Blu-ray: Difference between revisions
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'''Blu-ray Disc''' (also known as '''Blu-ray''' or '''BD''') is an [[optical disc]] [[data storage device|storage]] media format. Its main uses are [[high-definition video]] and [[data]] storage. The disc has the same dimensions as a standard [[DVD]]. When [[Toshiba]] gave up its competing [[HD-DVD]] market, Blu-ray won the format |
'''Blu-ray Disc''' (also known as '''Blu-ray''' or '''BD''') is an [[optical disc]] [[data storage device|storage]] media format. Its main uses are [[high-definition video]] and [[data]] storage. The disc has the same dimensions as a standard [[DVD]]. When [[Toshiba]] gave up its competing [[HD-DVD]] market, Blu-ray won the [[High definition optical disc format war|format war]]. |
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The name ''Blu-ray Disc'' is derived from the blue-violet [[blue laser|laser]] used to read and write this type of disc. Because of its shorter [[wavelength]] (405 [[nanometre|nm]]), substantially more data can be stored on a Blu-ray Disc than on the [[DVD]] format, which uses a red (650 nm) laser. A Blu-ray Disc can store 50 [[gigabyte|GB]], almost six times the capacity of a DVD. |
The name ''Blu-ray Disc'' is derived from the blue-violet [[blue laser|laser]] used to read and write this type of disc. Because of its shorter [[wavelength]] (405 [[nanometre|nm]]), substantially more data can be stored on a Blu-ray Disc than on the [[DVD]] format, which uses a red (650 nm) laser. A Blu-ray Disc can store 50 [[gigabyte|GB]], almost six times the capacity of a DVD. |
Revision as of 18:41, 19 February 2008
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Media type | High-density optical disc |
---|---|
Encoding | MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), and VC-1 |
Capacity | 25 GB per layer |
Read mechanism | 405 nm laser, 1x@36 Mbit/s & 2x@72 Mbit/s & 4x@144 Mbit/s & 12x@432 Mbit/s[1] |
Developed by | Blu-ray Disc Association |
Usage | Data storage, High-definition video and PlayStation 3 games |
Blu-ray Disc (also known as Blu-ray or BD) is an optical disc storage media format. Its main uses are high-definition video and data storage. The disc has the same dimensions as a standard DVD. When Toshiba gave up its competing HD-DVD market, Blu-ray won the format war.
The name Blu-ray Disc is derived from the blue-violet laser used to read and write this type of disc. Because of its shorter wavelength (405 nm), substantially more data can be stored on a Blu-ray Disc than on the DVD format, which uses a red (650 nm) laser. A Blu-ray Disc can store 50 GB, almost six times the capacity of a DVD.
Blu-ray was developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association, a group of companies representing consumer electronics, computer hardware, and motion picture production. The standard is covered by several patents belonging to different companies. As of March 2007, a joint licensing agreement for all the relevant patents had not yet been finalized.[2]
As of February 19 2008, more than 450[3] Blu-ray Disc titles have been released in the United States, and more than 250 in Japan.
Long locked in a format war with HD DVD, Blu-ray Disc emerged the winner on February 19, 2008 when Toshiba - the main driving force behind HD-DVD - announced it would no longer develop, manufacture and market HD DVD players and recorders. [4] Some analysts believe that Sony's Playstation 3 console played an important role in the format war, as it was based largely on Blu-Ray technology. [5]
History
Optical discs |
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In the mid 1990s, commercial HDTV sets were finally starting to enter a larger market. However, there was no good, cheap way to record or play back HD content. Indeed, there was no medium that could store that amount of data, except JVC's Digital VHS and Sony's HDCAM.[6] However, it was well known that using lasers with shorter wavelengths would enable optical storage with higher density. When Shuji Nakamura invented practical blue laser diodes, it was a sensation, although a lengthy patent lawsuit delayed commercial introduction.[7]
Origins
Sony started two projects applying the new diodes: UDO (Ultra Density Optical) and DVR Blue (together with Pioneer), a format of rewritable discs which would eventually become Blu-ray Disc (more specifically, BD-RE).[8] The core technologies of the formats are essentially similar.
