Just for laughs: Xbox HD DVD player gets update

by Alexander Sliwinski { Apr 8th 2008 at 7:00PM }

Major Nelson has informed the populace that the next time one of the surviving members of the defeated HD DVD army watch a movie they'll be prompted with an auto update. No, the update will not magically convert the dead format into a Blu-ray player, sorry.

Instead, the update will add "compatibility improvements with certain titles" and "additional support for network features." Xbox 360 owners without Live can download the update through Xbox.com later this week.

Tags: failure, hd-dvd, hddvd, sick-joke, tragedy

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

coolforever4537 @ Apr 8th 2008 7:04PM

LOL, I got a good laugh out of that.

Fernando Rocker @ Apr 8th 2008 7:06PM

Just let that poor bastard die =(

Arturo @ Apr 8th 2008 11:31PM

a small update won't bring the format back to life, geez...

hexoDAT64 @ Apr 8th 2008 7:10PM

I know its kind of funny, but they're just making sure that it does what it was made to do

Phylicus @ Apr 8th 2008 7:13PM

What it was made to do was grow old quietly ... than die.

*grabs rifle and leads HD DVD into the backyard*

"Shh! Shh! It's okay, boy. It'll all be over soon."

AcidMonkey @ Apr 8th 2008 7:15PM

Lolz. You can't fault them for supporting their hardware... oh wait.

Ben @ Apr 8th 2008 7:20PM

It's fine with me, I've just picked up about 30 films for next to nothing.

BIGGEN @ Apr 8th 2008 7:27PM

that's what i was gonna say, just cause they aren't supporting it anymore doesn't mean it's gonna quit working or some shit. i'll watch the 30 movies for $60 that i got off ebay. THANKS BLU RAY ;D

btw, i do have a ps3 and a couple blu ray movies, BUT they really need to drop that shitty $30/movie

el serpiente @ Apr 8th 2008 11:25PM

I've never paid more than $20 for a bluray disc (other than multiple disc sets). Stop buying them from Best Buy and look for sales on Amazon or other online stores. They happen every other week these days.

BIGGEN @ Apr 9th 2008 6:05AM

i don't buy them from best buy or any retailer (hence the hd dvds i got off E-B-A-Y) or was that not plain enough for you to understand?

el serpiente @ Apr 9th 2008 4:49PM

What I don't understand, BIGGEN, is where you are buying your BLU RAY DISCS from. Anyone with a shred of internet savvy (certainly one that can use ebay to buy something) can find them for less than retail.

But something tells me you don't even have a PS3 and you are just spreading some fud because your HD DVD player is now worthless, and you are hurting inside.

BIGGEN @ Apr 9th 2008 6:23PM

well mr. internet arguement starter, my ps3 username is biggen1103 so send me a FR and we will play some COD4 so i can virtually shoot you in the face ;p i have also bought my blu rays off of ebay.

simply stating that retail blu ray movie prices are too high does not warrant a prick such as yourself assumptions about where i buy mine, my internet savviness, or the fact that maybe i do hurt inside a little because hd dvd is not competing, so blu ray movies can be price hiked as much they want them to be. plus we no longer have a choice of which one to buy.

some people (not me) still like the thought of walking into a store, picking out their movie, but not having to pay a ridiculous price for it.

el serpiente @ Apr 10th 2008 11:37AM

You probably could shoot me in the face quite easily, I suck at COD4. I'll kick your ass in Aquatopia though. I can feed the fuck out of my fish.

But close your eyes and think back to the early days of DVD. They were also expensive as balls to start, and there NEVER was a competing format for DVD. So you could say it's a part of the pricing of the product cycle. Either way, you can get blurays for cheap rather easily. Only jive turkey fools pay $30 a disc.

Bizzeh @ Apr 8th 2008 7:28PM

you could do what i did, the 360 is quite good at upscaliing.
get one of these now £30 drives and use it as a regular dvd drive for your 360. and use your 360 as a hdmi dvd player without wearing out the internal drive.

Co @ Apr 8th 2008 11:36PM

Interesting...

ill trooper @ Apr 9th 2008 3:47AM

360's fans are noisy for a movie-playback machine, though. You can get one of the quieter freestanding HD-DVD players that's been 'rebranded' as an 'HD Upscaler that plays HD-DVD content' for a pretty good price if you want a DVD upscaler but don't want a PS3.

Even at blow-out "Format Is Dead" prices, I'm just avoiding the HD-DVD format all together. Buying 5 or 8 or whatever amount of HD-DVD movies for cheap isn't worth keeping an device frozen in '2007' around my place.

Jon @ Apr 9th 2008 4:11AM

Wait, you mean playing through the regular drive won't up convert your DVD films?

Mutant @ Apr 9th 2008 3:57PM

Another note on upconverting. The 360 won't upconvert over component cables, only HDMI or VGA.

bm @ Apr 8th 2008 7:51PM

Haha, that almost makes me feel sorta sad for it. D:

JakubK666 (Ninja Defence Force) @ Apr 8th 2008 8:19PM

I bet it can update secretly installed Blu-Ray support.

JakubK666 (Ninja Defence Force) @ Apr 8th 2008 8:21PM

lol Engrish...

I bet the update secretly installed Blu-Ray support.

ThornedVenom (Harley Quinn Defense Force) @ Apr 8th 2008 9:12PM

Do they have blue diodes too?

j.howlett @ Apr 8th 2008 9:16PM

i believe they have blue diodes also

why not the LS2LS7? @ Apr 8th 2008 11:26PM

Yes, HD-DVD used a blue diode. Early on they tried to use a chirped red one, but it didn't pan out, it didn't produce enough storage.

This is part of the reason the claims that HD-DVD was cheaper to make didn't make a lot of sense. Inside, the two are very similar, except that HD-DVD devices had to have two video decoders whereas BD profile 1.0 units only had to have one (profile 1.1 and 2.0 require two).

fischju @ Apr 8th 2008 8:20PM

What about me, who still buys HD DVD (cheaper than regular DVD now) and use the drive on an HTPC? Any update?

Worst Review Ever @ Apr 8th 2008 8:29PM

I don't think you used enough acronyms in your post.

Watership @ Apr 8th 2008 9:40PM

HD-DVD. Dead as a donkey yet still more feature complete than Blu-ray is. I guess we all lose.

ill trooper @ Apr 9th 2008 4:21AM

I think your post has too much doom and gloom in it. You're being fatalistic.

Seems no one cared about those features enough to actually buy into them this early. And by the time enough people adopt HD playback in the form of Blu-Ray, nearly all of those features will be available, the glaring exception being the region-free feature that HD-DVD had, which can still be an option for Blu-Ray discs, depending on the owner of the information/media.

Blu-Ray has more storage as well. So, actually, "the losers" still appear to be the early adopters of HD-DVD.