I was at my local Circuit City yesterday, looking at HD-DVD titles to buy for my new HD-A2. At my store, the movies are at the far back end of the store--as far back as you can get. It took some time to find the HD-DVD's because they are not signed or anything, just on an endcap facing the back side (meaning as you walk up to the movies section, you cannot see the HD-DVD's).

I looked around some more, but couldn't find the Blu-Ray titles, so I asked. I was told they were up front, and she went on to give me directions.

I walked up to the front of the store, and found a new "theater room" setup, complete with sofa, big screen, blu-ray player, and a bookshelf full of all the Blu-ray titles available.

I could hardly believe it! They stick the HD-DVD's at the back of the store where NO ONE will ever see them, unless you are looking for them, but the Blu-Ray titles are right up front, displayed proudly with the impressive Theatre room equipment on display!

Talk about BIASED!!!! I almost want to complain to the store manager!!! I'm thinking SONY or SAMSUNG is funding that new Theatre Room setup!!!

Has anyone else noticed at their local electronics stores a distinct separation of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray titles?

ya i thought most people knew about there bias? i think it is one of the main reasons that blu ray has a chance. when you take one of the second largest elecronics stores and make them practically sell only blue ray then that helps quite a bit.

The one thing I have noticed at alot of retailers is the Blu-ray "demo disc" that has a side by side of a Blu-ray version of a movie and a SD version of a movie (I think the last one I saw was A Knight's Tale). But the thing that bothered me was that the SD DVD on the screen looked more like a VHS tape (really washed out, fuzzy, etc) vs an actual SD DVD. Personally, I think it's an unfair comparison of Blu-ray and SD DVD but it could just be a product of the display I was watching it on. anyone else seen this?

The one thing I have noticed at alot of retailers is the Blu-ray "demo disc" that has a side by side of a Blu-ray version of a movie and a SD version of a movie (I think the last one I saw was A Knight's Tale). But the thing that bothered me was that the SD DVD on the screen looked more like a VHS tape (really washed out, fuzzy, etc) vs an actual SD DVD. Personally, I think it's an unfair comparison of Blu-ray and SD DVD but it could just be a product of the display I was watching it on. anyone else seen this?

I've noticed that too.

Not only looks like a VHS rip, but a 3rd generation copy

ya i thought most people knew about there bias? i think it is one of the main reasons that blu ray has a chance. when you take one of the second largest elecronics stores and make them practically sell only blue ray then that helps quite a bit.

Nope, I didn't know about it. As an electronics retailer, what do they have to gain by supporting a particular format? They sell HD-DVD and BR players, and HD-DVD and BR titles, so why not promote both of them equally, and let their customers wallets decide which to buy?

maybe it was jsut me then. every cc i walk into has a big display of br right as you walk in. when i asked where the hd dvd's were they has to ask 2 -3 differant people where they were and they were usually hidden at the bottom of an endcap in the back. i have asked why and no one seems to know.

Yep I've seen the knights tale deal. I'd guess its what the dvd would look like if sent over RF using a duel VCR/DVD player. And the blu-ray version is the full 1080p HDMI version. Which is unfair. I dint think any of my DVDs are that fuzzy even the older first gen 1997 ones...


But it seems to depend on the location my local CC has a 3X4 row of HD-DVDs at the very begining of the DVD NRs. So I found them right away. The selection was poor as they had maybe 15 differnt movies just mixed all up. BB has the best selection in the area but the prices are somewhat high although $24 on average isn't to bad...

Nope, I didn't know about it. As an electronics retailer, what do they have to gain by supporting a particular format? They sell HD-DVD and BR players, and HD-DVD and BR titles, so why not promote both of them equally, and let their customers wallets decide which to buy?

Shelf space.

Shelf space.

Shelf space? Then why not only carry video games for the Sony Playstation and none for XBOX or Nintendo? If they're going to play God, why stop with just HD movies? Maybe they should only stock DLP HD TV's, and no LCD, plasma or LCOS or any of the other contending technologies. And, while they're at it, they can free up tons of shelf space and only force-feed us RAP music and Childrens videos...

Only reason I can think of is margins. Aren't they making more money with expensive players as opposed to cheaper ones ?

