Xbox 360 May Adopt Blu-ray !?!

[jaxmkii]

By Kris Graft

Less than a week after Bill Gates' CES announcement of an HD-DVD add-on for the Xbox 360, Xbox marketing VP Peter Moore said that a Blu-ray adaptor could be designed if necessary.
Moore told Japanese site ITmedia that if the Microsoft-backed HD-DVD format loses the format war to Sony's Blu-ray, then Microsoft could simply manufacturer a Blu-ray player add-on (and early HD-DVD add-on adoptors could simply buy a Blu-ray upgrade to accompany their theoretically obsolete HD-DVD add-on, apparently).

He also said that if HD-DVD does win over consumers and movie studios to become the standard, the Blu-ray-equipped PlayStation 3 will be out of luck. Moore made it clear that any external drives would not be capable of playing HD games, whichever format.

:huh:

[xbdestroya]

Jaxmkii what is it that keeps you utterly mystified about MS' drive initiatives? :smoke:

*OF COURSE* if blu-ray wins, they're going to go to blu-ray. Why in the world would they stick with a dead format? That's the very essence of this ad-on drive - it doesn't tie them down to one standard or another, thus they won't be taking losses on their support should their format 'lose.' They're just in with HD-DVD right now to make life difficult for Sony anyway.

[Garfunkel]

link???
is this real?
M$ are very stupid, woohoo, now they hate bluray, but when it wins they will cry back to the media and say how good bluray is and that this is what they always wanted.

[xbdestroya]

link???
is this real?
M$ are very stupid!

Oh it's real, but on the contrary, I think they played this whole format thing smart from the beginning (since they just couldn't get one in 360 for launch no matter what).

[CARTIER90]

WTF !, have i just fell into a parallel universe :), thats just bizarre, .....

[jaxmkii]

Yes Yes Yes For Once I Got A Peace Off News Off First!

[Garfunkel]

HAHA now i'm expecting an announcement by KK that M$ have admitted blu-ray's betterness (coudn't spell superiodiousy)

[O.D.S]

Yes Yes Yes For Once I Got A Peace Off News Off First!
Well actually i did post this 2 days ago in the 360 forum, but it didnt get a single reply.

On topic: As xbd as said Microsofts move with the external Drives is really good. They can make money off both HD-DVD as soon as it releases and if it happens to fail, they will continue to make money (maybe much less) with an add on Blu-Ray drive.

Its funny since at around E3 2005 we were discussing the possibilities off hooking up external BD players to the 360...well it looks like it turned true afterall (well to a certain degree)

[Effulgence]

This is gonna be the Genesis of this gen im afraid. Connect your SegaCD and 32x and blowout a few power outlets and youll have a fantastic gaming machine.

[OmniCloud]

I dunno about this one...Don't count HD out yet..The blue-ray is mighty expensive. And I don't think DVD players were that expensive when they first came on the scene. If PS3 doesn't have an incredible launch, then no Blue-Ray movies will sell... No one's gonna buy a new player just to watch movies in HD for 1500 bucks.plus another 1000-2500 bucks just to get a TV to display those images on. It's all up to the PS3 I guess...

[Handycrap101]

This is pretty interesting but not really new.... Anyone could have forseen this. It's obvious MS would want to switch to somthing that people are actually buying. Makes NO sense to continue to support somthing that failed and won't be making them a profit... which is why I'll be surprised if they keep the Xbox brand alive for a 3rd or 4th gen... Live put them in a pretty big hole for them to start making a profit anytime soon.

But this news doesnt really effect me at all because well... I've decided to not buy a 360 and save those extra bucks for PS3 games.

[Garfunkel]

wise decision handy
but what we have learnt is that attachments do not sell, sega, sony and now M$ have all had attachments and the cd attachmest for sega and the linux kit for sony (i know that it is not an attachment but you know what i mean) have failed so what hope is there for M$?
and besides then they will have to pay sony for bluray!

[F089/H]

Microsoft has money and will do,spend,crush whatever it takes to make it suceed.

[KiLLA2006]

i dont see why people would get a blue ray add on for 360, im sure by the time we know the true winner of the format war PS3 will be around $200, mine as well waste the extra money, if blu ray wins of course... hd dvd external add on, as if that gigantic power source doesnt take up enough room, jeez.. everytime i wake up i trip over that massive thing... :buldge:

[makeitlookreal]

Blueray will win over HD DVD. That much is certain.

