Blu ray technology and HD DVD technology are battling each other to become the DVD format of the next generation. Blu ray and HD DVD are competing against each other in a similar style as the VHS and Betamax battle of the 1980's.
Blu ray Disc is an optical disc format designed for high definition video and high density data storage. Pioneer, Samsung & Sony are the prime supporters of the Blu-ray technology. Supporting HD DVD is the movie company Universal Studios as well as technology companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Toshiba and Microsoft. quite a few of the movie studios have announced that they will be releasing movies in both formats. 84% of the movies released last year support Blu ray making a bold statement for this new technology.
Sony Pictures, MGM, Columbia TriStar, Disney, Touchstone, Miramax, Fox, Paramount, Warner and Lions Gate has decided to back the Blu ray format. Paramount, Studio Canal, Universal, Warner and The Weinstein Company has decided to back the HD DVD format.
Blu ray received it's name from the blue laser it uses to read the data. This format was created for rewriting, recording and playing of HD video. Large amounts of data can be stored on Blu ray discs. Blu ray discs holds five times more storage capacity than current DVDs. It can hold over 9 hours of HD video on a disc. High definition video requires a large amount of disc storage space making Blu ray discs a perfect choice for HD.
There are some differences between the two formats. First of all its their capacity. By utilizing larger numerical aperture lens, Blu-ray is able to write more data on the same size disc. Because of the larger capacity, movie studios will be able to release movies with more HD features on Blu ray than HD DVD. A Blu-ray disc can hold up to 25GB and a dual layer 54 GB while an HD disc can hold up to 15 GB and a dual layer 30 GB. The other noticeable difference is cost. The Blu ray discs are more expensive.
Now, both Blu-ray and HD players are capable of playing CDs and DVDs but HD players are not capable of playing Blu ray discs and vice versa. And that is where the battle begins. You need to decide whether you want to invest in a Blu-ray player or a HD player as each will only be able to play there own format discs.
So let's summarize the format battle. Both formats are very similar in high definition picture quality. When making a decision on which format to purchase, you must consider price and amount of content available in each format. One thing is for sure, it is a very unstable market. Its feasible that you could decide on a format; purchase a player and buy movies and then be very distraught if the format you choose fails in the market. More than likely, the format which goes into Christmas 2007 with the lowest price tag and widest range of movies will become the format standard.
