Just saw that Order of The Phoenix is available as of today from the U.K. Will it play fine in U.S. players as Goblet of Fire did?

Virtually all HD DVD titles from Europe, or anywhere in the world, will play on US players. HD DVD is region free.

Virtually all HD DVD titles from Europe, or anywhere in the world, will play on US players. HD DVD is region free.

Yeah....I just wanted to be %100 before I pay $$ for it. ;)

Ordered it tonight....fingers crossed!

They actually have all the films available but the reason I only ordered Phoenix is because it is not a combo disc in the U.K....I probably would have ordered the 1st,2nd, & 3rd but the U.K. cover for Sorcerers Stone is hideous and as many know it is called the Philosophers Stone

actually the cover you have seen maynot be the actual cover, and The Philosophers Stone is the original name for the first book. it was renamed for the US market.

actually the cover you have seen may not be the actual cover, and The Philosophers Stone is the original name for the first book. it was renamed for the US market.

I was aware of the title change....maybe some of our friends in the U.K. can shed some light on the 1st movies' cover as well as audio specs for Phoenix. I'm assuming Warner gave it a TrueHD track...anything less would be disappointing. The Goblet Of Fire is one of my favorite HD demo discs and I have high hopes for Phoenix. The final battle scenes should look spectacular! :)

I should have it in about 7-10 days though..:(

Yes They all have dolby TrueHD soundtracks as for the cover

I really want to order the 1st and 5th from the UK but roughly $80 is rough

I was aware of the title change....maybe some of our friends in the U.K. can shed some light on the 1st movies' cover as well as audio specs for Phoenix. I'm assuming Warner gave it a TrueHD track...anything less would be disappointing. The Goblet Of Fire is one of my favorite HD demo discs and I have high hopes for Phoenix. The final battle scenes should look spectacular! :)

I should have it in about 7-10 days though..:(

I ordered the UK version of "HP and the Philosopher's Stone" this morning.I was expecting the US/UK conversion to coe out to be some hideous difference(in favor of the Pound), but funny enough the charge came out to be just about what you'd pay for the HD DVD from a Best Buy or Circuit City.Shipping wasn't much either for airmail.Anyone considering ordering
one of the UK Potter HD DVD's should stick with airmail as priority 1-2 buisness day delivery is almost as much as the HD DVD itself.Curiousity got the better of me and i decided to peak to see how much it would be and found myself becoming very happy with the airmail delivery charge.

I preordered Philosopher's Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban and Order of the Phoenix ages ago. Already bought Goblet of Fire when it came out.

Philosopher's Stone, Chamber of Secrets and Order of the Phoenix already shipped last week, so they should arrive any day now. If anyone is interested, I can post my findings once I got them.

Yes, please post your findings. I'm really wanting to import them.
I think I will get 1 for sure. Prehapps order tonight

You do realize that all 5 films will be released next month right?

Dec 11th here. The Order of the Phoenix is 18.38 (pounds) SHIPPED. They credit 19% of the listed price back for the VAT (basically in England the taxes you pay are in the price, not after like us) and the shipping is VERY reasonable. It ends up being <$39 including tax and shipping and you get it a month a head of time. PLUS it is not a combo which for some reason is a bonus to some around here.

I would be all over it but they seem to be out of stock at Amazon. It says "will usually ship in 8-11 days".

Dec 11th here. The Order of the Phoenix is 18.38 (pounds) SHIPPED. They credit 19% of the listed price back for the VAT (basically in England the taxes you pay are in the price, not after like us) and the shipping is VERY reasonable. It ends up being <$39 including tax and shipping and you get it a month a head of time. PLUS it is not a combo which for some reason is a bonus to some around here.

I would be all over it but they seem to be out of stock at Amazon. It says "will usually ship in 8-11 days".



Thats why I ordered from sendit.com. It was $34 U.S. shipped. The price of the combo version here in the states. Its hard waiting for the others but they are only $17.95 with my Prime discount so that makes it an easier wait.

Thats why I ordered from sendit.com. It was $34 U.S. shipped. The price of the combo version here in the states. Its hard waiting for the others but they are only $17.95 with my Prime discount so that makes it an easier wait.


I got a total of 18.49GBP through Sendit. They did not appear to credit back the VAT like Amazon does and the shipping looked insanely low ($3.20??). I lived in England for ~5 mos and there are definately some S L O W ways to ship. Still considering it.

