According to the Computer Desktop Encyclopedia, Blu-ray is "A high-capacity optical disc that holds 4.5 hours of high-definition video (HD) on a single-sided, single-layer 25GB disk. Announced in 2002 by Sony, Hitachi, Philips and other vendors, the Blu-ray technology uses a blue-violet laser that reads pits a third the size of a DVD on tracks that are packed much tighter together. Blu-ray supports the more advanced H.264 and VC-1 video encoding algorithms (codecs) as well as MPEG-2, which is used for DVD. It also supports 1080p, the highest HDTV resolution. The first Blu-ray recorders, which also play CDs and DVDs, were introduced in Japan in 2003. A Blu-ray drive was one of the primary new features of Sony's PlayStation 3 video game console, introduced late in 2006."

Blu-ray is thus the most advanced digital playback recording technology currently on the market. Nevertheless, some people have wondered what may justify the need for a $1000 DVD player when there are adequate players on the market for under $35 as well as needing to buy an expensive high-def TV.

But Blu-ray is justifiably exciting, and many people don't realize that it's already been market-tested in Japan, where the rage caught on like wildfire. There are very good reasons for that. It's not for nothing that many manufacturers of visual digital playback and recording technology, such as Toshiba, have decided to ditch HD-DVD and go with Blu-ray.

To begin with, as the Encyclopedia's definition makes clear, Blu-ray discs have monstrous storage capacity. This allows for storage savings in the long run and offers hitherto unknown storage convenience for digitally recorded material.

Another advantage of Blu-ray is Digital Rights Management (DRM) laws permit Blu-ray discs to be legally copied a limited number of times--and their copies are very high fidelity. Enter more potential long term savings. The players in Blu-ray technology are also pushing to have player manufacturers standardize backwards playing capacity, meaning that all Blu-ray discs as well as DVDs and CDs would be able to be fully rewriteable.

And all this in addition to the utterly amazing high-def 1080p resolution, which is sure to become even more refined.

And as a more practical matter concerning consumer choice, it's a fact that the Blu-ray format already enjoys wide support from the world's leading consumer electronics and digital media manufacturers. On this list are Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Pioneer, Sharp, JVC, Hitachi, Mitsubishi, TDK, Thomson, LG, Apple, HP and Dell; and it's even supported in Sony's next-generation PlayStation 3 (PS3). HD-DVD, the Blu-ray competitor, never reached such wide appeal.