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A Blu-ray Disc (also called '''BD''') is a high-density Optical Disc format for the storage of digital media, including High-definition Video . OVERVIEW The name Blu-ray Disc is derived from the blue-violet Laser used to read and write this type of disc. Because of its shorter Wavelength (405 Nm ), substantially more data can be stored on a Blu-ray Disc than on the DVD format, which uses a red (650 nm) laser. A single layer Blu-ray Disc can store 25 Gigabyte s (GB), over five times the size of a single layer DVD at 4.7 GB. A dual layer Blu-ray Disc can store 50 GB, almost 6 times the size of a dual layer DVD at 8.5 GB. Blu-ray Disc is similar to PDD , another optical disc format developed by Sony (which has been available since 2004) but offering higher data transfer speeds. PDD was not intended for home video use and was aimed at business data archiving and Backup . Blu-ray Disc is currently in a Format War with rival format HD DVD . Laser and optics The Blu-ray Disc system uses a blue-violet Laser operating at a Wavelength of 405 nm, similar to the one used for HD DVD , to read and write data hence the name. Conventional DVD s and CDs use red and Infrared lasers at 650 nm and 780 nm respectively. Profiles The BD-ROM specification defines four profiles of Blu-ray Disc players. All video-based profiles are required to have a full implementation of BD-J . Profile 1 (Grace Period Profile) -informally known as "Profile 1.0"- is the basic profile that all current Blu-ray Disc players (as of August 2007) are based on. Players based on this profile are only required to have 64 KB of application data area storage, which is typically used for bookmarks and other preference storage. Most players have more than the minimum required 64 KB. After October 31 2007 , this profile will be superseded by Profile 1 (Final Standard Profile) as the new minimum profile. Profile 1 (Final Standard Profile) (mandatory November 2007)-unofficially referred to as "Profile 1.1"- adds a secondary video decoder (typically used for picture in picture), secondary audio (typically used for interactive audio and commentary) and capability of supporting a minimum of 256 MB of local storage (for storing audio/video and title updates). Compliance with this profile will be mandatory for player models introduced to the market after October 31 2007 ,1 but existing products will be unaffected. As of July 24 2007 , only the Denon DVD-3800BDCI and DVD-2500BTCI have been announced as supporting this feature when they become available in the fall of 2007.2 Some profile 1.0 players may be upgradeable via firmware update to profile 1.1 if they have the appropriate hardware, but no manufacturer has announced any such upgrade. When software authored with interactive features dependent on Profile 1.1 hardware capabilities are played on profile 1.0 players some features may not be available or may offer limited capability. Profile 1.0 players will still be able to play the main feature of the disc, however. Profile 2 (BD-Live), also known as "Profile 2.0" or BD-Live, adds network connectivity to the list of mandatory functions and increases mandatory local storage capability to 1 GB . So far one manufacturer, Daewoo, has created a player with this profile, the Daewoo DBP-1000, and will hit the consumer market in the very near future.3 Profile 3 (audio only) is meant for an audio-only player and does not require video decoding or BD-J . Hard-coating technology Because the Blu-ray Disc standard places the data recording layer close to the surface of the disc, early discs were susceptible to contamination and scratches and had to be enclosed in plastic caddies for protection. The consortium worried that such an inconvenience would hurt Blu-ray Disc's market adoption. Blu-ray Discs now use a layer of protective material on the surface through which the data is read. The recent introduction of a clear Polymer coating has given Blu-ray Discs substantial scratch resistance. The coating is developed by TDK and is called " Durabis ". It allows BDs to be cleaned safely with only a tissue. The coating is said to successfully resist " 50 Grit Sandpaper scrubbing" according to Samsung Optical technical manager Chas Kalsi. It is not clear, however, whether discs