Do any of you out there remember HD-DVD? Back in 2006, it stood against Blu-Ray in a battle for the high definition optical media standard, and in 2008 it lost when, after many retailers and film publishers backed out, Toshiba, the main company behind the format, finally gave up and ended production of players, leaving Blu-Ray discs the primary method of disc based HD content storage.
As those who follow me know, I happen to be fond of old, obsolete media formats, and HD-DVD is no exception. After finding a player for dirt cheap at a local thrift store, I’ve begun collecting films on the format and really getting to know it. Much like those who listen to records (which includes me) or people who love Laser Disc or BetaMax video formats, I have fun with just the experience of watching a film on HD-DVD. Sure, the quality is a little bit worse than Blu-Ray, but the films are cheap and the fun is in knowing I am making use of the dead format for what it was intended as – a high definition movie watching experience.
In this video, I go over some thoughts on HD-DVD, and share my current collection. More videos are to come, so maybe subscribe if you do like what I do and stay tuned, as they say, for more.