Blu-Ray Burner

Guide Note

A Blu-Ray Burner is a device that allows you to create a Blu-Ray DVD or CD.

Fast Facts

1. Blu-Ray is a high-definition DVD format
2. Uses a blue violet laser to read and write data
3. Blu-Ray beat HD-DVD in the format war

Blu-Ray was created by Sony, first announcing them in October 2000. The project was made official in February 2002, with the first consumer devices reaching stores in July 2003. Blu-Ray and HD-DVD had been in a format war, each attempting to be the standard for high-definintion discs. The war ended when Warner Brothers announced in January 2008 that they would begin only releasing Blu-Ray DVDs beginning in May 2008. This announcement caused major retailers to quit carrying HD-DVD discs.

Blu-Ray uses a shorter wavelength, 405 nm, allowing for much more data to be stored on a single disc. Dual-layer Blu-Ray discs have the ability to hold up to 50GB of media, which is more than six times the capacity of a normal DVD.