will use the Durabis coating as a standard or only in premium discs. Both Sony and Panasonic replication methods include proprietary hard-coat technologies. Sony's rewritable media are sprayed with a scratch-resistant and antistatic coating. Verbatim recordable and rewritable Blu-ray Disc discs use their own proprietary hard-coat technology called ScratchGuard. Ongoing development Such discs would probably not work on today's players, as these devices are only designed and tested on discs that meet the current specification. BD-9 BD-9 is a red laser DVD with BD contents on it. This disc should be rotated at 3x speed or more to satisfy the minimum transfer rate of 30.24 Mbit/s. SOFTWARE STANDARDS Codecs Codec s are Compression schemes that reduce data storage requirements; both lossy and lossless compression techniques have been developed and are being used. Depending on the application, either can be used to greatly increase the amount of audio or video storable on fixed Bit -capacity media. The BD-ROM specification mandates certain codec compatibilities for both hardware decoders (players) and the movie-software (content). For video, all players are required to support ISO MPEG-2 , H.264/AVC , and SMPTE VC-1 . MPEG-2 video allows decoder backward compatibility for DVD s. H.264, sometimes called MPEG-4 part 10, is a more recent video codec. VC-1 is a competing MPEG-4 derivative codec proposed by Microsoft (based on Microsoft 's previous work in Windows Media 9 ). BD-ROM titles with video must store video using one of the three mandatory codecs (multiple codecs on a single title are allowed). The initial version of Sony's Blu-ray Disc-authoring software shipped with support for only 1 video-codec: MPEG-2. Consequently, all launch titles were encoded in MPEG-2 video. A subsequent update allowed the content producers to author titles in any of the 3 supported codecs: MPEG-2, VC-1 , or H.264 . The choice of codecs affects the producer's licensing/royalty costs, as well as the title's maximum runtime (due to differences in compression efficiency). Discs encoded in MPEG-2 video typically limit content producers to around two hours of high-definition content on a single-layer (25 GB) BD-ROM. The more advanced video codecs (VC-1 and H.264) typically achieve a video runtime twice that of MPEG-2, with comparable quality. For audio, BD-ROM players are required to support Dolby Digital AC-3, DTS , and linear PCM (up to 7.1 channels). Dolby Digital Plus , and Lossless formats Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD are player optional. BD-ROM titles must use one of mandatory schemes for the primary soundtrack (linear PCM, Dolby Digital, or DTS). A secondary audiotrack, if present, may use any of the mandatory or optional codecs. Dolby Audio Coding for Future Entertainment Formats If Dolby Digital Plus is used, it must be accompanied by an AC-3 soundtrack (which provides the "core" bitstream). (PDF) For uncompressed PCM and lossless audio in Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio formats, Blu-ray Discs support encoding in up to 24-bit/192 kHz for a maximum of six channels, or up to eight channels with at most 24-bit/96 kHz sampling.7 For users recording Digital Television programming, the recordable Blu-ray Disc standard's datarate of 54 Mbit/s is more than adequate to record high-definition broadcasts from any source ( IPTV , cable/satellite, or terrestrial). For Blu-ray Disc movies the maximum transfer rate is 48 Mbit/s (1.5x) (both audio and video payloads together), of which a maximum of 40 Mbit/s can be dedicated to video data. This compares favorably to the maximum of 36.55 Mbit/s in HD DVD movies for audio and video data.8 Java software support At the 2005 JavaOne trade show, it was announced that Sun Microsystems ' Java cross-platform software environment would be included in all Blu-ray Disc players as a mandatory part of the standard. Java will be used to implement interactive menus on Blu-ray Discs, as opposed to the method used on DVD video discs, which uses pre-rendered MPEG segments and selectable subtitle pictures, which is considerably more primitive and less seamless. Java creator James Gosling , at the conference, suggested that the inclusion of a Java Virtual Machine as well as network connectivity in BD devices