Blu-ray 101: A Complete Starters Guide To High-Definition Video
Anthony Marsh – September 24, 2008

As of this writing, September 2008, a brand-spanking New Year is almost upon us. In the current climate that is all things high-definition video, there are now a few universal, absolute truths we can speak of.

The first thing is that the HD format war between Blu-ray and HD-DVD is now officially dead and done, and has been since February of this year when Toshiba told us so. With that, consumer indifference and confusion with respect to which HD format to choose from went out the window, replaced with a whole lot more clarity and consumer product identification. Secondly, and directly linked to the HD format war was equal confusion amongst the major film studios as to which format to support (in some cases, like Warner Bros., they opted for both), which subsequently led to many popular movies and TV shows having to float along with no home like the The Littlest Hobo, thereby further limiting customer choice, which is clearly never a good thing. Once Blu-ray came out on top, firmly clutching the bloody head of HD-DVD for all the world to see (I might exaggerating that specific bit), the notion of product support from the movie studios was no longer an issue, and at last, customers had the luxury of buying options they’d enjoyed previously with DVD. Not longer after that, many of the leading media and tech manufacturers jumped aboard, lending their expert mettle and moxie to Blu-ray hardware support.

Perhaps not coincidentally, all of this has led to Blu-ray player sales tripling in 2008 (2.38 million) from the prior year’s sales of 700,000 units. And these figures don’t even take the Sony PS3 (a gaming console which also doubles as a Blu-ray player) sales into account, which would bump those totals to several more million. 2009 is shaping up to be another banner year, with conservative estimates saying that stand-alone Blu-ray players (not counting PS3 sales) will more than double up on the 2008 totals.

But even still…

…for those of you out there (and there's still quite a few), not quite convinced that HD video is the greatest thing since sliced bread, clutching madly to your DVD collection (like me, with some 3000 and counting), and wanting no part (yet) of the next-generation, Blu-ray gravy train that continues to pick up more and more steam everyday, as prices on Blu-ray players head south of $250, this is for you. For the rest of you (you can probably be counted on one hand now) still lost in the abyss of righteously inferior VHS technology, who even refused the upgrade to DVD, seriously folks, give it up already. While all things retro and old(er) have suddenly become chic and ultra-fashionable again, the VCR isn’t one of them, nor will it ever be.

What is Blu-ray?

A wiser man than I once said: “When you don’t know where to begin, how about starting at the beginning, you dimwitted simpleton?” In addition to being wise, he was also quite blunt, impatient, boorish, and abrupt, but alas, we always need to take the good with the bad in life. At any rate, being that this is Blu-ray 101, let’s start off by discussing just exactly what Blu-ray is.

Officially announced as a piece of trailblazing technology back in February of 2002, the first batch of Blu-ray Disc players were launched in Japan in January of 2003. In short, Blu-ray is, and represents, the next-generation of optical disc technology which allows you to store enormous amounts of data (currently up to 50GB), as well as record, rewrite, and playback high-definition video. For those of you still a little foggy on high-definition (HD) video, it represents – and pardon this brief foray in hyperbole – a galactic leap forward in the annals of video quality, offering five times the amount of detail and overall image quality as compared to standard-definition (SD) video, i.e., DVDs.

Who is behind Blu-ray?

If I was to list all of the companies behind Blu-ray, we’d likely be here for an eternity and then some, but as it stands, Blu-ray was developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) which is currently comprised of more than 180 of the leading consumer electronics, personal computer, and media manufacturers that include Sony, Pioneer, Samsung, Sharp, Apple, Dell, HP, Thomson Multimedia, Walt Disney Pictures, and Warner Bros. Entertainment. For those of you with way more time on your hands then you know what to do with, a more comprehensive list can be accessed by visiting: http://www.blu-raydisc.com/en/about/SupportingCompanies.html

Why the name and why the typo?

Blu-ray came by its name as per the technology that fuels it: “Blu” as in the blue laser it uses to read and write data, and “ray” as in optical ray. For those of you familiar with the English language, I’m sure you’re well versed in the fact that that world BLUE is, and always has been, spelt B-L-U-E, and not B-L-U. While clearly a typo, the misspelling of the word blue is quite intentional according to the folks over at the BDA. The reason why the “e” was unceremoniously dropped was in the interests of global marketing and being able to register the trademark of the name. Since “blue” was obviously off limits, it quickly became “blu,” and all was well with 21st century capitalism.

But come on, really, is Blu-ray that big of a deal?

The clear and concise answer is YES, it is that big of a deal, plus a bag of chips too. As mentioned briefly above, Blu-ray represents a galactic and monumental leap forward in the world of technology and consumer electronics. Think of the moon landing, or Muhammad Ali redefining boxing, Michael Jordan redefining basketball, Wayne Gretzky redefining hockey, Jackie Robinson redefining baseball, and Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo redefining cinema. Well maybe not that last one – but you get the picture, and the main reason for this is size and space. The more you have, the more you can do, and with Blu-ray, the possibilities are virtually infinite.

At present, Blu-ray discs have a maximum, dual-layer storage capacity of 50GB. In comparison, DVDs have a maximum, dual-layer storage capacity of just 8.5GB. With more than five times the space, you, your movies, and your viewing experience no longer have to suffer at the cruel and merciless hands of the compression demons. They are those wretched beings who force everything to be scaled down to just a mere shadow of its original self, in the desperate hopes of all the video and audio info fitting onto your DVD. With Blu-ray, now you can see and hear everything just as the filmmakers and videomakers intended it to be, without any of that quality-draining compression. No more concessions filled with dull and drab images, or sometimes less-than-stellar audio. Ultimately though, words will fail, as seeing and hearing is truly believing. And when you’ve experienced something that is five times better than DVD and standard-definition video, it really is game over and turn out the lights because Elvis has just left the building.

