Microsoft Denies Xbox HD DVD Rumors

[jed]

Just posted:

That rumored "Entertainment Xbox" with a built-in HD DVD hard drive? Microsoft says its a no-go.

Speaking with Home Media Magazine, the computer giant denied persistent rumors that it had teamed up with Toshiba to develop a new version of its gaming console with an internal HD DVD hard drive.

The trade magazine quotes Kevin Collins, Microsoft's director of HD DVD evangelism, as saying the company did not and will not bundle an HD DVD drive in its popular gaming console because Microsoft believes that gamers are first and foremost gamers.

"Microsoft knew if we put in an HD DVD drive that we would have to raise costs and disenfranchise our customers (that are primarily gamers) as the unit would become too expensive," explained Collins.

Full story:
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/1144

[cubedone]

I beleive MS does not want to market their console as a Hi Def movie player a la Sony. I do think that a combo 360 unit would be good for HD DVD though.

[TaiwaneSTUD]

microsoft might not make one, but if toshiba is authorized to make one, then we should be able to see a built-in xbox360 inside a standalone HD DVD player,, Toshiba HD-X360 ?

lol...

if HD DVD sticks around in the next two years, i think its safe to say the next xbox 360 will have hd dvd bulit-in.

[DAMNSAM77]

blah blah blah....wake me up when the so-called war is over! This just proves more why MS is just trying to add confusion to the HDM market and steer xbox gamers (like myself) to downloading movies which I will NEVER do! I would rather spend 3 times as much on a movie I like and own it forever!

If some of you think I am anti-MS, I am NOT! I have more than 20 xbox360 games and love my console to death! I hug it and kiss it all the time! I am just more sure that MS has no real intentions of supporting HDM hardware other than an HDDVD Add on, I bet you it would barely bring up cost by $70-$100 per console, and it wouldnt hurt to have another SKU, they already have 3 (Arcade, Premium, and Elite). They should change the Elite to inlcude an internal HDDVD drive, but they won't for two reasons:

- They are unsure about the format thats going to win
- They want to add more confusion to the HDM consumer market with digital rental downloads

[jroadley]

The 360 is a games console... unlike the PS3

Gears Of Wars... best game ever.

[ericede]

Originally Posted by jroadley

The 360 is a games console... unlike the PS3

Gears Of Wars... best game ever.

I fail to see the difference between a 360 with the add-on and a PS3. A 360 with a HD-DVD drive would make sense. There may be a larger complication with creating a new drive that is designed to verify 360 game disc encryption.

Keep in mind I'm talking about making a media version of the 360. Not replacing the current models with HD-DVD drives.

[PIHB]

i think that is weird after G4 was saying a microsoft insider is currently working on one, but wont effect me since i have a 360

[Kotatsu Neko]

I just don't get the argument that MS won't integrate HD DVD because it would increase the cost of the system. They've already shown they're not afraid of multiple SKUs, so just add another one with HD DVD. They can keep the arcade pack as bare bones and basic as they like and a super high end HD DVD SKU wouldn't impact that in the slightest.

[hi-def-fanboy]

Originally Posted by DAMNSAM77

blah blah blah....wake me up when the so-called war is over! This just proves more why MS is just trying to add confusion to the HDM market and steer xbox gamers (like myself) to downloading movies which I will NEVER do! I would rather spend 3 times as much on a movie I like and own it forever!

If some of you think I am anti-MS, I am NOT! I have more than 20 xbox360 games and love my console to death! I hug it and kiss it all the time! I am just more sure that MS has no real intentions of supporting HDM hardware other than an HDDVD Add on, I bet you it would barely bring up cost by $70-$100 per console, and it wouldnt hurt to have another SKU, they already have 3 (Arcade, Premium, and Elite). They should change the Elite to inlcude an internal HDDVD drive, but they won't for two reasons:

- They are unsure about the format thats going to win
- They want to add more confusion to the HDM consumer market with digital rental downloads

I totally agree that Microsoft want people downloading movies more.

