first - I don't see how that is "force feeding" it to consumers. The only problem was their refusal to license the technology out, which in the end cost them the war as much lower cost VHS players came out.

So are they learning from the past then, or are they making the same mistake they made back then?

[Covar]

i think i'll stick to dvds until there is only one format left standing and it is clearly going to take over for dvds. aside from hd blu-ray and hddvd offer no other advantage over a dvd. no storage size decrease (physicaly), and no longer life (dvd vs vhs).