See topic. TotalHD are the Warner designed discs with BD on one side and HD DVD on the other side, for those who don't know. First Warner announced we'd see releases by June/July, then there was a press release for Europe or something saying Batman Begins, Superman Returns and Paramount's Mission Impossible 3 would be released by the holiday season/whatever.

But that above info is quite old now and its been pretty quiet.

What is the opinion here from insiders/whoever on this issue? With the BD momentum/whatever will WB still be gung-ho about TotalHD or what do you expect to see happen?

I think the idea was stillborn. They put out the idea & got a resounding "are you on crack? you know how much that will add to the cost?"

Too many "eeeeeeewwwww" reactions for the idea to go forward.

I hope it's dead. I want no part of it at all. I don't mind copious amounts of useless extras on a disc since they are just that, extras, but a whole other version of a movie on a format that I don't use? No thanks.

I definitely hope it is dead.... but I am VERY glad to know it is at least dead until 300 is coming out ;).

Quiet!

Maybe Warner just forgot about it... Don't remind them!

Consumer reaction has certainly been mixed, to put it mildly. And if there is a trend towards not needing a solution for stocking both formats (ala Blockbuster) there will be no demand for THD disks even from retailers. Please let THD die...

Quiet!

Maybe Warner just forgot about it... Don't remind them!

I agree 100%. Just shut up about them.

No kidding. I hope it's dead. Terrible idea.

Rest in peace! :p

Hopefully we never see this crap.

Wow. This thread has a lot of consistently unfavorable comments from early adopters and enthusiasts. No wonder we're not hearing much about this.

What's the problem? Just got a combo HD-DVD/DVD copy of F&F from NF - seems to be a very neat solution. Oh I forgot, BD/PS3 fans have a "world domination" mode.

For the love of God, don't remind Warner and encourage them to do this.

To quote Jeff Golblum in the Lost World:

"This is the worst idea in a long sad history of bad ideas".

No it would ensure HD-DVD keeps alive, and that's the worst nightmare for BD that can't keep up with features or price

It's not dead.... it's been postponed along with New Lines announcements until BD-J and the BD standard are finalized. Expect it to resurface after October 31st.

What's the problem? Just got a combo HD-DVD/DVD copy of F&F from NF - seems to be a very neat solution. Oh I forgot, BD/PS3 fans have a "world domination" mode.

I just prefer BD50 wherever possible, and from what I understand TotalHD can't provide that.

I would be quite content with a press release from WB saying, "Yeah, about that TotalHD thing. We admit it was stupid. We were just high on some bad crack. We apologize for any inconvenience or long threads forumgoers might have endured about it. We executed the executives responsible for pushing it and have deleted all mention of it from our past press releases and documentation. Anyone affected by the possibility of this awful flipper technology should contact our public relations department and we will arrange to send you a free copy of the original Batman or Mars Attacks! on BD or HD DVD."

That would make it all better. :)

It's not dead.... it's been postponed along with New Lines announcements until BD-J and the BD standard are finalized. Expect it to resurface after October 31st.
I don't object THD as many do here, however, I have never been convinced it is technically and economically feasible. If BD/DVD combo is difficult to make, one would think BD/HD combo would be even more difficult to produce.

Personally speaking I have no interest in paying extra for a TotalHD disc since all it would get from it is a disc without a label, which I prefer having on my movies, and a version of the movie that I can't even use. In fact TotalHD would be a pretty good way to discourage me from buying a movie from Warner.


Oh I forgot, BD/PS3 fans have a "world domination" mode.Last I checked their are supporters on both sides of this format war that want only one format to win.


No it would ensure HD-DVD keeps alive,WayneL, I know you love HD DVD but I think you are grasping at straws with this one since last I checked Warner already supported both HD formats. The main thing that TotalHD discs would do for most consumers would be to make HD movies from Warner less appealing.

No it would ensure HD-DVD keeps alive, and that's the worst nightmare for BD that can't keep up with features or price

Keeping a format alive for the sake of the format is a GREAT business decision. :rolleyes:

They'll make THD until/if HD DVD is dead, dead, dead. As of now, HD DVD is far from dead.

I wouldn't expect to hear a big announcement from Warner that they're canning the THD idea.

I don't object THD as many do here, however, I have never been convinced it is technically and economically feasible. If BD/DVD combo is difficult to make, one would think BD/HD combo would be even more difficult to produce.The answer to that I do not know. Nor have I questioned. I applaud you for at least keeping an open mind though. It seems everyone has closed their mind to the idea because Blu-Ray supporters think it hurts their formats chances at dominance, and HD-DVD supporters have grown to hate anything two sided. I hope Warner sticks to their guns and goes with THD. There will always be people on AVS unhappy, but I think the average consumer will warm up to THD quite nicely.