The first DVR Blue prototypes were unveiled at the CEATEC exhibition in October 2000.[9] Because the Blu-ray Disc standard places the data recording layer close to the surface of the disc, early discs were susceptible to contamination and scratches and had to be enclosed in plastic cartridges for protection. In February 2002, the project was officially announced as Blu-ray,[10] and the Blu-ray Disc Association was founded by the nine initial members.
The first consumer devices were in stores on April 10, 2003. This device was the Sony BDZ-S77; a BD-RE recorder that was only made available in Japan. The recommended price was US$3800.[11] However, there was no standard for pre-recorded video (BD-ROM) and no movies were released for this player. The Blu-ray Disc standard was still years away, since a new and secure DRM system was needed before Hollywood studios would accept it, not wanting to repeat the failure of the Content Scramble System for DVDs.
Competition from HD DVD
The DVD Forum (which was chaired by Toshiba) was deeply split over whether to go with the more expensive blue lasers or not. Although today's Blu-ray Discs appear virtually identical to a standard DVD, when the Blu-ray Discs were initially developed they required a protective caddy to avoid mis-handling by the consumer (early CD-Rs also featured a protective caddy for the same purpose). The Blu-ray prototype's caddy was both expensive and physically different from DVD, posing several problems.[12] In March 2002, the forum voted to approve a proposal endorsed by Warner Bros. and other motion picture studios that involved compressing HD content onto dual-layer DVD-9 discs.[13][14] However, in spite of this decision, the DVD Forum's Steering Committee announced in April that it was pursuing its own blue-laser high-definition solution.[15] In August, Toshiba and NEC announced their competing standard Advanced Optical Disc.[16] It was finally adopted by the DVD Forum and renamed HD DVD the next year,[17] after being voted down twice by Blu-ray Disc Association members, prompting the U.S. Department of Justice to make preliminary investigations into the situation.[18][19] Three new members had to be invited and the voting rules changed before the vote finally passed.[20][21]
In the meantime, Sony spun off Professional Disc for DATA from the Blu-ray Disc project. It was essentially Blu-ray Disc with higher-quality media and components. The devices were too expensive for the consumer mass market. Instead, it was aimed at the professional data storage space market as a replacement for their line of 5.25" MO drives. It was announced in October 2003, with the first devices shipping in December of the same year.[22][23].
On 19 February, 2008, Toshiba announced it was ending production of HD-DVD devices, allowing Blu-Ray Disc to become the industry standard.[24]
Format dispute
In an attempt to avoid a format war, the Blu-ray Disc Association and the DVD Forum began negotiations on a compromise in early 2005. One of the issues was that the Blu-ray Disc camp wanted to use a Java-based platform for interactivity (BD-J), while the DVD Forum was promoting Microsoft's "iHD" (which became HDi).[25] A much larger issue, though, was the physical formats of the discs themselves; the Blu-ray Disc member companies did not want to risk losing billions of dollars in royalties as they had done with standard DVD.[26] An agreement seemed close, but negotiations proceeded slowly.[27]
At the end of June 2005, Sun announced that the Blu-ray Disc Association had chosen the Java-based BD-J interactivity layer instead of Microsoft's HDi. This was based on a BDA board vote favoring BD-J 10 to 4, despite a technical committee previously favoring HDi by a vote of 7 to 5.[28] At the same time, Microsoft and Toshiba jointly announced that they would cooperate in developing high-definition DVD players.[29] In a top-level meeting in July, Microsoft's Bill Gates argued that the Blu-ray Disc standard had to change to "work more smoothly with personal computers". The Blu-ray Disc Association's representatives defended the technology.[30]
