Blu-Ray Drives: the future of image storage

[Wise Young]

For several years, Sony has been developing the next level of digital storage beyond DVDs. While DVDs hold about 5 Gb, Blu-Ray Devices or BD-Video can hold up to 200 Gb, or more. Already Sony is shipping drives and discs that hold 50 Gb (http://www.blu-ray.com/). The formal specifications are agreed upon in January of this year. Seven out of eight movie studios, as well as Digital Playground (the largest adult film maker) have announced that they will be releasing high-definition videos on Blu-Ray, including most of the latest and best releases (http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/), priced at $23.45 wholesale. Over a dozen companies, including of course Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Sharp, Dell, Hitachi, etc. have announced Blu-Ray players, recorders, and media. The new Sony Playstation 3 to launch in November 2006 will have a Blu-Ray device and gigabyte ethernet. The new Blu-Ray players are retail priced at $1000 (Sony) and $1500 (Panasonic). The new Sony Vaio with blu-ray reader/writer is reasonable ($2300). Finally, Panasonic has just announced the first Blu-Ray recorders in Japan.

Wise.

[Le Type Français]

This is awesome! I look forward to owning all of these products but I'm waiting until the prices go down on them. It's awfully expensive right away.

[bob clark]

I woulda bet that HD-DVD would become the accepted standard. Looks like I'm probably wrong again. Oh well. Like Todd, when they come down in price, perhaps to a couple hundred bucks, then I'll start considering getting one. Until then, let the wealthy work out the bugs and pay for the R&D!

[Juke_spin]

I woulda bet that HD-DVD would become the accepted standard. Looks like I'm probably wrong again. Oh well. Like Todd, when they come down in price, perhaps to a couple hundred bucks, then I'll start considering getting one. Until then, let the wealthy work out the bugs and pay for the R&D!
This is awesome! I look forward to owning all of these products but I'm waiting until the prices go down on them. It's awfully expensive right away.
I'm with Todd and Bob on this one. Although, since I'm about as likely to be dead, destitute or institutionalized before I can get one, I'm not going to either use or miss it.:D

[bob clark]

Hi Steve,

Although, since I'm about as likely to be dead, destitute or institutionalized before I can get one, I'm not going to either use or miss it.

Maybe God will have one waiting for you up in heaven, or you can pick up a cheap used one or you'll end up institutionalized at an upscale nursing home. Or did you mean institutionalized as in prison or a State hospital? :D

[Patonb]

Blu-Ray is another Batamax from Sony, with only Sony is putting out videos.

It's way too expensive. Next to nobody needs to hold that much stuff on 1 disk. I have enough trouble filling a DVD.

I'm also curious about the burning time. 200Gigs @4x.... i sure hope not!

[Le Type Français]

Juke, The PS3 will have a price drop probably after one year of its release.

Paton, Blu-ray will be great for transferring files from PC to PC.

[bob clark]

Blu-Ray is another Batamax from Sony, with only Sony is putting out videos.

It's way too expensive. Next to nobody needs to hold that much stuff on 1 disk. I have enough trouble filling a DVD.

I'm also curious about the burning time. 200Gigs @4x.... i sure hope not!

You need that much space to put a hi-def movie on. Up to 15 - 30 gbs anyway. I've never filled a DVD-RW up yet either. I've come close when copying a DVD movie to another DVD but that's it. Other than that I use use CD-Rs.

I have 2 hard drives in this computer that almost equals 200gbs but not quite. 120gbs and 74gbs.

I've seen Blu-Ray and HD-DVD hi-def DVDs at Amazon for $20.00 even.... so I guess the price will come down a bit. Oh, I forgot about that damn shipping. And they're starting to tax too, but that doesn't count towards the $25 limit. If you spend $25 you get free snail shipping but that means you'll need to buy 2 hi-def DVDs or something else to equal 25 bucks.

I bought a regular "special" DVD (The Talent Given Us $23.95) from Amazon last week so to get the free shipping I bought a freakin' racing game (GTR) that I installed and have only played once and probably won't bother playing again. Sheeesh. Great deal on the shipping!!!! Bob's economics 101!

