14 DAY TRIAL // As the debate on whether optical media will eventually be replaced by digital downloads rages on, one of the most important players on this particular market segment, Vudu, has just announced the development of a new and improved format for delivering HD content to the user's HDTVs via the Internet. Dubbed HDX, the new format is touted as the most advanced digital download format available, at least considering image quality, but the truth is that it also has somewhat of a “glitch”.
According to the company's statement, the new HDX displays content in the true cinematic standard of 1080p at 24 frames per second. HDX also offers quite a good quality level for the surround sound, which features a 40 percent higher bit-rate than standard surround sound DVD's.
In order to prevent the loss of quality during the download process and deliver true HD-grade images, the format takes full advantage of the TruFilm technology, which uses Psychovisual Processing for boosting picture quality by enhancing details in dark areas of the picture, virtually removing the dark area artifacts typical of Internet movies.
Plus, the Film Grain Preservation technology improves the cinematic experience by ensuring that the displayed picture remains true to the fine optical texture of the original film, while the Statistical Variable Bitrate ensures optimal video quality throughout the film by allocating a higher encoding budget to high detail and high motion segments of the film, while preserving the ability to stream it over the Internet.
According to the company, the movies available in HDX format are offered at the same rental price as standard HD titles (no purchasing option yet), Vudu owners being able to access the available movies starting today.
And now, for the “glitch” mentioned in the first paragraph. The major issue with movies in HDX format is that they have quite a large size, users with a serious broadband connection requiring around three to four hours for the “HD” experience to actually begin. While the fact that one can pre-order a movie while away from home might prove to be somewhat of an incentive, the truth is that it's still a lot easier to pass by the video rental store on the way home and rent/purchase a title in Blu-ray format than wait for the digital download.
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