Hopefully the plans get canned. HD-DVD/DVD combo's are way too expensive. I have a hard time believing that these Blu-ray/HD-DVD combo's would be any less.

Warner, make TotalHD, and i guarantee you that your sales will be WORSE then universals in the HD market, which we already is HORRIBLE as it is! DONT DO IT.

Nobody said TotalHD would cost more than current discs. Thats kind of the whole point. If they can't produce it for the same price we are already paying, nobody will buy it.

If they find a way to produce it for the same price, I won't mind it.

Nobody said TotalHD would cost more than current discs. Thats kind of the whole point. If they can't produce it for the same price we are already paying, nobody will buy it.

If they find a way to produce it for the same price, I won't mind it.

Would anyone oppose if:

1) It can provide BD-50 and HD-30 on the same disc (though I'm not sure it can)
2) It is the same price

If it can accomplish this, why would you be so against it?

One thing I must add, however. "TotalHD" was a bad name for it. "TrueHD" is used for sound, and it's just too close...

Warner Bros. If you are reading this.....

SKIP THE FLIPPIN THD'S!! THEY R T3H SUXOR!11!

:p

TotalHD ...Cya ...wouldn't want to be ya!

Would anyone oppose if:

1) It can provide BD-50 and HD-30 on the same disc (though I'm not sure it can)
2) It is the same priceThat though is very optimistic since even back when Warner was promoting the idea of TotalHD they admitted it would come at an additional cost. Assuming just for a second though that both of those conditions were true I personally would still be a bit against it. Personally I like having a label on my discs which is one of the reasons I never liked dual sided DVDs.

I have multiple issues with TotalHD:

(1) No disc art. Others might not be concerned, but I like having a safe touchable surface with which I can readily identify the disc. I can just imagine something like Harry Potter series movies on TotalHD... which one is which, again? No thanks.

(2) Cost. Cost. Cost. Discs are already too expensive for mainstream, and we want to increase the cost of production?

(3) Quality. After the problems HD DVD has had with combo discs, I hold out little hope that TotalHD can do any better. If anything, the production problems probably become worse.

In contrast, any concerns about prolonging the format war pale in comparison to the very practical reasons above.

How do you know it's going to be more expensive? It might be more expensive to make but it not necessary means it will be straight passed onto you.

If it won't be more expensive (ie sans couple of bucks) and will bring the same quality that you saw from single-format discs then why is it wrong having future-proof discs or THE CHOICE for the same price?
:(

If Warners drops this idea, there will be no press release or mention of it. The fact that they have not been talking about it is therefore very encouraging.

At this point, I rather expect them to wait and see if we get a resolution to the format war. While I do expect Warners to continue shipping both formats for a while in any case, the quantities will be very different (they already are!) and there is no point in shipping expensive THD disks when the great majority is only using one side.

THD is basically another way to prolong the format war and get minimal returns for the studios.

It'll be as good as dead to me. I won't buy it. It will smack of WB's last gasp effort to keep their HD-DVD royalties coming even if the format is going down to defeat.

The more complex the disc is, the more likely it will have major problems. Not to mention they will continue to make content for the lesser capable side (no matter what it is).

Dan

How do you know it's going to be more expensive? It might be more expensive to make but it not necessary means it will be straight passed onto you.

If it won't be more expensive (ie sans couple of bucks) and will bring the same quality that you saw from single-format discs then why is it wrong having future-proof discs or THE CHOICE for the same price?
:(


Because flippers have been nothing but problematic on the HD DVD side. Why would bringing them to the domain of Blu-ray make them any better? Most BD fans don't want HD DVD encodes and most HD DVD fans don't want BD encodes. Every time I've seen BD fans polled, it's always universally in favor of no flippers on BD, even if they WERE possible.

And those with both players don't want or need two encodes that will be the same. Nor do we need every BD from WB coming out with 25gig BD sides and 30 gig HD DVD sides so WB can toute how they have to limit what they put on the BD side just because BD lacks so much space.

And believe it or not, even without cost (HD DVD flippers cost $5 more on average, how much do you think an entire BD side would cost over a simpler DVD?) or compatibility concerns (the real biggie), I have to say... I'm a fan of disc art. Flippers just look blah.

...then why is it wrong having future-proof discs or THE CHOICE for the same price?
:(

I was thinking much the same. Unlike the combo disc where the future could be 'SD' this appeals at least to HD enthusiast. Assures whatever format prevails the buyer won't be stuck with unplayable software.

Of course all of you already know the REAL reason why it won't fly...studios can't decide which case to use...red or blue? :D :D :D

Seems unecessary ... if combo players are coming (Samsung, LG) then combo discs are, well, unecessary!

