Flip a Coin: Blu-ray or 1080p Upscaling DVD

If you find yourself faced with the decision of having to purchase either a less expensive DVD player or the impressive new Blu-ray disc player, you're not alone. Will your DVDs become obsolete? Will you be able to play them in a Blu-ray disc player? Or is Blu-ray all that much different than DVDs in the first place? In this article, we'll take a look at some key differences and how DVDs compare with the new Blu-ray technology.

1) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Resolution. Your old DVD player outputs at 480p (progressive scan) screen resolution, which means 480 vertically scanning lines. However, Blu-ray bumps the resolution up to 1080p. What this means is that the movies you're watching are going to be sharper, crisper, and more true to life, particularly when your new Blu-ray disc player is connected to a 1080p HDTV. If you simply can’t afford a Blu-ray disc player at this time, you can purchase a 1080p upscaling DVD player to get similar results.

2) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Frames Per Second. Blu-ray bumps up the frame rate to match the same frame rate Hollywood movies are shot in: 24p (progressive). This means the movie will be closer to what you'd see in the theater. So when you see the designation 1080p/24p on your Blu-ray player, it means 1080p screen resolution and 24p frame rate.

3) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Sound. Many Blu-ray disc players feature compatibility with Dolby's TrueHD surround sound format. TrueHD adds improvements in surround sound including additional channels. The result is more dynamic, lifelike audio similar to what you'd find in the movie theater.

4) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Color. Blu-ray adds a new dimension in color display. A new international standard in colorimetry called x.v. Color significantly expands the color space to literally billions of colors, some not even visible to the human eye. This gets very technical here, but the result is a more brilliant, realistic picture on Blu-ray than you'd find on DVD.

5) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Interoperability. With the myriads of electronic devices we use today, getting them to work together to make our e-world a bit simpler is the rule of the day. While the DVD player is just a machine that allows you to watch movies, many Blu-ray disc players feature SD cards that allow you to watch your digital camera pictures and videos; a USB Flash drive for external memory; and even an Ethernet connection for internet interactivity and firmware updates.

6) DVD vs. Blu-ray: Web Interactivity. By far the coolest feature of the new Blu-ray technology, many Blu-ray disc players (typically higher-end models) feature an Ethernet port that allows you to hook your Blu-ray disc player up to the internet. Why would you want to connect to the internet you ask? For one, you can get quick and easy firmware updates directly to your Blu-ray disc player. But more amazingly, you can take advantage of BD-Live. BD-Live grants you access not only to movie special features, but also to online forums, games, and even downloadable ringtones. If you're a total movie buff and you'd like to participate in online discussions about movies in addition to viewing hours upon hours of special features and additional scenes, a new Blu-ray disc player might be right up your alley.

Tips:

• If you just purchased a new 1080p HDTV and you simply cannot afford a new Blu-ray disc player at this time, you can opt for a more affordable DVD player with 1080p upscaling.
• If you have an HDTV that is less than 1080p screen resolution, it's really not going to matter if you purchase a Blu-ray disc player because you won't be able to take advantage of the sharper 1080p picture. However, you can view it as insurance against obsolescence when you do decide to purchase a newer 1080p HDTV.
• If you opt to purchase a new Blu-ray disc player, you will need to buy an HDMI 1.3 cable to connect it to your HDTV or your home theater system. Some players come with an HDMI cable, but most don't.