Blu-Ray: How HD-DVD And Blu-Ray Differ

DVDs are still the leading medium for home theater entertainment. The technique is refined and improved by a number of manufacturers, making the future a little uncertain but it is absolutely clear that it will continue is one format or another. Many of you have probably heard about Blu-ray and HD-DVD discs and their path as the next generation of DVDs. The differences between the two is confusing many buyers home theater, so it is important to know exactly what each of these new technologies offer, so you can make an informed decision about what to buy and when. Let's start with a discussion of Just what Blu - Ray is. Chances are, if you got into one of the leading home theater and electronics stores in the country, have you seen advertised Blu-ray discs in the DVD department. In fact, Blu-ray discs are something like traditional DVDs, except that they have the ability to record, rewrite and playback high definition (HD) video that is compatible with the growing number of HD TV sets find their way home theaters each year. Unlike conventional DVDs can, Blu-ray discs to hold nearly five times as much data. On a single layer disc to 25 GB of data they hold, and can be stored on a 50GB dual layer disc. The ability to so much more to keep Blu-ray discs are able to easily advanced information necessary for content in HD format, guaranteed to save. HD-DVD offers the same technology, although it is unable to hold as much information as Blu-ray. Developed by Toshiba and NEC, it is able to take three times as much data as traditional DVDs. While this may be less than Blu-ray, the data capacity of HD-DVD is still higher than the amount needed for major blockbusters in high definition viewing. HD-DVD also came much earlier and was first cited as the successor of the standard DVD format. HD-DVD is fully compatible with HD-DVD players, which in turn are compatible with HD televisions. High-definition technology is definitely the wave of the future of home entertainment and HD-DVD formatted disc is the first technology. Both Blu-ray and HD-DVD use a new type of laser which improves as the standard DVD uses. While older, standard DVD models use a red laser to transfer the content from disc to play to the screen, these two technologies use a blue-violet laser instead. The main advantage of using blue-violet lasers is that they are a shorter wavelength than red lasers. This means that they can be addressed with a much higher percentage of accuracy. If you the differences between these two formats can see but little, in short, Blu-ray is able to more information than HD-DVD, but keep HD-DVD is much longer and still holds an appropriate amount for all applications currently on the market. Both formats use blue-violet lasers to read the information better. The biggest question is what format will end at the top. Blu-ray has the added advantage that it is supported by some major players in the film business. Seven of the eight major Hollywood movie studios have released movies in Blu-ray format's, while five of these films are available exclusively on Blu-ray. HD-DVD has the support of some major manufacturers of consumer electronics, but does have some ground to make up with production companies. However, with the added experience in the production of more and more consumers are familiar with the name, it is very possible for them to pull ahead. The race to the top home-entertainment format will continue on and consumers will just have to wait to see which wins. In the meantime, players are available for both formats and some manufacturers have players that meet both formats. ~ Ben Anton, 2007