Okay, Divx has greater compression than MPEG2, but how does the quality compare? I have no experience with Divx, but wonder if I'm missing out on something. If the quality is as good as MPEG2, then I'm thinking I need to get educated. I'm not interested in putting videos on CD, nor do I keep movies on my harddrive. Sure, getting 10 hours of video on a DVD would be nice, but only if I don't have to sacrifice quality.
In my opinion, mpeg-4(Divx/Xvid) doesn't compare mpeg-2. The major difference I see between the two is crispness. Mpeg-4 has more of a smooth, almost platic-y look. The very best Divx/Xvid eoncodes I have seen still don't compare to their DVD counterparts. They can come close though, and coupled with the fact they're a lot smaller than DVD's in terms of size, I'm willing to live with the quality loss. Another reason why I think mpeg-4 is so popular is that there are a lot of people that aren't as discriminating as I am and I don't think they can really tell the difference between DVD and Divx. To each their own.
No problem. I wouldn't rule out Divx until you judge for yourself though. You might be as content with the trade-offs as I am.