Will these movies show up in the slim HD cases, the same we use in the USA and the original HP4 UK movie, or will they come in the newer, thicker UK cases?

I remember the HP4 case being a little bit thicker than the standard US cases. I assume it would be the same way.

My U.K. copy of HP 4 has the slim design like the U.S. versions. I don't care, I just didn't want a combo version.

Where's the best place to order the UK version from? I had ordered the set from WHV, but since it doesn't make room for the next two movies (from what I understand), I'd like to just buy the British versions.

I really want to order the 1st and 5th from the UK but roughly $80 is rough

I can see the want for the 1st one, as the different title between the UK and the US, but why the 5th movie? Is there differences between the two on that one as well?

Its a non combo. I've got 4 and want to get 2-3 later as I do have the DVDs so I can wait

I can see the want for the 1st one, as the different title between the UK and the US, but why the 5th movie? Is there differences between the two on that one as well?

Well the UK version is not a combo and is available almost exactly a month before the US. And its not all that much more than the US release.

I remember the HP4 case being a little bit thicker than the standard US cases. I assume it would be the same way.

According to UK forums, the UK HD-DVD Potters are ugly fat boxes, with the exception of the earlier HP4 GOF release which is a slim case.

I've got extra HD DVD cases i can use if the UK versions show up in "fat" boxes.All you have to do is photocopy the sleeve insert,resize, and print up a copy on photo grade paper.I've done this many times before, especially with the Discovery Italy,China, and Australia HD DVDs that shipped in those horrible cardboard cases.

I decided to order the four remaining Harry Potter discs from the UK since I ordered "Goblet of Fire" quite awhile ago. I decided I'd go for the British collection instead. I just got notified that "Azkaban" shipped today and will be arriving this Thursday. I expect two more to ship this week as well. I think they are holding onto "Order of the Phoenix" until the U.S. release comes out as well. As far as the naming of "Philosopher's Stone", for me it was an attraction to have the import and to have it with the original title and not the one that was changed just so U.S. audiences would better understand it.

Any reviews up yet?

Yes They all have dolby TrueHD soundtracks
Can you or anyone else confirm that 1 through 3 are TrueHD?
I have not been able to get any info on the soundtracks.
The best guess I have seen is for DD+.

BTW, I pre-ordered OOTP from Amazon.jp, 5510 yen inclusive.
The shipping is pricey but it is very fast, shipping on the 20th so it will likely arrive on the 22nd(holiday:() and be delivered on Friday the 23rd.
The specs I've read for the Japanese release were:
2 disc, non-combo, all the extras\features are in HD.

Anyone? Best place to order the UK versions from? I'd like to take care of this in time to cancel my WHV set order...

I have received my copy of Philisopher's Stone today. Unfortunatelly I won't have the time to look at it before tomorrow night.
Here are some blurry (sorry, didn't want to use a flash due to reflections) shots of the front- and backcover as well as the disc.

Front Cover (http://homepage.mac.com/stephan.gimbel/phil_front.jpg)
Back Cover (http://homepage.mac.com/stephan.gimbel/phil_back.jpg)
Disc (http://homepage.mac.com/stephan.gimbel/phil_disc.jpg)

Thanks Stephan!

Oh yes, these will be mine soon. I can not wait to watch them!

I've looked for information with little success and was wondering if someone can point me to specs for the US versions, the UK versions, and the Japanese versions? Individual titles as well as the box sets. Canada has a box set is it the same as the uk box set? What are audio options on them? Extras?

Thanks

Can you or anyone else confirm that 1 through 3 are TrueHD?
I have not been able to get any info on the soundtracks.
The best guess I have seen is for DD+.

BTW, I pre-ordered OOTP from Amazon.jp, 5510 yen inclusive.
The shipping is pricey but it is very fast, shipping on the 20th so it will likely arrive on the 22nd(holiday:() and be delivered on Friday the 23rd.
The specs I've read for the Japanese release were:
2 disc, non-combo, all the extras\features are in HD.

Milt I live in the uk and have all 5 harry potter films on HD DVD. all 5 have dolby trueHD soundtracks. harry potter 1-3 are just rehash single disc versions with standard def extras. Order of the Phoenix is a 2 disc set with all the extras in HD - an IME option and probably one of the best video and audio tranfers I have seen to date, it looks and sounds Awesome in HD

you're all in for a treat!!

