Blu-Ray vs HD DVD

The war is over and it has been a long time coming, but the battle to replace the DVD has finally reached consumers. The consumer electronics industry has been attempting to replace the millions of DVD players and DVD-ROM drives across the United States (which is the biggest consumer of DVD’s) and across the globe. The problem, how do you decide which format to replace? Blu-Ray or HD DVD.

Consider the following facts: Each format has its own heavyweight industry backing. HD DVD is supported by Toshiba, Intel, and Microsoft, who by the way has added a HD DVD player to its XBOX 360 game console. HD DVD are supposedly the next big thing in home movies. When hooked up to a High Definition television it only enhances the experience more. Blu-Ray is supported by Samsung, Pioneer, and Sony, which has built a Blu-Ray Player into the Playstation 3 game system. That sounds great for gamers, but what about everyone else who has regular DVD player? Are we suppose to just throw them away or just hang our head low in shame for having one?

So what’s the big deal anyway?

Well let’s take a closer look at how Blu-Ray differs from the HD format. Blu-Ray has a storage capacity advantage, offering 25GB of storage on a single-sided disc and 50GB on a double-sided disc. What does that mean to the consumer? Well it means more added scenes to your favorite movie and you don’t have to pay more money for a double disc package. HD DVD discs hold 15GB (single sided) or 30GB (double-sided). Although this would seem to give Blu-Ray a significant advantage, 15GB is enough room—just barely—to fit a high-definition movie. Even though it will look exceptionally clearer on a regular television and sounds great the the consumer will be losing out on the extras that only a Blu-Ray DVD can offer.

We alway know that HD DVD Players and drives are a lot cheaper than Blu-Ray Devices. Blu-Ray Players when first launched (Jan. 2006) had MSP of between $1,000 and $1,500. Now you can get a Blu-Ray Player for no more than $500. I found a great deal on a Sony Blu-Ray Players for only $394.99 it’s a great price for a high quality Sony BDP-S300 Blu-Ray Player.