And I even have a Logitech Momo racing wheel that I hardly ever use.... hey, I can't use the pedals! Hahaha. I have the wheel paddles on the wheel set to use for the gas and brake.

[Patonb]

Paton, Blu-ray will be great for transferring files from PC to PC.

Wow.... My 2 harddrives aren't even 200Gigs, and by the time you burn a disk to transfer, i can setup a network, or slave a harddrive.......

I think it's just an excuse to be lazy in programming and help premote more piracey.

I understand the use for Hi Def movies, but not for computer the average user.

Each their own

[Le Type Français]

Wow.... My 2 harddrives aren't even 200Gigs, and by the time you burn a disk to transfer, i can setup a network, or slave a harddrive.......

I think it's just an excuse to be lazy in programming and help premote more piracey.

I understand the use for Hi Def movies, but not for computer the average user.

Each their own

My use has nothing to do with piracy. When I backed-up my hard drive, it took several DVD-RWs and that was even leaving out things.

I've never heard of slaving a hard drive.

[bob clark]

I just made my first "backup" copy of a DVD. Nero wouldn't burn it since it was copyrighted but that free program "DVD Shrink 3.2" sure worked like a charm!

I thought you were allowed to burn one backup copy but I guess not.

Now I just gotta figure out how to get my DVD player to work through the G-Damn Hi Def box. It has 2 different connections for a DVD/VHS player but I can't get the sound to work the way I want it to. The picture looks great but I can't get the sound to work through the the cable box. WTF! The sound is much cleaner coming directly through the cable box. I'll probably end up buying another RCA splitter and that'll burn the house down! I have a spiderweb of wires coming off the back of the cable box, TV and powered speakers. Need to get those organized.... one of these daze. Or putting the TV speakers back on and connecting the DVD player directly up to the TV and listen to a bit of hum. Nah, I need loud, clean sound. I'll get it to work if I have to break the damn thing! :)

I thrive on frustration anyway. But maybe I'll break down and call the cable tech line tomorrow.... and then they'll tell me to call the DVD player or TV manufacturer. I can hear it already! :)

[Patonb]

My use has nothing to do with piracy. When I backed-up my hard drive, it took several DVD-RWs and that was even leaving out things.

I've never heard of slaving a hard drive.

Oh..... I wasn't refering to you.... But to all them kids.

Slaving is just plugging you HD into another computer and acessing it as if it's a floppy disk.

Backing stuff up maybe, but i doubt i got 1gig of "important" stuff :confused:

[Broknwing]

It's way too expensive. Next to nobody needs to hold that much stuff on 1 disk. I have enough trouble filling a DVD.

I'm also curious about the burning time. 200Gigs @4x.... i sure hope not!

Considering that I have about 10gigs of digital photgraphs just since the first of this year....I can understand WHY people would want a storage system that would allow them to put that much data on one disk. I keep backing up my photos and needing more and more disks. YIKES. And I'm NOT a professional photographer, I don't go to tons of concerts(I've only been to one so far this year) I just take lots of pics when I go out & I take nature and pet photos....I can only imagine what it would be like if I DID take pics more than I do or if I'd gotten into the photography class I was trying to get into this semester...YIKES...

I'm only one little person who doesn't get out ALL that much, yet I've managed to accumulate that much to store. Multiply me by the many thousands of others, and you can understand the potential demand for a stoage system of this nature. Personally, I'll wait a while until the prices come down to realistic...but it's something worth watching...

[Wise Young]

All of us have heard the same story over and over again. In the 1970's, when main frame computers were still storing their data on reels, a 10 Mb hard drive costed more than a Volkswagon. I still remember the 5.25 inch floppy discs that held one Mb. That seemed like a lot. A gigabyte seemed incredibly big.

I now have 100 Gb internal hard drive on my laptop and find that it is not enough. A full-length HD movie can easily take up 30 Gb. What if you want to have several movies (like the whole Harry Potter series) or a symposium (3 days worth of lectures)? So, a removable disc that can store 200 Gb will have a market.

