Wii vs... the 360 HD DVD drive?

We were amusing ourselves fooling around with the Wii today when we realized that Nintendo's biggest competitor this season may not actually be the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation 3. It's Microsoft's freaking HD DVD drive. Think about it: besides the obviously similar size (seriously, what's up with that? couldn't Microsoft slim that thing down a little?), they're the two next-gen gaming devices coming out this season closest to one another's price range; chances are you already have a 360, so when you can't get a Wii because they're all sold out worldwide, it's a fair assumption that you'll be buying (or receiving) an HD DVD drive instead. We know some of you just winced a little, but just you wait and see -- we want no whining when the box you unwrap Chrismahanukwanzakah morning turns out to be a game peripheral instead of a game system. Ok, (kindly) discuss.

[Neeks @ Nov 15th 2006 8:10PM]

Hah, you WISH I'd want one of em HD-DVD drives for my 360.

..

...*rushes out to store and preorders HD-DVD drive for 360.*
So yeah, as I was saying. No HD-DVD drive for me!

[Jon @ Nov 15th 2006 8:18PM]

Guess you don't have a nice 60" 1080P tv then .. Because people who do , will get one , (i have the Hd-dvd add on , and its worth every penny) .. Also picking up my PS3 on friday , so i can do a complete head to head of HD-dvd Vs. Blu Ray on my own , But HD-DVD looks stunning .. Mi3 and King Kong looks Alot Better then anything ive seen on even discovery HD ..

So if you want to best HD today and own a 360 why not get it ? its just $200 w/ a free movie anyhow

[Karm @ Nov 15th 2006 8:12PM]

That thing looks nasty, too bad they aligned the Wii with the front of the HD DVD Drive in the third picture, to make the Drive look bigger from the back as well.

[Nerdtalker @ Nov 15th 2006 9:20PM]

I'd like an Xbox HD DVD drive too, just so I can use it on the PC to playback HD DVD movies...

It's a pretty generic drive in there. Amazing though, that the Wii is smaller than your typical 5.25" drive (which is what Microsoft is essentially using).

[Dragon of the Pants @ Nov 15th 2006 8:15PM]

Nice reflection of the guy snapping the pic. (Look at the HD-DVD disk tray)

[Karm @ Nov 15th 2006 8:17PM]

hmm seems to be a conehead...

[Stuart @ Nov 15th 2006 8:16PM]

Is that a hacked Ritz Digital Camera I see?

[Blake @ Nov 15th 2006 8:19PM]

EXIF data anyone?

[Ryan Block @ Nov 15th 2006 8:27PM]

Nope, it's a small Panasonic point and shoot.

[Porsche 911 @ Nov 16th 2006 2:33AM]

I have a nice 60in. HDTV and I have an Xbox360. Nevertheless, no HDMI means, no HDCP, which means, no worthless HD-DVD drive running on a nonnative 1080p system. Movies over 1080p are for VGA only, otherwise videos will be 480p over component. Not many 60in. HDTVs support 1080p over analog, such as component or VGA, not many TVs have VGA inputs. BTW, I am also going to get a PS3, so the Xbox360�s HD-DVD player would be useless to me. Well, I might buy one if the price falls to $100.

[Blake @ Nov 15th 2006 8:18PM]

Thats effing sick that microsoft's external drive is bigger than nintendo's entire console......

[Drew @ Nov 15th 2006 8:20PM]

What? That doesn't make any sense: "they're the two next-gen gaming devices coming out this season closest to one another's price range"

The Xbox 360 HD DVD drive is not a "next-gen gaming device"!

[Paul @ Nov 15th 2006 9:35PM]

Did you even read the engadget article?

[Ali Emamdjomeh @ Nov 15th 2006 8:22PM]

...
hhahahahahhahhahahahahahahhahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

thats amazing
silly xbox, YOUR THE SIZE OF A MOUNTAIN!!!

[humpty @ Nov 15th 2006 8:22PM]

Someone needs to hack the PS3 so it can connect to the HD-DVD add-on: that would be the ultimate HD video setup.

[Karl @ Nov 15th 2006 8:28PM]

linux has support for external drives. Providing you can get a linux driver for the device, you could use it with a PS3.

