I just HAD to make a snarky comment:

I threw out two perfectly functional Betamax recorders last month, along with 200 Betamax tapes. If anyone want's em- they're in the landfill in Belleville, Ohio.

Seriously- why would you want to buy a past end of life device, especially when you consider the 'life' wasn't that long in the first place ? I don't see these as having 'collector's item' written all over them.

Of course, people probably still buy LaserDisc movies, and I have a co-worker who collects wax cylinder audio recordings.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2008 02:08PM by cbelt3.

the difference between this and Betamax (and the other examples that you cite) is that HD DVD players can still play regular dvds and are pretty good at upconverting. . .

doesn't mean you have to buy one. . .even at low prices. . .but if you are looking for a deal. . .

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I reject your reality and substitute my own!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2008 02:11PM by NewtonMP2100.

or if you have a stack of HD-DVDs and want a backup for when your current player dies

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Embarassing myself on the Internet since 1978.

true. . .because people will be selling HD-dvds like crazy. . .some movies were only made on HD-DVD and some might have been on both but the HD-DVD version will be much cheaper than the same movie on Blu-ray. . .

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I reject your reality and substitute my own!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2008 02:29PM by NewtonMP2100.

As others have said, they are still an upconverting DVD player that also happens to play HD DVDs. They are still perfectly functional. I mainly bought my HD DVD player to act as an upconverting player, the HD aspect and the free DVDs were a bonus. BTW, they also made some Hybrid HD/Regular DVDs, so those will play in either a regular DVD player or an HD.

Blu-ray is still grossly overpriced, IMHO.

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Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

Betamax lasted 27 years, HD-DVD didn't even make it to 27 months. ;)

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2008 02:24PM by SLM.

Ditto what rgG said. Exactly why I bought mine. There was no way I was going to buy a Blu-ray, given their ridiculous pricing, but the HD DVD machine was a fair price for a decent upconverting DVD player to replace my broken one.

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"In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion." (1987) -- Carl Sagan

Even if not used as an upconverting player, which alone justifies the cost of the HD-DVD players now, the HD-DVD playback capability gives the capability of playing any existing library of movies plus all the dirt cheap movies that will eventually be out there.
I haven't bought one yet, but may not be able to resist if the deals keep getting better.

Speaking of "dead" formats, I bought my first LaserDisc player earlier this year. When I find some interesting and dirt cheap discs at the flea market or thrift store, I can at least consider them, since I have the capability to play them. The player cost me 10 bucks I think, so it's not much of an investment.

I originally went for Blu-Ray and bought a number of titles, then could not resist the Wal-Mart $99 deal on HD-DVD players. Now I have a couple dozen HD-DVD movies and may buy another cheap player just in case the first one dies.

By the way, the excellent reputation of HD-DVD players for upconversion comes from the HD-XA2 players, which still cannot be found for a reasonable amount, if at all. All the newer HD-DVD players use cheap chips and are no better for SD-DVD than any run-of-the-mill Philips or Sony. Nowhere near Oppo or any other >$100 quality SD player. Unfortunately, BD players are also generally not very good at upconversion at this point.