How do you know it's going to be more expensive? It might be more expensive to make but it not necessary means it will be straight passed onto you.

If it won't be more expensive (ie sans couple of bucks) and will bring the same quality that you saw from single-format discs then why is it wrong having future-proof discs or THE CHOICE for the same price?
:(

Logically and compared to the cost of a single format version, how could TotalHD be anything except more expensive to the consumer because the consumer would have to shoulder the cost for two sets of licensing fees, whereas now he only has to pay for one? Why would the pricing of a TotalHD disc not follow the pricing of Universal's DVD/HD-DVD, which are more expensive than a DVD or HD-DVD only version, presumably in part because there are two licenses to pay? On the other hand, the total cost may be cheaper for Warner because even though Warner's licensing costs would remain the same - it already pays for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD fees and would continue to do so under TotalHD - presumably its production costs decrease; it's cheaper to make a single TotalHD release than two separate HD versions. So a win for Warner but a loss for the consumer, who may not bear the full cost of having to pay for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD licenses but would surely have to pay something more than now. Unless you're suggesting Warner would swallow the dual licensing cost so that the consumer is shielded? But then why would Warner do that?

Quiet!

Maybe Warner just forgot about it... Don't remind them!


LOL :D yeah

Logically and compared to the cost of a single format version, how could TotalHD be anything except more expensive to the consumer because the consumer would have to shoulder the cost for two sets of licensing fees, whereas now he only has to pay for one? Why would the pricing of a TotalHD disc not follow the pricing of Universal's DVD/HD-DVD, which are more expensive than a DVD or HD-DVD only version, presumably in part because there are two licenses to pay? On the other hand, the total cost may be cheaper for Warner because even though Warner's licensing costs would remain the same - it already pays for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD fees and would continue to do so under TotalHD - presumably its production costs decrease; it's cheaper to make a single TotalHD release than two separate HD versions. So a win for Warner but a loss for the consumer, who may not bear the full cost of having to pay for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD licenses but would surely have to pay something more than now. Unless you're suggesting Warner would swallow the dual licensing cost so that the consumer is shielded? But then why would Warner do that?



More importantly, the same argument that is made as to the subsidizing by the BDA for BD production... the argument that says they won't keep disc prices cheap forever... well, that argument would then apply here, don't you think? Except since TotalHD will be an even smaller production run than BD at least for a long time, one has to wonder... when exactly would WB decide to stop giving us that benefit of the doubt?

Even more amusing... the TotalHD would be AFTER the production runs on HD DVD and BD are complete. Meaning that not only would someone have to manufacture the HD DVD on an HD DVD line, but there would also have to be a manufacturing plant converted to Blu-ray (the biggest expense incurred by the movie companies) to produce those sides as well.

The TotalHD flipper would actually increase the costs across the board for two discs, double the production facilities, and force encodes to be the same across two sides for no good reason. Better WB just pick a side than crap TotalHD on the world.

If WB is/was the only studio pushing for Total HD, I can't imagine it ever having a significant effect on the market. The whole idea behind TotalHD was to alleviate consumer reluctance to buy into HDM due to the format war. HDM could have been the answer (albeit not a very good one) to that problem if a lot of studios got on board. They didn't, so TotalHD remains a goofy idea that WB had and no one else liked.

Honestly, I find it amusing that the one studio willing to try this idea was already format neutral in the first place. Since they're already releasing on both formats, they're already serving the market... if New Line, Criterion, or some of the smaller indie labels went TotalHD, that'd be news. :p

If WB is/was the only studio pushing for Total HD, I can't imagine it ever having a significant effect on the market. The whole idea behind TotalHD was to alleviate consumer reluctance to buy into HDM due to the format war. HDM could have been the answer (albeit not a very good one) to that problem if a lot of studios got on board. They didn't, so TotalHD remains a goofy idea that WB had and no one else liked.

Honestly, I find it amusing that the one studio willing to try this idea was already format neutral in the first place. Since they're already releasing on both formats, they're already serving the market... if New Line, Criterion, or some of the smaller indie labels went TotalHD, that'd be news. :p

Its because WB is actually the only studio who really wants HD-DVD to live.

TotalHD may now help HD-DVD. If Blockbuster is only going to stock BD's then we will be able to rent all of Warners and mabe Newlines discs discs on HD-DVD. This could be a good thing for HD-DVD.

Of course all of you already know the REAL reason why it won't fly...studios can't decide which case to use...red or blue? :D :D :D


I believe they would be purple. ;)

Its because WB is actually the only studio who really wants HD-DVD to live.

Really? What about Universal?