Just bought about 10 new HD DVDs and two of them were "Combo Formats." "American Werewolf in London" had a side "A" and "B" but the "Last Starfighter" didn't...why was that?

SD-DVD/HD-DVD combo discs have 2 sides. One for SD, one for HD. I've never seen a single sided combo. Music combos discs are/were the same way.

larry

Just bought about 10 new HD DVDs and two of them were "Combo Formats." "American Werewolf in London" had a side "A" and "B" but the "Last Starfighter" didn't...why was that?

Last Starfighter isn't a combo disc. It only has the HD DVD version.

SD-DVD/HD-DVD combo discs have 2 sides. One for SD, one for HD. I've never seen a single sided combo. Music combos discs are/were the same way.

larry

Freedom is a twin format disc which comes with SD DVD and HD DVD and it isn't a flipper.

The Last Starfighter is not a combo disc, so that's why it isn't two-sided. There are single-sided combos (or 'twin discs') but they're all documentaries released in Japan. The only twin discs released in the US were the Freedom series (which were made by the Japanese distributor Bandai Visual to be released here and not in Japan for some reason)

also twin format discs were a DVD5 layer and a HD-15 layer

combo discs (flippers) could have DVD-9 on one side and HD-30 on the other

also twin format discs were a DVD5 layer and a HD-15 layer

combo discs (flippers) could have DVD-9 on one side and HD-30 on the other

Yes, and that's why there were only documentaries and short anime on the twins that were made. The longest one I can think of runs about 90 minutes or so. But I guess they could have put movies on 15/5 hybrids if they wanted to, as long as they weren't very long (under 2 hours or so?) and didn't have hardly any special features.

Last Starfighter isn't a combo disc. It only has the HD DVD version.



Freedom is a twin format disc which comes with SD DVD and HD DVD and it isn't a flipper.

Well, I'm holding the disc in my hands right now and the top says..."COMBO FORMAT." So, I thought that maybe they changed out the sheet and put it into a case with "COMBO FORMAT" on the top...WRONG!

On the back it stats:

SIDE A HIGH DEFINITION...SIDE B STANDARD DEFINITION

So, I guess I have a collectors item...no side B!!! Just side A with the paper pasted to it.

You're right, mine also says Side A High Definition HD-30, Side B Standard Definition HD-30. That's a printing error, for sure. On real combos it will say DVD-9 (or DVD-5) for the Standard definition side. My copy doesn't say combo anywhere on the case, cover or disc, so maybe you do have a collector's item. ;)

Freedom is a twin format disc which comes with SD DVD and HD DVD and it isn't a flipper.

Cool. Didn't know that could be done. Thanks.

larry

Well, I'm holding the disc in my hands right now and the top says..."COMBO FORMAT." So, I thought that maybe they changed out the sheet and put it into a case with "COMBO FORMAT" on the top...WRONG!

On the back it stats:

SIDE A HIGH DEFINITION...SIDE B STANDARD DEFINITION

So, I guess I have a collectors item...no side B!!! Just side A with the paper pasted to it.

I don't think it's any collector's item. My copy states combo format on the case and on the back cover it says Side A High Def Side B SD. Did you buy your copy from Fry's? That is where I got mine and the Fry's by my house had maybe two dozen copies of Starfighter and less than half said Combo Format on the case. I wonder if the discs were repackaged or maybe it was just a printing error.