Another reason might be that they're siding with the same studios as the ones who supported them for DIVX, since these studios are the most ardent BR supporters too this time around...

Either way, just because of the DIVX history, I refuse to give any money to CC. I would not shed a tear if they went bankrupt tomorrow. It's not going to happen unfortunately.

News flash!!! Companies like Sony and Samsung can pay for in store displays/kiosks to be set-up. I've worked in grocery retail and electronics retail and believe me, that big giant Frito-Lays treehouse on the endcap of your local grocery store wasn't erected by that grocery store. The vendor's come in and erect all that stuff and stock it in some cases. Pepsi and Coca-Cola swapped endcap displays in our stores in a "every other week" fashion so as to avoid some kinda of dramatic scene.

The point is, Sony seems to be putting more cash into the end-cap/display casing of Blu-Ray. Then it becomes up to the individual store to try and set-up HD-DVD on their own. My local Best-Buy did this with a Toshiba TV and an A2 just sitting naked on an end cap with no sort of documentation or information about what you were even watching. If I didn't know that's what they were then I would've just figured it's another TV. However, all the Sony displays are pretty much uniform in design and information presented, which pretty much means that Sony is putting out the cash to the stores to get this setup. You don't think CC and BB share end cap designs do you??

If Toshiba wanted to pony up cash and ship BB/CC nice kiosk type setups I'm sure they would have no trouble putting them up and trying to sell them. After all, they would sell you a bag of crap if they thought they could sell a bunch and make a huge profit. (Not to imply that Toshiba is crap.)

The one thing I have noticed at alot of retailers is the Blu-ray "demo disc" that has a side by side of a Blu-ray version of a movie and a SD version of a movie (I think the last one I saw was A Knight's Tale). But the thing that bothered me was that the SD DVD on the screen looked more like a VHS tape (really washed out, fuzzy, etc) vs an actual SD DVD. Personally, I think it's an unfair comparison of Blu-ray and SD DVD but it could just be a product of the display I was watching it on. anyone else seen this?

What about the Toshiba HD DVD demo disc of the Ocean liner passing? The "simulated DVD" side looked worse than VHS. It's marketing gimmick. Everyone does it.

I was at my local Circuit City yesterday, looking at HD-DVD titles to buy for my new HD-A2. At my store, the movies are at the far back end of the store--as far back as you can get. It took some time to find the HD-DVD's because they are not signed or anything, just on an endcap facing the back side (meaning as you walk up to the movies section, you cannot see the HD-DVD's).

I looked around some more, but couldn't find the Blu-Ray titles, so I asked. I was told they were up front, and she went on to give me directions.

I walked up to the front of the store, and found a new "theater room" setup, complete with sofa, big screen, blu-ray player, and a bookshelf full of all the Blu-ray titles available.

I could hardly believe it! They stick the HD-DVD's at the back of the store where NO ONE will ever see them, unless you are looking for them, but the Blu-Ray titles are right up front, displayed proudly with the impressive Theatre room equipment on display!

Talk about BIASED!!!! I almost want to complain to the store manager!!! I'm thinking SONY or SAMSUNG is funding that new Theatre Room setup!!!

Has anyone else noticed at their local electronics stores a distinct separation of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray titles?
You'd do the same thing if Sony paid you more advertising dollars than somebody else does for HD-DVD. There's a lot of other ways Sony can sweeten the pot also to get the better promotion from the retailer.

larry

The one thing I have noticed at alot of retailers is the Blu-ray "demo disc" that has a side by side of a Blu-ray version of a movie and a SD version of a movie (I think the last one I saw was A Knight's Tale). But the thing that bothered me was that the SD DVD on the screen looked more like a VHS tape (really washed out, fuzzy, etc) vs an actual SD DVD. Personally, I think it's an unfair comparison of Blu-ray and SD DVD but it could just be a product of the display I was watching it on. anyone else seen this?
Saw the same thing day before yesterday. you are quite right.

There is actually a CC by my house that has a 360 add on HD DVD set up right as you walk in the door playing KK. Right next to it is a whole rack of HD DVDs. I guess it depends on the store.

