Blu-ray News and Updates
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Criteirion Announces February Releases
Posted November 13, 2026 07:13 PM by Webmaster
The Criterion Collection has announced its February batch of releases. They are: The Irishman (2019), Jay Kelly: (2025), Kung Fu Hustle (2004), Romería (2025), Ruggles of Red Gap (1935), The Sweet Hereafter (1997), Victor Sjöström's Hollywood Masterworks (1924-1928), and Mala Noche (1986).
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Warner Archive Announces December Releases
Posted November 11, 2026 08:43 PM by Webmaster
Warner Archive has announced its December batch of releases. They are: Decoy (1946), The Informer (1935), Till the Clouds Roll By (1946), The Big Store (1941), Tea for Two (1950), Test Pilot (1938), Little Nellie Kelly (1940), The Abbott and Costello Cartoons: The Complete Collection (1967-1968), The Bounty Hunter (1954), and The Mask of Dimitrios (1944).
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Severin: Three New Russ Meyer Films Heading to 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray
Posted November 10, 2026 10:46 PM by Webmaster
Severin Films has revealed that it will release three newly restored Russ Meyer films on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. They are: Common Law Cabin (1967), and Cherry, Harry & Raquel! (1969), Blacksnake (1973). All three releases are scheduled to arrive on the market in late February 2027.
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The Devils 4K Blu-ray
Posted November 10, 2026 07:54 PM by Webmaster
Warner Bros. Clockwork will release on a Collector's Edition combo pack of Ken Russell's The Devils (1971), starring Oliver Reed, Vanessa Redgrave, Dudley Sutton, Max Adrian, and Gemma Jones. The release is scheduled to arrive on the market on April 20.
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Heart of the Beast 4K Blu-ray
Posted November 9, 2026 06:57 PM by Webmaster
Paramount Home Media Distribution will release a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack of David Ayer's Heart of the Beast (2026), starring Brad Pitt, J.K. Simmons, Uber, Anna Lambe, and Justin Melnick. The release is scheduled to arrive on the market on January 26.
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Blu-ray Sales: October 25-31: Masters of the Universe Not Frightened by Frankenstein
Posted November 9, 2026 03:22 PM by Sean Greenwood
For the week that ended on October 31st, Alliance Entertainment's Masters of the Universe (2026) remained atop the Blu-ray-only, overall packaged media and 4K UHD charts in its second week, fending off the Criterion Collection's new release of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein (2025), which took second place. Third place on all charts went to The Frighteners, which was released on remastered Blu-ray and 4K UHD by Arrow Video this week.
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This Week on Blu-ray: November 9-15
Posted November 8, 2026 07:48 PM by Sean Greenwood
For the week of November 9th, the Criterion Collection will release Blue Heron on Blu-ray, as well as Shoot the Piano Player and Marie Antoinette (2006) on Blu-ray and 4K UHD. Other new releases include The Apothecary Diaries: Season 2 from Crunchyroll, Call of the Night: Season 2 from Sentai Filmworks and Mad Bills to Pay from Oscilloscope Laboratories. Catalog titles include Blu-rays for Lock Up: Season 1, Volume 1 from ClassicFlix and Miranda from Cult Films, as well as 4K UHD releases for Planet of the Vampires from Radiance Films, Above the Law from Toy Robot Video, Four Rooms from Kino Lorber, Con Air from Walt Disney Home Entertainment, Memoirs of a Geisha from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, The Lovely Bones from Paramount Home Media Distribution and Paddington from Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
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Sony and Nichia Co-Develop Components for Smaller Blu-ray Devices
Posted November 16, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony and Nichia have successfully co-developed a wholly integrated dual wavelength laser coupler compatible with BD/DVD, which they plan to supply to other companies. In conventional BD/DVD laser optical disc systems, the laser diode and optical receiver parts corresponding to each wavelength were independent of each other.
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HP to Introduce Blu-ray Disc Drives in PCs Next Year
Posted November 15, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
HP today announced that they will start selling PCs equipped with Blu-ray Disc drives in late 2005, starting in its desktop PCs, media center PCs, personal workstations, and digital entertainment centers. "Our decision to back Blu-ray was largely because of its capacity advantage (over HD-DVD), as well as the interactive features being built into the specification." said Maureen Weber, general manager of optical storage at HP. Pushing products based on Blu-ray to market is a priority for HP.
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Sharp Introduces Blu-ray Disc Recorder with Hard Drive/DVD
Posted November 11, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sharp today announced that they will introduce a new Blu-ray Disc recorder on the Japanese market in December. The new BD-HD100, which features a built-in hard drive (160GB), can record and play back high-definition video (HDTV) without any loss in quality. It comes equipped with the world's first twin BD/DVD tray that enables digital dubbing between the hard drive, DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs, including the ability to dub five DVDs (4.7GB) onto a single Blu-ray Disc (25GB).
