Audioholics HD-DVD Review Methodology

There are plenty of places reviewing HD-DVDs* these days, so why should Audioholics even bother? Well, we cruised around the web and the usual sources and found a distinct lack of technical information on the various discs with respect to audio and video quality. Since the entire point of HD DVD and Blu-ray Discs is to provide audio and video that far exceeds that of standard definition DVDs, it's important to focus on those aspects when reviewing the new format discs.

I mean, The Departed is probably the most over-rated movie to hit theaters and shelves this past year. The plot was weak and full of holes. Acting was good, but there were too many issues with the storyline for it to be hailed as being the great film that it was said to be. Scorsese's best film? Not by a long shot… but who cares - we're all about the quality!

Audioholics is uniquely qualified to offer a perspective on audio and video quality due to the extensive experience we have in testing and measuring various AV components. For example, the projectors we have in for review deliver a known quantity in terms of quality due to our recorded benchmark tests. This allows us to determine whether the source or display, for example, is soft, detailed or providing edge enhancement. Being able to separate the disc quality from the quality of the electronics is very important and is the only way to accurately evaluate these new discs.

So what are we promising here? We'll deliver reviews of the technical qualities and merits of new high definition discs. We'll deliver evaluations of the following seven metrics:

• Color Saturation/Quality
• Picture Noise
• Detail
• Audio Options
• Audio Resolution
• Special Features
• Menu System

Because of this focus, you will not find much commentary on the plot or acting involved in these movies. To be honest, we don't really care if Christina Ricci accurately portrayed the intricate nuances of a pole dancer… These reviews are all about audio and video - as well as the technical capabilities and features of the disc. Beyond this focus you'll need to go elsewhere to see if the movie was entertaining or not. Since these discs cost, on average, twice as much as standard DVDs we feel it’s important for consumers to know which discs have been truly remastered, and which may have simply been ported to the new format without much concern for quality.

Stay tuned for new reviews each month in our software reviews section.

*Note that HD-DVD is a general term denoting all high definition disc formats. The official copyrighted designation for the Toshiba format is HD DVD (no hyphen).