News flash!!! Companies like Sony and Samsung can pay for in store displays/kiosks to be set-up. I've worked in grocery retail and electronics retail and believe me, that big giant Frito-Lays treehouse on the endcap of your local grocery store wasn't erected by that grocery store. The vendor's come in and erect all that stuff and stock it in some cases. Pepsi and Coca-Cola swapped endcap displays in our stores in a "every other week" fashion so as to avoid some kinda of dramatic scene.

The point is, Sony seems to be putting more cash into the end-cap/display casing of Blu-Ray. Then it becomes up to the individual store to try and set-up HD-DVD on their own. My local Best-Buy did this with a Toshiba TV and an A2 just sitting naked on an end cap with no sort of documentation or information about what you were even watching. If I didn't know that's what they were then I would've just figured it's another TV. However, all the Sony displays are pretty much uniform in design and information presented, which pretty much means that Sony is putting out the cash to the stores to get this setup. You don't think CC and BB share end cap designs do you??

If Toshiba wanted to pony up cash and ship BB/CC nice kiosk type setups I'm sure they would have no trouble putting them up and trying to sell them. After all, they would sell you a bag of crap if they thought they could sell a bunch and make a huge profit. (Not to imply that Toshiba is crap.)

BINGO! I've been telling people this for quite a while.

Sony learned from their Betamax mistake. They didn't advertise as much as JVC did with VHS, and it eventually went under. This time around, Sony knew to PUSH, PUSH, PUSH!! It's also called forced education. Blu-ray is becoming a household name.

All the Best Buy's around my area have TWO displays showing off their format on 50" Sony flatscreens. HD-DVD...none.

HD-DVD really needs to start pushing their format just the same if they want to stay in the race.

Its called life. HD DVD is like that long lost uncle of yours living down the basement. Deal with it. Just joking. Business is not always fair.

Hasn't this thread been done to death repeatedly? Yes, CC promotes nothing but bluray, hd-dvd might as well not even exist at most of their stores. Its the same at Best Buy.

Its marketing, pure and simple. Sony is pushing marketing money, toshiba is not (in the same way).

This is one of the reasons I just can't see hd-dvd winning. It doesn't exist in the minds of the public.

Blu-ray gives a crap. HD DVD appears not to.

I might be wrong but Blu-Ray sounds like a new HD technology for common consumer. They think HD-DVD on the other hand is improved DVD.

Also, when someone goes in to buy a Hi-Def player they like to compare different models and when they see only Toshiba making the HD-DVD player and 4 make Blu-Ray players, they will serioulsy get puzzled by HD-DVD.

I might be wrong but Blu-Ray sounds like a new HD technology for common consumer. They think HD-DVD on the other hand is improved DVD.

Also, when someone goes in to buy a Hi-Def player they like to compare different models and when they see only Toshiba making the HD-DVD player and 4 make Blu-Ray players, they will serioulsy get puzzled by HD-DVD.

I'm a common consumer, and when I went shopping, I saw $900 Blu-ray players and $400 HD-DVD. Quick check of specs, a little research, and decided i'd rather have $500 in pocket to buy movies to show on my HD-DVD!!!! (not that i'd spend that much on movies...)

I really find it hard to believe the "common consumer" has $900-$1000 to spend on a DVD player.

I think, if anything, that because of the cost of Blu-ray, and the lack of push by HD-DVD, that neither format is going to excel as fast as it should.

It's called advertising, and these stores are a business. I think the frustration comes from knowing that 99% of the American consumer is slightly retarded, and falls for all of this without doing any research first.

My Best Buy has two set-ups for Blu-Ray and none for HD-DVD. :(

I went to the CC in Springfield, MO a few days ago. They used to have their HD DVD movies just mixed-in with the DVD's, but I couldn't find them. So I asked one of the associates and they had moved them up front next to a Toshiba A-2 playing on a 50" Toshiba. They were showing both formats virtually next to one another.

I asked the guy which they were selling more of, and he said that they sold 5 A-2's this week and only 1 BR player. So good news in SW MO.

This is because HD DVD practically sells itself when one looks at the price of a BR player he or she laughs hysterically and quickly walks away and then looks at the HD DVD player and promptly let's out a sigh of relief and decides to either buy the HD DVD player or wait till the format war is over and a victor is decided.

Nope, I didn't know about it. As an electronics retailer, what do they have to gain by supporting a particular format? They sell HD-DVD and BR players, and HD-DVD and BR titles, so why not promote both of them equally, and let their customers wallets decide which to buy?