On August 22, 2005, the Blu-ray Disc Association and DVD Forum announced that the negotiations to unify their standards had failed.[31] Rumors surfaced that an "unnamed partner" had pressured Toshiba to stick with HD DVD—in spite of Blu-ray Disc's strong support among Hollywood studios and some analysts saying that HD DVD's days were numbered—but these rumors were denied by the parties involved; instead, the same reasons of physical format incompatibility were cited.[26][30] At the end of September, Microsoft and Intel jointly announced their support for HD DVD.[32]
Hewlett-Packard (HP) made a last attempt to broker a peace between Blu-ray Disc Association and Microsoft. The company demanded that the Blu-ray Disc Association adopt Microsoft's HDi instead of its own Java solution, and that Blu-ray Disc adopt a mandatory managed copy feature. If the demands weren't met, HP threatened to support HD DVD instead.[33] In a research report, Gartner analysts Van Baker, Laura Behrens and Mike McGuire wrote that if HP's proposal was accepted, Blu-ray Disc would become the winner of the format war.[34] However, the Blu-ray Disc group did not accept HP's proposal.[35]
Blu-ray Disc format finalized and launched
The Blu-ray Disc physical specifications were finished in 2004.[36] In January 2005, TDK announced that they had developed a hard coating polymer for Blu-ray Discs.[37] The cartridges, no longer necessary, were scrapped. The BD-ROM specifications were finalized in early 2006.[38] AACS LA, a consortium founded in 2004,[39] had been developing the DRM platform that could be used to securely distribute movies to consumers. However, the final AACS standard was delayed,[40] and then delayed again when an important member of the Blu-ray Disc group voiced concerns.[41] At the request of the initial hardware manufacturers, including Toshiba, Pioneer and Samsung, an interim standard was published which did not include some features, like managed copy.[42]
Sales developments
The first BD-ROM players were shipped in the middle of June 2006, though HD DVD players beat them in the race to the market by a few months.[43][44]
The first Blu-ray Disc titles were released on June 20 2006. The earliest releases used MPEG-2 video compression, the same method used on DVDs. The first releases using the newer VC-1 and AVC codecs were introduced in September 2006.[45] The first movies using dual layer discs (50 GB) were introduced in October 2006.[46]
The first mass-market Blu-ray rewritable drive for the PC was the BWU-100A, released by Sony on July 18 2006. It recorded both single and dual layer BD-R as well as BD-RE discs and had a suggested retail price of US$699.
HD DVD had a head start in the high definition video market and Blu-ray sales were slow at first. The first Blu-ray player was perceived as expensive and buggy, and there were few titles available.[47] This changed when PlayStation 3 launched, since every PS3 unit also functioned as a Blu-ray player. By January 2007, Blu-ray discs had outsold HD DVDs,[48] and during the first three quarters of 2007, BD outsold HD DVDs by about two to one.[49]
Disc structure
Laser and optics
Like its rival format HD DVD, Blu-ray uses a "blue" (technically violet) laser operating at a wavelength of 405 nm to read and write data. Conventional DVDs and CDs use red and near infrared lasers at 650 nm and 780 nm respectively.
The blue-violet laser's shorter wavelength makes it possible to store more information on a 12 cm CD/DVD sized disc. The minimum "spot size" on which a laser can be focused is limited by diffraction, and depends on the wavelength of the light and the numerical aperture of the lens used to focus it. By decreasing the wavelength, increasing the numerical aperture from 0.60 to 0.85 and making the cover layer thinner to avoid unwanted optical effects, the laser beam can be focused to a smaller spot. This allows more information to be stored in the same area. In addition to the optical improvements, Blu-ray Discs feature improvements in data encoding that further increase the capacity. (See Compact disc for information on optical discs' physical structure.)
