That Blu-rayin' is Hard, Sez Microsoft

[wraggster]

Now we hear from our beloved basement-dwelling brothers at Kotaku that Microsoft spokespeople are saying that Blu-ray discs are apparently "hard to make." There's an extra layer of copy protection on Blu-ray discs, called BD+, and that makes the manufacturing of those disks a whole lot more complicated.

In a recent podcast, a couple of Microsofties decried the difficulty of manufacturing Blu-ray discs, saying that the recording surface of the discs is very close to the top layer, and because it's protected by just a thin coating it requires a much more precise duplication process. On the other hand, HD DVD manufacturing is more akin to garden-variety DVDs, where its data is protected between two layers of protective plastic.

Keep in mind, though, that those two Microsoft podcasters have a vested interest in HD DVD, which is the format of choice for the company's Xbox 360. Even so, the ease of manufacturing HD DVDs, plus the simplicity of converting an existing DVD plant to HD DVD also translates into lower-cost duplication facilities. This can't be good for Blu-ray.

[GeEkPiE]

blu-ray is pointless to me

1. too expensive to buy
2. too expensive to manufacture
3. who needs 50gb of data on one disk

HD-DVD all round superior

1. much cheaper to buy
2. much cheaper to manufacture
3. High definition quality dvd's at a reasonable price.

[Ennohex]

I remember the day when one said, "Who needs a PC with a 1000meg storage capacity?" DVDs were equivalently expensive when they came out. ( is equivalently even a word?)

[Accordion]

is language art or science

by the way...i like blu ray!

[F9zDark]

blu-ray is pointless to me

1. too expensive to buy
2. too expensive to manufacture
3. who needs 50gb of data on one disk

HD-DVD all round superior

1. much cheaper to buy
2. much cheaper to manufacture
3. High definition quality dvd's at a reasonable price.

I would take what those microsofties said with a grain of salt; its totally biased.

Second, bluray will be the standard in the next 5 to 6 years, I gurantee it. The way that computers and games are advancing, space will become necessity in the coming years. This has been the same trend for any new medium coming out; CDs were inherently harded to make than 3.5 floppys, as were DVDs in comparison to CDs, etc....

[NoQuarter]

larger disc means potentially bigger games
I wonder what speed hd-dvd and blue ray read at,anybody know the specs?