Last updated on 2024-11-18, by Cassie

Blu-ray VS. DVD: What’s the Difference & How to Choose?

Is Blu-ray better than DVD? This has been widely asked nowadays, especially by those movie enthusiasts. As two of the trending multimedia types, Blu-ray and DVD both help you store and play media files with standalone players or computers that have Blu-ray/DVD drive and player. Though Blu-ray and DVD serve in the same way with the same purpose, there exists visual difference between DVD and Blu-ray. In this post, we would like to show you the difference between Blu-ray and DVD in multiple aspects.

Part 1: Know About Blu-ray & DVD

What is DVD?

Blu-ray and DVD are 2 common optical disc storage formats. Short for Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc, DVD can store and play back videos, audios, software, games and others. A regular single-layer DVD disc can store up to 4.7GB of data and a dual-layer DVD disc stores 8.5GB. DVD often plays back videos at up to 720P resolution on standalone DVD players and computers with DVD player software.

What is Blu-ray?

Blu-ray was designed to replace DVD. Therefore, Blu-ray comes with several advantages over DVD. Blu-ray offers higher data storage capacity than DVD. A single-layer Blu-ray can store up to 25GB of data while a dual-layer Blu-ray can even store up to 50GB of data. Meanwhile, Blu-ray has a higher picture quality, commonly 1080P, which delivers better visual effect. To play Blu-ray discs, you need a standalone Blu-ray player or computer with Blu-ray drive and Blu-ray player software.

Part 2: Blu-ray VS. DVD: What’s the Difference?

As mentioned above, though Blu-ray and DVD can both store and play back media files, there are differences between Blu-ray vs. DVD. You can refer to the below content to get the differences between DVD vs. Blu-ray in multiple aspects.

1. Storage capacity of Blu-ray vs. DVD

The very first significant difference between Blu-ray and DVD is the storage capacity. Blu-ray delivers much higher storage capacity than DVD. Single-layer Blu-ray can store up to 25GB, while single-layer DVD stores only 4.7GB. Dual-layer Blu-ray stores up to 50GB of data, compared to 8.5GB of dual-layer DVD. Obviously, you can store more data with Blu-ray.

2. Video quality of DVD vs. Blu-ray

Blu-ray offers not only higher storage capacity but also higher video quality. Generally speaking, the maximum resolution of DVD video is 720*480 (NTSC) or 720*576 (PAL), while Blu-ray supports up to 1920*1080.

3. Audio quality of Blu-ray vs. DVD

Blu-ray delivers higher audio quality for better sound effect and greater dynamic range, which includes lossless formats like Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master. On the contrast, DVD delivers compressed audios. Meanwhile, Blu-ray supports HDMI audio output at up to 8 channels while DVD only outputs HDMI audio at up to 6 channels. This means you will get better audio enjoyment from Blu-ray.

4. Laser wavelength of Blu-ray vs. DVD

Blu-ray adopts 405nm blue violet laser, while DVD adopts 650nm red laser. This means Blu-ray will deliver much faster data transfer than DVD does, therefore Blu-ray will not only hold more data but also load and read data at higher speed and quicker pace, so as to deliver smoother Blu-ray playback experience.

5. Cost of Blu-ray vs. DVD

Without doubt, Blu-ray costs more than DVD, which greatly results from the higher producing cost of Blu-ray discs. And to play Blu-ray discs, you need to get a Blu-ray player, which is also more expensive than DVD player.

6. Compatibility of Blu-ray vs. DVD

When you want to play disc, DVD is much more widely compatible with devices. You can play back DVD discs with standalone DVD players and most computers come with DVD drive for playing DVD discs easily. To play Blu-ray discs, you need to upgrade to standalone Blu-ray players or computers that come with Blu-ray drive, and most computers are not pre-installed with Blu-ray drive. You need to pay extra cost for upgrading to Blu-ray drive for playing Blu-ray discs. However, it should be noted that you can play DVD discs with Blu-ray players, but most DVD players won’t play Blu-ray discs.

7. Region codes and disc protection of Blu-ray vs. DVD

Commercial Blu-ray discs comes with disc protection like AACS, BD+ and MKB protection, regioned in A, B or C for different areas of the world, while commercial DVD discs are CSS protected from region 0 to 6.