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TDK Develops New Hard-Coating Technology for Blu-ray Discs
Posted October 30, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
TDK has successfully developed a new hard-coating technology that makes Blu-ray Discs even more resistant to scratches and fingerprints than existing DVDs, without requiring a cartridge to protect the discs. Two separate layers of fine silica particles prevent scratches, and fluorine-containing resins in each layer repel ink marks. The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) is pleased with the development because no consumer optical disc that uses a cartridge has ever been a commercial success. The new hard-coating is expected to provide a boost to the upcoming Blu-ray Disc format, which members of the BDA plan to launch next year as a successor to DVDs.
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Ceatec 2004 Report and New Photos
Posted October 19, 2004 12:00 AM by Webmaster
Ceatec 2004, which is one of Asia's largest consumer electronics and IT shows, was recently held and drew more than 180,000 visitors this year. Companies that were showing Blu-ray related products include JVC, Panasonic, Pioneer, Mitsubishi, Mitsumi, Sharp, Sony, and TDK. The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) also had a booth where they were offering general information about the BDA and the Blu-ray Disc format. The group is currently in the process of evaluating advanced audio codecs and finalizing the logical/application format for BD-ROM discs, which they expect to be finished by the end of the year. For more information and lots of photos, please check out our Ceatec 2004 report.
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JVC Develops Small Lens for Use in Portable Blu-ray Devices
Posted October 13, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
JVC, also known as Victor Company of Japan, announced today that it has developed the world's first single lens with a numeric aperture of 0.95. The ultra-small lens has a focal length of 0.75mm, and is 1.2mm in thickness and 2.1mm in diameter, about 25% smaller in lens surface area than the smallest Blu-ray Disc system lens (NA of 0.85) the company has already developed. In principle, the new lens can boost the capacity of a 12cm-diameter single-layer disc to more than 40GB of data. The small lens will enable the development of smaller BD/DVD/CD compatible optical pickups, as well as portable Blu-ray players and other mobile devices.
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JVC Becomes a Member of Blu-ray Disc Association
Posted October 11, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (JVC), a worldwide consumer and professional electronics company, has joined the Blu-ray Disc Association, further strengthening the already overwhelming support for the Blu-ray Disc high- definition optical-disc format among the world's leading consumer electronics and PC companies. JVC becomes one of the first companies to join the newly formed Blu-ray Disc Association, which was created to broaden the opportunities for other companies to help develop, promote and establish Blu-ray Disc as an industry standard for high-definition optical storage.
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Blu-ray Disc Association Launches With More Than 70 Companies
Posted October 5, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Today, more than 70 companies from the consumer electronics (CE), information technology (IT), media and software industries held the first official meeting of the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), which supports the continued development and promotion of the Blu-ray Disc format. Earlier this year, membership was opened to organizations interested in promoting the Blu-ray Disc format. "We believe the BDA's growth from 13 to 73 companies over the last three months reflects the depth of industry acceptance and support for the Blu-ray Disc as the next generation optical disc format," said Maureen Weber, General Manager of HP's Optical Storage Solutions Business.
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20th Century Fox Joins Blu-ray Disc Founders
Posted October 4, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Twentieth Century Fox has accepted the invitation of the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) becoming the latest member of the group. While the Studio has not committed to publish on the format, it believes that as a Founder it can influence the outcome of key issues including successful content protection as well as production costs and logistics, among other issues. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment President, Mike Dunn, added, "We look forward to the eventual completion of specifications that will result in a high-definition format with an attractive cost structure similar to current DVD production, within a secure environment with value-added features and interactivity well beyond that offered by today's DVD format".
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Sony to Begin Sales of Key Components for Blu-ray Disc Players/Recorders
Posted September 27, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony today announced that they will begin sales of key components such as optical heads and optical related semiconductor devices for BD players/recorders in December. "Sony has a long history of innovating new technologies that become the industry standard, and with today's announcement, we are confident in the continuation of that tradition", said Dr. Osamu Kumagai of Sony's Device Solutions Company at Microsystems Network Company.
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Advanced Video Codecs Added to BD-ROM Specification
Posted September 1, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) today announced which advanced video codecs will be included in the BD-ROM specification. They had previously stated that they would include at least one advanced video codec, possibly more than one. The advanced video codecs that will be mandatory are MPEG-4 AVC High Profile and Microsoft's VC-1 video codec (the proposed SMPTE standard based on WMV9). "We've been committed to adding advanced codecs to enrich the Blu-ray Disc format," said Blu-ray Disc spokesperson Maureen Weber, general manager of HP's Optical Storage Solutions Business. "We want to offer content providers a variety of compression codecs to suit their various needs."
