Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

Price War Moves High Def DVD Players

Competing HD-DVD and Blu-Ray makers drop prices under $200

By Lucas Laursen,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 23, 2007 10:45 AM CST
Email

(Newser) – Sales of high-definition DVD players have been languishing because customers were unwilling to choose one of the two competing formats—Blu-ray or HD DVD. But this holiday season may change that, with retailers dropping prices from upward of $400 to under $200, reports the Wall Street Journal. And Wal-Mart fueld the nascent  price war by offering an older model of a Toshiba player for under $98.89.

Wal-Mart's price stood for just 48 hours, but it moved 90,000 to 100,000 Toshiba players. “They've shown that people will bite if the price is low,” says one analyst. Blu-ray makers are responding with similar price cuts. Blu-ray fits 50GB onto its disks—compared to HD DVD's 30GB—making it a favorite of studios and hard-core fans, but Blu-ray’s higher cost has meant slightly slower adoption.

A Toshiba HD-DVD disc player. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, file)
A Toshiba HD-DVD disc player. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, file)   (Associated Press)
An HD-DVD video disc of The Bourne Supremacy is seen at left, with a Blu-Ray disc of Superman Returns at right, at a Ken Crane's Big Screen Headquarters store in Buena Park, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
An HD-DVD video disc of "The Bourne Supremacy" is seen at left, with a Blu-Ray disc of "Superman Returns" at right, at a Ken Crane's Big Screen Headquarters store in Buena Park, Calif., Wednesday, Aug....   (Associated Press)
A Sony BDP-S300 Blu-ray player. (AP Photo/Sony Corp.)
A Sony BDP-S300 Blu-ray player. (AP Photo/Sony Corp.)   (Associated Press)
A PlayStation 3 console from Sony is shown in New York in this Feb. 22, 2007 file photo. The PS3 has a built-in Blu-ray drive and is one of the most affordable Blu-ray players on the market. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
A PlayStation 3 console from Sony is shown in New York in this Feb. 22, 2007 file photo. The PS3 has a built-in Blu-ray drive and is one of the most affordable Blu-ray players on the market. (AP Photo/Mark...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

The technical differences between Blu-Ray and HD-DVD
Times (UK)

 
Microsoft • Sony • HD DVD • Toshiba • Blu ray • Panasonic

More Newser Stories

Porn Goes Both Ways in HD Format War

Toshiba Fights for HD DVD Market Share

Is the Xbox 360 Going Blu?

Format Wars Rage in High Definition

Paramount Drops Blu-Ray for HD DVD
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne