Next Generation DVD: A Format War?

Next Generation DVD: A Format War?

Published: 3/1/06

Almost two years ago we looked at an emerging technology - the next generation DVD. That technology is now ready for the marketplace, with the first releases planned in the first quarter of this year. Finally, home entertainment systems will be able to provide video and audio with unprecedented quality.

That's the good news.

The bad news? It looks like consumers may be put in a predicament similar to the VHS - Beta war due to the inability of the two major producers of next generation DVDs to agree on a compatible format.

A Look at the Technology
The main difference in the next generation DVD is in how the discs are read. Traditional DVDs use red lasers to read the disc while the next generation DVDs use blue lasers.

Blue lasers have a smaller wavelength and can pick out much finer detail than the red lasers. This also allows the new discs to store anywhere from three to five times as much data as a traditional DVD.
The technology

The Major Players
The two main players in the next gneration DVD game are Blu-ray and HD DVD.

At least a dozen companies, led by Sony Corp. are pushing the Blu-ray technology. The Blu-ray has the widest support among electronics manufactures, including most of the big Japanese names plus Dell, Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox. The Blu-ray disc also has the most storage capacity, up to 50 gigabytes on a double-layered disc.
Companies supporting Blu-ray

HD DVD, on the other hand, is led by Toshiba and has the backing of Microsoft, Intel and many other heavy hitters including Fuji, Hewlitt-Packard, Universal, and Warner Home Video. The HD DVDs have a storage capacity of 30 gigabytes on a double-layered disc.
Companies supporting HD DVD

Hedging its bets, Hollywood studio Paramount Pictures said recently that it would release movies in both new formats.

So What Does This All Mean?
Since the two formats are not compatible, consumers are once again left in the middle - VHS or Beta all over again.

And it will be no easy choice. For at least the first year or two, players for this new technology will be expensive. Ultimately the prices will drop, just as they did for conventional DVD players - but should we really have to wait until we can afford both systems? The answer to that one is easy.
Credit BellSouth

Thanks for the news W-OLF,It's a shame that it looks as if we are going to be in a war between the two different formats and I don't really want to gp out and buy an expensive DVD recorder player and then find i have picked the wrong format.I think for the time being i will stick with the VCR for recording tv programmes and DVD for playing films etc on..