After recent news of the impending death of the high-def disc format HD DVD, I wrote: “If you bought an HD DVD player, especially during the recent price drops, figure that you got a good deal on a decent upconverting player that will make standard DVDs look sharp on your HDTV.”

Apparently, Toshiba, the major backer of HD DVD, is thinking the same thing. The company announced today that it has cut the price of its new line of HD DVD players by 50 percent of their original price just a few months ago — from $150 for the entry-level HD-A3 to $300 for the slick HD-A35. And, get this — as observers such as High Def Digest and Don Lindich were quick to point out — it also played up the fact that the players do a nifty job of making standard DVDs look swell on HDTVs by up-converting their resolution. Just keep in mind that you’ll see the benefits of this feature only if you send the video signal to your display via an HDMI cable.  

Amazon is already selling the HD-A3 for $132 with free shipping. Don notes that Costco has it for $129. Plus there are all kinds of rebates to get 5 to 7 free HD DVDs with a player purchase. The retail price of those free discs exceeds the price of the player. Heck, pretty soon, Toshiba just might pay you to go HD DVD. 

Bad news: DVD sales were down in 2007. Good news: DVDs are still the biggest entertainment format — by far.

One of the things lost amid all of the cool new products debuted at the recent Consumer Electronics Show was the Digital Entertainment Group’s annual report on DVD sales for the previous year. Total consumer spending on DVDs in 2007, including the new high-def formats and rentals, was $23.7 billion, according to DEG. That’s down from $24.2 billion in 2006. (The peak year for the format was $24.5 billion in 2004.)

Sure, DVD sales continued their slight downward trend in 2007, but consumers still spend more on them than any other entertainment format. For example:

Video games: They are the closest competition that I can find. Final figures aren’t in for 2007, although they are expected to be close to a record-setting $19 billion. But a huge caveat is that about half of that figure is for sales of relatively expensive systems and accessories. It also doesn’t include rentals of games. On a comparable figure for just software, video games will probably be right around $10 billion for 2007.  

Music: No monetary figures have been reported for 2007; the industry always wants to express things in terms of albums sold. But with fewer than 600 million albums sold in 2007 (including digital downloads, with 10 songs equaling one album) at an average price of, say, $15-$18, that’s a total of $9 billion to $10.8 billion. 

Books: This is another hard one to figure, because there is no standardized reporting and figures haven’t been listed for 2007. But 2006 sales for reading books (not textbooks, professional books, etc.) was $16.6 billion, according to one study.

Movies: In a record year, Hollywood posted box-office revenues of less than $10 billion for the film industry in 2007.

Theater: Again, no standardized reporting is done nationwide. But Broadway just reported a record year of less than $1 billion in 2007. Adding community and regional theaters across the country surely wouldn’t rival any of the figures above.

Sports: Baseball and the NFL are widely considered to be the biggest thing going, and their recent annual revenues were right around $6 billion each.

To a casual observer like me, DVDs still look pretty darn good. Hollywood doesn’t agree. It’s not enough that people spend more on DVDs; the studios want continued growth. That’s why they’re pushing new high-def discs to reinvigorate the format.

HD DVD’s rejection by Warner Home Video was the biggest story, by far, out of the Consumer Electronics Show, which ended today. Here’s a mop-up of the fallout after the largest home-video company decided to offer its sole support to the competing Blu-ray Disc, based on online reports and anecdotes from industry observers who attended the annual trade show in Las Vegas:

Following suit: As expected, HBO Video and New Line Home Entertainment, which are separately run companies under Warner Home Video, also have dropped HD DVD in favor of Blu-ray. New Line had issued only one HD DVD title, Pan’s Labyrinth, which it also released in Blu-ray.

Big money: Despite Warner denying it and original Blu-ray backer Sony remaining mum, rumors swirled around CES that Warner received a $500 million payout to go Blu-ray-only. If so, that would buy a lot of appetizers for Warner Bros.’ upcoming 85th-anniversary bash.

Big storm: Oddly, in its first release announcement since its sudden decision, Warner says it will finally issue the oft-delayed high-def title “Twister” in both Blu-ray and HD DVD formats on May 6. The tornado-chasing movie was a huge demo title that got the original DVD format off the ground in the late ’90s, so its ironic that it will be one of the last HD DVD releases for Warner.

