subject: Dvd Vs. Blu-ray: Whats The Difference? [print this page] While the DVD format has increased the home entertainment experience tremendously, there is now a new option that is taking the market by storm and its known as Blu-Ray.
Comparing DVD and Blu-Ray
When it comes to looking at DVD and Blu-Ray side-by-side, the main difference in the most simple of terms is that Blu-Ray offers viewers a more powerful, high-definition experience.
* Image Quality Blu-Ray provides a resolution of 1,920x1,080 (1080p), whereas DVD is restricted to 720x480 (480p). For the viewer, this means that the detail in the image is much more clear and crisp, with well-defined contrast and vibrant colour.
* Audio Quality When it comes to the audio quality of Blu-Ray, the technology used (such as Dolby TrueHD and other similar formats) means that it will be just like hearing exactly what was recorded in the studio, if you have the sound system to complement it.
DVD, however, doesnt have this ability to replicate the audio soundtrack to the same high standard.
* Special Features While DVD still offers a special features section, the Blu-Ray solution is much more user friendly, as it allows the menu to pop up, even when the main feature is playing. In addition to this, Blu-Ray allows viewers to see picture-in-picture commentary.
* Cost While the above features of Blu-Ray are fantastic, they do come at a cost. The Blu-Ray players can be purchased for as little as a few hundred dollars, while the discs themselves retail upwards of $20. With time, these prices will come down (as they did with DVD players and discs). The one upside to purchasing a Blu-Ray player is that they still have the ability to play regular DVDs.
* Title Range Sitting at around the 100,000 mark, DVD wins the race when it comes to just how many titles are available to buy. While Blu-Ray only has just over 1000 out in stores, this number is growing by the day.
* Load Times Many viewers are used to the speedy loading times of the DVD, whereas Blu-Ray can take anywhere from 20 to 90 seconds to queue up.
At the end of the day, the new technology of Blu-Ray is improving very quickly and will undoubtedly make DVD obsolete due to the way home entertainment is being geared towards high definition viewing.
