http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/ Engadget HD Comments for Microsoft exec touts HD streaming over discs, suggests Xbox 360 will outlast PS3 http://hd.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://hd.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 3:54PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Step 2: Download a 25gig movie, wait 2 to 10 hours depending on your internet connection. Simply forget it if you are in a very remote area.

Step 3: Enjoy your HD movie. No, it's not Harrison Ford or Angelina Jolie who's vaccuming in the background, it's simply the noise coming out of the 360. Hope you don't mind, just crank up the volume.

]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:06PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Step 1: Make sure there's enough space on your Hard Disk. Around 6GB should suffice for most movies.

Step 2: Begin your download. Wait 5-10 minutes and the movie will be ready to play on most residential cable broadband connections (the majority of US broadband homes.) For higher-speed connections such as FiOS or "boost" cable, your wait will only be around 30 seconds.

Step 3: Yes, older 360s make a hell of a lot of noise. Bummer.]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:48PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
360 has a WIDE selection of available movies for "purchase" (this is a joke) and rental. this is a great thing. but if you're any kind of audio/video buff (which most people on here are) you're not going to be too stoked about the less than stellar (high compression) video quality, and you're def not going to be satisfied w/ the audio quality compared to blu ray. on top of this you have the lack of interactivity, special features, even subtitles as another poster mentioned.

ps3 has the built in support for blu ray, which i think everyone knows the pros and cons of, so i wont even bother getting into it. but as the evolution of the ps3 continues, just like all next gen consoles (wii...wait outside, this doesn't include you) we have seen a few things added to its service. namely a PS store that supports downloads for movies and tv shows. the quality of the movies downloaded are going to be on par w/ the x360, which is going to be just fine for the majority of the population...but for audio/video buffs like me, there's simply no replacement for non compressed audio/pristine video.

so obviously, if all the next gen consoles support HD video downloads (wii...i said wait outside, this doesn't include you) but only the ps3 supports the best looking/sounding alternative...how could you even propose that the 360 is just as good in the media dept?

** oh and by the way, when that jackass exec talks about downloads being more important in the long run, they dont mean more important for the consumer, they mean more important for the company providing the service. because there's nothing like selling someone a product, that they really dont own. renting is one thing, i know. but to say "i'm going to SELL you this widget, but you can't take this widget where you want, you can't let friends borrow or use the widget, and you can't make a backup of the widget for safe keeping JIC. that's just a joke if you ask me. oh and by the way, did i mention that in your terms and conditions of buying the widget, it will also turn into smoke and disappear after 180 days? oops...didn't read that part? too bad. talk about moonshine. **]]>Nov 18th 2008 2:42AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I wouldn't call my 60gb ps3 "quiet" either. ]]>Nov 18th 2008 11:20AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
You can dispute the timing if you like, big deal. It doesn't matter.

It doesn't matter whether you think it's going to happen sooner or later (for most).

It doesn't matter if in 2, 3, 4 or 5yrs time a shrinking minority will be left on the fringes without a faster internet connection than we have right now.

The fact is that most will see speeds improve rapidly
(even more & especially as Govs around the globe invest in big capital spending infrastructure projects - which the national net certainly is).

Whether it's downloading or streaming (and downloading doesn't even need the speeds streaming does) it's coming.

It's just another piece of the retail movie pie breaking up more and more and heavily fracturing meaning that Blu-ray cannot possibly take DVDs place in the market because that market has changed out of all recognition.
Which in turn means that Blu-ray is destined to be merely a high margin short-lived niche.]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:14PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 4:39PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 4:44PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Metering is an easy one to deal with.
You just change ISP to one that does not throttle speeds and does not have caps.

@The Aggie CEO

You have no clue how things will be in just 2 years nevermind 5.

If you're old enough think back to how things were 15yrs ago, 10yrs ago or even 3yrs ago.

3yrs back I was on a 0.5mb broadband connection and broadband had only just come to my town.
Now I'm getting over 7mb out of my 'up to 8mb' connection and we're a couple of months off of the 'up to 24mb' connection coming
(which, if the ratios stay the same means I'll have about 22mb speed, easily fast enough for downloading whole Blu-ray discs in a reasonable amount of time & streaming live HD content).

