For home theater enthusiasts HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray is a strong debate with those who bought into either format spouting off why their chosen format is better. For the normal home theater consumer though there may be no debate as the DVD format is so pervasive, and looks great on most any HDTV.

With high-def DVD players running 2-5x the cost of a decent DVD player, and movies running anywhere from 2-3 times the price, the high-def DVD formats just might remain a niche product of the home theater industry.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the inevitability of either Blu-Ray or HD-DVD taking over the DVD market may never come to fruition much to the dismay of the warring factions who’s format war has not really hurt consumers as much as it has themselves.

The LaserDisc format may be the best way to compare the high-def vs. standard-def DVD formats. While LaserDisc generally offered much better picture quality over VHS, the players and movies were much more expensive. VHS offered acceptable quality when you took into account the convenience, durability, and most importantly price.

I’ve been very happy with the performance the HD-DVD drive for the X-Box 360 and the 20 HD-DVD movies I own. I only buy movies on HD-DVD that I consider showpiece movies such as The Matrix, 300, Apollo 13 and so on. These are movies that I know I will watch over and over again, and can appreciate the flawless picture quality offered.

For other movies I still buy the DVD versions, and save a ton of money doing so. Also, I still watch a lot of DVD movies as not all of my “must have” movies have yet to be transferred to a high-def format. Nor would I pay the higher asking price if they were all available. Sure the quality of DVD isn’t as “flawless” as with HD-DVD, but the DVD versions are still extremely good on my 130+ inch projected screen. For many normal consumers with more realistic screen sizes, HD-DVD simply doesn’t offer enough quality improvement to warrant higher movie prices, investment and the effort it takes to get into one of the high-def DVD formats.

The Price is Wrong
When the DVD format was launched movies cost about $20, the same as new VHS releases. Older HD-DVD and Blu-Ray movies can be found for $20 at amazon.com and Target. However, in stores like Best Buy and Circuit City older high-def movies still cost $24-$40 each.  New releases on the high-def formats cost $30-$40 no matter where you shop.

This is a huge difference from the now common $15 new release price for the DVD format. Due to low inventory, stores also sell out of high-def movies quickly. So even when consumers are willing to pay more for the high-def version the movies can be hard to find.

With Blu-Ray players costing $500+ and HD-DVD $250+ you can see why general consumers, and many home theater enthusiasts, have not only sat on the fence with the high-def DVD formats, they’ve ignored them. As prices approach $200 like HD-DVD is there will definitely be a higher adoption rate. Content will still be king, and unless the movies get cheaper the satisfaction with high-def movies will lessen with time.

Consumers are generally willing to pay a little more for the capability to view high-def DVDs, but the premiums that high-def DVDs demand may be too much for mass adoption.

Better Picture and Sound, but Bad Quality Control
While the high-def DVD formats offer better picture quality and sound though with TVs smaller than 50 inches it can be hard for the average consumer to see the extra resolution offered by HD-DVD. Sadly the product launches have been plagued with quality issues from the players and discs themselves

It’s consumers’ experience with really bad/slow players and defective discs that will hold these formats back. Have I experienced these bad discs? No, but I’ve had friends who have, and there’s nothing quite like being in the middle of a movie and have it fail. These types of quality control issues are unacceptable especially with the price premium being asked.

DVD is Good Enough
Like VHS versus LaserDisc, VHS was viewed as good enough to not deal with the hassle flipping bulky discs and paying more. Like VHS, DVD has become so pervasive in the lives of the general populous that high-def versions can limit consumer lifestyles as opposed to improving them. DVD is in cars, computers, home movies and they’re convenient to take anywhere and relatively durable. DVD is simply good enough if not great all around as a home movie format.

VOD and Online Distribution
Though movies on DVD are not as convenient as music on an iPod, DVDs still offer much higher quality video than any video or movies you’ll get from the iTunes Store. The storage and bandwidth to digitally download movies, especially HD movies, isn’t yet there to replace DVD renting and buying habits.

As technology gets to that point, on demand movies may replace DVDs. Many cable operators offer very promising video on demand services with standard definition already. It’s just a matter of time until it’s offered in HD and with larger libraries to choose from.

Today however, processing, download time, and maintenance of large storage devices is too much effort for the normal user to take on versus buying/renting a movie.

As video codecs get faster, lighter, and create HD video that’s a manageable size, movies may become as easy to manage as songs are today. Time will tell if the capability emerges and consumers adopt it.

Summary
Both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray will likely experience slow growth unless the pricing of the high-def DVD formats is adjusted and quality issues are fixed, If they wait too long they just might become outdated before they have a chance to take off.  With the holiday shopping season ahead it should be interesting to see how it plays out.