UMD Video: A Closer Look Feature

Courtesy of the friendly folk at FOX Home Entertainment weâ??ve been able to sample some of the delights of UMD Videos, such as Alien, Dodgeball and I-Robot amongst many others.

Leaving the film reviews to Jonathan Ross, TVG takes an overview of the new format and asks the question, are they really worth it???

When youâ??ve ripped the PSP from its packaging and checked out some of the games, the next thing youâ??ll want to do is check out some of its other features. Beyond doubling up as an MP3 player, the PSP also acts as a portable video player via media stored on the MemoryStick DUO or by picking up a UMD Video.

TVG recently picked up a host of movies from FOX and thereâ??s no denying the appeal; watching the likes of Aliens or I Robot on the PSP is a novel experience, suiting a purpose whenever youâ??re out and about or perhaps tucked away on your work desktop.

Thanks largely to the PSP screen, movie quality is second to none and easily comparable to DVDâ??s with crisp definition and broad colour range. Itâ??s worth hooking up the headphones or purchasing one of the PSP docking units if youâ??re planning to watch a lot of videos, simply because the resulting sound is a little â??tinnyâ? when played through the main unit and lacks definition.

One misgiving is the lack of special features that have helped to define DVDs; movie buffs used to deleted scenes, commentary and other such features will stare blankly at the menu screen and its meagre offerings. Sadly the 1.8GB of UMDs donâ??t provide a lot of hope that this will change in the future,

Thereâ??s no denying that UMD Videos are a cool addition to any serious PSP fanâ??s collection, but there is a strong overriding influence when it comes to price. Retailing for £19.99 (pricier then many DVDs) itâ??s questionable as to whether the majority of people will fork out for yet another form of media, when thereâ??s so many DVD players in households up and down the country. Itâ??s questionable as to whether itâ??s worth forking out twice for even the most essential movie, and if it comes down to choice surely most people will opt for a DVD that can be watched anywhere in the house and likely to be played a lot more.

Countering this are the surprisingly strong sales throughout N America since the PSPs launch, believed to be in the region of 3 million to date. Meanwhile the catalogue of titles available is expanding all the time (over 140 in America before the end of the year) as film companies look upon a new format as a means to squeezing even more money out of one movie.

The heavyweight support from the likes of FOX, Universal, Paramount, Buena Vista, Sony and MGM suggests that the future of UMD Videos is fairly secure and an indicator of the potential seen, with only Warner and Dreamworks the only notable absentees.

On the flipside UMD Videos have failed so far to ignite the interest of Japanese consumers, with a recent survey indicating that only 10% of PSP owners used the system to watch movies. Which way the European PSP owners will go will have to looked at over the next few weeks; weâ??ll have details of future UMD-Video releases in the future.

UMD Video versions of Alien, I-Robot, Alien vs. Predator, Dodgeball, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen are available to buy now in retail stores across the country. Thanks to FOX Home Entertainment for providing us with examples of their launch portfolio.