I've looked for information with little success and was wondering if someone can point me to specs for the US versions, the UK versions, and the Japanese versions? Individual titles as well as the box sets. Canada has a box set is it the same as the uk box set? What are audio options on them? Extras?

Thanks

As I have said all 5 films have 5.1 dolby digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD soundtracks

As I have said all 5 films have 5.1 dolby digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD soundtracks

Thanks. You've got the UK versions. Now to find information on the US and Japanese versions. I just want to figure out where to order the box set from, so I can get pre-ordered ahead of time, what with all the shortages we are seeing on Oceans and the complete lack of the bourne box set originally annouced.

I'm thinking about getting the Japanese version of OOTP but I just want to make sure it has TrueHD and the extras are in HD/english. I think they are...but want to make sure.

Milt I live in the uk and have all 5 harry potter films on HD DVD. all 5 have dolby trueHD soundtracks. harry potter 1-3 are just rehash single disc versions with standard def extras. Order of the Phoenix is a 2 disc set with all the extras in HD - an IME option and probably one of the best video and audio tranfers I have seen to date, it looks and sounds Awesome in HD

you're all in for a treat!!
Thanks for the info! Much appreciated.
Think I'll cancel my amazon.jp order and go UK.

GC19360,

Would you post a scan of the back of the box of OOTP? Did I miss a press release about UK OOTP being 2 HD disks? I knew the Japan version was 2 HD disks.

Thanks
John

GC19360,

Would you post a scan of the back of the box of OOTP? Did I miss a press release about UK OOTP being 2 HD disks? I knew the Japan version was 2 HD disks.

Thanks
John

Agreed I would love to see the back cover art!

This combo stuff is really starting to irritate me. Even if it is a combo this should be a 2 disc set in the U.S. In Blood Diamond the focus points are accessible through the IME which works out very well. The specs for this disc in the US have been all over the place. Each report shows different extras. According to the cover art the US disc will be missing the

focus points
A&E documentary all together
Trailing Tonks in HD
Deleted Scenes in HD
Magic of editing documentary in HD

I guess I will have to wait for reviews to see just what the hddvd is missing from the bluray and dvd version.

I just read a (Dutch) review for the European Blu ray of the latest Potter film.

They state in the review that the HD DVD version of the film is a 2 disc set which has all of the Blu ray extras + the "In Movie Experience", which contentwise is comparable to the "Focus Points" extras from the BD but has much more behind the scenes material.
Al HD DVD extras are in HD.

Sound for the BD is a PCM5.1 track
Sound for the HD DVD is Dolby TrueHD 5.1

Picture for both : VC-1

Here's the review, happy reading, ha ha.

http://www.dvd.nl/reviews.php?reviewid=3187

(Video and audio for the disc are excellent, as was to be expected).

So, it's safe to say the UK version of the first 3 films are the theatrical cuts, and NOT the extended versions shown on network television?
I was really hoping for the extended versions.

Since amazon.co.uk doesn't appear to have CoS in stock anymore, and since the cover for Sorcerer's stone is quite possibly the ugliest thing I have ever seen, I pulled the trigger on PoA and OotP to go along with my UK copy of Goblet. Since Goblet was an amazing disc, I'll gladly order these and just wait for the Canadian release of #1 and #2 before I grab em.

EDIT: Actually, the picture Stephen posted of the cover for SS isn't SO bad...hmmmmm.

Do you guys know anyplace that sells the UK version for even close to the US versions? I figure I'll have to pay a bit more for shipping, but is $34 USD (16-18GBP) the best you guys are getting this for?

to all that own the HD-DVD version of the UK release of the OoTP, does it bring spanish subs for the movie as did GoF as as the US version will? Thanks a lot.

I wonder if tony over at xploited will get any of em. I always enjoyed ordering from him

I got mine in this morning(thanks to Amazon UK's kind screwup on delivery methods from airmail to express and not charging me for the express)and i popped it in the HD-DVD player as fast as i could.The UK versions of the HP movies play the same as any other HD DVD does.I have the Goblet of Fire import as well and that plays the same as any other HD-DVD as well.The PQ of HP and the Philosopher's(UK version is titled "Pholosopher's Stone" not "Sorcerer's Stone" as it is called only in the U.S.)isn't quite up there with HPatGoF(which to be fair was an early reference HD-DVD imo) but it's still better than 3/4 of other HD-DVD's out there and imo is quite good.The AQ of the True HD track is the best i've heard yet of any HD DVD.I'll update this post once i finish watching it if i come across anything else i think might be interesting and/or different from the dvd release.

