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Blu-ray discs represent the latest in optical disc storage technology. They offer higher quality than DVD’s, and are making a huge surge in the entertainment industry. WOVA is here to help you with all of your Blu-ray needs. If you have a project you want to put onto Blu-ray, we can author a disc for you, and make copies, all in one stop! Our computers and software are the best in Los Angeles, ensuring your hard work and time transfers to an excellent final product.
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Have you ever wondered what makes a Blu-ray so special? How a Blu-ray is different? The history of the Blu-ray? Well I have researched some cool information, and I’ll post a few of the interesting things I have learned, below.
To start, Blu-ray technology was originally introduced in Japan around 2000, and developed further until its official release in 2006. While the physical disc appears to look the same as a DVD, they differences are vast. Most noticeably, a typical DVD only holds around 4.7 GB of data, but a Blu-ray disc holds 25 GB (dual layers can hold 50 GB, and even triple layer discs at 100 GB!). At first glance, you will notice that a the bottom of a Blu-ray disc is much darker in color than a standard DVD. This is probably the easiest way to tell a Blu-ray apart from any other disc.
If you were wondering why it’s called “Blu”, there is a reason for that. The laser diode that reads the data stored on the disc is the main reason for this. The laser that reads a DVD operates at a wavelength of around 650 nanometers (nm), giving the laser a red color. The diode that reads a Blu-ray is around 400 nm. This wavelength results in a blue color. Below is a cool diagram to help you understand how light and wavelength works. Every color we see is a result of the absorption and reflection of certain wavelengths.
Now what does laser color and wavelength have to do with anything, you may ask. Well, the idea is that a smaller wavelength means more precision. With a more precise way to read information, we are able to put higher quality video and audio on a disc. An important thing to understand is that optical technology is a two way street. If you have a Blu-ray disc, you need a Blu-ray laser diode to read the information. This is why a Blu-ray will not work in ordinary DVD players.
For a while, Blu-ray was not the standard in high definition disc technology. For a few years, the main competitor was the HD DVD, mainly promoted by Toshiba. At first, HD DVD’s seemed to have an advantage, due to the high cost and limited availability of Blu-ray players, as well as some programming bugs along the way. As technology grew, Sony integrated a Blu-ray player in the Sony Playstation 3, which many people agree was what sealed the deal on Blu-ray winning the battle. In 2008, studios like Warner Bros. were releasing movies on both formats, but more and more studios and retailers were limiting the supply of HD DVD’s. Eventually, Toshiba ceased production of HD DVD’s on February 19, 2008.
Of course, Blu-ray will support the latest formats, codecs, aspect ratios, frame rates, and offers a superior read/write speed.
So now that you know more about Blu-ray’s, give us a call and we can assist you with all of your Blu-ray needs including rentals of NTSC or PAL players!
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