Blu-ray Update.com

Netflix has reported it plans to significantly increase its inventory of available Blu-ray titles by as much as 300 percent in 2008 in response to the aparent victory of the Blu-ray over HD-DVD in the recent battle of next generation of high definition optical disc formats.

According to Netflix CFO Barry McCarthy speaking in New York on Wednesday, said that his company expects to add as many as 1,500 Blu-ray titles to its existing selection of 400 titles this year. Continue Reading…

Sony updated its Blu-ray Disc player line today with two new models that will be capable of accessing advanced interactive features such as BonusView and BD-Live.

The BDP-S350 and BDP-S550 models both support BonusView (Picture-in-Picture) featured on some of the new Blu-ray Disc theatrical releases. The BDP-S350 model is BD-Live ready featuring an Ethernet port for an easy firmware update and access to Internet-based interactive content features. The BSP-S550 is BonusView and BD-Live capable when it ships. Continue Reading…

I’ve been a Netflix customer for some time now happily adding DVD titles to my queue for quick delivery to my mailbox. My overall experience has been excellent, usually receiving DVDs one business day after shipping from my local Netflix warehouse. I’m on the “3 at a time” unlimited plan and always have at least one movie waiting for me to enjoy at any given time. Continue Reading…

With the recent announcement that Toshiba is abandoning the HD-DVD high definition movie disc format, the battle between Blu-ray and HD-DVD is finally over. The battle between HD DVD and can be traced all the way back to 2000, when companies began experimenting with using new blue lasers in optical disc systems.

What started in 2000 as a technical research project became a battle between major electronics companies and movie studios, with the consumer caught squarely in the middle.

The following is a time line of the major events in this battle leading to Blu-ray’s eventual victory and a win for video enthusiasts everywhere: Continue Reading…