I wonder if tony over at xploited will get any of em. I always enjoyed ordering from him
I'm sure he will asap.

I just finished watching Philosopher's Stone and there really is nothing to complain about. It's an excellent looking disc, true to the source. You can even see how the different film stock they used to shoot the movie affects the picture quality. That means it's razor sharp in some scenes, soft in others and grainy here or there. But that also means you can easily spot the scenes where the background has been inserted in the digital domain. Before anyone complains about the bitrate, the softer scenes are usually those without much motion on the screen. They did not use a high-frequency filter to tame down details or anything.

I spotted some very faint amount of banding in the scene where they arrived at Hogwarts during the night. Nothing to complain about, this is due to the limitation of color subsampling of the codecs used on HD DVD and BD.

Audio is good, blends very well into the movie. This is not an very active mix, but soundstage and depth is excellent.

I think it's not fair to compare this movie to Goblin of Fire, as that was shot in a completely different style. GoF compares much better to Order of the Phoenix.

I should hopefully receive my copies of Order of the Phoenix and Chamber of Secrets tomorrow or on saturday and Prisoner of Azkaban early next week.

I'm intersted to see what you think about Chamber of Secrets PQ. I was impressed with Philosophers Stone, but I don't think Chamber looks as good. It seems rather softer and duller compered to the first one. I don't think there is anything wrong in particular with the transfer though.

Milt I live in the uk and have all 5 harry potter films on HD DVD. all 5 have dolby trueHD soundtracks. harry potter 1-3 are just rehash single disc versions with standard def extras. Order of the Phoenix is a 2 disc set with all the extras in HD - an IME option and probably one of the best video and audio tranfers I have seen to date, it looks and sounds Awesome in HD

you're all in for a treat!!

So is the UK version of OOtP the same 2 disk set as the Japanese version? On amazon.co.uk the specs list it as 1 disk and says it is Region 2 PAL, which would lead me to believe it is a combo. Could they be selling 2 different versions in the UK? If it is the 2 disk version I may cancel my order from Japan and go with the UK version.

still waiting for someone to say if OoTP UK HD has spanish subs as the american version will. Would like to know before the end of the day since I'll drop by in london tomorrow and won't to a store unless I get confirmation of this.

Milt I live in the uk and have all 5 harry potter films on HD DVD. all 5 have dolby trueHD soundtracks. harry potter 1-3 are just rehash single disc versions with standard def extras. Order of the Phoenix is a 2 disc set with all the extras in HD - an IME option and probably one of the best video and audio tranfers I have seen to date, it looks and sounds Awesome in HD

you're all in for a treat!!

The True HD track on "Harry Potter and the Philosoper's Stone" is the best audio track i've heard off an HD DVD yet.I cannot believe how good of a job Warner has done with the AQ.(This is the UK import version of the U.S. "HP and the Sorcerer's Stone")There are also multiple audio tracks done in various European languages that all seem very well done.The PQ is a bit grainy with some slight banding in the opening scene but quickly improves with very good PQ for the rest of the film.Imo the real star of this disc is the True HD track.

As the person who posted the above quote said, "You are in for a real treat" when the HP movies are released here on Dec. 11th.

still waiting for someone to say if OoTP UK HD has spanish subs as the american version will. Would like to know before the end of the day since I'll drop by in london tomorrow and won't to a store unless I get confirmation of this.

I can comfirm that Order of the Pheonix has got the Spanish subtitles along with Brazilian Portuguese, Complex Chinese, Dutch & Korean :) (checked by playing disc as well as on packaging)

I picked it up on Monday and it really is a stunning disc. The end fight scene especially has got to be up there as a demo scene. The TrueHD track even downmixed to DTS on my E2 is fantastic.

So is the UK version of OOtP the same 2 disk set as the Japanese version? On amazon.co.uk the specs list it as 1 disk and says it is Region 2 PAL, which would lead me to believe it is a combo. Could they be selling 2 different versions in the UK? If it is the 2 disk version I may cancel my order from Japan and go with the UK version.

