[HD]PC: bad news/good news

[VirusType2]

Here is something ugly!

most current monitors don't support the HDCP copy protection standard high-def content requires

meaning also that you won't be able to hook your PS3 up to your PC monitor like you can with the XBox360. (well that does it for me in determining which system I will buy) 360 FTW.

The High Cost of High Definition

Eric Dahl
From the May 2006 issue of PC World magazine
Posted Friday, March 24, 2006

Want HD? Buy a New PC
The Buzz: Are you thinking you can use your computer as a quick way to try out the new Blu-ray or HD DVD discs before committing to a living room player? Well, think again. Playing prerecorded HD movies on your PC won't be a simple matter of adding a new optical drive. In November we reported that most current monitors don't support the HDCP copy protection standard high-def content requires. Recently, news emerged that existing ATI graphics cards that had advertised HDCP support don't really have it. In fact, at press time no shipping graphics boards fully supported HDCP. Factoring in the cost of a new drive, a copy of Vista (XP won't support encrypted Blu-ray or HD DVD discs), A new graphics board, and a new monitor, PC-based HD is starting to look pretty costly.

Bottom Line: Anyone who's recently spent $500 on a state-of-the-art graphics board or $1000 for a wide-screen monitor deserves better.

Source:
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,124944,00.asp

I was already planning on building an all new PC, but I wasn't planning on buying a cutting-edge monitor, thats going to be very, very, expensive. Forget HD on my PC. I don't need it. It's all because of the stupid security measures of the HD-DVDs/ Blu-Ray discs.

This is such bullshit.

Well, to cheer you up here is some good news for those that own an HDTV (although it wouldn't be good news if it wasn't actually previously bad news)

Following on the heels of Sony, Universal has confirmed that they will not be using such capabilities to downgrade video on their offerings, at least for now. This marks what looks to be a major studio to turn away from the so-called image constraint token—the name given to the AACS software functionality that allows for downsampling video to 960x540 (approximately NTSC). Paramount, Disney and Twentieth Century Fox have all backed off of using the ICT, leaving Warner Brothers as the only major studio saying that they will use the it. According to BusinessWeek, sources say that Warner will use the ICT on "at least some" of their initial titles.

The question is, why are they forgoing ICT? For now, it looks like good business sense is driving the discussion. Even today, not all new TV sets support HDCP, and the vitally important "early adopter" crowd contains no small number of people with HD sets that were sold before the HDCP requirements were known. In short, most of the studios understand that launching new, expensive players alongside rather expensive movies could flop if the ICT is used extensively. After all, a Blu-ray player may cost $1,000, but if you can't get anything much better than existing DVD playback, why bother?

Source:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060327-6473.html
Some new HDTV's still don't even support HDCP, not to mention all the HDTV's sold before now. Sad really. I guess this disaster can best be described as the carriage coming before the wheel. Meaning they should have released the HD Disc players before the HDTV's!

 

[destrukt]

i don't see why/how people are suprised new tech doesn't work on what most people currently have.

 

[VirusType2]

i don't see why/how people are suprised new tech doesn't work on what most people currently have.

I think you are missing some of the points!

How can you be so insensitive to people that bought a HDTV and can't even play HD movies on it! ?? hello?

Since I haven't bought an HDTV yet, my biggest complaint is that the only reason you can't use your current monitor is because of copy protection GAYNESS - not because it's not compatible. PC monitors usually display resolutions higher than HD.

 

[Eejit]

Hmm, there are currently programs you can buy which remove copy-protection from DVDs. I hope equivalents come out to do the same for HD, which would let you play it on a normal monitor?

 

[Dr. Freeman]

this just outright sucks for those who spent money on a HDTV or upgrading their PC's over the last 2 years or so.
its not as simple as new technology requiring new Players/TV sets...how does one justify spending $2000 on a HDTV and then learning that this HDTV does not support the new DVD movies coming out?

this is a huge mess...and the more i think about it, the more happy i am about not having bought a HDTV or computer in the last 2 years.

 

[VirusType2]

this just outright sucks for those who spent money on a HDTV or upgrading their PC's over the last 2 years or so.
its not as simple as new technology requiring new Players/TV sets...how does one justify spending $2000 on a HDTV and then learning that this HDTV does not support the new DVD movies coming out?

this is a huge mess...and the more i think about it, the more happy i am about not having bought a HDTV or computer in the last 2 years.

YES! It's total bullshit. What sucks the most is that HDTV's were just becoming so affordable for many and they have been selling well. Now new HDTV's that support this HDCP security measure will be coming out and I'd be willing to bet money that they will be expensive again, making people that were waiting for the prices of HDTV's to come down suffer and wait even longer.

