Digital Home Thoughts: 3-Way Movie Box Battlemodo

"A few weeks back, I wrote up a piece on Vudu's high-definition video falling short of my expectations. Today I bring you a more thorough report of the three most compelling set-top boxes and their video-download capabilities. Apple TV, Vudu and Xbox 360 all have a lot going for them, but by looking at them side-by-side, you can see how their makers are all taking different paths to get to the ultimate desired end. Dive into the chart, then have a look at the screengrabs from three movies, to really get a feel for the progress, or lack of progress, in the world of HD downloads."

Interesting comparison, though in the end, there's no clear winner. I find myself a bit more opinionated though. The Xbox 360 is a very capable media player and the best Media Center Extender on the market. In both my experience and in detailed technical comparisons, downloaded HD video from Xbox Live Marketplace is very nearly comparable to HD DVD or Blu-Ray. VUDU and Apple TV don't hold a candle. Unfortunately the Xbox 360 has one huge hurdle to get past: perception. Consumers think of it as a game console first, a media player a distant second. If only Microsoft would do a better job marketing all that the 360 is capable of.