Hey, I'm enjoying Blu-ray movies with a PS3 right now. I just don't think standalone players offer enough over a PS3 to buy one at this point. I think the main benefit would be to be without the PS3's fan noise.
I almost considered getting a PS3. But I already have 360 and Wii so I knew i wouldn't use the gaming side of PS3 much. Since it doesn't decode as many as Samsung 1400, I went with that.
And having a movie format be an evolving format kind of defeats the purpose of having a standard in the first place. It's different from computers, where there's a wide range of purposes. These players are for watching movies, and incidentally, for playing music on, too. Are you telling me that these functions are too much to have the standard in place before the first units reach the market?
I agree 100%. For casual non tech-savvy users, Bluray is absolutely not ready.
And yes, I've invested heavily into both formats, as I have no major financial obligations, but I was thinking in terms of a more casual consumer, who just wants a player that will play all of the discs he buys. I think that consumer would be better served buying a multi-purpose device like the PS3, where they can get value beyond just movie playing. Once they stop having profile revisions, I'm all for standalones, as I myself want more audio output options.
*IF* you play games. And that's a *BIG* if for a lot of people. Especially when you consider that most new games are $55USD or more.