Be sure to check the box of any movies you consider purchasing if you have a current or older HDTV. The new HD-DVD and Blu Ray discs are required to display on the packaging if they use the HDCP security measures, and most of the major studios claim they won't be using the technology right away or if at all. I think they would be shooting themselves in the foot if they did. Warner Brothers (Bugs Bunny,etc.)is the only major studio to say they will be using HDCP on some of their titles. I'm not sure about smaller publishers however.

So for now, many movies will still display in their full resolution if your HDTV supports that resolution.


HD-DVD and Blu-Ray discs are not compatible with current PC's or PC monitors. This is what eats me up the most! I just got a really nice larger monitor and when building my new PC this is not something I was planning on upgrading.

I bet that HD PC monitors will be more expensive, but I haven't read anything on this yet.

 

[Bakurei]

Nah there will be hacks to disable these protections...

Sticking with my 720p videoprojector, ain't nothing gonna make me change this away... Exept a 1080p DLP or 1080p LCD

 

[VirusType2]

Nah there will be hacks to disable these protections...

Hacks for the monitor or graphics card? The whole point of these protections are to prevent hacking (so you can't make illegal copies), not encourage them, so I doubt it will be possible.

That would not be likely considering the input connectors won't fit for either. It would great if they created some kind of adapters so you could hook it up, although I don't know exactly how this HDCP protection works so I'm not sure if that would even work - even if they did want to create them.

 

[Dr. Freeman]

HD-DVD and Blu-Ray discs are not compatible with current PC's or PC monitors. This is what eats me up the most! I just got a really nice larger monitor and when building my new PC this is not something I was planning on upgrading.

I bet that HD PC monitors will be more expensive, but I haven't read anything on this yet.

any idea when the HD PC monitors will be made available?
what about the graphics cards supporting HD?
man...i shudder to think what the price of these monitors and video cards will be. :|

 

[VirusType2]

any idea when the HD PC monitors will be made available?
what about the graphics cards supporting HD?
man...i shudder to think what the price of these monitors and video cards will be. :|

I'd imagine nearly simultaneously launched along with HD optical drives. Unfortunately I'm about to go to the software store and don't have time to find out.

At least they are released at the same time so we don't get screwed like HDTV owners sorta are getting... I imagine that eventually movie publishers will start going with the HDCP security after some odd years. So eventually HDTV owners will need to upgrade or become obsolete.


About the price.. well monitors are expensive already, but CRT monitors are quite less expensive and I prefer them anyway. I don't have any idea what they will cost I'm sorry, but I can guarantee they will cost at least as much as current monitors cost - likely a bit more. Basically the same story goes for graphics cards.

 

[Asus]

FYI I believe this copy protection is optional and will only be in effect if the content calls for it when played. And didn't Sony say that they will not implement it with blueray to help adoption of their tech? idk

 

[VirusType2]

FYI I believe this copy protection is optional and will only be in effect if the content calls for it when played. And didn't Sony say that they will not implement it with blueray to help adoption of their tech? idk

What I know is that both Blu-Ray and HD-DVD use HDCP protection. It's built into all the players. It's some sort of hardware/software system and say for example you buy a movie; on the box of the movie it will say whether they used HDCP or not. If they used it, you will be getting something like 950x540 resolution instead of the full resolution when the player is hooked up to a current or older HDTV. So far, most movies will not use the HDCP protection at this point. There are too many HDTV's out there that don't support HDCP. Even many brand new HDTV's in stores don't support it yet - it's new. I am using my best guess here to say that within 10 years all movies - and more than likely PS3 games - will use HDCP protection however. In Japan they have set the time-line for 10 years. In 10 years they are switching over. Everything will require HDCP. We kind of got screwed because studios like Warner Brothers say they will use the technology in "at least some of their titles".

Regarding video games, Sony says they will not use the HDCP protection for their games. I'm not sure if individual video game publishers can use it if they wish, but I don't think so. That would kill game sales just like movie sales at this point since most HDTV owners paid all that money for their HDTV's because they wanted higher resolution. So that would be the stupidest thing in the world for Sony.

Bottom line:
For now - for the most part - everyone is all good when it comes to movies and PS3 games playing at their best resolution. Eventually (either a few or even as much as 10 years down the line)publishers are definitely going to be taking advantage of the built in copy protection that HD-DVD and Blu-Ray offer. Thats a huge, free copy protection bonus for them - something DVD doesn't offer. So you will definately be seeing both formats being heavily supported and pushed on us. This could acutally be good news that there are 2 formats. Price War?

But. From what I've read, this HDCP protection is not compatible with current PC monitors, motherboards, and video cards.

So the biggest thing this means to me is that the PS3 will not be able to hook up to a PC monitor, while the Xbox360 can, since it uses double layer DVD instead. Something to consider. Since I don't own an HDTV and won't own one until I hit the lottery, there is no way I'd get a PS3 and hook it up to a normal TV when I can get an Xbox360 - essentially the same thing - and hook it up to my PC monitor to enjoy HD visuals.

Anyone who wants to play HD-DVD's or Blu-Ray discs on their PC is out of luck and will need to upgrade all the major hardware including, but not limited to; PC monitors, motherboards, graphics cards, cables, not to mention of course - the HD-DVD or Blu-Ray optical drive itself.


Remember that HD-DVD and Blu-Ray optical drives are not available for PC's yet. When they become available, the rest of the compatible PC hardware should be available as well - provided everyone can get their stuff together and get it on the shelves at roughly the same time. I'd imagine you won't see any activity in the PC area concerning HD until Vista comes out, since Windows XP will never support HD optical drives.

-V

 

[dream431ca]

I think you are missing some of the points!

How can you be so insensitive to people that bought a HDTV and can't even play HD movies on it! ?? hello?

Since I haven't bought an HDTV yet, my biggest complaint is that the only reason you can't use your current monitor is because of copy protection GAYNESS - not because it's not compatible. PC monitors usually display resolutions higher than HD.

Well if you want "HD" movies on your HDTV either buy an upconverting DVD player or wait for Blu-Ray movies.

 

[VirusType2]

Well if you want "HD" movies on your HDTV either buy an upconverting DVD player or wait for Blu-Ray movies.

I was complaining that you can't hook a PS3 up to a PC monitor, and that you need an entirely new computer and PC monitor in order to play HD-DVD or Blu-Ray on it.

What are you talking about? lol Did you even read the first post? *slap*

This thread is about HD on your PC.


Blu-Ray and HD-DVD both have the same copy protection scheme first of all. THAT IS THE PROBLEM. They put a copy protection scheme built into these players that can keep them from playing in High Definition with any HDTV ever made!

Most media publishers have decided not to use it right away, and may wait some years. But still, the life of a TV is about 10-20 years! Some, like WarnerBros., have decided they will use it on some of their stuff. Some, will likely wait some years before they use it. But EVERYONE who has bought ANY type of HDTV got a TV that is not 100% compatible, and they "got the shaft" They got screwed.


Wow, you really missed this one. I guess you haven't read any of the other information in this thread yet? Is reading a little too much work for you? Well I hate having to type the same thing over again and that has me a little annoyed right now so please read the rest of the thread so I don't have to type anything else over again and tell you individually.

 

[dream431ca]

I was complaining that you can't hook a PS3 up to a PC monitor, and that you need an entirely new computer and PC monitor in order to play HD-DVD or Blu-Ray on it.

What are you talking about? lol Did you even read the first post? *slap*

This thread is about HD on your PC.


Blu-Ray and HD-DVD both have the same copy protection scheme first of all. THAT IS THE PROBLEM. They put a copy protection scheme built into these players that can keep them from playing in High Definition with any HDTV ever made!

Most media publishers have decided not to use it right away, and may wait some years. But still, the life of a TV is about 10-20 years! Some, like WarnerBros., have decided they will use it on some of their stuff. Some, will likely wait some years before they use it. But EVERYONE who has bought ANY type of HDTV got a TV that is not 100% compatible, and they "got the shaft" They got screwed.


Wow, you really missed this one. I guess you haven't read any of the other information in this thread yet? Is reading a little too much work for you? Well I hate having to type the same thing over again and that has me a little annoyed right now so please read the rest of the thread so I don't have to type anything else over again and tell you individually.

Someone needs some prozac. Hey buddy, your answer to my post is long enough, don't post so much so I can actually finish reading your post. And don't get so uptight about stupid things.

 

[VirusType2]

Someone needs some prozac. Hey buddy, your answer to my post is long enough, don't post so much so I can actually finish reading your post. And don't get so uptight about stupid things.

Prozac isn't used to treat people that are uptight, it is used to treat OCD, and I guess that was some sort of insult.

The situation was something like, "Currently available HDTV's and PC monitors don't fully work with the HD-DVD players and Blu-Ray players.", and your magical solution is, "buy a HD-DVD player or the Blu-Ray player". Allow me a more simple comparison. If I were to say, "Crack can kill you.", and you would reply something like "buy some crack".



So you see your answer didn't even make sense first of all, and secondly I wasn't even asking a question, I was making a statement.

Thats why I said, "I assume you didn't read what has already been said." The reason I said that was because what you thought was the answer was actually the problem. It was perplexing and my brain almost exploded!

If you didn't read the problem then how can you effectively answer it? I wasn't insulting you, I was making an excuse for you! Don't be so uptight!