Hard-coating technology
Because the Blu-ray data layer is closer to the surface of the disc, compared to the DVD standard, it was at first more vulnerable to scratches. The first discs were housed in cartridges for protection. Advances in polymer technology eventually made the cartridges unnecessary.[50]
TDK was the first company to develop a working scratch protection coating for Blu-ray discs. It was named Durabis. In addition, both Sony and Panasonic's replication methods include proprietary hard-coat technologies. Sony's rewritable media are sprayed with a scratch-resistant and antistatic coating. Verbatim recordable and rewritable Blu-ray Disc discs use their own proprietary hard-coat technology called ScratchGuard.
Recording speed
Drive speed | Data rate | Write time for Single/Dual Layer Blu-ray Disc | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1X | 36 Mbit/s | 4.5 MB/s | 1 h 30 min. | 3 h. |
2X | 72 Mbit/s | 9 MB/s | 45 min. | 1 h 30 min. |
4X | 144 Mbit/s | 18 MB/s | 23 min. | 45 min. |
6X | 216 Mbit/s | 27 MB/s | 15 min. | 30 min. |
8X (Theoretical) | 288 Mbit/s | 36 MB/s | 12 min. | 23 min. |
12X (Theoretical) | 432 Mbit/s | 54 MB/s | 8 min. | 15 min. |
Software standards
Codecs
Codecs are compression schemes that store audio and video more efficiently, either giving longer play time or higher quality per megabyte. There are both lossy and lossless compression techniques.
The BD-ROM specification mandates certain codec compatibilities for both hardware decoders (players) and the movie-software (content). For video, all players are required to support MPEG-2, H.264/AVC, and SMPTE VC-1. MPEG-2 is the codec used on regular DVDs, which allows backwards compatibility. H.264/AVC was developed by MPEG and VCEG as a modern successor of MPEG-2. VC-1 is another MPEG-4 derivative codec mostly developed by Microsoft. BD-ROM titles with video must store video using one of the three mandatory codecs. Multiple codecs on a single title are allowed.
The choice of codecs affects the producer's licensing/royalty costs, as well as the title's maximum runtime, due to differences in compression efficiency. Discs encoded in MPEG-2 video typically limit content producers to around two hours of high-definition content on a single-layer (25 GB) BD-ROM. The more advanced video codecs (VC-1 and H.264) typically achieve a video runtime twice that of MPEG-2, with comparable quality.
For audio, BD-ROM players are required to support Dolby Digital AC-3, DTS, and linear PCM. Players may optionally support Dolby Digital Plus, and lossless formats Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD. BD-ROM titles must use one of the mandatory schemes for the primary soundtrack. A secondary audiotrack, if present, may use any of the mandatory or optional codecs.[51]
For users recording digital television programming, the recordable Blu-ray Disc standard's datarate of 54 Mbit/s is more than adequate to record high-definition broadcasts from any source (IPTV, cable/satellite, or terrestrial). For Blu-ray Disc movies the maximum transfer rate is 48 Mbit/s (1.5x) (both audio and video payloads together), of which a maximum of 40 Mbit/s can be dedicated to video data. This compares favorably to the maximum of 30.24 Mbit/s in HD DVD movies for audio and video data.[52]
Java software support
At the 2005 JavaOne trade show, it was announced that Sun Microsystems' Java cross-platform software environment would be included in all Blu-ray Disc players as a mandatory part of the standard. Java is used to implement interactive menus on Blu-ray Discs, as opposed to the method used on DVD video discs, which uses pre-rendered MPEG segments and selectable subtitle pictures, which is considerably more primitive and less seamless. Java creator James Gosling, at the conference, suggested that the inclusion of a Java Virtual Machine as well as network connectivity in BD devices will allow updates to Blu-ray Discs via the Internet, adding content such as additional subtitle languages and promotional features that are not included on the disc at pressing time. This Java Version is called BD-J and is a subset of the Globally Executable MHP (GEM) standard. GEM is the world-wide version of the Multimedia Home Platform standard.
