Blu-ray discs are different than the red laser discs we have used for years. These discs use a blue-violet laser to read and write data. Because of its shorter wavelength more data can be stored on a Blu-ray Disc than on a common red laser DVD. A single layer Blu-ray Disc can store over five times the data of a normal DVD.
What For: These discs are most popular for their ability to hold an entire high definition movie. There are other uses for this format such as data archiving, video games and home TV recording. A Blu-ray Disc can store up to 10 hours of broadcast quality standard definition video.
Benefits: Blu-ray offers five times the storage capacity of a normal DVD. This high capacity makes Blu-ray an ideal media for recording standard or high definition video.
Blu-ray Disc is the next-generation blue laser optical disc format that was created for recording and playback of high-definition video or for storing large amounts of data. (A Blu-ray disc will store over 4.5 hours of high-definition (HD) video or about 11.5 hours of standard-definition (SD) video on a 25GB disc).
Demands for more data storage led to the development of the huge capacity of Blu-ray. It allows for the recording of high definition video or for large amounts of data to be archived on a single disc.