In addition to vastly superior video that’s earmarked by lush, vivid, and richly detailed images, and clear and pristine sound that just snaps, crackles, and pops off the screen, with Blu-ray, all that added space can also accommodate all those value-added features you’ve come to know and love on DVD: making-of featurettes, director/cast commentary, and picture-in-picture action. With Blu-ray, unlike DVD, you’ll also be able to overlay menu screens while the movie is playing without ever having to stop the action. You get all these perks and extras, only instead of having to rely on two or three or four-disc deluxe DVD editions, in many instances, Blu-ray will be able to accommodate everything on just a single disc, thereby saving you space and giving you added ease of portability when required.

The following chart below illustrates just how astronomically advanced Blu-ray is over DVD – if it wasn’t already abundantly clear. About the only thing they have in common is the size of their respective disc’s diameter and thickness.

A very basic translation of all the technical info above: Blu-ray technology is bigger, faster, and harder hitting than anything we’ve seen in a long, long time, creating an astounding audio/visual treat for the senses to feast on. If you thought the gap between VHS and DVD was a wide one, the gap between Blu-ray and DVD will make that one look like a mere baby step in comparison.

Okay, you win, Blu-ray beats on DVD like a rented mule, but what happens to my super-awesome, ginormously-extensive DVD collection now?

The quick answer here is absolutely, positively nothing. You can keep them and continue to enjoy them (as well as CDs) on your Blu-ray player because the technology has been designed to be backwards compatible with them, lest you think our new and improved world of optical disc technology has left you in the lurch. In addition to backwards compatibility, (most) dedicated Blu-ray players support upscaling of DVDs to 1080i and 1080p, thereby improving the quality of your DVDs. This was obviously a smart move by Blu-ray because it satisfies existing and potential future customers who could be otherwise alienated by having to eventually switch formats. And from a strategic, sales point of view, with DVDs and the DVD player being as tremendously popular as they are (over 140 million units sold to date in North America alone), this creates a nice, logical segue to the next level of consumer home entertainment.

Okay, but what about that other competing brand of high-definition video, HD-DVD or whatever it was called?

Whatever is right. As alluded to earlier, while the marketplace was a little clouded for awhile, causing consumers and many major movie studios to mostly stand back and take a wait and see approach, after the dust eventually settled, Blu-ray scored a unanimous victory, thereby rendering HD-DVD to the already over-littered pantheon of could’a been, should’a been electronics contenders that have seen the likes of Laserdisc (LD) die a quick and painless death many a moon ago. While this one got dragged out a little longer then it should have (about two years), it’s well and over now, and you and I as consumers don’t have to feel all confused and short-changed when it comes it making the leap to high-definition video. For a more detailed read on the battle between Blu-ray and HD-DVD, and how the HD-DVD camp eventually raised the white flag and basically cried “mommy,” check out: http://www.hdtv.ca/plasma_lcd_projector/Blu-ray.php

The differences between the two formerly competing high-definition formats can be found in the chart below.

While quite similar in many respects, the old adage that size matters come into play once again, and in the all-important category of storage capacity, Blu-ray almost doubles up on HD-DVD, with a max storage capacity of 50GB for Blu-ray as compared to 30GB for HD-DVD. Additionally, when considering the data transfer rate of both video and audio, Blu-ray again holds a decided edge, transferring at a clip of 54.0Mbps versus 36.55Mbps for HD-DVD. All of that, plus sales of the PS3, the content support from most of the major movie studios, and hardware support from many of leading tech manufacturers, and lo and behold, the recipe for HD-DVD’s undoing and ultimate demise was signed, sealed, and delivered.

So what’s the future of Blu-ray and high-definition video?

Bright. Very, very bright, in fact. In this rapidly growing, ever-expanding landscape of home theater and consumer electronics (along with hackneyed and clichéd sentiments), one never quite knows for certain how things will play themselves out, but for now and the foreseeable future, high-definition video and Blu-ray appear to be here for the long haul. As prices on HD gear (TVs, Blu-ray players) continue to drop, third-party support continues to grow stronger by the day, and the mandate for all the major TV networks to broadcast exclusively in high-definition draws ever closer (February 2009), the overwhelming success of Blu-ray and high-definition video is all but assured, and for you and I as consumers, we at least have one decisive format to finally focus on, rather than being pulled in various directions by other competing brands of usually inferior technology.

Having said that, all the smart minds behind Blu-ray haven’t been simply resting on their laurels and yodeling the victory cheer since winning the HD format war. As such, Blu-ray discs have been designed with the future of HD-streaming – amongst other things – in mind. As mentioned, while current max storage capacity for a Blu-ray disc is 50GB, they are essentially “future-proof” as their storage capacity can be further extended by supporting added layers to their discs. At present, Pioneer has found a way to augment the existing layers with additional ones, thereby creating a Blu-ray disc with a maximum storage capacity of 500GB! That's on par if not greater than most current home computers. (Additional details can be read here: http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1616) While still in the experimental phases, once approved by the BDA, you can expect the 500GB Blu-ray discs to hit the street in about two to four years. Further, while current max data transfer speeds for Blu-ray are 54.0Mbps, the very near future could see those numbers climb as high as 400 MPbps due to the fact that Blu-ray discs were engineered with a large numerical aperture (NA). This allows for less recording power and a slower disc rotation to accommodate the same data transfer rates as DVD and HD-DVD.

In short: the future of high-definition video is here and now, and like it or not (but really, what’s not to like?), it isn’t going anywhere, anytime soon. Resistance is futile, so the best thing to do is embrace it and take your home theater experience to the next level. You’ll be glad you did.

Charts courtesy of: www.blu-ray.com

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