Region codes
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Blu-ray_regions_with_key.png/400px-Blu-ray_regions_with_key.png)
Blu-ray discs may be encoded with a region code, intended to restrict the area of the world in which they can be played; similar in principle to the DVD region codes, although the used geographical regions differ. Blu-ray players sold in a certain region should only be able to play discs encoded for that region. The purpose of this system is to allow motion picture studios to control the various aspects of a release (including content, date, and, in particular, price) according to the region. Discs may also be produced without region coding, so they can be played on all devices.
Region code | Area[54] |
---|---|
A | North America, Central America, South America, Japan, Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia. |
B | Most of Europe, Greenland, French territories, Middle East, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, plus all of Oceania. |
C | India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Mainland China, Pakistan, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Central, and South Asia. |
This arrangement places the countries of the major Blu-ray manufacturers (Japan, Korea, Malaysia) in the same region as the U.S., thus ensuring early releases of U.S. content to those markets. As of early 2008, about two-thirds of all released discs were region-free.[55]
Digital rights management (DRM)
The Blu-ray Disc format employs several layers of Digital rights management.[56][57]
Advanced Access Content System (AACS) is a standard for content distribution and digital rights management. It is developed by AS Licensing Administrator, LLC (AACS LA), a consortium that includes Disney, Intel, Microsoft, Matsushita (Panasonic), Warner Bros., IBM, Toshiba and Sony.
Since appearing in devices in 2006, several successful attacks have been made on the format. The first known attack relied on the trusted client problem. In addition, decryption keys have been extracted from a weakly protected player (WinDVD). However, even though some AACS cryptographic keys have been compromised, new releases will use new, uncompromised keys.[58]
BD+ was developed by Cryptography Research Inc. and is based on their concept of Self-Protecting Digital Content.[59] BD+ is effectively a small virtual machine embedded in authorized players. It allows content providers to include executable programs on Blu-ray Discs. Such programs can:[56]
- examine the host environment, to see if the player has been tampered with. Every licensed playback device manufacturer must provide the BD+ licensing authority with memory footprints that identify their devices.
- verify that the player's keys have not been changed.
- execute native code, possibly to patch an otherwise insecure system.
- transform the audio and video output. Parts of the content will not be viewable without letting the BD+-program unscramble it.
If a playback device manufacturer finds that its devices have been hacked, it can potentially release BD+-code that detects and circumvents the vulnerability. These programs can then be included in all new content releases.
The specifications of the BD+ virtual machine are only available to licensed device manufacturers. A list of licensed adopters is available from the BD+ website.
BD+ was made available for content publishers in June 2007.[60] The first titles using BD+ were released in October the same year. Players from Samsung and LG had problems playing back those titles until the manufacturers updated their firmware, but this problem was later identified as being related to BD-Java use, not BD+.[61] BD+ was reported to have been circumvented by the developers of the program AnyDVD as of version 6.1.9.6 beta.[62]. However, such claims were found to be erroneous.[63]
BD-ROM Mark is a small amount of cryptographical data that is stored physically differently from normal Blu-ray Disc data. Bit-by-bit copies that do not replicate the BD-ROM Mark are impossible to decode. A specially licensed piece of hardware is required to insert the ROM-mark into the media during replication. Through licensing of the special hardware element, the BDA believes that it can eliminate the possibility of mass producing BD-ROMs without authorization.
Player profiles
The BD-ROM specification defines four profiles of Blu-ray Disc players; in addition to the three listed in the table below, there is a fourth audio-only profile that does not require video decoding or BD-J.[64] All the video-based profiles are required to have a full implementation of BD-J, but with varying levels of hardware support.
