Blu-ray: what is it? Features, pros and cons of technology

We have repeatedly heard references to Blu-ray technologies without a clear idea of ​​the structure and general characteristics of this phenomenon. Why has this format become so widely popular, and what exactly makes it so good that you should abandon the usual DVDs? Let's figure it out.

What is Blu-ray?

Blu-ray (BR) technology is a variation of the optical media (disc) format and is used to store high-definition video and audio files. In order to fully understand the essence of this technology, you should understand the main nuances:

1. Disks for a reason got this name.

The literal translation of the name "Blu-ray" is a blue ray (from English "Blueray"). This is due to the way in which such media is read. For CD and DVD discs, red or infrared radiation is used to get information from them. But the blue-violet laser has a shorter wavelength, which allows you to significantly increase focus and “examine” those parts of the disk that the red beam was not able to see.

1. Significantly improved all the characteristics.

Due to the possibility of placing on the disc identical to the DVD size (physical) more information, it was possible to achieve Full-HD resolution. These are films that have impressive clarity, the overall quality of the video stream and even sound.

With the presence of HDTV and a good speaker system, it became possible to take the effect of watching movies to a new level:

• the quality of the details on the screen has greatly improved;
• previously blurred background objects have clear outlines;
• the sound has become indistinguishable from the real one: interference and poor quality are a thing of the past;
• the number of FPS (frames per second) was increased from 24 to 60.

1. The volume of disks has increased.

Due to the ability to read previously inaccessible departments with information, a BR-disk can store 5 times more data on itself than a DVD and 8 times more if the disk is two-layer.

With all these indicators, a complete picture opens: Blu-ray technology allows you to get the image and sound of the highest quality in all existing parameters. However, not always the use of BR-technology entails exclusively benefit.

Advantages and disadvantages

Any thing in our world has its pros and cons, and Blu-ray is no exception. To the list of certain pluses includes:

• accessibility to posting a large amount of information (up to 4 hours of high-definition video);
• amazing quality of video and audio streams;
• more reliable and accurate reading of information;
• additional interactive features;
• backward compatibility (for Blu-ray players);
• the use of modern coding algorithms (improves not only the quality, but also the speed of access to information);
• picture-in-picture function.

These and other advantages of this technology are described in this video.

However, there are some minusesrelated to this format:

1. Price.

A key disadvantage of Blu-ray technology is its cost in the market. The discs themselves are not very different in price (compared to HD-DVDs), but BR-players are quite the opposite. Due to the fact that you can’t see the disks on a regular Blu-ray DVD player, manufacturers put very serious price tags on BR players.

1. Number of films.

This technology appeared relatively recently, therefore, although many films are created in Blu-ray quality, their number is still significantly less than in the usual HD-DVD format.

1. Loading time.

Depending on the type of menu (the harder, the longer), loading a BR disk can take up to 90 seconds. Movies with a simple menu load on average in 20 seconds. But this is still a significant minus and the need to dutifully wait for the deadline to switch to the required time period in the film.

1. Lack of backward compatibility.

Blu-ray players can easily play movies recorded on DVD and CD. But on a standard DVD player, you can never watch a movie in Blu-ray quality. The method of reading information by such a player is trite not suitable for this format.

Features of Blu-ray technology

Despite the identical external component of BR- and DVD-ROM drives, they have a rather large difference in their characteristics.

What is the difference:

1. Blu–raydrives are much more reliable.

They are made of more durable plastic, several times increasing resistance to scratches.

1. Large capacity.

Thanks to the use of the blue ray to read information instead of the red one, the volume of the disks has increased. A single-layer BR-disk can accommodate 25 GB of data, a double-layer - 50 GB, then 100 GB and 128 GB, respectively.

1. KVK function.

A key innovation of Blu-ray discs is the ability to watch video in a picture-in-picture format. Moreover, it is possible to record a high-definition television (HDTV) program in real time while viewing the contents of the disc itself. And if the BR-player has access to the Internet, you can download subtitles, additional audio tracks and perform other actions, also without interrupting the movie.

1. Full quality.

T. Since there are no analogs of Blu-ray recording, recording of the highest resolution video from other sources to the disc will be carried out without any loss of quality.

1. Editing records.

BR-technology allows you to change, edit and reorder recorded on disk information in real time. DVDs can only be dreamed of. This feature also allows you to create separate playlists.

1. 3D-technology.

Blu-ray movies can have a 3D effect. This was made possible thanks to the large amount of space for data recording. Of course, this does not compare with the cinema, but this is the first "real" home 3D, and not a game with red-green filters (3D Anaglyph).

These features of BR discs are not available for DVD media. This is what makes Blu-ray technology so valuable and opens up many paths for subsequent changes and improvements. Even taking into account the disadvantages associated with the cost of players, etc., this technology has received worldwide recognition and continues to develop rapidly.