Blu-ray player sales off to a slow start

Samsung's high-definition Blu-ray DVD player finally went on sale in US shops on Saturday, but early reports suggest that the players are not flying off the shelves. 

Hollywood news website MovieWeb reported that Samsung's BD-P1000 DVD player, which hit the shops five days after the first seven Blu-ray films on 20 June, aroused "little sales activity" but "plenty of confusion" among consumers. 

Samsung may find comfort in the news that Toshiba's rival HD-DVD player is also said to be selling slowly. 

With the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player retailing at between $447 and $549, according to pricegrabber.com, and Samsung's Blu-ray player costing around $999 (£540), consumers seem reluctant to make such a heavy investment before they know which format will have the greatest long-term success.

Just seven Blu-ray titles are currently available to buy, including House of Flying Daggers and The Terminator, all from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

Several more releases have been announced, including Sleepy Hollow from Paramount Pictures and The Matrix from Warner Bros. 

Toshiba's entertainment partners producing discs in HD-DVD format include Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Warner Home Video and TV company HBO.

Both high-definition DVD formats offer a much clearer image than standard DVD, with 1,080 lines of resolution rather than 480. A DVD's 4.7GB capacity is dwarfed by an HD-DVD disc's 15GB/30GB capacity and Blu-ray's 25GB/50GB (single-layer/dual-layer).

UK consumers are expected to be able to buy the Samsung Blu-ray DVD player in September.

While the public may choose to wait before making a decision in the high-definition DVD war, they can rest assured that they need not replace their movie collections. Both HD-DVD and Blu-ray drives are able to play standard DVDs.

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