Feature[65] | BD-Video (Grace Period Profile – Profile 1.0) | Bonus View (Final Standard Profile – Profile 1.1) | BD-Live (Profile 2.0) |
---|---|---|---|
Built-in persistent memory | 64 KB | 64 KB | 64 KB |
Local storage capability[a] | – | 256 MB | 1 GB |
Secondary video decoder (PiP) | Optional | Mandatory | Mandatory |
Secondary audio decoder[b] | Optional | Mandatory | Mandatory |
Virtual file system | Optional | Mandatory | Mandatory |
Internet connection capability | No | No | Mandatory |
^ a This is used for storing audio/video and title updates. It can either be built in memory or removable media, such as a memory card or USB flash memory.
^ b A secondary audio decoder is typically used for interactive audio and commentary
On November 1 2007, the Grace Period Profile was superseded by "Bonus View" as the minimum profile for new players released to the market.[66] With the exception of the PlayStation 3, profile 1.0 players cannot be upgraded to be Bonus View compliant.[67] On December 17, 2007, the PlayStation 3 became Bonus View 1.1 compliant through PlayStation 3 System Software version 2.10.[68]
When software authored with interactive features dependent on "Bonus View" hardware capabilities are played on profile 1.0 players some features may not be available or may offer limited capability. Profile 1.0 players will still be able to play the main feature of the disc, however.[69]
The first BD Live titles (War and Saw IV) were released by Lionsgate in January 2008, despite the fact that no players existed to play the web-enhanced content.[70] BD Live (Profile 2.0) players are expected to be released in early 2008. Various reports have indicated that the PS3 will be updated to support the specification, taking full advantage of the player's Ethernet and Wifi connectivity and hard drive storage space.
Other optical data storage technologies
- HD DVD
- AVCHD
- Digital Multilayer Disk – the successor technology to Fluorescent Multilayer Disc
- Enhanced Versatile Disc
- Forward Versatile Disc – Taiwanese backed red laser format
- Fluorescent Multilayer Disc
- Holographic Versatile Disc - standards with 200 and 300 GB storage are under development and prototypes expected in 2008
- Protein-coated disc
- Tapestry Media
- Versatile Multilayer Disc
- Ultra Density Optical
- Professional Disc for DATA (PDD or ProDATA)
Backward compatibility
While it is not compulsory for manufacturers, the Blu-ray Disc Association recommends that Blu-ray Disc drives should be capable of reading standard DVDs for backward compatibility. For instance, Samsung's first Blu-ray Disc drive can read CDs, regular DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs. All other Blu-ray Disc players that have been released so far are also capable of DVD playback, though not all support CD playback. This includes Sony, Panasonic, Philips, LG, Pioneer and PC-based players from Alienware, and Dell.
Blu-ray Disc / HD DVD comparison
The primary rival to Blu-ray Disc was HD DVD. During the format war, both sides tried to promote their format as the best choice for studios and consumers. Both formats are intended as successors to DVD, capable of higher quality video and audio playback, and of greater capacity when used to store video, audio, and computer data. Blu-ray discs have a higher storage capacity than HD DVD discs (50 GB vs. 30 GB) and Blu-ray discs also have higher bandwidth (48Mbit/sec vs. 30Mbit/sec). Blu-ray and HD DVD share most of the same methods of encoding media onto disks with each other. AACS encryption is mandatory for Blu-ray but optional for HD DVD.[1]
Ongoing development
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Sony_BD-RE_200GB_front_side_20080119.jpg/200px-Sony_BD-RE_200GB_front_side_20080119.jpg)
Although the Blu-ray Disc specification has been finalized, engineers continue working to advance the technology. Quad-layer (100 GB) discs have been demonstrated on a drive with modified optics (TDK version) and standard unaltered optics ("Hitachi used a standard drive.").[71][72] Hitachi stated that such a disc could be used to store 7 hours of 32 Mbit/s video (HDTV) or 3.5 hours of 64 Mbit/s video (Cinema 4K). Furthermore TDK announced in August 2006 that they have created a working experimental Blu-ray Disc capable of holding 200 GB of data on a single side, using six 33 GB data layers.[73]
Also behind closed doors at CES 2007, Ritek has revealed that they had successfully developed a High Definition optical disc process that extends the disc capacity of both competing formats to 10 layers. That increases the capacity of the discs to 250 GB for Blu-ray compared to 150 GB for HD DVD using the same process. However, they noted that the major obstacle is that current reader and writer technology does not support the additional layers.[74]
JVC has developed a three layer technology that allows putting both standard-definition DVD data and HD data on a BD/DVD combo. If successfully commercialized, this would enable the consumer to purchase a disc which could be played on current DVD players, and reveal its HD version when played on a new BD player.[75] This hybrid disc does not appear to be ready for production and no titles have been announced that would utilize this disc structure.
