NPD: Game systems are bought to play games

[Zeus]

Duh?

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?optio ... 8&Itemid=2

[Blotus]

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3161833

1up article of same study.

What the hell kind of people are they polling to come up with these percentages? Only 30% of Xbox360 owners are AWARE of it's HD capabilities? Only 40% of PS3 owners are AWARE it has a Blu Ray player?

This study fails.

[SineSwiper]

This study fails.

Speaking anecdotally, my Dad picked up an HDTV a few years ago from Costco and every time I'm home, he's watching everything in SD because he doesn't know better. To him, he's watching TV on the "HDTV" and actually switching to a HD-capable channel doesn't cross his mind -- it's the illusion of having the HDTV feature that makes him think he's actually watching a better picture. In fact, he's making standard definition look worse!

No, America fails. Most people don't even bother to read the instruction manual. If they aren't reading on gaming forums, how do they know that the PS3 will play Blu-Ray?

Though, I guess we would need another study to know for sure.

[Julius Seeker]

There are people who come into EB games wondering if they can get Zelda for the Playstation.

[bovine]

If they aren't reading on gaming forums, how do they know that the PS3 will play Blu-Ray?

It's right on the front of the box. Americans read english, right?



up there ------------------------------------------^

[Nev]

I'm pretty surprised. I almost want to see a repeat of the study for verification...

Everyone I know with a 360, PS3, or PS2 knows about the fact that you can use it to watch movies, if you're so inclined. I wonder where they did this study...

[Zeus]

I'm pretty surprised. I almost want to see a repeat of the study for verification...

Everyone I know with a 360, PS3, or PS2 knows about the fact that you can use it to watch movies, if you're so inclined. I wonder where they did this study...

Like I've always said, gamers represent only about 20% of the industry. Don't forget about the other 80%, the ones Nintendo are trying to cater to and grow, who ask for Zelda on the PS2 like Seek said. That's how you're getting these high percentage of 60% and 70% in those polls. They're not asking you or me exclusively, they're asking your mother or grandmother who may have purchased the system for their child or maybe even the child themselves who are only interested in the game or brand.

[Kupek]

Do most people even know what Blu-Ray is? What HD-DVD is is obvious, but not Blu-Ray.

[Zeus]

Do most people even know what Blu-Ray is? What HD-DVD is is obvious, but not Blu-Ray.

I'm willing to bet a lot of people would even ask "What's the HD mean in HD-DVD?". The difference is, we're all into this stuff and are aware of it. Most people buying these TVs now don't know or care.

As much as HD is being pushed through TVs now (the 32" are down to $1k Cdn and the 42" aren't far behind, which is a mass-market price point IMO), the vast majority of people, myself included, don't even have an HD signal to go with that TV. All we care about is having a large TV with a nice enough picture.

SD DVDs offer a pretty nice picture 99% of the time particularly with a 1080i up-converting DVD player. And plugging in a game system with AV cables still produces a 480p signal (if supported by the game/system) which is more than enough, even for someone like me. Guitar Hero 2 looks fine in 480p, so does RE4 in 480i. Heck, my satellite is putting out "only" 480p and I'm only about 7 ft away from my TV. It's really more than enough.

Most people couldn't tell you the difference between AV, Component, or HDMI cables and don't really care. Coupled with the fact that most channels are still not HD (i think up here we can only get 40 or so of the 500+ channels on XpressVu in HD) there's no reason to care.

It's not like we're dealing with a horrible picture with SD

[Kupek]

My point was it's possible for someone to figure out what HD-DVD is. Blu-Ray, not so much.