will allow updates to Blu-ray Discs via the Internet, adding content such as additional subtitle languages and promotional features that are not included on the disc at pressing time. This Java Version will be called BD-J and will be a subset of the Globally Executable MHP (GEM) standard. GEM is the world-wide version of the Multimedia Home Platform standard. Region codes This arrangement puts the countries of the major Blu-ray manufacturers (Japan, Korea, Malaysia) in the same region as the U.S., thus ensuring early releases of U.S. content to those markets. Europe isn't in this zone, and this factor may drive a greater acceptance of the HD DVD format there. Digital rights management (DRM) The Blu-ray Disc format employs several layers of DRM.1112 Advanced Access Content System is a standard for Content Distribution and Digital Rights Management . It is developed by '''AACS Licensing Administrator, LLC''' ('''AACS LA'''), a Consortium that includes Disney , Intel , Microsoft , Matsushita (Panasonic), Warner Brothers , IBM , Toshiba and Sony . Since appearing in devices in 2006, several successful attacks have been made on the format. The first known attack relied on the Trusted Client problem. In addition, decryption keys have been extracted from a weakly protected player ( WinDVD ). BD+ is effectively a small Virtual Machine embedded in authorized players. It allows content providers to include executable programs on Blu-ray Discs. Such programs can:13
If a playback device manufacturer finds that its devices have been hacked, it can potentially release BD+-code that detects and circumvents the vulnerability. These programs can then be included in all new content releases. The specifications of the BD+ virtual machine are only available to licensed device manufacturers. BD-ROM Mark is a small amount of cryptographical data that is stored physically differently from normal Blu-ray data. Bit-by-bit copies that do not replicate the BD-ROM Mark are impossible to decode. A specially licensed piece of hardware is required to insert the ROM-mark into the media during replication. Through licensing of the special hardware element, the BDA believes that it can eliminate the possibility of mass producing BD-ROMs without authorization. AnyDVD HD allows users to watch Blu-ray Disc movies on non-HDCP compliant PC hardware. The movies can be decrypted on the fly direct from the Blu-ray Disc or can be copied to hard disk. AnyDVD HD is also capable of automatically removing any unwanted logos and trailers. They have stated that AnyDVD HD uses several different mechanisms to disable the encryption, and is not dependent on the use of a single compromised encryption key. They have also stated that AACS has even more flaws in its implementation than CSS , rendering it highly vulnerable, but they will release no details for obvious reasons. APPLICATIONS Compatibility While it is not compulsory for manufacturers, the Blu-ray Disc Association recommends that Blu-ray Disc drives should be capable of reading standard DVDs for Backward Compatibility . For instance, Samsung's first Blu-ray Disc drive can read CDs, regular DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs. All other Blu-ray Disc players released support DVD playback as well, however not all support CD playback. This includes Sony , Panasonic , Philips , LG , Pioneer and PC-based players from Alienware , Sony , and Dell . LG has also produced a player that is capable of playing both Blu-ray and HD DVD formats. Stand-alone players ( Sony )]] MAX Dual Blu-ray Disc+HD DVD System]] The home video game console system PlayStation 3 (Sony) is shipped with a 2x Blu-ray Disc drive. The drive is read-only as is the case with most game console optical drives. According to Sony's press releases, it supports DVD (8x), CD (24x), and SACD (2x) formats in addition to BD-ROM, BD-R, and BD-RE. Full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema Video Output. AVCHD Media playback with X.v.Color output. On January 4 , 2006 , at the Consumer Electronics Show Philips announced their first Blu-ray Disc consumer product to the U.S. market. On December 4 , 2006 , Sony launched their first standalone Blu-ray Disc player, the BDP-S1 , to the U.S. market for US$ 1000. On January 8 , 2007 , Samsung announced their second generation Blu-ray Disc player BD-P1200. It retails for US$799. On February 26 , 2007 , Sony announced their second generation Blu-ray Disc player BDP-S300 for the U.S. market. Full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema Video Output. AVCHD Media playback with X.v.Color output. The player has all the features of the BDP-S1 along with CD playback in a smaller chassis and retails for US$499. 16 On July 11 , 2007 , Samsung announced their third generation Blu-ray Disc players.17 The BD-P1400 and the BD-P2400 will retail for $549 and $649 and be available in October 2007. The BD-P2400 will utilize the HQV or "Hollywood Quality Video" video processing chip. Recordable stand-alone players The first Blu-ray Disc recorder was Demonstrated by Sony on March 3 , 2003 , and was introduced to the Japanese market in April that year. On September 1 , 2003 , JVC announced Blu-ray Disc-based products at IFA in Berlin , Germany . In June 2004, Panasonic became the second manufacturer to launch a Blu-ray Disc recorder to the Japanese market. Launching in July the DMR-E700BD was one of the first few units to support writing to existing DVD formats, and to single-side dual-layer Blu-ray Discs with a maximum capacity of 50 gigabytes. Portable players Sony will release the first portable BD player in 2008. It's rumored that the screen will be an OLED as opposed to an LCD . {Link without Title} Universal players (Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD) Camcorders On July 23 2007 , Hitachi, Ltd. revealed that they had developed technologies for 1920×1080 pixel Blu-ray camcorders.23 The camcorders are scheduled for a fall 2007 release in Japan.24 On Personal Computer and Notebook In 2006, Sony introduced its VAIO AR range notebook featuring Blu-ray Disc drive. This is the first notebook featuring Blu-ray Disc drive. In December of 2006 , Dell introduced its XPS M1710 laptop with a BD-ROM player and burner at a base price of US$3,599. Dell's 20 inch laptop, XPS M2010 is customisable to include Blu-ray Disc drive.25 On 9 May 2007 , Hewlett-Packard introduced its select Pavilion Desktop range featuring LG's combo Blu-ray Disc Recordable/HD DVD-ROM drive, which can be customised online.26 HP's business laptop range features a Blu-ray Disc drive as the only high-definition drive available to choose from.27 In UK, Acer, supporter of both formats, has released notebook with Blu-ray Disc drive. PC Drives Recordable PC drives See Also: Blu-ray Disc recordable Originally, Blu-ray Disc drives in production could only transfer approximately 4.5 Megabytes Per Second (MB/s) (equivalent to 36 Mbit/s ) (54 Mbit/s required for BD-ROM), but 4x speed drives with a 18 MB/s (144 Mbit/s) transfer rate are now available. Rates of 8x (36 MB/s or 288 Mbit/s) or more are planned for the future. Initially, devices used Parallel ATA but newer ones more commonly use Serial ATA . CORPORATE SUPPORT See Also: List of corporations supporting Blu-ray While some corporate sources claim HD DVD is "lower cost" to reproduce, a study performed by Home Media Magazine ( August 5 2007 ) reveals this is no longer the case. Quotes from several disc manufacturers for 25,000 units of HD DVDs and Blu-rays revealed a price differential of only 5–10 cents. (Lowest price: 90 cents versus 100 cents. Highest price: $1.45 versus $1.50.)32 It has been reported (in PCworld, Arstechnica, on CNN, et al) that Blu-ray bans pornography and that this may have an effect on which format is successful.33 However, this is inaccurate, as both formats have said they fully support all material, including porn, and have no control over what companies release with their license.34 Currently, Blu-ray Disc is exclusively supported by Sony Pictures Entertainment and MGM (both owned by Sony ) as well as Disney , 20th Century Fox , and Lionsgate . It is non-exclusively supported by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema . Several members of the Blu-ray organization's Board of Directors, such as Hewlett-Packard , Samsung , and LG , pledged support to Blu-ray Disc, and later, also supported HD DVD . In a recent interview with GameSpot , when quizzed on the new LG HD DVD/Blu-ray Disc combo players, Sir Howard Stringer , CEO of Sony , had this to say: |
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