[brandoshido]

they also denied the xbox 360's with hdmi coming out too though.

[Das Koopa]

Originally Posted by Kotatsu Neko

I just don't get the argument that MS won't integrate HD DVD because it would increase the cost of the system. They've already shown they're not afraid of multiple SKUs, so just add another one with HD DVD. They can keep the arcade pack as bare bones and basic as they like and a super high end HD DVD SKU wouldn't impact that in the slightest.

They cant just jam one in there. There is a lot more cost then just the hardware end of an internal hd dvd. They would have to pay for many things such as engineering of the new box and advertising. they arent selling as many consoles right now as it is so why would they want to put fuding into a newer 360.

[CLASSICmovieboy]

Originally Posted by DAMNSAM77

blah blah blah....wake me up when the so-called war is over! This just proves more why MS is just trying to add confusion to the HDM market and steer xbox gamers (like myself) to downloading movies which I will NEVER do! I would rather spend 3 times as much on a movie I like and own it forever!

I agree with that statement completely. The only way I would downloadf a movie is when it takes a few minutes (probably years away) and they are movies you cannot get on a physical format. For those movies that remain unreleased on physical format because the studios feel they will not sell enough copies and don't want to press them and have those costs, downloading is perfect, no pressing costs. And there are plenty of unreleased movies on dvd, some never even on VHS, a good percentage of which are classics.

I also agree that Microsoft wants us to download and wants both formats to fail, and I hate their interference in not leaving this up to the consumer but budding in and making things harder than they are for us, and maybe even causing the new physical high def discs to never catch on completely, that's what they are after. The problem is that many people, like me, want the movie on my shelf with cover art and in a physical format. Although I do have to say that since I got my Dish external hard drive, it sure is a space saver to get 130 hd movies on a 750gb hard drive, at the appr.cost of $1 per movie. So who knows. I know I like my collection and going over to it and picking out a movie, that's just part of the experience for me.

[Z22_Z33]

Originally Posted by CLASSICmovieboy

The only way I would downloadf a movie is when it takes a few minutes (probably years away)...

You already can. Just to clarify the whole movie won't download in that time, but you can start watching it. I was able to do that on Comcast, before we switched to slow clearwire. Now it takes me a good day to download. Hopefully any day now we'll get faster download speeds.

Originally Posted by CLASSICmovieboy

I also agree that Microsoft wants us to download and wants both formats to fail, and I hate their interference in not leaving this up to the consumer but budding in and making things harder than they are for us, and maybe even causing the new physical high def discs to never catch on completely, that's what they are after.

Not really. Maybe they do, but the only place I can download movies from MSFT is on my Xbox; we can't do it on our computers. There are also only 2-3 major online movie rental sites. One stupid big reason this "war" is going on is over Copyright protection and whether to use HDi or Java.
MSFT knows, heck we all know, less copyright protection means things will mesh and work together a lot easier and for a lot, lot, cheaper.
Again Java and HDi fall in the same boat, HDi is easier and cheaper, also just as good if not better, then Java.

Just if Sony would have allowed managed copies and HDi. Maybe we wouldn't be in this mess. True maybe MSFT didn't need to get involved, but they weren't the only ones who wanted this stuff. Heck they could have allowed both Java and HDi, allowed managed copies, and still keep all the copy protection. But now I am getting off topic.

Originally Posted by CLASSICmovieboy

The problem is that many people, like me, want the movie on my shelf with cover art and in a physical format.

I only have one word to debunk that. IPOD

Microsoft believes that gamers are first and foremost gamers.

Good to know MSFT cares about us. And don't view our homes as the city of Troy. Keep the games coming, if you pack in a movie/s with the consoles I won't be happy.

[pnorth_12]

WTF? so how many more times do we have to hear the same crap? Love HD DVD - hate this regurgitated story... Please, no more, please, please, please...

[DSquared]

I, for one find it welcome that they are interested in selling a game console for gaming. What a novel idea.

I just kills me that the new $400 PS3 comes bundled with a movie.