HD DVD vs Blu-ray
HD DVD, or High-Density DVD is a high-density optical disc format designed for the storage of data and high-definition video. HD DVD has a single-layer capacity of 15 GB and a dual-layer capacity of 30 GB on standard single sided, 12cm disc. The HD DVD standard was jointly developed by a group of consumer electronics and PC companies like Microsoft and intel while spearheaded by Toshiba.
HD DVD supports several file systems like ISO 9660 and UDF for data storage. But mostly, HD DVD are developed to cater for high defination video, with two hybrid formats which contains standard DVD-Video format for regular playback in DVD players, and HD DVD format for playback in high defination on HD DVD players. Audio can be encoded using latest audio formats like DTS and Dolby Digital EX, and up to 24-bit/192 kHz for two channels, or up to eight channels of up to 24-bit/96 kHz encoding. It support MPEG-2, VC-1 and H.264 for video compression. Imagine watching a new big-budget film which normally mastered in common 24-bit/48kHz, but now with eight channels of 24-bit/96kHz audio, 1920x1080 HDTV format video (currently the highest digital video resolution commercially available) compared to 720x480 availabe to most HDTV.
Another advantage of Blu-Ray is the protective layer used on the surface to protect the data from contamination and scratch since Blu-Ray standard places the data recording layer close to the surface, at 0.1mm compared to 0.6mm on HD DVD.
HD DVD supports several file systems like ISO 9660 and UDF for data storage. But mostly, HD DVD are developed to cater for high defination video, with two hybrid formats which contains standard DVD-Video format for regular playback in DVD players, and HD DVD format for playback in high defination on HD DVD players. Audio can be encoded using latest audio formats like DTS and Dolby Digital EX, and up to 24-bit/192 kHz for two channels, or up to eight channels of up to 24-bit/96 kHz encoding. It support MPEG-2, VC-1 and H.264 for video compression. Imagine watching a new big-budget film which normally mastered in common 24-bit/48kHz, but now with eight channels of 24-bit/96kHz audio, 1920x1080 HDTV format video (currently the highest digital video resolution commercially available) compared to 720x480 availabe to most HDTV.
Blu-ray Disc on the other hand, is capable of storing 25 GB data on each layer. The Blu-ray Disc system uses a blue-violet laser operating at a wavelength of 405 nm, similar to the one used for HD DVD, to read and write data. So, it basically capable of carrying similar capacities as its’ rival HD DVD, with some extra storage advantage – simply because Blu-ray uses a thinner surface layer and tighter track pitch. HD DVD uses a technology sufficiently similar to DVD that it permits normal DVD production lines to handle this media without major retooling or replacement.
Another advantage of Blu-Ray is the protective layer used on the surface to protect the data from contamination and scratch since Blu-Ray standard places the data recording layer close to the surface, at 0.1mm compared to 0.6mm on HD DVD.
Click on the picture for Table of Comparison
Although both HD DVD and Blu-ray standard and specification has been finalized, engineers continue working to advance the technology. In January 7, 2007, Toshiba announced that they have created HD DVDs with 17 GB layers, and demonstrated a triple-layer 51 GB disc. And 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. With more advancement in technology, we can only wonder how much higher can they go.
Reference:
1. http://www.geardigest.com/
2. http://www.wikipedia.org/
3. http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/
1. http://www.geardigest.com/
2. http://www.wikipedia.org/
3. http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/
Labels: Tech and Gadget
