HD-DVD vs BluRay

This report featured in Episode 10 of 2007.

So, what’s it to be? HD-DVD or BluRay, that’s the big technology question of 2007.

And already, the major players are forming alliances with manufacturers and retailers in what’s being touted as the biggest format war since Sony’s betamax took on JVC’s VHS in the mid 70’s.

So what’s BluRay, and what’s HD-DVD? Well they’re both video formats for the next generation of high-density optical disc, and they’re both intent on replacing the DVD player and VHS tape machine in your living room.

Like the VHS vs betamax saga of the 70’s and 80’s, BluRay and HD-DVD are competing formats, and both want that valuable lounge room real estate beneath your television.

HD-DVD is capable of storing 15 or 30 GB of storage, for single and dual-layer versions, while BluRay can hold 25 or 50 GB for its single or dual-layer versions… in other words, between three and ten times the capacity of current DVD technology. Both formats use a blue laser to read from, and write to, the disc, and both are designed for data storage, in particular, high-definition video.

 

HD-DVD is backed by some well-known and respected brand names. In fact the HD-DVD standard was jointly developed by a group of consumer electronics companies a few years back, lead by Toshiba. Microsoft also hopped on the bandwagon in November 2006, releasing an external add-on HD-DVD drive for its popular Xbox 360 games console.

Other companies backing the HD-DVD technology include NEC, Sanyo, RCA and Intel.

For movie titles, HD DVD is exclusively backed by Universal Studios, and is non-exclusively backed by Paramount Pictures, Dreamworks, Warner Bros. Pictures, and the Warner Music Group.

Well .. this all sounds like a tough act to follow, wouldn’t you agree? Let’s look at BluRay, and see what this format has to offer.

 

BluRay has been championed by industry heavyweight Sony. Other brands like JVC, Philips, Samsung and Panasonic have also backed the BluRay fomat, releasing domestic players and recorders in Germany, Japan, the United States and also Australia. Large corporates like Hewlett Packard, Apple and Dell have also backed the format.

In response to Microsoft’s adoption of the HD-DVD standard in its Xbox 360, Sony decided to include a read-only BluRay drive in its PlayStation 3 games console.

 

Technical Differences

Well, which format is better technically?

In terms of audio & video compression, Blu-ray and HD-DVD are similar on the surface: both support MPEG-2, VC-1, and H.264 for video compression, and Dolby Digital (AC-3), PCM, and DTS for audio compression.

The first generation of Blu-ray Disc movies was released using MPEG-2, which is the standard currently used in DVDs, although encoded at a much higher video resolution and a much higher bit rate. Initial HD-DVDs used the VC-1 codec. Due to greater disc capacity, the Blu-ray Disc could use higher video bit rates in the future.

In terms of audio, there are some differences. The Blu-ray format allows conventional AC-3 audiotracks at 640 kbit/s, higher than HD-DVD’s maximum of 448 kbit/s, but Dolby Digital Plus is mandatory for standalone HD-DVD players, while optional for BluRay players.

Both HD-DVD and BluRay machines do (or should) support HDMI into your television. HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface and replaces the older component and S-video connections between your television, and DVD or tape machines. HDMI carries digital video and audio all in one cable, and is designed for 1080p high-definition video; and high-quality, lossless audio formats.

 

Domestic Equipment

So where are we with domestic equipment? What’s on the shelf and what’s it worth?

The first HD-DVD Player & Recorder is available from Toshiba: the RD-A1 (shown below) retails for a cool AU$4,500 and includes a massive 1TB hard disc. The budget DVD producer Lite-On is also manufacturing a no-frills HD-DVD machine which should be available to Australian consumers soon.

In the BluRay camp, big names like Samsung have started churning out domestic products. The BD-P1000 is now available in Australia for around AU$1700, but early performance reviews have been disappointing. The world’s so-called no. 1 gadget magazine T3 recently reported Samsung’s domestic offering as having slow start-up time compared with a DVD player, sluggish menus and not worth the price tag.

But if you don’t have a spare $1700 to spend on a menu-sluggish, slow-startup BluRay machine, you’re not alone. Many are waiting for the March release of Sony’s PS3. Even though it’s being marketed as the ultimate games console, the integrated BluRay drive is expected to have a big impact on the home entertainment business.

 

T3 also reported that the new Maestro Pro-V Media Centre, containing a blue-ray drive and Twin HD Tuner (shown above) was anything but flawless. Microsoft’s support of the HD-DVD format is evident with Windows Media Centre not supporting BluRay in this machine; additionally the HDMI output on the Maestro was an optional extra. For around AU$3,500, T3 recommends waiting for a version running Vista Media Centre if you’re after BlueRay compatability.

 

Movie Titles

So what movie titles can we expect on these competing formats?

HD-DVD titles heading this way include Land of the Dead, Mission Impossible III, Serenity, Apollo 13 and T3: Rise of the Machines. Other HD DVD titles include The Last Samurai, Million Dollar Baby, The Phantom of the Opera by Warner Home Video; and Serenity by Universal Studios. So far 163 titles have been released in America and 61 in Japan.

BluRay titles now being produced include Tears of the Sun, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Into the Blue and SWAT. All in all more than 157 titles have been released on Blu-ray Disc. The first movies using BluRay dual layer discs (50 GB) were introduced in November, 2006, but single layer discs are currently far more popular with developers.

 

So what’s the verdict?

While we’re still in the early stages of these technologies, HD-DVD appears to be cheaper and easier to produce. Certainly the hardware is more affordable, and the picture quality on early discs has been excellent.

Unfortunately for HD-DVD, there’s less storage space than BluRay and the format isn’t supported by as many Hollywood studios. HD-DVD simply hasn’t managed to secure the support of as many companies as BluRay.

In Australia, the prices of domestic machines are still comparable, and still hideously expensive by DVD player standards. BluRay has more capacity, supports a higher video bitrate and has better industry support, but until those prices come tumbling down, the battle is anything but over.

Show 6 of 2007

Well here we are – 2007 is finally here, along with the all new iPhone, iTV and Vista just to name a few. We could almost say Welcome to the all new Tech Talk Radio, but that would be misleading… we might sound a little different but that’s it. The regular team returns for another insightful year where we look into the evolution of technology that shapes our lives today.

A new study out this week details the habits of Australian Gamers, We take a look at Microsoft’s new Operating system Vista, Macs new iPhone and iTV, We’ll tell you about one of the best new music services on the internet (Pandora.com) and chat to it’s creator Tim Westergren (pictured left) in San Francisco.

We catch up with all the goings on in Silicon valley with our correspondent in the heart of Palo Alto, Lidija Davis – and today we talk Google and search engines and why we should blog. Lidija wrote a piece on what search engines hate. It makes for an interesting read.

And we’ll also find out how Next G is going and what the competition is up to since the day Sol changed our lives.

Website of the week: Google’s Australia Day Page

Gadget of the week: Belkin Skype mobile phone

Audio Segments of note:
Pandora segment – duration 9 minutes
Entire uncut audio of interview with Tim Westergren from Pandora

Visit Techtalkradio.com.au for more.