[Adrian Williams @ Nov 16th 2006 9:16AM]

I been saying that for the past two weeks after engadget ran the article about hooking up a xbox hddvd to a pc

[Weston @ Nov 15th 2006 8:25PM]

that is a rather sexy angle there in pic #2

hmm....

if the Wii is still in stock by tuesday (payday) ill gladly pick one up.

[neuroPuff @ Nov 15th 2006 8:25PM]

If I owned an Xbox 360, I would more likely want to own a second system than a peripheral that allows me to watch movies in high definition. I could watch Water World or Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, but I'd rather play Twilight Princess. The "harcore" _gamer_ is likely to buy video game products, rather than, more high definition garbage.

[Devin @ Nov 15th 2006 8:25PM]

yeah, well look at the size of the freaking ps3, it apparently has a mass of about 7 or 8 lbs! ITS GIGANTIC. I Believe it is the size of a small planet, as apposed to the mountain K-360

[Reality Check @ Nov 15th 2006 8:26PM]

The reason the Wii is so small is because it is so lacking in graphical and computational power compared to it's competitors. I do not plan on getting the Wii. It doesn't interest me at all and strikes me as a kids system.

I have the xbox 360 HD-DVD drive and it is worth every penny. Amazing picture quality and sound.

[Zorque @ Nov 15th 2006 11:47PM]

Yeah, too bad about Red Steel, the new Farcry, future Resident Evil games, and the new Zelda, huh? Kids games for sure.

[rockintom99 @ Nov 16th 2006 4:53AM]

Out of curiosity, how does that make the system itself smaller? CPUs and GPUs are very small components, and the speed has no bearing on the size of the system.

[Devin @ Nov 15th 2006 8:26PM]

My plan. Work overtime and buy both. No whining

[arch @ Nov 15th 2006 8:30PM]

BAH WHO CARES! go Wii AND 360!

[Karl @ Nov 15th 2006 8:31PM]

The reason I wouldn't buy that HDDVD drive is because it seems Microsoft only released it because Sony were backing Blu-Ray, and they had to support the opposite.

I'm not confident HDDVD will 'win' the format war, so the Wii is the better investment IMO.

[Porsche 911 @ Nov 16th 2006 2:17AM]

I agree with you 100%.

[Montusama @ Nov 15th 2006 8:37PM]

Even M$ can't beat Nintendo in size!

[ken fager @ Nov 15th 2006 8:53PM]

Is Microsoft even planning to release gaming software on HD-DVD for the 360? If no, then does the drive really qualify as a gaming device?

[Robotron @ Nov 15th 2006 8:54PM]

I guess I shouldn't be surprised by the amount of MS staff posting here.
Now if they could just train them to spit out something intelligent instead of the same old "Nintendo is kiddy" or "OMG the HD-DVD is bascially free if you count the remote as costing $100 and the movies for another $100" people could actually be fooled.

[Johan @ Nov 15th 2006 8:54PM]

What I done understand, is why microsoft put the dvd slot on the side

I mean, MAKE IT MATCH THE 360 CORRECTLY

Im not sure about you guys, but i dont keep my 360 with cables facing the ground, which is the only way the HDDVD drive would correctly match

gosh. that really irritates me.

[Porsche 911 @ Nov 16th 2006 2:36AM]

Wow, I totally agree with you, this has been bugging me for a while. I could not have said this any better. This is the second reason why I do not want to buy this, first is no HDMI support.

[Eddie @ Nov 15th 2006 8:56PM]

"Even M$"?

Since when have they ever tried to make things smaller?

The Xbox was not small at all, neither is the 360 (An improvement, but not really), and Vista is not only bloated programmatically, but it also costs a hell of a lot, as do their bloated 360 peripherals.

BTW: 'Programmatically' is a word, and I spelled it correctly, so I don't want to see any wise asses correcting me.

[horsie890 @ Nov 16th 2006 12:43AM]

I agree. The 360's power supply alone is heavier than a Gamecube.

[jason @ Nov 15th 2006 8:56PM]

I Have a HD-DVD Drive and I love it.

[Eric V @ Nov 15th 2006 9:00PM]

Sure comparing the Wii little Nintendo to the Encyclopedia like HD-DVD drive for the Xbox 360 is funny, but don't forget how big and expensive stand-alone HD-DVD players are.

Comparing both of their features, size, and price tags shows why high-def enthusiasts would pick Microsoft's add-on over a stand-alone Toshiba.

