There's been rumors it could connect to a PC but I would dismiss them for now.

Mod note: moved out of the 'free-for-all' thread:

First off, Universal doesn't care about player costs. They would only care about disc replication costs, which is what I was talking about.

But if you want to talk about players, yes, you could get an HD-A1 for $400 or a Samsung for about $600. The 360 add-on is a $200 drive that has to be connected to your $400 360, so it is really a $600 investment. The PS3 will be $500.

No, it's a $200 investment for something he already owns. If I buy a house for $150K and spend $3K putting in a swimming pool a year later, it's not suddenly a $153K swimming pool.

Well said, I hate all these comparisons. The main thing is, Sony if forcing BD on people, MS was not. Good move on Sony throwing a movie in with the PS3 though, that's a nice idea. Good move on MS putting King Kong in also, that is nice. I cannot wait....less than a month here hopefully. I just got Batman Begins HD, and no player yet

Hell... might as well call it a fucking upgrade.

No different than installing an optical drive in my "existing" PC.

The pool will still work without the house. The HD DVD add-on will not work without the 360. $600 HD DVD Player.

Edit: I can't go out and buy a $16 DVD Drive and say I have a $16 DVD Player. Thus, I can't go out and buy a $200 HD DVD Drive and say I have a $200 HD DVD Player.

$200 pc upgrade.

Can't have a pool if you don't have a house.

It's not a $600 HD player.

No, you have a $200 HD DVD drive. I don't see what the problem is in saying that.

Exactly. I tried to make a preemptive strike against that argument in the post, but can't say I'm surprised it didn't work.

Look, I have no bias here other than I have HD-DVD already, and it kicks ass. I'm already sold that my investment already has more than convinced me that if they stopped HD-DVD production today, I'm still happy with my purchase. The upconverting alone is amazing, and I've got 15+ titles that I watch often, and many more upcoming. And I dropped no doubt a large sum, probably around $800 by now (including the $200 set aside for the add-on), but I'm ok with that number, especially for two players.

I'm NOT ok with the number that I'll have to shell out for BD right now. The PS3 makes it much more likely, but mainly because I would be in the market for a PS3 anyway. I'm one of those consumers that they're banking on actually using the PS3 for both games and movies, and I can't say I know of another. But I'm extremely worried about the quality of those launch consoles, especially given that it sounds like they're driving them out faster than they should.

If I'm financially able to buy a BD player, I plan to do that soon. I don't understand why we need to throw around BS about either side that's just patently untrue such as BD may be cheaper, it's just not. There are pros and cons to both sides, and to be honest, the tech geek in me wants a PS3 just so I can use my new shiny 1080p TV to it's fullest potential, which HD-DVD cannot right now. I hope BD kicks ass, and I'm dying to watch some of the titles out there in full HD, shouldn't that be enough?

Its not so black and white either way....for someone who already owns a 360, then it IS a $200 hd-dvd player.

For someone who doesnt have one, then your right, it is a $600 investment.

Funny that you are arguing this because Sony doesnt give anyone this choice. Alot of gamers dont give a shit about Bluray or HD-DVD.

You must have a funny sense of perception when it comes to buying consumer products.

If I buy an NEC DL DVD Burner for $33 at shop4tech. Then as far as I'm concerned, it's a $33 DVD player that works with my two-year old computer.

If you buy $100 All Weather mats for your $23k Honda, you still have $100 mats in your $23k Honda.

If the house blows down, you still have the pool.

A drive is just part of the player. If you buy a PC drive, the cost of playing a HD DVD on your computer is what it cost for every component down to the cables. Even if you own everything already, it is costing you the total amount once you are able to playback.

Otherwise, I could just pay $10/month on my credit card for my Panny, and then it is really only a $10 player. It doesn't matter that the month before I paid $10 (or purchased an Xbox 360 last month for $400) because its only what I'm paying today, right?

Obviously not. Its the total price. Its rediculous to argue otherwise.

Geez, and me without my grammatical red pen...

We're arguing two completely different things. If I've owned a computer for a year and want to burn DVDs, I spend $35 for the capability to burn DVDs. It's completely inconsequential how much I spent a year earler. Burning DVDs costs me $35.

Watching HD DVDs on an already-purchased Xbox 360 costs $200. It doesn't matter if I spent $400 on the 360, if I got the console as a birthday present, or if I mailed in cereal box tops. If you own an Xbox 360, HD DVD capability is $200.

The incremental cost is all that matters.

If someone buys an Xbox 360 expressly for the purpose of watching HD DVDs, then yes, that person bought a $600 player. That's not the target market for this upgrade.

.... you don't really own that Panny until the bill is paid off.

It all boils down to options....millions of people already have the 360....its an easier pill to swallow when they spent $400 last year on a gaming system and voila, this year, they can upgrade it for $200 to get hd-dvd ability. Very much like upgrading a PC. You cant do that with the PS3.

One of my co-workers is a perfect example. He told me last week that the PS3 is too expensive and he wants the hd-dvd add on for his 360 and 65in DLP.

I also still think that MS will lower the 360 price around the holiday season. Well see.

I think we should move on to something else....

Let's talk about chicks man....

No. Burning CDs costs you $35 more than what you had already paid for your computer. Additional investment doesn't negate initial investment. That is why its called 'additional'. The drive won't work without the computer.

So if my Uncle Charlie (please note, I do not infact have an Uncle Charlie) buys me a Blu-Ray player, then its free? The player may have cost me nothing, but it costs someone money. A 360 is a $400 investment on someone's part and it doesn't matter who that someone is as long as Microsoft got paid.

Quantify 'incremental'.

And if someone purchases a $200 add-on for their $360, their total investment - and thus the cost - is $600.

Hell yes it's Free! Although, one would wonder what you had to do to get your Uncle Charlie to buy you a Blu-Ray player.

Who the fuck cares about whether you're allowed to say the 360 is $600 or $200. I want to know where to get a house for $150K and a pool for only $3K!!!! Fess up, Adam!

Texas.

$134k got us about 2200 sqft last year.

It always hurts to read something like this. Always.

What's the median price in your area?

Apparently, mp jumped to 150k this year for Texas.

I've got one for sale for $119,500. Write me a check.

Impressive. I'm guessing you guys are a little further out from a big metropolitan area than me. My house that I bought 9 years ago for $85K is now priced around $200K.

Wow, I'm still with Adam. FINE, you paid $600 for a GAMING system and a HD-DVD player. If people plan on getting a 360 JUST for HD-DVD, then they are just not smart. I love this whole debate.....waaaa vs whaaaaaaa