While the Sony PlayStation 3 may have an integrated Blu-ray player, Microsoft is doing its best to blunt that
possible competitive advantage with a next-generation DVD player of its own for the Xbox 360.
Dubbed simply Xbox 360 HD DVD player, the fairly basic external drive connects to the Xbox 360 via a USB cable. You can either stand the drive upright or lay it down horizontally. Whichever way you go, the whole outboard concept is a little kludgey, but the drive's $200 price tag is quite reasonable considering today's stand-alone HD DVD players start at $500.
Better yet, Microsoft is also throwing in an Xbox 360 Universal Media Remote and, for a limited time, a copy of Peter Jackson's King Kong HD DVD.
The Xbox 360 HD DVD player offers most of the features we expect from stand-alone HD DVD players, such as bookmarking and a zoom function. The 360's current component video and VGA adapters both have an optical digital output as their highest-quality audio jack, which can carry only standard DVD-level Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound.
The good news: Dolby Digital is the base soundtrack on all HD DVD movies, so you should always get a solid surround soundtrack instead of dead air.
Apart from its connectivity drawbacks, the Xbox 360 HD DVD player makes a perfectly suitable means of watching HD DVDs, and it's a good way for Xbox 360 owners get in on the next-generation DVD action without investing too much. Of course, adding $200 to the cost of the Xbox 360 puts the total cost of the console at the same price as the PlayStation 3 and its integrated Blu-ray drive.
Apples to apples, if next-generation DVD is what you're looking, the PS3 is going to be the better overall solution from a design standpoint. But for die-hard Xbox 360 fans, the PS3 just isn't an option.
On the Ending Note : Microsoft didn't market the Xbox 360 HD DVD player to work with PCs, nor does it officially support PC connectivity, but there are reports on the Web that you can indeed hack the player to work with a PC. However, on top of a set of Windows drivers, you'll also need a copy of DVD playback software, such as WinDVD8, that supports playback of HD DVD discs.
You can get one here
Also read the full review from CNET
possible competitive advantage with a next-generation DVD player of its own for the Xbox 360.Dubbed simply Xbox 360 HD DVD player, the fairly basic external drive connects to the Xbox 360 via a USB cable. You can either stand the drive upright or lay it down horizontally. Whichever way you go, the whole outboard concept is a little kludgey, but the drive's $200 price tag is quite reasonable considering today's stand-alone HD DVD players start at $500.
Better yet, Microsoft is also throwing in an Xbox 360 Universal Media Remote and, for a limited time, a copy of Peter Jackson's King Kong HD DVD.
The Xbox 360 HD DVD player offers most of the features we expect from stand-alone HD DVD players, such as bookmarking and a zoom function. The 360's current component video and VGA adapters both have an optical digital output as their highest-quality audio jack, which can carry only standard DVD-level Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound.
The good news: Dolby Digital is the base soundtrack on all HD DVD movies, so you should always get a solid surround soundtrack instead of dead air.
Apart from its connectivity drawbacks, the Xbox 360 HD DVD player makes a perfectly suitable means of watching HD DVDs, and it's a good way for Xbox 360 owners get in on the next-generation DVD action without investing too much. Of course, adding $200 to the cost of the Xbox 360 puts the total cost of the console at the same price as the PlayStation 3 and its integrated Blu-ray drive.
Apples to apples, if next-generation DVD is what you're looking, the PS3 is going to be the better overall solution from a design standpoint. But for die-hard Xbox 360 fans, the PS3 just isn't an option.
On the Ending Note : Microsoft didn't market the Xbox 360 HD DVD player to work with PCs, nor does it officially support PC connectivity, but there are reports on the Web that you can indeed hack the player to work with a PC. However, on top of a set of Windows drivers, you'll also need a copy of DVD playback software, such as WinDVD8, that supports playback of HD DVD discs.
You can get one here
Also read the full review from CNET
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