If MS was smart they would simply make the DVD in the 360 a blueray drive at some point that would be backwards compatible and could read the games already made.

Then they would provide a discount for anyone with an older model XBox 360 to purchase an external blueray drive.

There is a time to fight a giant and a time to do exactly what he says. Wisdom is knowing when to and when not to.

[HereticPB]

The smart backup plan.

[masonite]

nice to see microsoft confident in their decision-making....

next they'll be announcing a ps3 and rev attatchment for the 360.... ; )

seriously, from microsoft's business point of view this is a great move, but i'm sure toshiba won't be too impressed....

[xbdestroya]

Well, better for Toshiba than no HD-DVD support from Microsoft in the first place! :)

But yeah this comment must annoy them.

I agree with the idea that this add-on is not going to sell well for the 360, whether it be HD-DVD, Blu-ray, or whatever. But for MS it's just a way not to take losses actually including a drive and having that 'checkmark' on their supported features list. So again good move by MS - they won't lose money no matter what. But I don't see them making money off this either. It's just for some PR spin along the lines of "XBox 360 supports HD movie playback through our external 'blah blah' add-on, putting choice in the hands of the user to decide whether to upgrade to HD movie playback..."

[woundingchaney]

Gimmick

Nothing more nothing less, I am seriously doubting that any type of HD movie playback for the 360 makes it to the market or stays there when it does.

[Sephiroth_VII]

Remember that this isn't like the Sega CD. This attachment in ONLY for playing movies, whereas the Sega CD was for games. This was also it's big disadvantage, since most developers still made their games on cards. In that way, they split the market in two, those with the CD adaptor, and those without the adaptor.

[Domination]

I knew it would eventually come down to this. Actually, I remember posting an artical about Bill Gate's eyeing Blu Ray and HD-DVD for a future 360 during the E3'05 conference. What I don't get, though, is the constant flip flopping. It is so like everything else they have been saying since they first entered this industry. It really gives off the impression that they aren't too sure of themselves. And by all honesty, it reflects on their performance. This I find to be the biggest difference between them and the others. I would rather them not say anything and come to a unanimous decision that made business sense in the very end than to set there contradicting themselves every so often.

It's like the handheld. First they didn't want to enter into that market because they felt it had nothing to do with a console. They felt because they didn't possess the foreknowledge to merge a home console with a handheld, other than what Nintendo did with the Game Boy, that the market was totally an irrelevant one to get into as well as a useless one for everyone else. Now, all of a sudden, that has changed, which i knew it would, eventually. But as I said, it's like they aren't sure of themselves or something. They have very little foresight of the future, and it's like they have no strategy in place. For them, it's more like abrupt reactions given off by a cause, or simply put, random movement.

[Rizon]

It just seems to me that Microsoft are admitting defeat of HD-dvd already to be honest, openly admitting there probadly will be a Blu-ray attachement for the 360.

[kaphwan]

Bill Gates himself said that he believes DVD is the "last" storage format.

[VG Aficionado]

Bill Gates himself said that he believes DVD is the "last" storage format.Bill Gates also said:

"There are no significant bugs in our released software that any significant number of users want fixed."

Link: Wikiquote (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bill_Gates)

[Viper]

He also said, "No one will need more than 637Kb of memory for a personal computer."

[VG Aficionado]

He also said, "No one will need more than 637Kb of memory for a personal computer."That was the first one that came to my mind, but then I checked Wikiquote (the link I just provided) and it looks like he never really say that.

[Applefiend]

Yeah, HD DVD is off to the worst start imaginable, and Blu Ray is coming off right to schedule, so of course Microsoft are jumpy.

Microsoft's whole HD DVD strategy is about being a spoiler for Sony anyway, suckering in the customers that this is actually a format with a long term future. If they cared a jot for their customers they'd start a strategic withdrawal...

[Domination]

Bill Gates himself said that he believes DVD is the "last" storage format.

That's what I'm talking about; random decisions. It makes me think they are lacking an in-place strategy - either that or communication amongst their team. It's hard to tell with them. But the result is reluctance when purchasing their product because you are never aware/assured of what will or won't happen in the distant future. I mean, will they kill it or the console off in four years? I don't know. But every time they flip flop, it creats a sense of insecurity, I feel.

[jaxmkii]

Bill Gates himself said that he believes DVD is the "last" storage format. i think he ment to say OH GOD MY EMPIRE MY BEAUTFUL EMPIRE ITS LOST LOST I TELL YOU! :loser:

*plays taps* :salute:

[RzrWire]

Doesn't surprise me one bit. With Microsoft it's all about the bottom line......Money. Pride and everything else comes next.

[Xerxes]

So, It has the power to watch blu-ray movies but not able to use BD's for games. Wow. It still means that PS3 will sill have Blu-ray before 360.

[kaphwan]

The next system to use Blu-Ray will be the xbox<insert corporate buzzword here> imo. Then the next nintendo thing.

[Sephiroth_VII]

Lol, here we go again (http://xbox360.qj.net/2006/01/microsoft-overrides-moores-blu-ray.html).
…Microsoft firmly stands behind the HD-DVD format as the best choice for our consumers. As we’ve said before, we're confident that HD-DVD will bring the excitement of high definition movies to the consumer faster and at a greater value. We believe that consumers have signaled what format they want to enjoy high definition DVD and we’re going to follow them down that path. The question of whether Xbox 360 has the flexibility to adapt to consumers’ needs is a different issue entirely. Xbox 360 is a future-proofed system – one that allows us to add features as consumers demand them – as evidenced by our offering of the HD DVD drive as an accessory. Current reports indicating that we have a back-up plan, which includes Blu-Ray support are incorrect. At this point, we’re fully committed to HD-DVD and have absolutely no plans to support other optical formats
Decide damn it, decide!!!!

[Fillibuster]

Since when did John Kerry take over M$...I agree with Rizon. It seems that they know HD-DVD is gonna lose. Or wait, that blu-ray is gonna...no was it HD-DVD? blu-...ahh hell, M$ has got me all screwed up. </sarcasm>

[Viper]

Since when did John Kerry take over M$...I agree with Rizon. It seems that they know HD-DVD is gonna lose. Or wait, that blu-ray is gonna...no was it HD-DVD? blu-...ahh hell, M$ has got me all screwed up. </sarcasm>
+ rep.

They seem to be taking a wait and see approach followed by a see and wait more.

[xbdestroya]

Ok guys, needless to say, let's try to stay away from political analogies... http://community.the-underdogs.org/smiley/happy/wink4.gif

[chrismt]

Microsoft Now Says Blu-ray Not a Possibility for 360
Posted on Monday, January 16 @ 06:14:59 Eastern

Last week we reported that Microsoft would leave open the possibility that its next-gen console could one day support Blu-ray if that format ended up winning the war against HD DVD. This was based upon comments made by Microsoft's Corporate Vice President of Interactive Entertainment Business Peter Moore to Japanese website ITmedia during CES.

However, Moore's comments, which made the rounds not long after MS announced plans for an external HD DVD drive for the Xbox 360, were taken out of context, the company insists. To clear up any confusion, MS has issued a statement to the effect that they are 100 percent behind Toshiba's HD DVD format.

"Microsoft firmly stands behind the HD-DVD format as the best choice for our consumers. As we've said before, we're confident that HD-DVD will bring the excitement of high definition movies to the consumer faster and at a greater value. We believe that consumers have signaled what format they want to enjoy high definition DVD and we're going to follow them down that path. The question of whether Xbox 360 has the flexibility to adapt to consumers' needs is a different issue entirely. Xbox 360 is a future-proofed system -- one that allows us to add features as consumers demand them -- as evidenced by our offering of the HD DVD drive as an accessory," reads the official line.

The statement concludes, "Current reports indicating that we have a back-up plan, which includes Blu-Ray support are incorrect. At this point, we're fully committed to HD-DVD and have absolutely no plans to support other optical formats."

So, no MS may not officially have a back-up plan if HD DVD fails, but why did Moore say what he did regarding Blu-ray? Even though HD DVD is the focus for MS right now, it's likely that Moore's comments reflect the company's general thinking behind the scenes and we wouldn't be surprised to see an external Blu-ray player for 360 sometime in the future if that format does indeed prevail.

http://game-revolution.com/news/view.php?id=685

Well it looks like the Blu-Ray plan might be debunked.