- Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 8 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
-
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful
3.0 stars
"Expensive, hopeful contender"
Pros: Bragging rights for exotic high-end crowd, 7.1 analog output
Cons: Blu-ray format - softer picture vs. HD-DVD ?
Summary: Begin Rant. Just so you we get this straight from the beginning: 1080i vs. 1080p isn't a big difference with almost no one able to tell the difference visually between the two. Okay? Got that?
Also, current Blu-Ray discs have NO advantage in storage capacity AT THIS TIME, due to being single layer... so HD-DVD and Blu-Ray are about the same capacity, but with HD-DVD using a higher tech compression protocol called VC-1. Sony (Blu-Ray) is still using a less than optimal MPEG format at this time... if they can overcome that, Blu-Ray has a chance to really look good...but this war is not about video image (unfortunately), but advertising, corporate cooperation (read Circuit City, Best Buy) and the movie conglomerates. End of rant.
Blu-ray has been plagued with a "soft" picture vs. the master tapes, and some video hardware has been to blame. Hopefully, the Panasonic won't suffer the same fateful blow as the Samsung BR players.
The Panasonic boast 14-bit processing and 7.1 outputs. If you've got the gear and the budget, why not? You'll need the 7.1 analog outputs and an A/V receiver capable of accepting 7.1 analog inputs to get the benefit of the 7.1 analog output (NOT the same as optical or coax digital inputs...)
Video: 296MHz/14-bit video D/A converter
Audio: separate 192kHz/24-bit audio D/A converters for each of the eight channels
Who knows who'll win: the catchy phrased "Blu Ray" crowd, or the sharper imaged "HD-DVD" players with their first Gen clunky hardware interface... only time will tell. Why not spend $2000 and get one of each?
- 1 reply to this review
-
I liked this review but it did seem a little bit biased. I own both formats at home in the way of the Tosh HDXA2 and the Sony BDPS1. HD DVD and BD are both using the VC-1 codecs on shared titles. Most of the newer BD movies, if youll look at titles on www.Blu-Ray.com, are showing as MPEG-4 on a 2 layer 50GB disc. And actually, VC-1, MPEG-4, AVC, and H.264 are all the same thing, just encrypted differently. There IS a difference in 1080P when you have the source material, its not fair to say otherwise. Both formats are good, but BD is coming out to be a clear winner with its Movie Studio support as well as manufacturer support. It got off to a rough start compared to HD DVD, but in the long run I feel has a greater advantage.