Buy both Xbox 360 and the HD-DVD add-on for about half the cost of a comparable 1080p HD-DVD player. ;)

[Darrell Lucas @ Nov 16th 2006 1:36AM]

you cant say the same for PS3? game console with High Def DVD player all in one? i see where you lay... Bias

[myscrnnm @ Nov 15th 2006 9:01PM]

What Microsoft needed to do was make the HD DVD drive internal and have it in the Xbox 360. That way, you won't have this large disc drive next to your XBox 360, which when you think about it, is pretty stupid, cuz then you've got two optical drives that could have been one. This is also why the PlayStation 3 is the only true "next-generation" video game console, because it is the only one of the three that uses a next-generation storage medium.

[jack @ Nov 15th 2006 9:59PM]

yessssss cuz u say x360 isnt next gen its not. yes u make alot of sense. you must be a freakin expert oh my, x360 isnt next gen cuz it doesnt have a new next generation storage system so it must not be next gen! your an expert you should work for sony or microsoft with you they would of won the console war you freakin genius.

p.s. its PLAYSTATION 3 not PlayStation 3 so much for you being an expert.

[nVidiot @ Nov 15th 2006 9:06PM]

Yes, since having a larger storage medium makes the games more "next-gen"!!!

Sony's decision to put Blu-Ray in the PS3 has nothing to do with gaming.

[Sam @ Nov 15th 2006 9:44PM]

You wont be able to watch HD-DVD without Vista, a new monitor and video card that are compatible with whatever gay standards M$ puts out. You might as well dish out for the HD-DVD Drive for your PC anyway.

Actually the Wii is a bit bigger, ive already checked to see if i could fit it into my 5.25 bay

[mitch @ Nov 15th 2006 9:24PM]

I think that the way MS has approached this is good. People who are not interested in playing HD-DVDs do not have to pay for something they will not need, while people do have the option. However, for someone who just wants a gaming console, the PS3 comes with Blu-ray, regardless if people want it or not, they must pay for it.

[Sam Haakenstad @ Nov 15th 2006 10:39PM]

Well, Sony wants this. If they get it anyway, they are more likely to buy movies on Blue-Ray then if they had a Choice.

[Timerider @ Nov 15th 2006 9:26PM]

I've been saving all year to buy a Wii on Sunday morning. I can't find a job so I can't buy a 360; I'd like one though.

[DM @ Nov 15th 2006 9:36PM]

Funny how apple fanboys start again with the " that thing is so big , that thing is so ugly " nonsense again. Enough of it already. Yes, apple fanboys are disguising themselves as nintendo lovers since apple doesnt have a console, they have no choice but to choose anything that is not from ms, or choose the ones that is smaller/sleeker, just like their ipods. Typical. Someone made a great point earlier, only reason why wii is smaller because it does not have the same power , and that wii is a kids system. This thing is supposed to be stationary, they are not DAPs that you carry around and fit inside your pocket so size does not matter at all. Give more emphasis to its performance for a change.

[Sam @ Nov 15th 2006 9:40PM]

graphics, graphics, graphics! It seems that graphics are all people care about these days when it comes to gaming!

Whats even worse is that people think that by beefing up CPU and graphics power means that Sony and Microsoft has made a "Next-Gen" gaming system. The only things that this brings to a game is more pixels on the screen, thats it.

Nintendo may not have the most powerful system on the market, but Nintendo is the company that is leading the way in "Next-Gen" systems.

I'm sorry that often people refer to Nintendo games as "kiddie games" but they're about having fun. FYI, you don't have to kill people in WWII to have a good time!

[Jason @ Nov 15th 2006 9:55PM]

Honestly! The PSP had excellent graphics, but it sucks because of GAMEPLAY it's called a video _game_ system for a reason, and so far, Nintendo has had the best gameplay of every system, not just microsoft ones. And generally, I like Sony products, just not their video games.

[DM @ Nov 15th 2006 10:13PM]

"graphics, graphics, graphics! It seems that graphics are all people care about these days when it comes to gaming!"

It's called innovation. You could see why black and white T.V.'s are obsolete now don't you?

[Molly C @ Nov 15th 2006 11:51PM]

Check out Gears of War, then dismiss it as "just more pixels!!" with a straight face.

[Camperton @ Nov 15th 2006 9:48PM]

I ordered one. It'll get me through the night till a decent dual format stand alone player comes along.

It'll be fun watching HD movies. Remember fun?