"combo" disks
 

I looked in the FAQ thread and didn't see there, a quick glance of thread titles didn't turn up anything so if I missed it I apologize.

What are combo disks (I mean besides the obvious of HD/DVD ;))? Are they flippers or is it just encoded in such a way that the SD player can take the info it needs and the HD player can extract more info? Are there BluRay/DVD combos as well (so far I've only seen HD/DVD) but I just picked up my first high-def (BluRay/PS3) player this weekend and just discovered "combo" DVDs today so I'm a little behind the times on this :o

HD-DVD on one side, DVD on the other. So probably 4 layers in their total on an HD-30/DVD9 combo.

There are no Blu-Ray combos.

I don't want to taint this with my personal opinions, so all I'll say is, I don't feel that it's a bad thing that no Blu-Ray combos exist.

I don't really care for combo discs, they just bring up the cost of the discs. For example, I've seen the combo HD of 300 for $35 and the Blu-ray for $30 at Best Buy, so yeah, you have to pay an extra $5 for a SD side you're never gonna use. I'm personally supporting Blu-ray, and I'm a little dissappointed I haven't been able to start collecting them early, but I'm probably gonna pick up a PS3 next week, so I can hold off for now.

The thing is, some of us will use it. I only have 1 HD player in my house...but I have 2 DVD players, my laptop. my Ipod, friends and family who will want to borrow it who don't have an HD DVD player.

Not that I really like the combos, but they serve a purpose for many people. I have to say it came in handy with the Departed when I went to a friends house recently. I just don't think they should charge extra for it.

I'm certainly glad I wasn't charged an extra $5 for every full/widescreen flipper in my collection.

Gotcha... are they having some of the same problems the DVD-18s did/are? They did look kind of interesting (for example having 1 DVD w/ all the extras instead of multiple DVD sets in some instances) and since I don't have an HD player yet (but plan on getting one later) the combo would be useful to me. W/ the price differential though I think I'll hold off at least until I get an HD player as I absolutely hate flippers. Those w/ WS/FF don't bother me since I can treat the FF like the trash it is ;) but if there's content on there I want to keep that's another thing.

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Unless you have multiple HDtv's and HD/BD players in your home, I think they are a great for new releases. No need to buy a separate SD DVD version of new films that I obviosly don't already have the SD DVD for.

If they could get the price down a bit I don't see any drawbacks to them. But, if they were able to get it on one side, like the South Park sampler that Best Buy had, that would be ideal.

Same here, I am going to watch 300 on my hdtv and let my dad borrow it to watch on his SD tv or laptop when he is on a a plane. The combo saves my dad from having to spend 20 bucks for a DVD.

Uni was having serious issues earlier this year, specifically with Children of Men, Smokin' Aces and the Good Shepherd. Some also reported issues with Miami Vice. Those problems seem to have been rectified via a combination of firmware updates and better pressing since there have not been any issue I know of since Smokin' Aces.

Unfortunately, WB has been having intermittent issues with their combos too. Most notably, the Matrix Ultimate Collection has been problematic for many (including me), whereas the non-combo version was fine.

One person at AVS has reported needing to exchange their copy of 300 due to playability issues.

Bottom line, combos will always be more fault-prone due to their design IMO, and I personally avoid them whenever possible. Sure, extras are nice, and DVD playability is nice, but not at the expense of reliability (and extra dollars).

mine was double-sided..

I stand corrected. Don't know why I thought it was single, perhaps wishful thinking. Either way, single sided would be ideal.

Gah, don't buy HD discs at Best Buy. I bought the 300 HD DVD at Fry's Electronics for $28.99. Most non-combo HD DVDs there are $19.99 (Blu-ray is slightly more expensive, $22.99-24.99).

It's worth it to pay $5 extra bucks to play a movie on my HD Player and rip the SD version to my laptop to watch on a plane.

I'll buy a combo whenever I can. In fact, I just bought the HD-DVD version of 300 because it was a combo and the SD version of Hot Fuzz since we'll be able to watch it anywhere in the house, even if it's not in HD.

Totally worth paying extra for, in my mind.

Why not the combo version of Hot Fuzz, also?

That's odd. Blu-ray discs at the Fry's in Las Vegas seem to have an average price of $19.99 for catalog titles. In fact, I've seen no difference in pricing for HD DVDs or Blu-rays at Fry's.

Same at the IL store.

In fact, I've seen Fry's creep up the prices abit on HD-DVD catalog titles. 40YOV was 22.99 instead of the expected 19.99.

Bah, I didn't realize that one was a combo too.

Well, that's ok. I'm more interested in getting only the most visually interesting movies in HD anyway, so I'm fine with this.

I may be a bit off, I've just glanced at pricing (I don't own a Blu-ray player).

There is no way I'm loaning out a high definition disc so that someone can watch the SD side on their laptop, DVD player or whatever. People don't take good care of borrowed DVDs the way you would take care of your own. I'm sure not letting them mess up the HD side for them to watch the standard side.

I only have one Next Generation player in my house, and two DVD players, but again, how does having the DVD side benefit me? Why would I watch the SD side on a different DVD player in the same house when I can watch the HD version whenever I want?

I think the typical argument for the DVD is side is for travel purposes, loans to people without HD decks and the like.

But I'm with you - I don't lend out DVD's at all except once in a great while, and I certainly am not about to loan out a ~$30 combo.

Also, like you, once I have a movie in HD, I really don't want to watch it on DVD anymore. As it is I never watch movies on anything other than my home theater.

I know WB and Uni don't want to have combo and non-combo releases of day and date titles, but really, would it be so bad to just put a single-sided HD30 and a separate DVD in the same box? Why do they have to be glued together, which essentially risks the playability of both sides?

I like Combos because I can use the DVD side to take screencaps for my reviews. :shrug:

If they did that, the SD DVD version would get sold separately on the secondary market and would reduce the demand for the SD DVD edition. By making it a combo disc there is no way to separate the two versions and sell one of them.

Let's say your girlfriend/wife wants to watch Hot Fuzz in one room where your SD DVD player is and you want to watch 300 in HD in your setup. That's how it happens in my house at least.

As long as they can fix the issues with the combo discs, I have no problem paying a few extra bucks for it.

I stand by my signature, no combos for me.