In the department of “isn’t it kind of late for that?” is this little tidbit. HD DVD backers had touted the fact that HD DVD discs will be region free. This would have been an advantage the HD DVD format had over the BD format, which does include region incoding, to my chagrin. Now it looks like the DVD Forum is looking to add region encoding to HD DVD discs. The “feature” is dubbed Regional Playback Control (RPC) and the DVD Forum is in talks with Hollywood studios to hammer out details.

One problem is that current Toshiba HD DVD players do not look for RPC on HD DVD discs. Does this mean that current HD DVD players will be the only region-free players available once region-aware players come to market?

HD DVD to Intro Region Coding

Samsung’s has a plasma display that’s been fitted with ACAP. ACAP is a “bi-directional data broadcasting standard” which I think is kinda like CableCARD 2 in its purpose. With it, you can use your TV to check for news headlines, the weather, traffic conditions, etc. I wonder if the datasources you can see on an ACAP display is determined more by your cable provider or by the internet itself. I don’t know much about ACAP, but I would think it’s the former.

At any rate, this plasma is for sale in Korea, no word yet on when it’ll make its way to North America, or what you can really do with ACAP.

[via HDBeat]

Samsung SVP-56K3HDB, 56″ PDPTV with ACAP

The flaming skull-head is coming to the big screen. Yup, another one of Marvel’s comic book franchises is coming to the big screen, and it looks like they’ve spent a lot of time on it, even getting Nicolas Cage to play the leading role.

Apple - Ghost Rider

It looks like the major studios have agreed in principal to not use implement HDCP into HD players till at least 2010 or 2012, but by then there will be so many HD players on the market it would probably be suicide to implement it.

Behind the scenes it was agreed that till, at least, 2010, if not even till 2012, signals from Blu-ray or HD DVD players should be transferred to televisions or displays in full resolution, even if certain components do not support HDCP or HDMI

This would also answer why the X Box 360/PS3 “lite” can get away with a hi def signal and not include HDMI/HDCP.

Neither Microsoft Xbox 360, nor Sony’s entry-level PlayStation 3 consoles support HDMI output. In fact, Sony’s Phil Harrison recently said in an interview that even with analogue outputs it will be possible to view Blu-ray discs using the PlayStation 3 that costs $499

I assume he meant at 1080i through the component video.

One thing that they are not mentioning here is that when you remove HDMI from these units we will not be able to take advantage of the newer audio formats (DTS-HD, DD+, etc..)

I think this is where the “bleeding” part of being on the bleeding edge gets you.

X-bit labs - Hardware news - Blu-Ray, HD DVD Will Playback without HDMI, HDCP – Report.

I heard about this a long time ago, and now it’s back! Painting on the inside of your eyeball with a laser! Who need a huge HDTV sitting in your living room? Just connect a box to your face and have pictures beemed directly into your eye!

Okay, so the technology isn’t quite there yet, but it’s on the move. Right now it can only do 640 x 480, which isn’t much. But can HD resolutions be far behind? Right now the technology will set you back $4000, but that’s a bargain compared to what it used to cost.

World’s Smallest Projector - In Your Eye!

If it wasn’t obvious before, it should be now.

Sony’s PS3, and it’s gamble with the cell and Blu-Ray, will either be seen as the biggest blunder or best move the company has ever made.

Actually, I think it is a good move. Just look at Kodak. It has had a very hard time turning that ship around in the face of digital technology. It dabbled briefly in digital cameras, even came up with a great line with the Digix cameras. Then they killed it to create cheap knock offs.

Back to Sony, they warned their shareholders that it is going to be a tough row to hoe through the first and most likely second quarter of next year. Come Q3 2007, when Blu-Ray has hundreds of movies to choose from and cell processors will be in many TV’s, Receivers, and other products, I believe that Sony will become a powerhouse in the “new” HD and digital TV age.

IGN: Sony’s Huge PlayStation 3 Bet

Firewall, Constantine, and The Perfect Storm are all coming to HD DVD on June 6th. The latter two will retail for the not so paltry sum of $28.99 each. But Firewall will break the bank at $39.99, because it’s a hybrid HD DVD / DVD disc.

Is it just me, or is $39.99 nuts? Sure it’s the MSRP and retailers may sell it for less, but man that’s expensive. I’m a big Harrison Ford fan, and I remember watching The Fugitive on DVD over and over and over because it was one of my first DVD’s ever. But I don’t think that even Harrison Ford is worth $39.99, with or without a fedora.

Warner Bros. queue up three new HD DVD titles