They have a lot to gain if they're getting incentives from Sony. Common, use your imagination.

Shelf space? Then why not only carry video games for the Sony Playstation and none for XBOX or Nintendo? If they're going to play God, why stop with just HD movies? Maybe they should only stock DLP HD TV's, and no LCD, plasma or LCOS or any of the other contending technologies. And, while they're at it, they can free up tons of shelf space and only force-feed us RAP music and Childrens videos...

Terrible analogy. Games have full mindshare amongst the consumers, people know about the consoles, nobody knows crap about the new HD formats. Common already, I feel like these are such obvious points.

maybe it was jsut me then. every cc i walk into has a big display of br right as you walk in.

Yep.

Sony is fighting like they can't afford to lose, because they can't. The HD-DVD backers don't give a damn.

Blu-ray gives a crap. HD DVD appears not to.
Thanks, that's about as quick as it gets when it comes to summing it up - sig'd.

This is because HD DVD practically sells itself when one looks at the price of a BR player he or she laughs hysterically and quickly walks away and then looks at the HD DVD player and promptly let's out a sigh of relief and decides to either buy the HD DVD player or wait till the format war is over and a victor is decided.

...and then you woke up. The only part there that is somewhat reality-based is the ending where he just decides to wait.

This is because HD DVD practically sells itself when one looks at the price of a BR player he or she laughs hysterically and quickly walks away and then looks at the HD DVD player and promptly let's out a sigh of relief and decides to either buy the HD DVD player or wait till the format war is over and a victor is decided.

Hmm, you could say Blu-ray practically sells itself when you look at the movie selection. All I see every time I going in to Fry's to get something is that most of the new releases are sitting there in the blue cases and the stuff in the red cases is basically the same as when I got my HD DVD player. I looked at the price of the Blu-ray players and said "wait a minute." Of course I then I realized I was an 18-34 male and got a PLAYSTATION 3. The end.

I went into the CC near my house to buy some HD DVD's and they did not have any. They do not carry a single HD movie, but they had plenty of BR.

Agreeing with others, Sony has clearly learned from all thier past mistakes having missed out on many other format wars. Even though BR players are more expensive, they are definitely targeted to the average consumer. They are targeted to people who buy on impulse or becuase of advertising. HD is not being advertised much, not sure why. However HD is more for the serious A/V customer, who is educated enough to know that HD delivers a more superior pic and sound.

Having worked retail throughout high school and college, I can say that the majority of consumers now days are the uneducated type that buy on impulse or buy what advertising/salespeople tell them to buy. Therefore I think BR will probably win.

Becuase of better pic and sound, I hope HD wins. Although owning both PS3 and a HD-A2, I will be safe no matter who wins.

also taking into account that BR has better titles out.

I went into the CC near my house to buy some HD DVD's and they did not have any. They do not carry a single HD movie, but they had plenty of BR.

Maybe they were hidden in the very back of the store, mixed in amongst the other titles...Given the Blu-Ray are prominently displayed, some might think since the HD-DVD aren't next to them, that the store doesn't carry them!

I don't think CC knows what it is promoting (if anything).... :D

Terrible analogy. Games have full mindshare amongst the consumers, people know about the consoles, nobody knows crap about the new HD formats. Common already, I feel like these are such obvious points.

Actually, you missed my point (or maybe my point wasn't clear). It was that CC is deciding for the consumer (educated or not about the HD DVD formats) which one to get, instead of giving the customer an unbiased, equal opportunity to compare, and decide for themselves, which one is better suited to them!

You know why? Because if they setup two identical big screens, side by side, stuck a BR player on one, and HD-DVD player on the other, and put the same movie in both, guess which one the average consumer would buy? Yep, that's right folks, the one that is $500 cheaper. How many BR players would go out the door then, with those 1 million new HD TV's that were sold over the holidays, not to mention the past couple of weeks during the Super Bowl HD TV blitz?

And, I think a lot of people (parents) going into CC to buy their kids a game console (especially during the holidays) don't know diddly squat about the differences between an XBOX360 and a PS3 (except they both cost a lot!). But, you certainly see both consoles, within an aisle or two of each other, prominently displayed, fully working, with games running on both, for you to compare.