I suspect it's just amazon being a bit slack updating the details. There is only one version over here, the 2 disc edition, on both DVD & HD DVD. No one disc editions. Also Warner don't release combos in the UK, which is quite a shame in my opinion although I think I may be in a minority :).

Great! I knew the blu ray even has spanish castillian soundtrack but no IME and that was a must for me. So now I can get it in HD-DVD and share it with friends thanks to the movie being subtitled (bad luck I didn't knew about it when I bought the first three in BD from Amazon Uk).

I suspect it's just amazon being a bit slack updating the details. There is only one version over here, the 2 disc edition, on both DVD & HD DVD. No one disc editions. Also Warner don't release combos in the UK, which is quite a shame in my opinion although I think I may be in a minority :).

Ok, so just to be absolutely clear. Ordering the UK edition of HP OOTP will be a 2 disc HD DVD set correct?

I have an order for the Japan edition because it was 2 discs and I thought the UK version was only 1. But if this is not the case, i'll gladly order the UK version.

Thanks!

Ok, so just to be absolutely clear. Ordering the UK edition of HP OOTP will be a 2 disc HD DVD set correct?

I have an order for the Japan edition because it was 2 discs and I thought the UK version was only 1. But if this is not the case, i'll gladly order the UK version.

Thanks!

My copy is a 2 disc version. Every shop I have gone into only has a 2 disc version on both HD & SD DVDs. Every other website apart from Amazon only has the 2 disc available, with no listings for a single disc. So judging by the other poor and seemingly incomplete info for that disc on Amazon I would be 99.9999999% sure it is the 2 disc set. It seems to happen a lot on Amazon UK, having wrong info on things. But would I be willing to bet my mother's life on it being wrong. No. Sorry. :D

still waiting for someone to say if OoTP UK HD has spanish subs as the american version will. Would like to know before the end of the day since I'll drop by in london tomorrow and won't to a store unless I get confirmation of this.

Yes Order of the Phoenix has spanish subtitles, just checked on the menu and its there. hope that helps.

here is a scan of the whole cover

Are the focus points in the IME like they were with Blood Diamond? The japanese release shows them on disc 2.

I'm intersted to see what you think about Chamber of Secrets PQ. I was impressed with Philosophers Stone, but I don't think Chamber looks as good. It seems rather softer and duller compered to the first one. I don't think there is anything wrong in particular with the transfer though.

I think Chamber of Secrets doesn't really look worse than Philosopher's Stone. I spotted some artifacts in the beginning (when it goes from the Warner logo into the sky), but that's really it. Some scenes do look a little soft, I expected those scenes to look a bit sharper, particularly the ending. But overall, it's a very solid transfer, with nothing to complain about. I agree it looks "duller" cmopared to the first one. Most of the movie is shot in the dark, they gave this it's own look. If you follow all movies, you can see there's a transition from bright and colorful to dull and muted. That's just how the movies are meant to be. The closer it gets to the arrival of Voldemort, the darker the movies get. So if you don't like the look of movies like Batman Begins (to a certain degree), Sleepy Hollow or GoF (to stick to HP), then I can see why you'd like Philosopher's Stone better than Chamber of Secrets. I personally think it's an very good transfer, again true to the source.

Some parts of Prisoner of Azkaban are very bright and colorful again, I think those parts will be sharper. I've yet to receive my copy and I don't expect it to arrive before early next week.

As far as the audio goes, the track is more active than the one from Philosopher's Stone. The quidditch match and the part in the chamber itself are amazing, very active mix with alot of impact.

I've noticed that in the early HP movies many scenes are either medium or close-up shots and its all much more engaging. The later movies consist of a succession of wide-shots which have a distancing effect. I longed for a close-up shot in HP 5, don't think I saw one !

Anyone have a coupon code for amazon.uk or sendit? I would place the order through whv.uk, but their site sends you to amazon. No direct purchases I guess.

here is a scan of the whole cover

GC19360,

Thanks for the back cover. I just ordered from amazon.co.uk for 18.38 pounds shipped to the US.

US Warner Brothers lost a sale because they only offer the single disk. I don't mind the combo, but include the 2nd disk and Dolby True HD.

John