As stunning as the PRO-710HD's image quality was, it in no way prepared us for the onslaught of new DVD technology Pioneer demonstrated to the media in their booth.
Lined up in a technological tour de force were a Pioneer HD-DVD Prototype Player, a DVD-RW Recorder, a Progressive Scan DVD Player, and two DVD-A Players.
Not a bad lineup for the future eh?
Starting with the first device, the Pioneer HD-DVD Player represents the beginning of the search for the next-generation of DVD video presentation.
HD-DVD Players will become the new
standard in late 2001
Current technology restricts DVD players to display either a 480-line interlaced image, or in the case of newer and more expensive players, an improved 480-line progressive scan image.
Compare this to a normal VCR player using VHS tapes with its 250-line interlaced image.
But with new HDTV broadcasts offering far better resolution and sharpness than even a 480p progressive scan DVD player, the need for an equivalent HD-DVD format is clear.
To tackle this challenge, Pioneer and other companies are experimenting with new types of lasers, media, and compression techniques to allow up to two hours of 720p or 1080i HDTV video to be stored on a HD-DVD disc. Right now there's no talk of a HD-DVD home recorder, but you can bet those will follow the playback-only HD-DVD players within a year or two of the initial 2001 introduction timeframe.
The blue HD-DVD disc holds 27GB of data per side.
The lower standard DVD disc holds 8.5GB per side.
Any questions?
The prototype HD-DVD player Pioneer displayed at CES looked fantastic, but it's clearly many months, if not years, away from production. Pioneer engineers told us to expect to see devices of this HD-DVD class arrive on the market in time for the 2001 Holiday season if all goes well.
We can't wait.