DVDEmpire has the Blu-Ray up for preorder now.

is it?? i just went to look and don't see it...

EDIT - nevermind, i found it. Glad they finally put this sucker up

Usually, they put new announcements in the Recent Additions section, but it looks like this latest batch of titles missed it.

The Departed BD

So is it going to be $28 on HD-DVD and BR? If so, I don't see why you guys wouldn't go with the HD-DVD version...Plus, with the HD-A1 you have the analog outs...Maybe it's just me, though.

It's not just you. If they're the same price there really isn't any reason for HD-DVD supporters to buy blue. Unless they want to complain about having no disc art. Honestly, though: the disc is either going to be in its case or in the player, right?

I like combo discs. I recognize the fact that I seem to be in the minority -- at least on these pages -- but I truly find them useful. I'm pretty careful about handling, too, so there's not much opportunity for scratching.

MSRP on the Blu-ray release is $34.98 and HD DVD is $39.98.

$24.00 for the Blu-ray and $28.00 for HD on Amazon... Pisses me off.

That's because the HDD is a combo disc.

The difference is less than four dollars after the 10% discount, so I'm not that upset.

Yes, good point. I think that was what Josh Z was trying to get at in wanting to compare identical mixes on BD and HD DVD for The Departed.

Question about the combo disc...Why the hell arent BD discs combos as well? I know there's the issue with space, but I havent read any where why. Is it the space issue, or did the Blu-ray group tell WB not to?

It's because they're not part of the DVD Forum. They can't use anything DVD related.

Blu-ray for me. Easily.

Dude. It's $4. Relax.

Either way you're getting hosed on the price.

I preordered Reign of Fire and The Departed on Bluray from amazon.com....the 10% worked on Reign of Fire, but not The Departed...so, i emailed customer service.

$4. Four stinking lousy dollars is all it takes for a bunch of early adopters -- who've each shelled out hundreds, if not thousands, so far -- to flip? Sheesh.

exactly. all the whining over $4 is ridiculous...especially for a movie that is fantastic! Get over it folks...

There used to be technical reasons why this couldn't be done as well.

Blu-ray discs are physically different than DVDs. Where DVDs are made with two halves of a disc that are each 0.6 mm in width, a BD has a 1.1 mm piece and a 0.1 mm piece.

HD DVD on the other hand is virtually identical to DVD in physical structure, and I think the HD DVD/SD DVD combo format was part of the HD DVD specification from the beginning.

With Warner's new TotalHD disc though, it seems like they could probably solve this problem and create BD/SD DVD flippers if they chose to do so.

(A while back, JVC also reported that they had developed a BD/SD DVD combo format that was a not a flipper, but a triple layer disc with two SD DVD layers, and a single BD layer. I guess nothing ever came of that.)

Interesting... Didn't say anything about abandoning ship, but oh well. Apparently $4.00 is pocket change for people. My bad for expressing my opinion.

I apologize if you took offense. My point was that $4 IS pocket change -- at least compared to what people have already spent thus far in adopting one or both formats. As for whether or not someone is "jumping ship", I strongly feel that people who support HD-DVD should purchase HD-DVDs. ESPECIALLY when there's a same title BD.

Abandon ship? Im really getting sick of this war and finger pointing.

Im pretty much format neutral. Both formats have their good points and bad points. I think both are gonna survive for a while. I give first look to HD-DVD and default to it, but thats it.

So, im in it for ME. I dont want a combo disc and the BD was cheaper. Had it not contained the PCM track, I would have gone with the HD-DVD combo (like I did for Superman Returns).

I can put the extra $4 towards another BD or HD-DVD. Face it, some of us arent taking sides.

It's less about "taking sides" than it is about "support," as I see it.