In January 2007, Hitachi showcased 100 GB Blu-ray Disc, which consists of four layers containing 25 GB each.[76] Unlike TDK and Panasonic's 100 GB disc, they claim this disc is readable on standard Blu-ray drives that are currently in circulation, and it is believed that a firmware update is the only requirement to make it readable to current players and drives.[77]
Variants
BD9 / Mini-Blu-ray Disc
BD9 is a red laser DVD with BD contents on it. This disc should be rotated at 3x speed or more to satisfy the minimum transfer rate of 30.24 Mbit/s. These discs can be used for private storing and can be authored even without implementing AACS.[78] BD9 was originally proposed by Warner Home Video, as a cost-effective alternative to regular Blu-ray discs.[79] It is similar to HD DVD's 3x DVD
AVCREC
AVCREC is a standard for storing BD content on red laser DVDs using H.264/MPEG-4 AVC compression.[80] It is similar to HD REC for HD DVD.
Blu-ray Disc recordable
Blu-ray Disc recordable refers to two optical disc formats that can be recorded with an optical disc recorder. BD-R discs can be written to once, whereas BD-RE can be erased and re-recorded multiple times. As of January 2008, BD-R/RE drives up to 6x speed are available from retailers for about US$450,[81] and 4x single-layer BD-R discs, with a capacity of 25 GB, can be found for around US$12. The theoretical maximum speed for Blu-ray Discs is about 12x as the speed of rotation (10,000 rpm) causes too much wobble for the discs to be read properly, similar to the 20x and 52x respective maximum speeds of DVDs and CDs.
Since September 2007, Blu-ray BD-RE Rewritable Discs were also available in the smaller 8 cm diameter size, containing 7.5 GB, for use in small devices like camcorders.[82]
HD DVD / Blu-ray hybrid discs
Warner Bros. officially announced Total Hi Def (THD) at CES 2007. Total Hi Def (Total HD) hybrid discs support both HD DVD and Blu-ray, HD DVD on one side (up to two layers) and Blu-ray on the other side (up to two layers). However, in November 2007, Warner Brothers put development of the Total HD discs on hold for an indefinite amount of time.[83] The project was finally cancelled in January 2008 when Warner declared that they were dropping HD DVD in favor of publishing exclusively on Blu-ray – thus eliminating the need for a hybrid disk. Warner also cited a lack of interest from fellow studios to publish on hybrid disks, as all but one studio, Paramount Pictures, were exclusive to either Blu-ray or HD DVD and when Paramount became HD DVD exclusive in August 2007 they left Warner as the only major studio publishing on both discs.