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Blu-ray Disc Founders Approve BD-ROM Physical Specification
Posted August 11, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
The Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) have approved Version 1.0 of the BD-ROM physical-format specification and made it available to disc manufacturers and other interested parties. The BDF approved the BD-ROM physical specification within the general timeframe originally outlined in the BD-ROM development roadmap. The completion of the physical specification is an important step because it provides disc manufacturers with the information they need to prepare their BD-ROM disc production lines.
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PlayStation 3 to Feature Blu-ray Disc Technology
Posted August 4, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony has finally confirmed that they will use Blu-ray Disc technology in their next-generation PlayStation 3 (PS3) video game console. What is more surprising is that they also have plans to equip an upcoming version of their PlayStation 2 (PSX) video game console with a Blu-ray Disc player, so that consumers can enjoy both video games and high-definition movies. Sony hopes that the move will help jump-start the market for the new storage format. The announcement came at a press conference held by the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF), who also announced that they are in the process of finalizing the read-only version of the Blu-ray Disc format (BD-ROM) which they expect to be finished by September 30, 2004.
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Philips Develops All-in-one Optical Pick-up Unit
Posted July 15, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Philips announced that they have developed an optical pick-up unit (OPU) that will be able to read and write CD-R/-RW, DVD+R/+RW and the next- generation optical disc format Blu-ray Disc (BD). With its new OPU81, Philips has created the first important building block of the all-in-one recorder that can record and playback all popular consumer optical formats. By integrating the infrared, red and blue wavelength lasers and single detector into one single OPU concept, Philips has succeeded in developing a flexible triple- writer OPU design in a compact form factor.
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Sony to Test-Produce Blu-ray Discs in the U.S.
Posted July 14, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony plans to set up test production lines for Blu-ray Discs in the United States this autumn, company officials said Wednesday. The move is aimed at promoting the use of the next-generation discs by U.S. film studios by modifying the production process and product specifications. The trial production facility will be set up in Sony's digital versatile disc plant in Indiana. It will make a single-layer Blu-ray Disc with a storage capacity of 25GB and a 50GB dual-layer type.
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Panasonic Starts Blu-ray Disc Product Verification Service
Posted May 28, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Panasonic today announced that its Format Verification Laboratory has started offering a verification service for Blu-ray Disc blank rewritable media and Blu-ray Disc rewritable recorders. Anticipating a wave of entries of Blu-ray Disc-based products in the coming months, Panasonic has established a laboratory in Osaka to facilitate companies adopting the format and entering the market. For manufacturers, the verification service will ensure consistency with the format, expediting commercialization of Blu-ray Disc-based products.
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Blu-ray Disc Association Announced
Posted May 18, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
In response to growing industry support for the Blu-ray Disc standard, the 13 members of the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) today announced plans to create the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA). The Blu-ray Disc Founders will be re-incorporated into the BDA and is currently developing the membership application processes and operating procedures. The BDA will be open to companies wishing to participate in the future development of Blu-ray Disc and to help develop, promote and establish the Blu-ray Disc format as an industry standard for high-definition optical storage. Applications will be available in late summer and the first official meeting of the new BDA is planned for this fall.
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Sony Develops Single Optical Head for Blu-ray Disc, DVD and CD
Posted May 17, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony has successfully developed a single three-wavelength optical head, capable of recording and playing next-generation Blu-ray Discs, as well as conventional DVDs and CDs without requiring an extra optical head for backwards compatibility. The technology requires less parts, is cheaper to produce and provides full backwards compatibility with current DVD/CD formats. Sony will target commercializing the newly developed optical head within 2 years, and will positively promote to further technology development. By doing so, in addition to further reducing the number of parts used for achieving smaller size of optical heads, enhancement of productivity and reliability will be achieved.
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Toppan and Sony Successfully Develop 25GB Paper Disc
Posted April 15, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Toppan Printing and Sony today announced the successful development of a 25GB paper disc based on Blu-ray Disc technology. More details will be announced at the Optical Data Storage 2004 conference to be held from April 18th to April 21st at Monterey, California. Using the disc-structure of Blu-ray Disc technology, the new paper disc has a total weight that is 51% paper. "Using printing technology on paper allows a high level of artistic label printing on the optical disc.
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Blu-ray Disc Production Costs Comparable to DVD
Posted March 29, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
According to the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF), Blu-ray Disc will offer by far the highest capacity of any optical disc storage format ever developed for consumers, and yet the production costs of manufacturing Blu-ray Discs is expected to be comparable to current DVDs when manufactured at mass volumes. "Capacity and cost savings were the major reasons HP and other industry leaders chose to support Blu-ray Disc," said Maureen Weber, general manager of HP's Optical Storage Solutions. "The PC business revolves around volume and cost; and, the fact that the most logical cost choice also offers far better quality - as well as a smooth transition plan that is both forward- and backward-looking - is icing on the cake."