When the libraries are up running & priced properly so that an ever-expanding catalogue of content is available there will simply be no need for hanging on to a physical copy
(although if you really insist I'm sure that at some point after you have paid that too will be a normal part of somebody's service for the more anal customer resolutely intent on building collections).

It's happening already.
Between video on demand from HD TV services to phone companies offering HD TV/VOD boxes to regular news of a new streaming services it begun.

How many engadget stories a months is it now (and this is only at this beginning stage)?

Wake up.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:54PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
1) Subtitles. I have a lot of trouble hearing some of the dialogue in noisy scenes, or when someone has a heavy accent. And of course, anyone who's truly hearing impaired will need this.

2) Additional languages. Being an anime fan, I generally prefer to watch my anime with Japanese spoken language with English subtitles. Not always. Sometimes the English dub is good enough, but it's still an option I want.

3) The ability to move it around my household to different devices, and to loan it out to friends (or borrow from them).

Yes, I think downloadable movies is probably the future. But I don't think that future will be quite as close as many people think, unless at least a few of my points above are addressed.]]>Nov 17th 2008 6:02PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 6:11PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
It is that simple. Usually.

I accept it isn't in every instance for everybody everytime everywhere.

But that's just the usual cr@p you get stuck with on the minority fringe.

For most it is simply a matter of changing to a properly run ISP that offers totally transperant pricing for exactly the service you want.

I used to use one of the big ISPs around here and they supposedly gave me an 'unlimited' service.
It was BS.
The throttled and they capped when they decided you were being 'unreasonable'.

So, after a little research, I switched.

I now pay a little bit extra ($1.50 a week) compared to before but I now get precisely the service I have paid for with no throttling and no arbitary limits.
I know exactly how much I can download at peak times and off peak
(and it's very generous and if I want more I can always buy another bigger package)]]>Nov 17th 2008 7:35PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 9:47PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Clearly you are the master of all that which is my world. Guide me, teacher of the arts of knowing everything!"

Clearly you're a blinkered troll who has been shown up for pushing a laughably unrepresentitive example (which may or may not be your own reality) and who imagines that extreme example will be taken seriously as representing anything like the majority.

Even on the northwester fringe of Europe (Ireland) I can have an 'up to 8mb' connection (and I'm a couple of months off of the 'C21N' tech coming in & giving me an 'up to 24mb' connection).
What sort of run-down nowhere tumble-weed place are you where you think most are on sub 2mb speeds?
Or is it that you can't afford a decent connection & expect it to come for free?

Teach me, oh ridiculous one. :P ]]>Nov 18th 2008 8:33AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
"Even on the northwester fringe of Europe (Ireland) I can have an 'up to 8mb' connection (and I'm a couple of months off of the 'C21N' tech coming in & giving me an 'up to 24mb' connection)."

I think that might be the disconnect in all our discussions about the way digital downloads are progressing based on download speeds. Things over here aren't going as quickly as they are in Europe apparently. You hear about the big cities over hear getting great speeds, but that's not the case for a lot of us. I live in the third largest city in Ohio (Cincinnati) and I don't have that great of DL speeds. I usually average about 3-4Mbps during the peak hours when I would be downloading/streaming movies (5-10pm weeknights). I could find faster service, but not for twice as much as I'm paying now...or even more. If this is my case, I'm guessing the whole of Ohio isn't much better and this hasn't changed in a long time. My DL speed today is about the same it was 2 years ago. That's great that things are moving along so fast for those of you in Europe, but it doesn't seem to be the case for much of us over here. In fact, I have a lot of friends that still don't even have internet because they can't justify the $30/month. You think they're going to fork over $60-80/month to get faster internet so they can stream HD content? (and yes, many of them without internet do have HD tvs) Just something to think about...]]>Nov 18th 2008 11:23AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
"What sort of run-down nowhere tumble-weed place are you where you think most are on sub 2mb speeds?
Or is it that you can't afford a decent connection & expect it to come for free?"

