Jan 7, 2008 7:16 pm US/Central
DVD Format War: Blu-Ray Coming Out On Top
(WCCO)
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Both of the high-def DVD's deliver good pictures and sound, but they aren't compatible with each other. So which format delivers a knock out punch?
Two high-definition DVD formats fighting for the future of what consumers will use.
In one corner is Blu-ray backed by Sony, and in the other corner: HD DVD, made by Toshiba.
Both of the high-def DVD's deliver good pictures and sound, but they aren't compatible with each other. So which format delivers a knock out punch?
Shopper John Rogers hasn't made up his mind yet.
"I want a better picture, better sound quality, and the whole shop, if I'm going to invest that kind of money, I don't want to invest that kind of money right now and then have to reinvest that kind of money in a year or two," said Rogers.
Both formats use blue lasers rather than red, both have video and audio compression, and both will play regular DVD's. However, that's where the similarities end.
"The primary difference would be that the Blu-ray has higher storage capacity," said Mark Halsten with Halsten Entertainment.
A dual layer Blu-ray can hold about 50 Gigabytes of data, which is more than 20 hours of standard video. HD DVD, dual layer is only 30 Gigabytes. However, you can't play these discs on a regular DVD player.
"You need a special machine for either format, unless you can get a machine that does both," said Halsten.
If you want to watch High Definition DVDs there are some ways to get around buying a new machine.
"A Playstation 3 has a Blu-ray player built in. Or if you have a Xbox 360 that will allow you to play HD DVD, high definition discs if you purchase the add on device," said Halsten.
Right now, Blu-ray is winning the high-def DVD war. Most movie studios now are releasing Blu-ray DVDs instead of HD DVDs.
However, experts think all this disc discussion might be a waste of time since there's something new on the horizon.
"In the future movies will be downloaded," said Halsten.
Both formats cost about $20 to $30.
Another alternative is Netflix. The DVD-by-mail company said sometime this year they will deliver movies over high speed Internet connection.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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