See also
- Blu-ray Disc Association
- List of Blu-ray Disc devices
- Format war
- Professional Disc for DATA (PDD or ProDATA)
- Comparison of high definition optical disc formats
- MUSE LD – an earlier optical disc which contained analog HDTV signals
- D-VHS – a tape-based format that allows recording of 720 or 1080 high-def DTV, while remaining compatible with older VHS libraries
- Blu-ray Disc recordable
- Optical disc
Alternative disc technologies
- HD DVD
- AVCHD
- Digital Multilayer Disk – the successor technology to Fluorescent Multilayer Disc
- Enhanced Versatile Disc (EVD)
- Forward Versatile Disc (FVD) – Taiwanese backed red laser format
- Fluorescent Multilayer Disc
- Holographic Versatile Disc – standards with 200 and 300 GB storage are under development
- 3D optical data storage – a next-generation technology expected to provide TB-capacity discs
- PH-DVD
- Protein-coated disc
- Tapestry Media
- Ultra Density Optical
- Versatile Multilayer Disc
- LS-R – a "layer selection" technology allowing the stacking of very large numbers of DVD-like data layers in a single disc.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Blu-ray Disc Association
- Blu-ray Disc License Web Site
- AACS LA
- Panasonic Blu-ray Portal Site
- PlayStation.com: Blu-ray Disc Technology
- Dolby Laboratories
- DTS
- HDMI Licensing
- Blu-ray.com - News, Reviews and Discussion Forums
- The Authoritative Blu-ray Disc FAQ by Hugh Bennett
- The High Definition DVD FAQ – FAQ for Blu-ray, HD DVD, EVD, FVD...
- Studios Currently Supporting Blu-ray
- The History Of the Format War(From Forum of blu-ray.com)
References
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- ^ Seán Byrne (2007-02-23). "Significant progress made toward creation of joint Blu-ray Disc™ patent license (Press Release)". cdrfreaks.com. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
- ^ "Total available United States releases".
- ^ http://www.toshiba.co.jp/about/press/2008_02/pr1903.htm
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7252506.stm
- ^ Evan Ramstad (1998-04-08). "In HDTV Age, Successor to VCR Still Seems to Be a Long Way Off". online.wsj.com. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ^ Martyn Williams (2002-08-12). "Opening the Door for New Storage Options". pcworld.com. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ^ S.B. Luitjens (2001-06-15). "Blue laser bolsters DTV storage, features". planetanalog.com. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
- ^ "Sony Shows 'DVR-Blue' Prototype". cdrinfo.com. 2000-10-11. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
- ^ Barry Fox (2002-02-19). "Replacement for DVD unveiled". newscientist.com. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
- ^ Maxim Liadov. "SONY BDZ-S77 Recorder Review". digit-life.com. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
- ^ "Next Generation DVD Born". bbc.co.uk. 2002-02-21. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
- ^ Junko Yoshida (2002-03-01). "Picture's fuzzy for DVD". eetimes.com. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
- ^ Junko Yoshida (2001-12-12). "Forum to weigh Microsoft's Corona as DVD encoder". eetimes.com. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
- ^ Philip De Lancie (2002-06-01). "HD on DVD". emedialive.com. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
- ^ "Toshiba, NEC Share Details of Blue-Laser Storage". pcworld.com. 2002-08-29. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
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{{cite web}}
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{{cite web}}
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Region Free: 67.71%
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{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=
(help); Unknown parameter|month=
ignored (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ "RESPONSE TO REPORTS OF ATTACKS ON AACS TECHNOLOGY". AACS. April 16, 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-14.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ Content Protection - BD+ and Blu-ray
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(help) - ^ Zyber, Joshua (2007-11-23). "High-Def FAQ: Blu-ray Profiles Explained". highdefdigest.com. Retrieved 2007-12-18.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ "Lionsgate to bow first BD-Live titles in January".
- ^ "TDK ANNOUNCES 100GB BLUE LASER DISC TECHNOLOGY". 2005. Retrieved 2007-09-27.
- ^ "Hitachi Demos Four-Layer Blu-ray Disc Playback".
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{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ Yam, Marcus (2007-01-10). "Three HD Layers Today, Ten Tomorrow". DailyTech. Retrieved 2007-04-24.
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- ^ Hitachi First in Industry to Release Blu-ray Disc Camcorder Naoki Asakawa, Nikkei Electronics, Nikkei Business Publications, 2007-08-03
- ^ Posts tagged Totalhd at Engadget HD