FYI, most of our country is in the "768kbps-6mbps" category. You don't have to live in a "tumble-weed place" to not have easy access to fast internet. I spend $30/month on internet and can't justify spending twice that for faster speeds. Not all of us have a ton of disposable income to blow on things like internet. I just bought a house and have more important things to worry about at the moment. I know you weren't talking to me, but you might as well have been...

http://www.speedmatters.org/pages/state.html]]>Nov 18th 2008 11:33AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I'm not arguing that nobody is lumbered with a slow speed in the US.
Of course some are.
Just as some are in Europe and anywhere else.

But the point still stands in respect of the majority and a reasonable expectation of a higher connection speed.

Most live in the cities.

If I lived in a major city I could, right now, buy a 24 - 50mb connection
(or if I were made of money a satellite link with 100mbup & 10mb down).
.....and if I were lucky enough to live in Sweden 100/10 would be perfectly normal & available in the citys too.

I know several Americans who live in cities who have that sort of connection so it undoubtedly does exist there too.

Nevertheless those who hold up the example of a (diminishing) minority and complain that because they are currently unable to get a decent connection that that means the rest of the world will still and not progress with downloading/streaming are clearly either deluded or game-playing.

It's perfectly clear that downloads & streaming are coming - and in a big way.
'The industry' loves it.
The consumer either is left holding many of the overheads or they are unnecessary and n longer a factor (think packaging & transport).

It's also perfectly clear that major capital spending to upgrade national infrastructure has just come back into fashion following the credit crunch and the economic disaster which is about to hit.

Change is coming and I suspect it wuill be a lot faster than many imagine.

I had expected only an 'up to 24mb' connection early next year, 2009, but tbh I now expect 50gb or more (fibre to the street telecom cabinet) during 2010. ]]>Nov 18th 2008 1:53PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
"I know several Americans who live in cities who have that sort of connection so it undoubtedly does exist there too."

I didn't say it doesn't exist. If you look at that map, there are places where you can get a faster connection. However, these are are far from common and I would go so far as to say they are a minority. Nobody is arguing that digital downloads won't take over. It's the timeline that is the major source for debate.

Who's going to foot the bill for this infrastructure when the average consumer doesn't want to spend the the money to upgrade their current service? Better yet, is this same person who won't buy Blu-ray because DVDs are "good enough" going to upgrade their internet service at twice the price (or more) just so they can watch HD downloads? I'm guessing they'll just stick to their HD cable/satellite and call it a day.

You've talked about selfish Blu-ray owners who are trying to get people to buy in so their costs go down, is this not the same selfishness that drives this bandwidth infrastructure increase? The average internet user does not need the type of bandwidth others need, yet we're all supposed to pay for it? Sounds selfish to me and I think they'll have a tough time getting the majority to buy into it.]]>Nov 18th 2008 2:10PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I think it's worth mentioning that there is an obvious (deliberate from some?) confusion between downloading and streaming.
Downloading does not require the same (buffer depending) high speeds as streaming.

I was downloading 8.5mb HD movies on my old 2mb connection easily.

Anyhow, I'm willing to bet that the major US centres (or centers) or population are no different to the major population centres anywhere else and between ISPs and telecoms companies a range of speed and bandwidth is on offer and available to the majority.

As for who is going to foot the bill for the coming capital spending projects?
It's obvious.
The taxpayer will.
Better that and reduce the effects of the prolonged deflationary economic hurricane that is coming than not.

I also think you are looking at this too narrowly.
Downloading and streaming is set to be a feature of a growing conjunction between the telecoms industry & HD TV services, not just specific movie sites & ISPs.

My own HD TV service, for instance, now offers a complete package with video on demand on the DVR they supplied as well as a phone service, they are now an ISP offering various broadband packages and they also provide me as a subscriber with a 'free' downloading/streaming service on a menu of movies on their website.

That sort of thing is happening more and more all around the world right now.

As I asked before, how many stories of these kinds of new services is engadget running each week?
2, 3 ....more?
Haven't you noticed?

I would agree that you're not so far off on the comment about cost-spreading - but your target is all wrong.
It's not the selfish individual that will press for this & mostly benefit, 'we' are just a fellow interested element in the equation and in effect a by-product.... once again it'll be business and commerce.

.....and they will succeed in transferring the bill onto the taxpayer & consumer too.

Govs will go along with this because the alternatives are even worse.
Not only is the long-term national interest clearly served by a country having a first class & modern national network but the positive effect of spending several billion on such beneficial national project(s) are worth creating.
]]>Nov 18th 2008 2:33PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I was downloading 8.5mb HD movies on my old 2mb connection easily."

