I’m a man of some intelligence and I certainly know when a silly electronics war is over. So when I read up on these stats regarding Blu-ray and HD DVD sales, I knew the format war was won. As an avid fan of the color blue for the past 15 years, I had a hunch Blu-ray was going to win hands down. I mean, HD DVD doesn’t even have a color in it’s name. How are you supposed to distinguish between the two? In America, we have red, white, and blue—not red, white, and HD DVD.
According to Niesen VideoScan, Blu-ray was gaining on HD DVD throughout 2006. For every 92 Blu-ray discs sold, 100 HD DVD discs found their way into homes, putting Blu-ray behind, but barely.
Now that we’re in 2007, Blu-ray has caught up to the “other” format and is now outselling HD DVD more than 2 to 1. The reason why? Obviously, the greatest console ever, the Playstation 3. Not only did Sony play a crucial role in giving Blu-ray a boost, but they did it at an affordable price. Sure Microsoft’s Xbox 360 might have that silly HD DVD add-on, but who wants to drop $200 on a plastic enclosure that sits outside your console? Not a sane person, that’s for sure.
Lastly, there are also the films. Titles like Saw II and Open Season probably should have tied each other for “Best Picture” at the Oscars, but for now, I’ll let it slide. With groundbreaking titles like these, it’s no wonder why Sony’s Blu-ray has pulled ahead so far while leaving HD DVD in the dust. I mean, just look at the competitor’s titles! Brokeback Mountain? Liar Liar? I suppose if you’re into playing games of naked Twister with Jim Carey on your TV, HD DVD gets the job done just fine. As for me, I don’t settle for “just fine,” so I’ll see you and your PS3 at the local Movie Mart while I pick up some new Blu-ray discs.
Blu-ray Gaining Ground on HD DVD [gizmodo]