While I’ve been running Windows 7 since January (public beta, RC and now RTM), I’ve found one big disappointment that I reported in the beta feedback, and again in the RC feedback…
Where’s the native BLU-RAY support?
In Windows XP RTM, there was no native support to watch a DVD. A third-party codec was required. Windows Vista and 7 play DVDs without requiring any third-party software; the necessary codecs are already there.
I can understand why Blu-ray wasn’t in Vista; it was way too new and the Blu-ray/HD-DVD format war was starting to swing into high gear.
By the time Windows 7 was in public beta, the format war had wrapped up almost a year earlier, with Blu-ray being the victor. So why not include the codecs necessary to enable users to watch Blu-ray movies in Windows Media Center (and/or Windows Media Player)?
Maybe Microsoft will FINALLY realize their egregious oversight and make this codec available via Windows Update on October 22, so that when folks buy and install Windows 7, that update will be offered immediately.
Matt
