Samsung BD-P1000 Blu-Ray Disc Player
No difference in expected quality - but no real HD titles for BR either!
The VHS vs Betamax comparison does not make sense, they were analogue formats and both stank! For those of you who are not aware, the Blu-ray format allows for more information on a single disk than HD-DVD, however that space is not used to enhance the picture, it's there to store extras such as 'making of' documentaries etc. The actual movie in true HD-1080p takes up same space on both formats. So the question is are you willing to pay more for a blu-ray disk with everything on one disc or 2/3rds the price for an HD-DVD with two disks in the box? <br /> <br />As Toshiba as known for the high quality of their image rendering on DVD players, and they are dedicated to the cheaper but no less high quality HD-DVD format then my money is with the HD-DVD (available on this site, too) <br /> <br />The reason VHS won over Betamax is the same reason the internet took off - cheap porn! Sony worked hard to prevent pornography on Betamax and hence the format died. Though I don't watch porn (well not too much ;-) ) I fully expect the prospect of this kind of entertainment being cheaper on HD-DVD to tip the balance. <br /> <br />Other reasons to avoid Blu-ray are -  <br />1. High price per unit for media at same quality as HD-DVD. <br />2. Initial releases are not true HD. <br />3. Region coding on Blu-ray - none on HD-DVD. (VERY IMPORTANT THIS ONE) <br />4. Manufacturers of good quality rendering players are not supporting Blu-ray. <br /> <br />No, I do not own this particular player - Yes, I have tried both formats in a professional capacity. I do believe it is important people understand that the real difference between the formats for consumer use is the end user gets a better deal with HD-DVD.