That was my point.

You know why? Because if they setup two identical big screens, side by side, stuck a BR player on one, and HD-DVD player on the other, and put the same movie in both, guess which one the average consumer would buy? Yep, that's right folks, the one that is $500 cheaper. How many BR players would go out the door then, with those 1 million new HD TV's that were sold over the holidays, not to mention the past couple of weeks during the Super Bowl HD TV blitz?

Your probably right. Unless they setup a PS3 as the Blu-ray player and then everyone would leave with PS3 because they could get a player and a gaming console for an extra $150 bucks.

However, I wonder how much of the push to support Blu-ray at CC and BB is due to the fact that Blu-Ray has the well known movies hitting it's format in the next 3 months. (PotC, Cars, Spiderman). Maybe they see more potential to also push disc sales over the next quarter.

i was in CC yesterday and the hd movie section was a mess. it was one big double-sided rack with hd dvd on one side and bd on the other and they were all just stuffed in there in no alphabetical or categorical order. not to mention that the 2 knuckleheaded sales guys were in my way cuz they were leaning on the rack watchin tv.

go amazon!

I was in CC in my neck of the woods yesterday. They had a clearly labeled display set up in the middle of the floor with just Blu_Ray discs. I was looking to buy some HD-DVDs and I didn't see a display anywhere. I asked and was brought to a well hidden area next to the T.V. section of Standard DVDs. There was no label to identify that it was HD-DVD and while I was standing there, people walked bye and would pick up the HD-DVD not realizing what they were at first. Once they realized they wouldn't play in there DVD players, they dropped it and walked away. I found it sadly amusing.

Your probably right. Unless they setup a PS3 as the Blu-ray player and then everyone would leave with PS3 because they could get a player and a gaming console for an extra $150 bucks.

However, I wonder how much of the push to support Blu-ray at CC and BB is due to the fact that Blu-Ray has the well known movies hitting it's format in the next 3 months. (PotC, Cars, Spiderman). Maybe they see more potential to also push disc sales over the next quarter.

Dont forget about Casino Royale which has already been as high as 29 on Amazon. That is gonna be a money maker.

There is actually a CC by my house that has a 360 add on HD DVD set up right as you walk in the door playing KK. Right next to it is a whole rack of HD DVDs. I guess it depends on the store.
Here, the HD DVD display is in the main theater room. The BR display is right as you walk into the door. The shelf space is very close to each other and I was quite surprised at the quality of selection and the amount of titles I saw on the shelves.

I was in a local CC recently (buying some new speakers), and was just staring mindlessly at the wall of flat-panel displays all showing the same feed from a demo disk. Then I noticed it was a Blu-Ray promo demo disk, I thought to myself:

"I wonder if any of those flat-panel manufacturers would be annoyed by having Blu-Ray promote itself using their displays when maybe they are part of the HD-DVD forum or maybe just neutral?"

But then I noticed that all the flat-panels were made by companies that are part of the Blu-Ray group: Sony, Pioneer, Samsung, LG, HP, maybe a couple others. I concluded to myself that since CC doesn't seem to carry much Toshiba gear, by default it leans towards the same group of companies that are the Blu-Ray group.

So it may be that CC isn't trying to bias itself away from HD-DVD, just that it has a built-in bias favoring the Blu-Ray group - association through product lines. If Pioneer and Yamaha were to produce, for example, a technology related to receivers that competed with a similar technology produced by Onkyo or JVC, Best Buy would automatically favor the Pioneer/Yamaha product since that is what they already carry.

The fact that CC actually carries the Toshiba HD-A2 (and in-store too, not just on-line) surprises the heck out of me.

The local CC's display HD-DVD titles on an end-cap in the DVD section, whereas the Blu-Ray disks get a small island display of their own near the front of the store.

JMHO and observations,

shinksma

Circuit City likes bd and not hd-dvd so what? This is the trend now. Hd-dvd is slowing dying away...

The only one to blame here is Toshiba, Sony is paying money to advertise and it shows...BB, Magnolia, Curcuit City, and others is bombarded with BR and you see very little HD DVD unless you look for it..

