Region 4 Winners and Losers

Blu-ray vs HD DVD

    The Paramount HD DVD and Blu-ray editions of M:i:III differ slightly in their special features, and are identical across all countries. There are no region coding restrictions on HD DVD discs at the time of writing. The Blu-ray disc is coded Region B, for Australia and Europe.

    In comparing the main feature discs, the HD DVD disc is dual layered HD-30 format, while the Blu-ray is single layered (BD-25). This allows an additional 5Gb disc space to the HD DVD version. The HD DVD utilises this extra space for an enhanced video commentary that is not included on the Blu-ray disc. The enhanced feature is of great value and contains many small branched featurettes that add an extra 33 minutes to the feature. These featurettes differ from the bonus material on disc two.

    The Blu-ray format has an additional 3 Easter Eggs that don't seem to be included on disc two of the HD DVD version. They are relatively lightweight and aren't missed much.

    The menu systems and navigation are identical on both formats. The packaging only differs slightly in graphic presentation, however the box materials, "foil enhancement" and hard Amarays are the same (besides the colour tinting, of course). The graphic art on the rear of the slick is slightly rearranged between formats, but has the same content. The Blu-ray discs have sharp corners on their art, whereas the HD DVDs have smooth, rounded edges.

    The audio properties of each format are identical. There was a slight difference in overall output level between Blu-ray and HD DVD on my equipment, but I would put this down to bitstream decoding algorithms inherent in the players rather than the actual disc coding.

    The Blu-ray video transfer has been encoded using MPEG2 compression, while the HD DVD uses the more recent VC-1 codec. Despite an overall greater disc capacity in the HD DVD, as well as a more efficient video codec, it is difficult to separate the transfers of the two formats. At a stretch, I would say that the HD DVD seems slightly sharper, a little more defined than the Blu-ray. Mind you, the difference is so minor it isn't liable to be an issue to the average viewer, and would more than likely come down to personal taste. Some people prefer a slightly smoother image and may lean towards the Blu-ray based on this attribute. For me personally, a lesser capacity disc combined with an inferior, less efficient video compression codec makes the decision very easy. Make mine HD DVD!