Any chance for free HD discs with new HD player?
 

I remember when I bought my first DVD player in late 1999, I received five free movies (Lost in Space, Stepmother, Leta Weapon III, etc.) Grant you, I wasn't crazy about them (ended up selling them), but it was pretty cool to get them with a totally new format. I wonder if we'll see some kind of promotion like this with Blu-ray or HD-DVD. It might be a way to help get their players out there a bit sooner, or give a slight edge. Of course, if both do it, it's kind of a wash.

I am willing to bet that Sony will include a Blu-Ray movie disc with the PS3, (like the way they included the Spider-man 2 UMD with the PSP). It would help promote the PS3 as a movie player for non-gamers who otherwise wouldn't be likely to buy it, and are looking at other HD type players instead.

Other than that, I'm sure there will be some kind of promotion somewhere involving a free disc or two with HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players (a promotion by the studios, player manufacturers, retail stores or a combination of the three)

I agree completely with the logic about packing in a Blu-Ray disc with the PS3.

I can see a free DEMO disc possibly with the PS3...maybe a free movie, we'll see. How much will these cost anyways?

How much will the PS3 cost? Speculation is all over the map. Sony's being quiet about it. We don't even know how much most of the Blu-Ray players will cost -- only a couple of the announced models have prices attached.

It won't be more than 360, we know that much. At one point that would mean a $300 PS3, but now, thanks to Microsoft, we are looking at the $400 price point.

What I have observed, is that most companies are optioning for the expensive higher-end players, and are going to let Sony take the big losses with the PS3. If the release of the PSP is any indication, the first million might have a full Blu-Ray movie with it (PSP came with a UMD of Spider-man 2).

I wouldn't be surprised to see the PS3 at either $499 or $599. (maybe they'll have 2 different price points like the 360)

I'd be surprised, nay, alarmed, if it was under $399 or over $499.

Rumbling from CES was $599 for the PS3, but I just heard that from others, I can't confirm it myself.

Everyone, and I mean everyone, is negotiating to get at least one movie packaged with their players, be it Blu-Ray or HD-DVD.

fitprod

I'd bet on that Charlie's Angels disc coming with the PS3. It's not on the launch list and it's not something that is going to make a lot of money if they sell it anyway. It is however, a movie that will probably look good in HD.

It'll all depend on when I end up buying my new player- there might be a really limited deal with the very first ones, which I'll miss out on because I'll wait for the bugs to get worked out of the first-generation units. When I finally do get my player there'll probably be no free stuff with it, but a year after that everyone will get 100 free movies with their players. Of course the titles will include Lost In Space and Stepmom :)

Seeing all the crap titles that have been shown I think the studios have this idea in mind already. Free discs with purchase. It worked before with DVD, and it worked with the PSP, I'm sure they will try it again.

rotfl

How do we know that? Source? You are always asking people for their sources. Where is yours?

Are you kidding? You think Sony was originally going to get a BluRay player in the PS3 and keep it under $300, and it is MS's fault that it will more than likely be $400? rotfl Your finger pointing at anyone but Sony is always good for a laugh.

Seriously, if the stand-alone players start at around $1800(and released around the same time frame as the PS3), there is no way they were ever going to get the system out at that price. NO WAY. That is a $1500 price difference. At least with them pushing DVD on the PS2 the difference between a system and a stand-alone was only $50-$100. Don't get me wrong, I would buy a $300 PS3 if my other option for BluRay was $1800. I just think it is preposterous to think it was ever going to be that cheap and push the blame on Microsoft, that is just silly yet typical at the same time.

I also think they are on that plateau now that Nintendo once held and think they can do no wrong. It's all downhill from there. I'm not a betting man, but I would put my money on at least a $500 price point if not $600 for the PS3 because they are so confident that their name will sell the system alone, no matter the price, which couldn't be more wrong. History always repeats itself and Sony is just oozing that vibe that Nintendo had after the success of the SNES.

...but they aren't. :D

That's just Pioneer's Elite model. Only one or two of the other Blu-Ray players had prices attached, and they were hovering around $1K. Most manufacturers were being deliberately cryptic about pricing, presumably to see what Toshiba would do and say first. I don't know if I'd want to put any money on this, but I'd bet there'll be at least one Blu-Ray player at launch for $699 or less.

Ken Kutargi has stated in a few interviews that the PS3 will be more expensive than the usual game console, I believe the quote was that the PS3 will be expensive, but will "make people want to work more hours to buy it". I'm not sure what kind of marketing that is, but it's true.

Correction noted, but the point is still there. At $1000 that is still a $700 difference in system and stand-alone. A far cry from the $50-$100 between a PS2 & stand-alone DVD player. That is a lot of money to eat. Even your hypothetical $700 player is still stretching it. Now if there is a $700 player and the PS3 comes out at $500-$600, that is a realistic scenario.

I don't think $300 was ever attainable for the PS3 with Blu-Ray support. Not in a million years.

Although I didn't make it clear in that post, I'm in the "the PS3 will probably be pretty pricey" camp too.

A $500 PS3 would cause havoc with other BluRay hardware makers. Standalone players are hovering around a $1000 price point. If the PS3 undercuts them by half, then theres a good chance that the manufacturers will focus on the cheaper HD-DVD players rather than compete in a battle they can't win against the PS3.

D

That is exactly the reason why so many manufacturers signed up for Blu-Ray. If they can focus all their efforts on builting high-end high-profit machines, and let Sony take all the expense with delivering a budget player, then it makes them happy. All these manufacturers know Sony's plan - and they like it, because it means they don't have to worry about trying to fill that demographic. They can focus on a stand-alone player with more features and a higher profit margin.

Right, because we know how a company like Samsung has always catered to the high-end crowd. :rolleyes:

The plan you just described is business suicide for a number of the manufacturers in the Blu-Ray camp. Although an individual high-end unit may have a higher profit margin than an individual entry-level unit, the real profits for the company are made by sales volume. Samsung, Panasonic, Philips... these are not niche-market manufacturers.