No confusion here, we're on the same page. I also know that an HD movie that is 8.5gb will take much longer than a 8.5mb one and streaming that same file requires bandwidth beyond what I can purchase in my area. Hell, we haven't even been promised to have it in the future.

"Anyhow, I'm willing to bet that the major US centres (or centers) or population are no different to the major population centres anywhere else and between ISPs and telecoms companies a range of speed and bandwidth is on offer and available to the majority."

Yes, as I've said, there are faster speeds available. However, they are usually so cost-prohibitive that most cannot and will not pay for them. My dad can purchase 25mbps service in his area, but the $50+ price-hike over his current service puts it well out of reach for most people.

"My own HD TV service, for instance, now offers a complete package with video on demand on the DVR they supplied as well as a phone service, they are now an ISP offering various broadband packages and they also provide me as a subscriber with a 'free' downloading/streaming service on a menu of movies on their website."

Yes, we have this here too. I never use it, personally, because they want $6/24hr. movie rental, but it is available. Our cable companies over bundles with tv/phone/internet/VOD service.

Many people are leaving these cable services for satellite because they don't have the bandwidth to offer the same selections of HD channels without significant compression. Even then, they have half the channels, at best. Clearly, bandwidth is already a problem and rather than doing something about it, they're capping usage. This isn't a new problem and options like FiOS are starting to pop up, but we have a long way to go before it's common (i.e. more than a couple years...maybe 10 years?). Also not without, like you said, major taxpayer funding.

"Govs will go along with this because the alternatives are even worse.
Not only is the long-term national interest clearly served by a country having a first class & modern national network but the positive effect of spending several billion on such beneficial national project(s) are worth creating."

How about healthcare? We're bordering on third-world healthcare and we're supposed to fund first-class national networks? I have no doubt that this network will happen, but I don't think it will happen before our many, more pressing needs. Somehow I doubt this is at the top of anyone's agenda at the moment...beyond those that come to this site.]]>Nov 18th 2008 3:14PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I've downloaded movies off Live before, but that hasn't prevented me from buying a Sony BDP-350 (and a few movies).

We're an equal opportunity gadget family.]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:13PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 4:17PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
It was a deal that prevented Microsoft from cutting prices on the Xbox, thereby limiting its long-term competitiveness, so it was pretty much forced to cut Xbox loose and shift as quickly as possible to the 360.

With 360, Microsoft learned its lesson, and it has no deals that limit its flexibility and long-term competitiveness. It has the highest market share for a "next-generation" games console (ie. not the Wii), it has the widest selection of next-gen games and it carries the cheapest price point. All of which mean it is in the best position for long-term sustained sales of all the currently-selling consoles.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:04PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
What's ironic is that Comcast and AT&T with their choking of the bandwidth to prevent sharing/dl of movies (legal or illegal) and yet that general policy of "choking the net" is going against what big companies see as the future (digital streaming of movies, SD and HD).

Can someone please make some sense of this??]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:18PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Basically it's almost a conflict of interest in a sense. That's why they push these bundles so hard. Why use Xbox Live video service when Comcast or AT&T has the same movie on HD-VOD.

AT&T & Comcast both offer internet speeds of up to 18mb or higher, yet want to cap bandwidth. The caps are just to scare you from going outside their walled garden of a televison experience.]]>Nov 17th 2008 8:55PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 4:35PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 18th 2008 1:09PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
So, with a 1.5 Mbit connection I cannot stream HD content, no way, no how. I have downloaded a movie on my PS3 and DirecTV VOD and it takes too long. If I can hop in my car, drive to Blockbuster, pick out a movie, come home and watch the movie, then return the movie to Blockbuster all before the movie I picked finishes downloading to my hard drive, then online delivery fails.]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:36PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
No it doesn't. Downloading is a passive activity - set your box to download it and you can now do something else for awhile instead of having to drive to Blockbuster and back. For example, I can setup the system to start downloading before I eat dinner so that it's ready to play after dinner - and I didn't waste 20 minutes driving to get my movie.

Plus - you don't have to download the whole movie to the harddrive - it streams.

