LOS ANGELES -- Microsoft weighed into a video game makers' showdown here on Tuesday by revealing plans to link players of its Xbox 360 consoles via computers or mobile telephones.

Microsoft chief Bill Gates announced the company's "Live Anywhere" initiative
at a packed press preview in the famed Grauman's Theater on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

Gates predicted that by this time next year, more than six million gamers would be connected to the Xbox Live entertainment network using PCs or mobile telephones with Microsoft computer operating systems.

"By opening the Xbox Live entertainment network to the entire universe of Windows and mobile gamers, we're creating unparalleled gameplay opportunities that will drive incredible growth of the online community," Gates said.

"Our vision is to deliver consistent, compelling experiences that make it easy for consumers to jump in and play, from any device at any time."

Currently, more than 25 million "casual gamers" play on MSN Messenger and MSN Games, according to Gates.

Video game titans Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony were vying for the spotlight as the world's largest electronic games tradeshow got underway in Los Angeles.

Gates bragged to the audience that Microsoft took a strong lead over its video game rivals by releasing the Xbox 360 late last year.

He predicted that 10 million of the new Xbox systems will be in gamers' hands by the time Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii are available in stores.

Sony and Nintendo expected to have new consoles on the market by year's end.

As Gates was preparing to take the stage in Grauman's Theater, Nintendo's president was next-door in the historic Kodak Theatre demonstrating the Japanese company's innovative Wii game system.

Nintendo promised Wii would be in stores by the last three months of 2006 and that it would be "less money for more fun" than competing systems.

LOS ANGELES -- Microsoft weighed into a video game makers' showdown here on Tuesday by revealing plans to link players of its Xbox 360 consoles via computers or mobile telephones.

Microsoft chief Bill Gates announced the company's "Live Anywhere" initiative
at a packed press preview in the famed Grauman's Theater on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

Gates predicted that by this time next year, more than six million gamers would be connected to the Xbox Live entertainment network using PCs or mobile telephones with Microsoft computer operating systems.

"By opening the Xbox Live entertainment network to the entire universe of Windows and mobile gamers, we're creating unparalleled gameplay opportunities that will drive incredible growth of the online community," Gates said.

"Our vision is to deliver consistent, compelling experiences that make it easy for consumers to jump in and play, from any device at any time."

Currently, more than 25 million "casual gamers" play on MSN Messenger and MSN Games, according to Gates.

Video game titans Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony were vying for the spotlight as the world's largest electronic games tradeshow got underway in Los Angeles.

Gates bragged to the audience that Microsoft took a strong lead over its video game rivals by releasing the Xbox 360 late last year.

He predicted that 10 million of the new Xbox systems will be in gamers' hands by the time Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii are available in stores.

Sony and Nintendo expected to have new consoles on the market by year's end.

As Gates was preparing to take the stage in Grauman's Theater, Nintendo's president was next-door in the historic Kodak Theatre demonstrating the Japanese company's innovative Wii game system.

Nintendo promised Wii would be in stores by the last three months of 2006 and that it would be "less money for more fun" than competing systems.

for the moment, xbox 360 rules...but a lot of people here are saving their money for the PS3

..and PS3 is more powerfull compared to xbox 360 ..and PS3 will be running on a blue ray technology...if the sales of the PS3 is successful...the blue ray format might take a lead for manufacturers to mass produce blue ray format dvd players[against HD DVD]:C

for the moment, xbox 360 rules...but a lot of people here are saving their money for the PS3

..and PS3 is more powerfull compared to xbox 360 ..and PS3 will be running on a blue ray technology...if the sales of the PS3 is successful...the blue ray format might take a lead for manufacturers to mass produce blue ray format dvd players[against HD DVD]:C





ah ganun ba. im sure mag-hhit yang "blu ray technology" lalo na dito sa pinas. :C thanks for the info bro.

DVDs are the current standard for data storage, and perhaps more importantly the publishing format standard as well. The question is however, how much longer will they be sufficient? A much anticipated battle, or ‘format war’ if you will, is in progress similar to that seen in the 1980’s between VHS and Betamax. This time around the same companies have fallen into the same camps and war is ensuing between Blu-ray and HD DVD technology.

Knowing very little about either, I decided to investigate these formats and what follows is hopefully an unbiased presentation of facts. At this time it is hard to say if there is a leader in this format race, or if there will ever be one, with products still not available in the retail market, and from what was shown at recent CES 2006 expo, manufacturers are still working hard on first generation players, which will inevitably be replaced just a few months later with more refined products once they reach the masses. Hopefully after reading this article you will be better informed about the two technologies, and why not, pick your own favorite, or call the industry for a much needed convergence (think of dual-format DVD±RW drives nowadays).

Blu-ray Disc (BD) is one of the next-generation optical disc formats currently being proposed. It is designed for high-definition video and high-density data storage. The technology was developed by a group of companies working under the name Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA). The main supporter of this technology is Sony. As you can tell by now, the main competitor to Blu-ray technology is HD DVD, which is backed chiefly by Toshiba.

HD DVD has been recognized as the only format of approved next-generation technology by the DVD Forum, which is a group of 230 companies who develop and define DVD formats. Members of this forum include every big name in music, movies and the computer industries, while Toshiba is the organization maintaining the forum. The vote to name HD DVD as the successor of DVD technology was 8 to 6, and many of the companies within the forum are backing Blu-ray technology.


Blu-ray Technology


Blu-ray technology is currently available only in Japan for recording HDTV. The US launch is said to take place in early 2006, with other countries to follow.

There are three types of Blu-ray formats planned:

* BD-ROM for pre-recorded media such as software, games and movies
* BD-R (recordable) for HDTV recording and PC data storage
* BD-RE (rewritable) for HDTV recording and PC data storage

As with all new technology it will initially be more expensive to run.


Capacities


Blu-ray supports more data capacity per layer compared to HD DVDs. That is 25GB per layer versus 15GB of HD DVD. Technically it can fit three different capacities; 25GB is merely the average, these capacities are 23.3GB, 25GB or 27GB. This equates to over 4 hours of high definition video with audio.

There is also the option of dual-layers: 46.6GB, 50GB or 54GB, which is roughly 8 hours. Currently BDA are researching 100GB and 200GB technology with 4 or 8 layers, this keeps the technology ‘future proof’. Also in the works is an 8cm disc variation with a 15GB capacity, rather than the regular 12cm discs.


The Name


The Blu-ray name comes from the technology itself; it uses “blue” laser technology (technically it is a blue/violet color), rather than the red laser used for normal DVDs. The Blue laser uses a shorter wavelength then the red laser; 405nm as compared to 650nm. CDs use a 780nm wavelength.

ah ganun ba. im sure mag-hhit yang "blu ray technology" lalo na dito sa pinas. :C thanks for the info bro.

yes bro....gagawin nilang barometer ang PS3 to promote blue ray...this is not just about PS3 against xbox 360...this is more of sony merchandise..a very clever strategy...remember...sony also has a part of hollywood: sony pictures.

so i woudn't be surprised if they manufacture dvd films using their company resources to manufacture dvd films on a blue ray format.[if they had UMD films for PSP...why stop there?]:rolleyes: