5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Blu-ray Disk | Drawbacks & Benefits of Blu-ray Disk

What is Blu-ray disk ?

Blu-ray disk is a kind of Optical disk that stores videos in High Definition (HD) format. Being developed by Sony and Philips it came as a replacement for low resolution DVDs. It introduces movie experiences to the next level with crystal clear picture quality. Currently there are plans in the future for making Blu-ray drives including BD-ROM, BD-RW and BD-R. 

How does Blu-ray disk works ?

 

Blu-ray as the name suggests uses a blue-violet laser. This particular type of laser is used for reading and writing data. Comparing to a standard DVD, it offers almost 5 times greater storage capacity. However blue-violet rays suffers from shorter wavelength compared to a red laser used by a DVD player. Al though Blu-ray seems to be promising technology, it aren't flawless. There are certain problems in Blu-ray that is affecting their sales. 

 

In this article, I will be mentioning about 5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Blu-ray Disk | Drawbacks & Benefits of Blu-ray Disk. Through this post, you will know the pros and cons of using Blu-ray Disk.

 

Let's get started,

 

Advantages of Blu-ray Disk

 

1. Capacity

 

One of the main advantages of Blu-ray is its capacity of storing large amounts of informations. A standard Blu-ray disk on average can hold up to 25GB of data, while the dual layer Blu-ray disk can store up to 50GB of data.. This is mainly due to the fact that blue-violet lasers are used.  Blue-violet lasers are known for containing shorter wavelength which makes the disk posses more data. 

 

 

2. Security

 

For the part of security Blu-ray takes various measures such as High Bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), Advanced Access Content System (AACS), BD+ dynamic cryptology and ROM-Mark Watermarking. This HDCP ensures that no any audio and video content gets copied and no any unauthorized devices will be able to play them.

 

 

3. Backwards Compatibility

 

From the suggestions of Blu-ray association, the manufacturers are planning to make Blu-ray players those are backwards compatible. Backwards compatible in essence means that users will be able to read and write data on the disk.

 

 

4. Manufacturer Support

 

Currently Blu-ray technology is supported by 13 manufacturers. Some of them are HP, Philips, Pioneer, Dell and Sony. Sony is including a Blu-ray player with their latest consoles so that it can increase their sales. Some countries such as Japan is already selling Blu-ray disks and recorders.

 

 

5. DRM

 

Blu-ray technology also includes a Digital Rights Management (DRM) service which prevents privacy. This type of protection scheme similar to Apple's iTunes ensures that disk can be copied limited number of times.

Disadvantages of Blu-ray Disk

 

1. Cost

 

Blu-ray players on average are quite expensive, but during recent times the prices are reduced to some extent. Not only Blu-ray players, the disks are also costly. The prices are significantly higher compared to a standard DVD.

 

 

2. Compatibility

 

In order for playing the Blu-ray disk, you need to have a dedicated Blu-ray player. Not all the players will be able to function with the Blu-ray disk. In addition to that, there must be High Definition (HD) television as well. Without HD television set, the users will not be able to experience the true Blu-ray quality.

 

 

3. Durability

 

Newest versions of Blu-ray disks contain a coating that prevents scratches and smudges. However older versions lacks this feature. They are more prone to scratching which makes the disk unreadable.

 

 

4.Availability

 

Blu-ray is not an older technology. Hence, it is not meant to support older titles. There are very limited number of older films available in Blu-ray. As the technology keeps growing, the number of movies supporting Blu-ray should also increase.

 

 

5. Updates

 

For acquiring the latest benefits of Blu-ray technology, players occasionally requires firmware updates from the manufacturer. If the user fails to update, there might be problems in playing new Blu-ray disks. Updating firmware is not an easy task since it requires fast internet connection. It can be done using installation disks too but it takes considerably large amount of time.