Sunday, July 30, 2006

HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray

HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray is becoming a classic case of superior implementation vs. superior stats. While Blu-Ray has higher potential capacities, data-rates and greater potential interactivity due to it's Java support, HD-DVD has a simpler web-scripting based technology called iHD, mandatory dual-encoder inclusion, persistent storage, and a network interface.

It really took listening to a podcast from a Microsoft XBOX marketer for half an hour to blow my 'Blu-Ray is technologically better' bubble. The truth is that the Blu-Ray we're expecting is still in the works. Due to it's simplicity, HD-DVD content-providers achieved a lot of its potential advancement in a relatively short time, while Blu-Ray discs have no where approached theirs. Implementation is what really matters. HD-DVD has employed Microsoft's VC-1 compression to overcome Blu-Ray's future capacity advantage, while Blu-Ray discs currently use MPEG-2 (even though H.264 and VC-1 are supported).

Meanwhile, neither camp has settled their respective formats and there is news of HD-DVD discs being incompatible with certain HD-DVD players. Future firmware upgrades will address issues such as these but their presence indicates that it isn't too late for Blu-Ray content-providers to show the market whether their alternate standard is up to snuff.

MORE: XBOX Live's Major Nelson: Show #183 The one about HD-DVD via [Addicted to Digital Media]

edited for clarity

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