In a few years, we will be thinking of terabytes as like we use to think of gigabytes. Multi-gigabyte memories, gigahertz communication, and terabyte storage capabilities will be standard on all computers. By the way, the speed of reading and writing information will not be as serious a problem as you think.

Current blu-ray devices are 4x where 1x is defined as 36 Mbps. The fastest 12x DVD devices read at 64 Mbps. In other words, the first generation Blu-Ray devices are about twice as fast as the fastest DVD's. But these are misleading because these refer to the maximum read speeds. Blu-ray devices are much faster than DVDs.

The read and write speeds of DVD's depend on the location of the information. DVD devices read and write inner tracks as much as two times slower than they read and write outer tracks. Blu-ray devices read and write at the same speed for both inner and outer tracks.

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/4716/dvdvsbdrs1af.png
http://www.gamespot.com/pages/profile/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=23916169&user=skektek

Wise.

[Juke_spin]

Hi Steve,



Maybe God will have one waiting for you up in heaven, or you can pick up a cheap used one or you'll end up institutionalized at an upscale nursing home. Or did you mean institutionalized as in prison or a State hospital? :D
Hi Bob,

I see you've found a way to include "My six year old greyhound" in your posts...for the time being.:agog::D

Regarding your questions: I'm such a charmer that I'm much more likely to wind up in prison or a State hospital than either the ether of heaven or an upscale nursing home.:p:D

[RJC]

they are going to bomb imho....its another beta vs vhs.....most people in the main stream market have only bought dvd players in the last 3-4 years because vhs' fell by the way-side....whos gonna buy another dvd player thats double or more the price of their current for the privilage of buying movies that cost double most of the time.....and don't u need a high definition tv to see most of the resolution of a blue-ray?

[Le Type Français]

they are going to bomb imho....its another beta vs vhs.....most people in the main stream market have only bought dvd players in the last 3-4 years because vhs' fell by the way-side....whos gonna buy another dvd player thats double or more the price of their current for the privilage of buying movies that cost double most of the time.....and don't u need a high definition tv to see most of the resolution of a blue-ray?

People are far more techno-conscious today than they were in the age of Beta and VHS. People want the latest and greatest advances.

[PN]

I just made my first "backup" copy of a DVD. Nero wouldn't burn it since it was copyrighted but that free program "DVD Shrink 3.2" sure worked like a charm!

I thought you were allowed to burn one backup copy but I guess not.

Hi, Bob. There is no commercial software that will allow you to make a copy of a movie DVD, thanks to the Motion Picture Industry of America. You are the second person who has reported that DVD Shrink will rip and then burn the movie DVD. I also have Nero but I use DVD Decrypter first, and then Shrink.

About two years ago a spokesperson for the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) stated on Tech TV that it was legal for you to make an archival backup of a DVD movie that you paid for. To this day I am not aware of any American who has been fined or put in jail for making a backup or archival copy of a DVD or CD that they own for legitimate purposes.

Blu-Ray looks great for computers, but I will wait for the next generation along with a significant price drop.

[rdf]

I think they're needed because of high definition movies/television that will become more widespread. An HD movie is probably 4 or 5 times bigger than a standard movie.

[bob clark]

Hi, Bob. There is no commercial software that will allow you to make a copy of a movie DVD, thanks to the Motion Picture Industry of America. You are the second person who has reported that DVD Shrink will rip and then burn the movie DVD. I also have Nero but I use DVD Decrypter first, and then Shrink.

About two years ago a spokesperson for the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) stated on Tech TV that it was legal for you to make an archival backup of a DVD movie that you paid for. To this day I am not aware of any American who has been fined or put in jail for making a backup or archival copy of a DVD or CD that they own for legitimate purposes.

Blu-Ray looks great for computers, but I will wait for the next generation along with a significant price drop.