The major downside (and it probably isn't one to most people) is that the downloaded films are (I believe) still only 720p instead of 1080i/p.
]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:44PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/ 50 GB = 51200 MB (50*1024)
51200 MB = 52428800 KB (51200*1024)
Now the Average download speed is between 100 and 500KB/s (of course this depends on how much traffic is on the server and how many requests the server can handle)
52428800 KB/ 500KB/s = 104857.6 seconds
104857.6 / 60 = 1747.627 minutes
1747.627 / 60 = 29.127 hours
Now some of you are going to say that not all 50GB are used on a Blu ray disk. Ok ok true but 25GB = 14.564 hours. Now lets say they compress the files and you download the file, then after you download it you need to decompress it to watch the movie which going to take about the same amount of time to make sure that quality is as good as Blu ray.
15 to 29 hours are you f@#$ing kidding me. Like I am going to sit and wait to download one "HD" movie or download it and then decompress it when I could go to the store and buy as many as I want in 30 minutes and watch them when I get home. Internet HD downloading can kiss my @$$!! it still a long time before its possible for the average person to download HD movies over the internet]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:47PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Which brings me to the biggest point I'd like to make. "HD" downloads are truly separate in comparison, and really should be thought more as HD Lite. Frankly, I think the majority of regular consumers out there will be much more inclined to stick with pedestrian distribution channels like Netflix/Redbox and the more classic video rental institution than horsing around with video downloads. This is the strongest supportive argument for Blu-ray, assuming they can bring everything down to an affordable scale comparable to DVD. When it comes to purchasing things, people are most comfortable with what is physical and tangible. If I decide to sell a movie I've bought, I can do so if it is a physical thing. I can't resell a download, and even worse it will be a pain in the neck to recover if anything happens to the box I downloaded it with.

Full circle to the article, Microsoft is kidding themselves if they think they can position the Xbox to be the ultimate replacement for everyone's DVD player. The fail rate alone is unacceptable, much less all the other hassle included like Xbox Live membership fees. Nothing but a turnoff in every direction for people that truly value substance with simplicity over hype and empty promises.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:11PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Furthemore, movies on those high-capacity disks have almost no compression on them. If you go online, you find 720p rips of movies that have been compressed that are only 4-5 GB in size. If you got to 1080p, they're 9-10 GB in size. Its like CDs. The music on a CD takes up the whole 750MB, but if you covnert it to MP3 it can take as low as 1/10th of the same space.

So, if I decide to download a compressed 1080p movie at 2 MB/s it takes around 1 hour and 15 minutes. And, that compressed video can definetly be decompressed on the fly by something as processor intensive as an X360, so you don't have to "Unzip" the movie to watch it. Its called a codec: H.264.

And I'm just waiting for FiOS to get to my area to double that speed.

So, I think there is a future in digital downloads.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:16PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
What sort of pi$$-poor hick dead-end nowheresville is that?

I live in Europe (Ireland, the northwestern fringe) and I frequently get (on a decent torrent) on my 'up to 8mb connection) 730kbps, sometimes 750kbps.
8gbs in 3hrs is a regular reality.

When you strip out all the cr@p you only need 8.5gbs - 12gbs for a very nice good looking 1080p high def encode with decent full DTS audio @ 1.5mbps.

(and that's now from talented amateur encoders, professionals using professional tools will do much better)

MP3 already showed us that sort of quality trade-off is likely to be more than acceptable for most.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:18PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 5:38PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/VHS and DVD were revolutionary and so is downloading and streaming, blu ray is only evolutionary and is just a continuation of a 10 year old format.
Microsoft has the knowledge and resources to push the boundaries and make this thing huge,it might take a few years to grow this tech and hopefully then we'll have a well made and quiet XBox, but this is the future & they haven't scratched the surface with this yet where as spinning discs are maxed out and yesterdays technology.]]>Nov 17th 2008 4:59PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/This is the way of the future and not holding on to the past and the 360, and to a certain extent the PS3, are a bridge between the two.]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:04PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
netflix is going to have 300 HD movies, 10,000 movies total, available for instant streaming when the new dash goes live this week.

i think this could be a huge setback for blueray, depending on the quality and quantity if the movies offered, i think it could take off....]]>Nov 17th 2008 5:13PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 11:33PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Yesterday it was 2 AVI files that easily play on the PC but no joy on the 360, this whole downloading and streaming is new for me, can anyone help??]]>Nov 17th 2008 6:09PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 7:35PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 7:39PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 7:51PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
I think that digital distribution is important, but I see people using it as a way of renting movies instead of buying them. When people want to own a movie, they will always prefer something tangible like discs.

