Blu-ray vs HD DVD: Which One Is Better?

Since I started this blog -- and have had the opportunity to receive review samples of the latest HD-DVD and Blu-Ray from the various studios and publicity houses -- I have been asked many times about the format war and in particular, which format was “better”. After viewing countless releases on both formats, I have formulated an opinion on this issue and the opinion is neither.

First off, I guess you should look at each formats’ spec sheets. What you will notice is how similar they are. They both support the same video codecs, namely MPEG2, MPEG4( AVC) and VC-1. They both support the same audio formats as well, namely Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD, PCM and DTS HD Master Audio. Both discs look the same. In fact, they look like a DVD. The differences? Well, there is no question that Blu-Ray does have an edge in both storage capacity as well as data transmission rate. In regards to storage, Blu-Ray has two sized discs, the single layer 25 GB or BD 25 disc and the dual layer 50 GB or BD 50 disc. ON the other hand, HD-DVD has the single layer 15 GB disc and the double layer 30 GB disc. Of course, the HD-DVD camp has approved a new spec for a 51 GB disc or TL 51 disc which has more storage capacity than Blu-Ray’s BD 50 disc. However, there are no releases using the TL 51 standard as of yet nor have any been announced that I am aware of. Perhaps at CES 2008? Furthermore, it has yet to be confirmed that a TL 51 disc will play on any the HD-DVD players already on the market. Therefore, until the issues related to the TL 51 disc are cleared up, I will give the storage edge to Blu-Ray.

In addition to the larger storage capacity, Blu-Ray has a higher data rate for the video codecs, which in theory may result in better picture quality, although the faster data rate seems more important for the older MPEG2 than for MPEG4 and especially VC-1. As a result of the larger storage capacity, Blu-Ray discs can include an uncompressed PCM track for movies on the BD 50 discs in addition to lossless tracks such as Dolby Digital True HD. Blu-Ray discs can also include more varied foreign language tracks. While not really important in the US, it is useful for release internationally, especially in Europe. A BD disc can also handle more HD extras where HD-DVD may have to resort to using a second disc.

However, the real issue is what do these “better” specs get us in regards to picture and audio quality. After all, that is why there formats were created in the first place, to deliver better PQ and AQ as well as invigorate the flagging DVD market. In short, from my review of both formats’ real world performance it is clear to me that both deliver the same video and audio experience despite Blu-Ray’s better specs. Both are capable of stellar video performance. I have been utterly flabbergasted by the video presentation on both formats. It is amazing that such video quality can now be delivered to your home.

There are a number examples of discs where the HD-DVD disc is encoded with VC-1 and the Blu-Ray disc with a high bit rate AVC encode with the pictures on each looking identical. What is apparent to me is that the skill of the compressionist doing the encode is more important than the codec used, the data transmission rate of the available disc space. The same is true for audio. Some of the PCM tracks on Blu-Ray are outstanding. HD-DVD just does not have the space for uncompressed PCM tracks and relies on Dolby True HD, Dolby Digital Plus and DTS MA. Blu-Ray tracks encoded with PCM sound the same as those encoded with Dolby True HD on their HD-DVD counterparts.

Perfect examples of this are the new Warner Brothers releases of the Harry Potter series as well as the stunning Blade Runner release. The fact that PCM and True HD are capable of the same stunning audio quality is also illustrated on the Blu-Ray release of Spider-Man 3 which contains both. Provided the source is the same, namely 48 kHz/16-20-24 bit for both PCM and True HD, the resulting quality is the same. The more important factor in stunning audio performance is the quality of the mix. This is illustrated by the HD-DVD release of Transformers which is truly a reference track despite the fact that it is “only” Dolby Digital Plus, albeit at 1.5 mbps. What is beyond dispute is that both formats are both clearly better than DVD in terms of PQ and AQ. The clarity, color purity, three dimensionality and detail on both high def formats is amazing. If you have an HDTV and are a movie fan, you really owe it to yourself to check out both formats. My recommendation is to by one player of each to cover your bases. If you don’t have the space, consider the new dual format player from Samsung which may sell for $799.00.If you are a film buff and want to enjoy movies in the best quality ever available in the home, why not get both so that you have access to all the available releases, regardless of format? That is the path I have chosen and I am glad I have, even though my rack is now jammed full of equipment.

As to which format will eventually win, I personally see no reason why both formats can’t survive and even thrive. The gaming industry has the Wii, Xbox 360, PS3, PS2 as well as a few others. Games are released across various platforms and the brick and mortar stores carry them all and they all sell well. I see no reason why the same can’t be true for high def discs.

Will one side win? Hard to really say at this point. I know that many have their opinions on this subject and that there is a lot of pressure from some folks to have one format win out. There are those who believe that Warner Brothers can end the war by going exclusive. No question that WB could go along way to ending the war by going exclusive, However, by doing so, they will be giving up a lot of sales from one side or the other. It has been reported in a thread on the AVS Forum that a review of the recent sales figures for the Potter series shows the BD discs marginally outselling the HD-DVD discs, by a factor of 1.2 and 1.3 to 1. Not much of a difference I say.

On the other hand, the latest figures on the sales of Planet Earth on HD-DVD are outpacing those on Blu-Ray. If the sales of HD-DVD devices which have been reported to total 750,000 surpass the one million mark by the end of the Christmas season, it will be hard to Warner Brothers to go BD exclusive and ignore such a substantial market. Will they? While I don’t have a crystal ball, I’ll chip in my 2 cents anyway and say no. While Blu-Ray clearly has a lead in overall sales, that will not be enough IMHO to cause Warners to go Blu-Ray exclusive if the WB sales on each title remain fairly equal between both formats over the next few months. Keep an eye on those same title sales figures. If they remain anywhere between 1:1 and 1:5:1, I do not see WB changing their stance, especially if HD-DVD player sales top 1 million. In fact, the 1 million mark may cause other studios to go neutral as well. In any event, it will be a very interesting first quarter regardless of the result.

Finally, speaking of Warner Brothers, I would like to commend them for their outstanding effort on this week’s Blade Runner release. While I have not done formal review on that title, I have watched it and it is amazing. The clarity, color and detail is stunning. It looks so much better than its prior home video releases on laser disc and DVD as well as its recent high def showing on HDNet Movies, that you would swear that you are watching a different film. As good as the video is, the audio is even better. What an incredible mix. You would think that the film was made yesterday not 1982. This release earns 5 stars across the board on both formats, which look and sound identical. It is amazing what a 4k restoration can do for a film in high def. The effort on Blade Runner even surpasses Warner’s prior restoration efforts on The Searchers and Grand Prix. It is a shame that more catalogue releases on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray don’t get similar treatment. The difference is that dramatic. Let’s hope that in 2008 and beyond, more titles are restored and remastered with the same care and treatment as Blade Runner by all the major studios. Well done!

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