Hi Paul,

I was going to download the DVD Decrypter program too thinking that I might need it. But the DVD I decrypted and burned using DVD Shrink didn't need any "shrinking" since it was only 4.6GBs and my DVD-Rs are 4.7GBs. Just made it under the wire so to speak and it decrypted it perfectly with no need to shrink it. I'd rather not "shrink" it if I don't have to since it may not play as well on certain players. I don't really know.

But I'm gonna download the DVD Decrytper program today and store it on my back up hard drive "just in case". I don't buy or watch many DVDs (actually bought only 1 and my cousin sent me 25 DVDs to watch... most I wasn't even interested in) ..... so instead of passing the original around to a few family members I'll just burn them their own copy. I don't really see the difference between sharing or loaning a DVD or CD to a friend or family member (which is legal) and then asking them to pay and package it to pass it along via the USPS or making them their own copy. In this way I can do the "work" of packaging and mailing it to them as a favor or gift.

My theory (rationalization) is that I have my house "hardened" against intruders and own a couple of handguns. I pay to protect myself and my property. Let the millionaire/billionaire makers of the DVDs and CDs figure out a way to protect their own property. If they want to sue me they ain't gonna get much.... except perhaps a bunch of bad press.

[Juke_spin]

My theory (rationalization) is that I have my house "hardened" against intruders and own a couple of handguns. I pay to protect myself and my property. Let the millionaire/billionaire makers of the DVDs and CDs figure out a way to protect their own property. If they want to sue me they ain't gonna get much.... except perhaps a bunch of bad press.
Bob, I thought of you when I read about this in another forum and wondered if you had taken, or planned to take it, into consideration.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Uv45y6vkcQ&search=bump%20key
http://digg.com/security/Art_of_Lock-picking_no_longer_for_the_1337_-_Bump_Keys

When I couldn't locate the post with a search, I googled "bump key" and brought up a load of stuff.

Now I can picture you tucking yourself into bed and your forty-five under the pillow with your trusty six year old greyhound stationed in the doorway...while visions of sugarplums dance in your head.:p:D

[mike]

I find the increasing storage capability of flash memory pretty interesting. It would seem possible to merely insert a chip into a flash memory reader and access as much capacity as these new DVDs can hold. I think it is far to early to jump into Blu-Ray technology. Things are moving much too quickly so I believe better options will be available in the not to distant future.

[bob clark]

Hi Steve,

They can bump key my house all they want and they still won't get in.... if I'm home. My main concern was, from listening to the news in my area, that burglars or "home invaders" just kicked the doors in with one or two kicks. So I installed 6 inch screws soaked in epoxy to go through the latch plates on the front doorjamb and into the two 2x4s that constitute a normal wooden doorjamb. I also screwed in 6 inch epoxied screws on the hinge side as well. And I have steel banding bolted (not screwed) around both the doorknob and deadbolt to keep the door from splitting. I also have one of those adjustable security poles that fit under the doorknob and that "stick" to the carpeting with tiny hooks on an angle. But I don't bother using that anymore. Overkill. :)

My backdoor is made of steel and I also have a Larsen's security storm or screen door with the aluminum bars on it. Just by chance the French doorknob lines up perfectly with the doorknob on the steel door (set in a steel frame with over 20 - 6 inch lag bolts going into solid cinderblock filled with concrete. The guy who installed it burned out his heavy duty drill while drilling so many holes. Yeah, he thought I was a nut too! The steel doorjamb was originally designed for only 8 lag bolts.... but that didn't seem to be quite secure enough for me. :) So even if they bump keyed the aluminum storm/screen/security door they still can't turn the french doorknob because it's situated directly above the doorknob of the steel door. Which could be a problem for me if the wind ever blew the security door closed when the steel door was closed! I make sure that doesn't happen. :) The company who manufactured my steel door also offers bullet-proof doors... and for different caliber bullets. They just keep welding different thicknesses of high tensile strength sheet steel to the door face to accomodate all but armor piercing rifle rounds!

But the biggest obstacles to any potential "evil-doer" are the slide bolts that are bolted completely through the bottoms of my front and back doors and that go about 4 inches into the concrete foundation. That was one helluva job drilling those 1/2 inch diameter holes 4-5 inches down through the concrete.

