How Does Blu-ray Work? - LaserDisc, CD, DVD, Blu-ray Explained

LaserDisc, CD, DVD, Blu-ray are all one big happy family - with the exception of HD DVD, which was disinherited for being too stubborn. This video explains how these optical discs work in practical terms.

A couple of things have been left out for the sake of simplicity and/or brevity. For instance, Blu-ray discs are layered differently from their predecessors. Where CDs have a thick transparent layer and a thin supportive back layer, Blu-ray are opposite. The transparent layer is much stronger than those of CDs due to new technologies, and with a thicker back layer BDs are stronger and cheaper to produce. Also, problems with the laser light misreading the data due to errors in the transparent material, has been reduced.

Another thing I omitted from the animation was the fact that the laser and photocell move together, across the disc. I'm still on the fence if this is interesting or important and chose to leave it out due to time restraints (my own, not the video's).

HD DVD was very short-lived, only being actively produced between 2006 and 2008, when it was abandoned and the HD DVD group was dissolved. BD had won. Ultra HD Blu-ray seems poised to supersede Blu-ray in the near future, but if you ask me it's a pretty cumbersome name, for now.

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Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical...
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/...
http://www.explainthatstuff.com/cdpla...