Say nothing: Warner’s announcement left Universal and Paramount (with DreamWorks) as the only major backers of HD DVD. But neither studio has said a thing about its HD DVD plans, despite CES being the usual platform for announcing upcoming titles. Paramount has issued statements offering weak support for HD DVD, but many people see their silence as a sign that they plan to drop HD DVD support soon, too. They have no other choice with Blu-ray getting all the props. Paramount reportedly received a large payout to go HD DVD-only, so it will be interesting to see how that might complicate such a move.

Blu-ray bigger: This week’s positive news has emboldened the Blu-ray camp to predict that by the end of this year, 10 million Blu-ray players, including the PlayStation 3, will have been sold to that date.

Oh, yes: In a report from PC Magazine about how the adult-video industry has so far generally remained on the sidelines in the high-def war, one industry exec said that porn’s likely move to Blu-ray would be one big shrug. “Blu-ray is ‘a little bit of a headache’ because of royalty fees, but it’s ’six of one, a half dozen of the other’ with the format wars,” said Jeff Thill of the Hustler Video Group, according to PC Mag. But he added that at least Blu-ray “sounds sexier.”  

Forget HD: Some industry observers insist that even with Blu-ray as the apparent winner of the high-def war, its fortunes will last only a few years — if it even takes off with the mass market. The reason? Consumers are moving toward downloadable video, just as they have with music. Says Iowa electronics retailer Michael Fischer, who would seem to have a vested interest in selling Blu-ray players:

“Yes, I know, Wal-Mart just threw in the towel on the [video-download] business. The problem is that right now, most people can download movies to their computer, but that’s where it stalls out. People want to watch movies on their TVs, not their computers. Manufacturers are aware of this and are looking to address it. This is a ‘quantum leap’ kind of challenge that impacts not just retailers but the end users — that means you, the person who loves consumer electronics.”

High Def Digest has been doing a great job of keeping up with developments in the high-def war, so be sure to check it out for regular coverage.

CNET has bestowed its annual Best of CES Awards for the top products debuted at the Consumer Electronics Show. The winner of best in show went to Philips’ Eco TV, a flat-panel LCD display that conserves energy by adjusting the brightness in response to program content. A benefit of the HDTV, which also won CNET’s TV category, is that dimming the display for, say, a night scene not only saves energy but provides deeper blacks.

Other winners of CNET’s Best of CES Awards are:

Car tech and GPS: Azentek’s in-dash PCs, which offer traditional Windows functions along with GPS, stereo and cell-phone integration.  

Cell phones: Motorola’s Rokr E8, which seamlessly integrates music playback and has a nifty “morphing” touch-pad interface. It also won the People’s Voice Award, based on votes from CNET readers.

Computers: Lenovo’s IdeaPad and IdeaCentre laptops, which are entertainment-oriented and feature nice design touches, such as a “frameless” screen and textured finish.

Digital photography: Sony’s Alpha DSLR-A100, a 10-megapixel dSLR for $700.

Emerging technologies: Bug Labs’ Bug Base and Bug Modules, a wildly configurable geek toy that allows users to create all kinds of gadgets with open-source software.

Gaming: Nyko’s wireless Nunchuk contoller for the Nintendo Wii, which gets rid of the bothersome cord that typically connects the secondary controller to the main Wiimote. 

Home audio: Logitech’s Squeezebox Duet, a $400 network digital audio streamer that allows users to better manage their digital music collection.

Home video: EchoStar’s TR-50, a high-def DVR that allows people to record HD programs that they receive via over-the-air antennas. (I could actually use this, but CNET gives no price.)

Portable audio and video: iRiver’s W7, an MP3 player that offers GPS capabilities through an optional car mount.

How fashionable: a strikingly colored stun gun that you can accessorize with an MP3 player. The Consumer Electronics Show always produces some techno-oddities, and they

TASER C2 stun gun in its leopard-print version.

surely include the new leopard-print TASER C2 stun gun, aimed at women. But, wait — there’s more. With an MP3 player that’s built into a carrying case for the C2, the also-new TASER MPH (Music Player Holster), you can listen to music while you tote your C2 stun gun, also available in “fashion pink” and “red-hot red.” (An incorrect report from the London Telegraph that the MP3 player and TASER are combined into one device will surely start some urban legend.) TASER will sell the stylish C2 and its MP3-carrying holster for about $550 combined when they’re available in four to six weeks. TASER promotes the TASER MPH as allowing “personal protection and personal music for people on the go.” Of course, if you’re so busy listening to cranked-up music while walking down some dark street, you might never hear that attacker you’re hoping to stun.