As for Xbox lasting beyond the PS3, that is absolute bullshit. How can they when they're readying the next xbox for 2011. ]]>Nov 17th 2008 8:46PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
Evenutally, over time yes in general the download speeds would be able to push out hd movie, but that will take time. Once that happens everyone would have access to downloads, sony, apple, and anyone who offers downloads. So Shane, you guys wont be the exclusive and only ones offering hd downloads. Right now, its more convenient and efficient to purchase blu ray disc than wait and download one.]]>Nov 17th 2008 9:37PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/I had a 360 go RROD on me also and the replacement
unit is also a noisy piece of hardware that cannot be ignored
as it humms away....a glaring design flaw if this is gonna win a spot
in my living room.

as for streaming HD, well I'm not sure how well that will go,
it will depend on how good/fast your connection is
and there is a valid debate on how ISP's will price their
services as the market for content develops.

fact is that there are many parts of the US that are still
on dial up. Luck me,I just speed tested my Fios connection it peaked at 17mb!
wow.... I don't need to tell you that fiber is not run to all markets though.

I'd like to see download/streaming alongside Blu-ray
but it could be that DVD might slow the adoption of both...
]]>Nov 17th 2008 9:28PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 17th 2008 10:11PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/It seems to me your logic is bogged down in a few areas. It generally takes me 4 hours to download a 4 Gig DVD ISO. So allowing ~15 hours for a 16 Gig movie seems reasonable. Assuming it takes ~15 hours to download a movie, if the movie is 2 hours in length you need to allow more than 30 minutes of buffering before you begin to watch it. (30 minutes of buffering + 2 hours gives you 2.5 hours... not even close to the 15 hour mark). With this approach you better start downloading the day before you plan to watch it.

@Rob78:
You say 25GB is overkill using modern encoding techniques... the 25GB is only achievable with modern encoding techniques such MPEG-4 compression. I also don't consider MPEG-4 to be dated compression. You can compress it more but at the expense of losing higher frequency frame information. A company could possibly create their own encoding scheme to get better compression ratio's with quality equal to MPEG-4. This is very unlikely and comes with expensive R&D costs; but even then the format would be propriety and not compatible with anything else. If the company goes under and stops selling players, your invested movie collection could be in jeopardy.

Personally in the U.S. I don't see point to point HD streaming as being practicable given the current Internet infrastructure. MS is only kidding themselves. Plus if they expect the XBOX 360 to outlast the PS3, they may want to rethink that position.]]>Nov 17th 2008 11:44PMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 18th 2008 1:26AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/Nov 18th 2008 1:29AMhttp://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/http://hd.engadget.com/2008/11/17/microsoft-exec-touts-hd-streaming-over-discs-suggests-xbox-360/
The HD movies you download on the 360 "all the time" must look like crap then. Let's assume you have a run-of-the-mill cable internet connection of 5 Mbps. When you subtract out the overheads such as TCP/IP headers, checksumming, etc... you're left with 3 Mbps for raw data. For streaming to be achievable, the download speed needs to be faster than or equal to the playback speed. Therefore this limits movies to 3 Mbps or less.

Considering a generic standard DVD with resolution of 720x480 has bitrates in the range of 6 to 10 Mbps, a 720p or 1080p movie with a 3 Mbps bitrate is severely constrained. Considering that an OTA 1080p broadcast has a bitrate upwards of 20 Mbps, 3 Mbps is a joke.

MS has two options to fix this and both aren't possible within the generous 10 year lifespan of the XBOX 360.

1: Increase the network speed. Upgrading the Internet infrastructure to increase the speed 6X within the next 10 years is beyond MS's reach.

2. Come up with better compression techniques for a 6X reduction in filesize. This solution might be possible in 15+ years but not within the lifespan of the XBOX 360.]]>Nov 18th 2008 9:33AM