I'm sure with enough time, effort and noise they'll be able to get into my house and perhaps (I have to somehow add this to my post for your sake) kidnap my 6 year old greyhound. She's no watchdog... she loves all people and only barks at an ocassional wandering cat... that's how they're socialized at the racetrack.

But I think after a few kicks and perhaps a sprained ankle or two they'll leave my house and go elsewhere. At least I'll be alerted in time and be ready to splatter them all over the wall and carpeting. Or at least scare the begeezus outta them. Being taken by surprise is my only fear. What, me paranoid?

A problem may arise if I have a medical emergency here and can't make it to the door to allow the EMTs in. They'll just have to climb through some very thick and tall spidery hedges and break a front window to gain entrance. All the windows in the back of the house are hardened and protected by motion detectors and floodlights... my kitchen window with steel burglar bars (so I can have fresh air in here during the winter months) and the other ones in their own "special" ways.

No house is burglar proof but making it more difficult to break-in and especially making the task noisy makes it more secure.

Coincidentally, this week I found 6 rounds of .38 special ammo in a drawer so now I have 2 fully loaded guns. One for each hand.... just like in those B grade Italian Spaghetti Westerns!

But I was surprised to see how easy it was to "bump key" those European locks in the link you provided... especially the high-quality security rated locks. I imagine the locks in the US are just as vulnerable. That sux.

If house builders would just spend an extra 20 bucks or whatever and use longer screws and stronger doors, doorframes and hardware it wouldn't be so easy to kick in even a brand new door. And put more bracing on the roof rafters so a hurricane can't blow the whole damn roof off as though it was a kite.

I would never sleep with a loaded gun under my pillow. That could be very dangerous. It's sticking up in my nightstand drawer in its holster for easy access though.

I don't dream very much either.... and never of dancing sugarplums! :D Once in a while of dancing sugar mammas... but still no nocturnal emission. :( And then I wake up to a stinkin' ol' greyhound staring at me wanting to be fed. "Feeeeeeed me Daddy"...... as Audrey Jr. demands of Seymour in the "Little Shop of Horrors" movie. :D

[Wise Young]

http://www.cio.com/blog_view.html?CID=25694

Oct 11, 2006
NEC to Ship HD DVD, Blu-ray Dual Format Chip

OCT 11, 2006 12:55:49 PM | View/Add Comments (1) | Permalink

NEC Electronics, a Japanese producer of chips, on Tuesday said it has built a dual-format chip capable of playing discs in both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray next-generation DVD formats—an announcement that could help put an end to the war between the two rivals over which will be adopted by the masses, Reuters reports.

Combined with the appropriate optical pickup technology—which doesn’t currently exist—the chip could be used in affordable players that will be able to read both HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats, according to Reuters. NEC spokesperson Hisashi Saito told Reuters the chip and optical pickup lens often make up more than half the cost of DVD players.

NEC will sell the dual-format chips for $84, roughly the same price it charges for chips that read only one next-generation DVD format, Reuters reports.

[Wise Young]

Hitachi just announced at 940 Gb data cartridge based on 100 9.4 Gb slim DVDs (Source (http://crunchgear.com/2006/10/06/hitachi-plans-940gb-storage-cartridges-using-blu-ray-discs/)). They are planning to use Blue Ray discs in place of the DVDs, allowing them to have 50 Gb x 100 or a 5 Terabyte super disc cartridge.

http://www.newlaunches.com/computing/
Hitachi planning super data catridge by squeezing 100 Blu-Ray discs
October 5, 2006 - 5:53 AM

Hitachi took storage to the next level with its SVOD (Stacked Volumetric Optical Discs) technology. It all starts with super slim DVD discs which are just 92 micrometers thick and these double sided discs hold 9.4GB. Pack 100 of these discs in a 6.4cm catridge and you have 940 GB of storage. Now the Japanese tech giant is preparing to take it to next level by replacing double sided DVD's with Blu-Rays the result a 5X boost to storage...