The TASER MPH (Music Player Holster) holds the C2 stun gun and has a built-in 1-gigabyte MP3 player.

Our latest eyewitness report from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas comes from Michael Fischer, who runs the venerable Nielsen’s electronics stores (in the business for 85 years!) in Spencer, Iowa, and is past chairman of the North American Retail Dealers Association. Michael is a CES veteran who says that innovation, innovation and innovation are his primary focus in scoping out all the goodies at the annual trade show.

“The trick is know which ones will actually show up in the marketplace and which ones will remain a dream,” he said. “You look for products that make things better and easier for consumers.”

With that in mind, here, in his e-mailed words, are some emerging technologies that impressed him: 

Walk into the light
Emerging on the scene are LED (light emitting diodes) light sources instead of CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent lighting) tubes inside of LCD TV’s. One supplier, Samsung, has already introduced the technology into the marketplace with its 81 series product. What makes LED better? While I hate using contrast ratio for determining picture quality (it’s an almost useless number), there is clearly a better image with the products I saw with the technology. Blacker blacks, better detail, colors that pop – it’s obvious that LED technology is a big step forward.

Both Toshiba and Sharp, among others, showed prototypes. While I don’t believe anyone should buy a TV based on a contrast ratio, the Toshiba and Sharp prototypes have incredibly rich and deep blacks and color graduation that a conventional CCFL tube cannot reproduce. Just so you understand what an LED light source is, it is very similar to a room light controlled by a rheostat control that can make the light brighter or dimmer . Because the LED can do this so much better than the current light source, colors are richer, deeper and there is incredible color range. While manufacturers are incredibly tight lipped about when product will be available, my guess is that one of these manufacturers, if not both, will introduce the product in the fall if for no other reason than to keep Samsung from getting too far out in front. 1080P, 120 hz and LED light sources tell me we haven’t seen anything yet in terms of the picture quality LCD and LED can reproduce.

Thin is in
There’s a lot of reaction to Sony and Samsung bringing organic E.L. display (OLED) product to the marketplace. Sony has planned to bring it out in the spring in a small screen size (under 12 inches and reported to be $2500). The advantage of organic displays is that they will be very thin – roughly half-inch thickness. The technology is currently used in cell phone and car audio CD player displays. What we don’t know a lot about is how these displays will work for the average viewer. For instance, how will it handle fast moving and changing scenes (like in sports). And brightness levels. The prototypes looked good – but there’s a difference sometimes between what the demonstration video and real-life signal sources look like.

OLED wasn’t the only thin technology. Sharp showed a prototype LCD panel that was 1080P, with a LED lightsource — and was approximately 1.3 inches thick (actually 29 millimeters, but it’s been a while since I had to convert millimeters to inches). The 52-inch display was simply stunning. One Sharp official told me that this was intended to be 2010 product. Time will tell. Samsung had similar prototype product  No matter how narrow organic EL display is, it isn’t going to be that much narrower than 1.3 inches –- and LCD is a proven technology. The $64 question is how much more are you going to pay for a TV that has less than 1 inch difference in “thickness”.

Not to be outdone, Pioneer Electronics, which builds high-end plasma product, jumped on the “thin is in” bandwagon as well. Pioneer showed a 50-inch plasma display that was less than 7/8-inch thick and weighed less than 40 pounds, according to a sales representative. That’s significantly less than a current plasma or LCD TV in the 50-inch category. That means wall mounting, which is sometimes an issue with plasmas because of weight, wouldn’t be if and when this product comes to market. Projected release date is in the 2009-2010 time frame.

Look, Ma, no wires[br]One last innovation caught my eye. Samsung will come out with 50- and 58-inch plasma displays with the ability to receive a high-def signal from a remote transmitter in the same room this year. This means mounting a plasma TV over the fireplace just got easier because running connection wires (with the exception of the power cord) just got eliminated.

How much of this cool technology will show up eventually? The short answer is: Most of it. Just keep this in mind: By the time it does show up, the manufacturers will have come up with something else you’ll just have to have.

Good stuff. Thanks, Michael.