Many Players Need Firmware Update To Play Spider-Man 3 on Blu-ray

[DaViD Boulet]

David,

how can you moderate this forum and be so grossly misinformed?

1) This new feature set for BDJ is not currently supported by players already on the market. That means old discs may not work in the new players, and new discs may not work in old players.

No. All old discs will play in all new players. However, as you say, some new discs might not play in older players without the application of a firmware upgrade.

2) Old players weren't mandated to have Ethernet ports on them, (like the HD DVD spec)... which means that the only way to upgrade the players is from a special disc, or by sending the player back to the manufacturer. YIKES!

All manufacturers thus far have offered firmware updates that can be burned to CD/DVD for updating if no ethernet port is provided. In many cases you can download an image file and burn it to CD via the web (a few manufacturers are mailing customers the update-CD/DVD for free). No one has had to send a unit to a factory for firmware updating. Anyone who bought a BD player without an internet port should have known they were buying a reduced featureset. It's one of the reasons, as an early adoptor, I chose the PS3 instead. All of this being said, I do agree that the BD group should have required internet connectivity on all hardware. Of course, just having a port on a device doesn't mean that someone has a LAN cable running to that room of the house (but it's a good first step by requiring it on the player). I'm sure in the future we'll see internet connectivity become defacto on BD hardware despite the optional clause. I'm sure no early adoptor, well aware of the evolving BD spec, expected his/her early-generation BD player to provide a full featureset.

p.s. sadly, the ethernet port on HD DVD players won't necessarily provide 51GB tri-layer compatibility. Nothing is fool-proof.

[kennyt]

DaVID,

Those downloads can be gotten IF you have a PC, and for the Sony BDP-S1 it needs a DVD burner. Us MAC guys are left out in the cold.

As for 'never having to send one to the factory' just ask Jerry Del Colliano about HIS experience updating firmware. Some players DO need to go back as disc based firmware updates are not perfect.....

[David DelGrosso]

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet

David,

how can you moderate this forum and be so grossly misinformed?

No. All old discs will play in all new players.

This is the reason why you are accusing me of being "grossly misinformed"?

Meanwhile, have you actually played every existing disc on a new player, so that you can state FACTUALLY that there will never be any playback difficulties?

Do you author these discs?

Do you clearly understand the changes in the software coding... so that you can explain to everyone WHY a new player will never mis-read the data on a Profile 1.0 disc?

I'm sure no early adoptor, well aware of the evolving BD spec, expected his/her early-generation BD player to provide a full featureset.

Right again?

But just in case, maybe you should visit a few retailers... and ask them how their "early adopters" have reacted to this new development.

DD

[DaViD Boulet]

By even suggesting that even "old discs might not play", your statements are wandering into completely undocumented, unsubstantiated fear-mongering. We might as well claim that Toshiba's new HD DVD player "might not play all existing discs" and defend it the same way... that absolute proof can't be offered to refute it.

If you're going to take on the authority of a moderator, please post responsibly, and keep away from sensationalizing and misleading comments. Call the difficult points into question for everyone to consider: such as you have done with the issue of possibly needing firmware updates to play new profile-1.1 discs. But please keep your comments within a reasonable framework, or apply arbirtrary criticism equally to both formats if it's the practice of this forum to not require any substantiaing data to promote any negative claim.

[JerryDelColliano]

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet

By even suggesting that even "old discs might not play", your statements are wandering into completely undocumented, unsubstantiated fear-mongering. We might as well claim that Toshiba's new HD DVD player "might not play all existing discs" and defend it the same way... that absolute proof can't be offered to refute it.

If you're going to take on the authority of a moderator, please post responsibly, and keep away from sensationalizing and misleading comments. Call the difficult points into question for everyone to consider: such as you have done with the issue of possibly needing firmware updates to play new profile-1.1 discs. But please keep your comments within a reasonable framework, or apply arbirtrary criticism equally to both formats if it's the practice of this forum to not require any substantiaing data to promote any negative claim.

-----

I am going to jump in here. I own the player as it is my 4th Blu-ray player in a little over a year. Ken is right. You NEED a PC to download the firmware updates and as a Mac user - I too find that COMPLETELY LAME.

I can also say - from the discs I bought last week at Best Buy (both formats) there are ALL SORTS of disclaimers now in the packaging of the discs saying basically "you might need to update your machine with new firm/software to play this film". Most users are NOT going to like this.

I know when my dealer sent me a disc made on a PC to update the firmware on my Samsung BDP-1000 - it killed the unit. I belive Andrew had the same thing happen on one of his players too. These firmware updates are NOT a cakewalk and can leave you as an early adopter VERY frustrated.

The expectation was set by an UNDER $100 DVD player that you can put MOST EVERY disc format in the player, press play and it will work. With HD DVD and Blu-ray - $1,000 player doesn't guarantee you CD playback, playback of the native format for all discs and often worse. That is factual and it is bad.

With that said - it is OUR job as early adopters to weigh the value of STUNNING native 1080p content versus the BULL**** problems of the players. For my money - I will work through the problems to get the performance.

[deacongreg]

I don`t get it. DAvid, the deal is this. First, no one is attacking Blu-Ray on purpose, or has any particular bias to it. What is amazing to me, is, that you can not see the inherent problems with all of this. Are you just having this discussion, just to banter back and forth.

We are talking about just playing a movie. Thats all, nothing else. It doesn`t matter whether your a audio/videophile, or Best Buy type customer. No one should be expected to deal with this update foolishness to play a movie. Some how though, you believe we (high end) should, why is that? That makes no good sense. Anyone should be able to buy or rent a movie, and expect to watch it immediately after they get home.

Maybe your one of those audio/videophiles that enjoys tweaking every piece of equipment, before listening. The equipment is a means to an end. And that is to listen, watch, or both to a point of enjoyment and pleasure. I really do not what else to say about this matter.

Similarly, no question that these type of issues if magnified, will continue to keep others out of the high end for good. Which is not good for growth or business.