Part 3: Blu-ray VS. DVD: How to Choose?

Is Blu-ray better than DVD? How can you choose, Blu-ray or DVD? As mentioned above, Blu-ray and DVD have multiple differences. You might need to take your own needs and actual devices you have into consideration in choosing Blu-ray or DVD. The below things might be included:

Tip: How to Burn Blu-ray/DVD on PC Easily?

There are several ways for you to get Blu-ray and DVD discs. You can purchase or rent Blu-ray/DVD discs from online and local stores, or, you can burn Blu-ray/DVD discs with professional Blu-ray burner software. Leawo Blu-ray Creator is a professional Blu-ray burning software tool to help you convert and burn video/photo to Blu-ray/DVD disc with customized disc menu easily. With it, you can easily burn any video or movie to Blu-ray/DVD disc, folder and/or ISO image file at will. The below guide will show you how to burn Blu-ray/DVD on PC with this professional Blu-ray authoring software.

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• Leawo Blu-ray Creator

  – Burn videos and photos to Blu-ray/DVD in 180+ formats.
  – Burn multiple media files to one Blu-ray/DVD file in batch with 100% quality.
  – Provide an internal video editor for personalized Blu-ray/DVD content.
  – Offer 40+ selectable disc menu templates.

  DownloadDownload

Step 1: Add source video files

Download, install and then start Leawo Prof. Media on your computer. Open the “Burn” tab to enter the Leawo Blu-ray Creator module. Then, click the “Add Video” button to browse and load source video to Leawo Blu-ray Creator module for burning to Blu-ray. After loading source videos, you need to choose output disc type at the bottom left corner. You can also choose subtitles and audio tracks from loaded video file, edit loaded video, etc.

Step 2: Set disc menu

On the right sidebar, you can select a disc menu for adding to output Blu-ray. Click the middle of the disc menu theme to preview disc menu. Then, on the disc menu preview panel, click the pencil icon to customize disc menu like adding background music/image/video, change title content and position, adjust text font, color and size, etc. You can save changes for future use.

Step 3: Complete burning settings

After setting disc menu, return to the Burn module and then click the green “Burn” button. On the pop-up sidebar, you need to specify “Burn to”, “Disc Label” and “Save to” options. To burn video to Blu-ray disc, you need to firstly insert a writable blank Blu-ray disc into the Blu-ray drive that is connected with your computer, and then choose it as target under the “Burn to” option. After these settings, click the bottom “Burn” button to start burning Blu-ray content.

By following the above steps, you can easily burn Blu-ray/DVD on your computer. Leawo Blu-ray Creator can help you burn both Blu-ray and DVD discs. If you only need to burn DVD disc, you can choose Leawo DVD Creator, which can help you convert and burn video/photo to DVD disc, folder and/or ISO image file in simple clicks.

Also Read: 5 Best Blu-ray Menu Creators | How to Burn 4K Blu-ray to Disc? | Burn Video to Blu-ray on Mac

Part 4: FAQ

1. Can I play Blu-ray disc on DVD players?

No, DVD players can only recognize and play back DVD discs. To play Blu-ray disc, you need a standalone Blu-ray player or computer that comes with Blu-ray drive and Blu-ray player software.

2. Can I convert Blu-ray/DVD discs?

Yes, you can. There are quite a few Blu-ray/DVD ripper and converter tools that can help you rip and convert Blu-ray/DVD discs to digital files so as to let you watch Blu-ray/DVD discs on various devices and players.

3. What is dual-layer Blu-ray/DVD?

A dual-layer disc means the disc stores 2 layers of data on its single side. Compared to single-layer disc, dual-layer DVD disc stores up to 8.5GB of data and dual-layer Blu-ray disc stores up to 50GB of data. Dual-layer discs are commonly used for HD video storage.

4. What is Blu-ray/DVD burning?

Blu-ray/DVD burning is a process to help you burn video, photo or audio files to Blu-ray/DVD disc, folder and ISO image file. It helps you create Blu-ray/DVD content just like physical Blu-ray/DVD disc you purchase or rent from online or local stores.