Microsoft takes pop at Blu-ray

Wednesday 19 July 2006
Microsoft has taken a pop at Sony's Blu-ray Discs, saying that the gaming giant's choice of media format for PlayStation 3 could be "unreliable".

Sony is having difficulties manufacturing Blu-ray Discs as the recording layer is very close to the surface of the disc and is only protected by a very thin coating, according to Microsoft tech bod Amir Majidimehr. This is compared to Microsoft's HD-DVD, which has two layers of protective plastic to make it far more robust and reliable.

As you can see, the next-gen contest between Microsoft and Sony isn't just about selling consoles, it's also about promoting their hi-def replacements for DVDs; Microsoft has gone with HD-DVD while Sony has developed Blu-ray Discs. Blu-ray has the potential to hold more information than HD-DVD but is believed to be more expensive to produce.