Standard Definition DVDs v. High Definition Blu-ray Discs
Customers are often asking us about high definition video and the difference between regular DVDs and Blu-ray discs. Currently, SharpShooters Video records in standard definition and produces that footage on DVDs. Soon, as more and more of our customers are purchasing high definition disc players and are able to view Blu-ray discs at home, we will make the transition into videoing in HD and producing that footage onto Blu-ray discs.
Although Blu-ray discs look exactly the same as DVDs in size and shape, they are fundamentally different technologies, and you cannot play Blu-ray discs on your current DVD players:
|
Differences |
DVD (Standard Definition) |
Blu-ray (High Defintion) |
|
Storage Capacity |
Single layer DVDs can store about 4.7 GB of data, which is about two hours worth of standard definition video. | Single layer Blu-ray discs store approximately 25 GB of data, this equals about two hours of high definition information or 13 hours of standard definition information. |
|
Laser Technology |
DVD players use a red laser to read DVD discs. As the disc spins the laser reads the information encoded on the media and produces an image and sound on your television. | Like the name suggests Blu-ray players use a blue laser to read the stored information. Blue laser wavelengths are shorter and smaller than the red lasers. This allows for closer and more precise reading of information stored on the disc. |
|
Disc Construction
|
Since DVDs are read with a red laser the grooves on its underside need to be wide enough to accommodate the larger wavelength. Because the grooves are so far apart only 4.7 GB of information can be stored on each layer of the disc. DVDs also include a protective layer designed to resist scratching. | The grooves on a Blu-ray disc are much thinner and closer together. This allows the Blu-ray disc to squeeze almost five times as many grooves (and therefore, data) on to a disc exactly the same size as a DVD. Blu-ray also includes a protective hard coating that actually makes the disc more scratch resistant than DVDs. |
|
Image Clarity
|
Almost all DVDs have a standard definition resolution of 720×480. This resolution look great on a standard “tube” TV. However, if blown up to accommodate a widescreen HDTV the picture may look grainy. | Blu-ray was designed for high definition 1080 display. Blu-ray currently has the best image resolution on the market and looks great on HDTVs. |
|
Player Compatibility
|
Standard DVD players cannot and will not play Blu-ray discs, because the red laser used in DVD players is too large to read the tiny grooves in a Blu-ray disc. | All Blu-ray players currently on the market (including the Playstation 3) are backwards compatible and will still play standard DVDs. However, the DVD image displayed, while still decent, will not be high definition quality like a Blu-ray disc. |
*Information modified from an article by Erin Monaghan.
Hire Us!
Follow us on Facebook!
