What is Blu-Ray?
Blu-Ray vs. Standard DVD
Capacity
What do I need for Blu-Ray?

What is Blu-Ray?
Blu-ray is a new, high-capacity disc format for DVD capable of storing and playing high-definition content images in your home theatre setup. Using advanced, blue laser technology, a Blu-ray disc is densely layered and read by a thinner laser than conventional standard DVDs. This means that a Blu-ray disc can store over five times the amount of data that a standard DVD can, resulting in unsurpassed picture and audio quality in the home.

Blu-Ray vs. Standard DVD
If you've ever seen a high-definition TV broadcast on an HDTV, then you know that an HD picture is more vivid and incredibly sharp. This stunning level of detail and resolution is impossible to reproduce on a standard DVD, which has a maximum resolution of 480p (or 480 lines). In contrast, Blu-ray goes beyond even HDTV broadcasts 720p capabilities and has the capacity to store all of the data needed for high-definition video, so it is able to reproduce the high-definition images at a resolution of 1080p. The result is that Blu-ray brings your favorite home entertainment to life with more clarity and higher quality than ever before.


In addition, the extra disc space means there's room for significantly more content and special features. When you buy a DVD movie, you're usually not just getting the movie--you're also getting the extra features that come along with it, like director's commentary and making-of documentaries (depending on the disc, of course). With Blu-ray, there's the possibility for previously unheard-of special features. Imagine, for example, interactive content, like a director on the screen explaining the shooting of a scene while the scene is playing in the background, or the ability to dynamically deliver new content to your Blu-ray player using the internet, a feature called BD-Live, such as new movie trailers or additional language tracks.

Thanks to the greatly enhanced audio/video quality and additional content capability, Blu-ray is a huge step forward in the DVD home theatre viewing experience.

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Capacity
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  BLU-RAY STANDARD DVD
Storage capacity

Single-layer Blu-Ray disc - 25 GB of data
More than 13 hours of standard video, more than two hours of high-definition video.

Double-layer Blu-Ray disc - 50 GB of data
More than 20 hours of standard video, 4.5 hours of high-definition digital video

Single-layer DVD - 4.7 GB of data
Average two-hour-standard-definition movie with a few extra features

Dual-layer DVD - 8.5 GB of data

Video resolution (max) 1920x1080 (1080p) 720x480/720x576 (480i/576i)
Video bit rate (max) 40.0 Mbps 9.8 Mbps
Audio codecs Dolby Digital
Dolby Digital Plus
Dolby TrueHD
DTS Digital Surround
DTS-HD
Dolby Digital
DTS Digital Surround
Data transfer rate 36 Mbps (megabits per second)
A Blu-ray disc can record 25 GB of material in just over an hour and a half.
10 Mbps (megabits per second)
Interactivity

Blu-ray disc offers a new level of interactivity, including a seamless ‘pop-up menu’ during playback and the ability to connect to the Internet and instantly download subtitles and other interactive movie features.

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What Do I need for Blu-Ray?
To watch high-definition content from a Blu-ray connected player, you need devices and cables that can project, receive, and transmit high-definition signals. For Blu-ray, you need an HD-compatible TV, a Blu-ray player, Blu-ray discs to watch on them, and HD-compatible cables to connect them.

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HD-compatible TV Blu-ray discs support resolutions up to 1920 x 1080. However, if your TV can't display high-definition pictures, Blu-ray discs won't provide better resolution than a traditional DVD. To get a great picture, you have to have a TV that can provide that picture. Check out these recommended HD-ready TVs for Blu-ray. For more information, see our HDTV buying guide.










 
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Blu-ray player Blu-ray discs contain a lot more information than traditional DVDs--so much information that current DVD players can't read it all. So you need a Blu-ray disc player that is designed to read that information and play the disc correctly."  Check out these Blu-ray disc players, including the Playstation 3, to get started."













 
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Blu-ray discs Traditional DVDs may look better on an HD-compatible TV than on a lower-resolution TV, but the DVD is still not actually high resolution. You're just seeing more of the available resolution than you could on a lower-resolution TV. And a Blu-ray player may up-convert a traditional DVD--that is, increase its resolution so it looks better on a higher-resolution screen. But for truly high-resolution images from a DVD, you need Blu-ray discs formatted with the dense new layering in the Blu-ray format. Blu-ray discs contain much more information than traditional DVDs, and they have other benefits, too. See our list of upcoming Blu-ray discs.

 
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HD-compatible cables So you've got a Blu-ray player, an HD-compatible TV, and Blu-ray discs. But you're not quite ready to go. Make sure you've got the most basic component of a good home theater: the right cables. Just like DVD players and TVs, cables support different levels of resolution. And you need cables that support high-definition images. If both your TV and DVD player support HDMI, we recommend Monster Cable HDMI 400 cables. If your TV or DVD player supports only component video, try Monster Cable THX V100 cables, certified by audio giant THX. See more recommended cables.


 
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