I went to the CC in Springfield, MO a few days ago. They used to have their HD DVD movies just mixed-in with the DVD's, but I couldn't find them. So I asked one of the associates and they had moved them up front next to a Toshiba A-2 playing on a 50" Toshiba. They were showing both formats virtually next to one another.

I asked the guy which they were selling more of, and he said that they sold 5 A-2's this week and only 1 BR player. So good news in SW MO.

Pretty much the same for the CC's around me. The one's near my house seem to have had a complete change of heart toward HD-DVD. I just don't agree with them playing Tomb Raider to sell the players. I told them they should have picked a MUCH better A/V quality movie. :) They told me they were amazed at how HD-DVD players just "sell themselves" and how BR players just "aren't selling at all". I said, yup, you got it.

P.S. ILoveCircuitCity, you are dead wrong and a troll.

It's definately the case in my town. I hate how they push it. When i bought my HDDVD add on for the 360 the salesman practically fell over himself to tell me that they were lower resolution than hte BLU RAY players. Then said, things like, yes, its $700 more, but the quality is SOOO much better. Then i when i told him my LCD HDTV was a 720p tv he said the BLU RAY would still look better since it was a higher resolution.

It makes me sick. If its the better format i hope it wins, but ******** from salespersons is only going to get us a trojan horse.

The CC in Orland Park, IL has a HD DVD on display and it looks excellent...they seem to push HD DVD over BD. It use to be the other way around. Weird!

Circuit City likes bd and not hd-dvd so what? This is the trend now. Hd-dvd is slowing dying away...

Hey there, still enjoying your DIVX player ? You know, the one that was launched by CC and a lawfirm ? Please tell me you dind't jump into DVD when DIVX was so much better...

The only one to blame here is Toshiba, Sony is paying money to advertise and it shows...BB, Magnolia, Curcuit City, and others is bombarded with BR and you see very little HD DVD unless you look for it..

Exactly, Mr. Stroke... I don't understand why people aren't getting this.

The retail stores are not to blame. It's Sony and Toshiba... if they are willing to front the cash, then the retailers will setup a display.

Apparently, Toshiba doesn't promote HD-DVD as strongly as Sony does Blu-ray.

In my town, the Circuit City has a Samsung 56" 1080p DLP display with Blu-ray pumping out Ice Age 2 (to attract the kids as well) not 20 feet from the main entrance. It's the FIRST thing you see even when walking down the mall hallway to get to Circuit City. I have to admit, this really caught my eye. Ice Age 2 looks beautiful. (The earlier Blu-ray displays were terrible).

If you want to see HD-DVD, you have to ask a sales rep and they have to get the TV guy, who has to get the HD guy to walk you over to a small display off to the side where they have to start it up so you can view it (yes, I asked to see HD-DVD and this is what happened...no joke).

C'mon, Toshiba, you're smarter than this... you have to spend money to make money.

Actually it's good to finally see an HD-DVD display in Circuit City. Now at the different stores i've been in they have played it on screens from 42"-56" but ironically every set has been a 720 set, no 1080 sets? Whereas the Sony Blu-Ray plays on a Sony 1080p LCD.

Really, that's odd. The CC by me has stopped carrying HD DVD's. At first they were pushed in the back, in the regular DVD section, but the last two times I've been there there's been *none*, and none of the reps know where they've gone - but they sure the heck aren't in stock.

Actually it's good to finally see an HD-DVD display in Circuit City. Now at the different stores i've been in they have played it on screens from 42"-56" but ironically every set has been a 720 set, no 1080 sets? Whereas the Sony Blu-Ray plays on a Sony 1080p LCD.

If you're commenting about my post, I misled you.. The HD-DVD wasn't on it's own display. They had an A1 player hooked to an LCD screen with other components like a SD-DVD, Xbox 360, and TiVO (I think). So, it wasn't an official Toshiba Show-n-Tell.

So inorder to get it running (after being juggled from rep to rep) it was finding the remote to the TV (and the one to the A1 player) then switch the TV to the correct input, and heck, they even had to FIND the HD-DVD movie to demo!

It took about 15 minutes or so all together before it was finally all up and running. In the meantime, people are pouring into the front entrance staring at the Blu-ray.

All this was so my father-in-law to see HD-DVD in the store. By the time we actually got it running, he was already sitting on the couch in front of the Blu-ray display watching Ice Age 2.