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Sony to Offer 50GB Blu-ray Disc Recorders
Posted March 26, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony has committed itself to shipping second-generation consumer-oriented Blu-ray video recorders by the end of the year, the company said today. The new systems will support single-side, dual-layer rewriteable discs with a total capacity of 50GB. The second-generation machines will also support the so- called BD-ROM format, the Blu-ray equivalent of today's pre-recorded DVDs, Sony said. As yet, the BD-ROM specification remains incomplete, but Sony hopes to have it ready in April.
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TDK Joins Blu-ray Disc Founders
Posted March 18, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
The Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) today announced the addition of TDK, a leading manufacturer of optical discs, as its newest member. "We are pleased to support the Blu-ray Disc format, since it is the format we believe in.", said Mr. Masatoshi Shikanai, Corporate Officer of TDK. "Our new hard-coat technology is perfect for producing robust, bare Blu-ray discs in a cost- efficient way.
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Matsushita to Offer 50GB Blu-ray Disc Recorders in July
Posted March 9, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
Matsushita Electric (Panasonic) today announced that they will release a Blu-ray Disc recorder on the Japanese market in July and thereby become the second manufacturer to offer Blu-ray Disc recorders. The Matsushita Blu-ray Disc recorder uses a two-layer disc structure, which means that a single disc can hold up to 50GB of data, or 4.5 hours of HD video. U.S. consumers still have to wait a while longer for Blu-ray products, but LG Electronics has previously stated that they intend to introduce a Blu-ray Disc recorder with a 200GB hard drive in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2004.
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HP and Dell Join Blu-ray Disc Founders
Posted January 30, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
HP and Dell, have joined the Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF), adding support from the world's two largest PC manufacturers to the already broad support from the consumer electronics industry for the Blu-ray Disc format. Dell and HP announced their support for the Blu-ray Disc format at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month and have now formally joined the organization responsible for developing and promoting the revolutionary new format for high-capacity optical discs.
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Blu-ray Gains Support from HP and Dell
Posted January 8, 2004 12:00 AM by Marwin
The Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) welcome the support from Hewlett-Packard Company and Dell Inc., the two largest PC manufacturers, underlining the true convergence between consumer electronics and IT industry, enabled by Blu-ray Disc. The support from HP and Dell is an important step in providing the industry and consumers with one format that covers both PC as well as consumer electronics applications. In addition, the Blu-ray Disc Founders are in the process of finalizing the complete format specifications portfolio.
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New Photos from Ceatec Japan 2003
Posted October 12, 2003 12:00 AM by Marwin
Ceatec Japan 2003 was recently held and showed a lot of promise for the future of Blu-ray (not Bluray, Blueray or Blue-ray). Among the companies showcasing new prototypes at the exhibit were JVC, Panasonic, Pioneer, Sharp and Sony. The Blu-ray Disc Founders are currently working on 2x speed (72Mbps) versions of their Blu-ray disc recorders as well as finalizing the specs for v2.0 of the format which includes support for BD-R (recordable) and BD-ROM (read-only) discs. They plan to have the specification finished by the summer of 2004. Check out the image galleries for some new photos of Blu-ray Disc recorders and media displayed at the trade show.
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Mitsubishi Electric Joins Blu-ray Disc Founders
Posted May 28, 2003 12:00 AM by Marwin
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and the existing nine Blu-ray Disc Founders (BDF) today announced that Mitsubishi Electric has become a member company of BDF. Mitsubishi Electric has taken a leading role in the development of optical disc technology in the relevant industries over the years, and has been focusing on blue laser technology as an important element in establishing the next generation high density and high-grade optical disc recording technology.
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Sony Unveils World's First Blu-ray Disc Recorder
Posted March 3, 2003 12:00 AM by Marwin
Sony has taken the wraps off the first commercial consumer-use video recorder that uses blue-laser technology. The BDZ-S77 will go on sale in Japan next month. It is based on the Blu-ray optical disc format announced just over a year ago. The nine consumer electronics companies behind it are promoting it as a system for recording high-definition television broadcasts.
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The Blu-ray Disc Founders Begin Licensing the Format
Posted February 13, 2003 12:00 AM by Marwin
Hitachi, Ltd., LG Electronics Inc., Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., Pioneer Corporation, Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Sharp Corporation, Sony Corporation, and Thomson today announced the start of licensing of the rewritable format of "Blu-ray Disc", the large capacity optical disc utilizing blue-violet laser. Licensing will commence as of February 17, 2003. The introduction of products based on "Blu-ray Disc", the first optical disc format capable of recording High Definition broadcasts, will enable the enjoyment of even greater picture quality within the home.
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Blu-ray Disc's Advantages Over DVD
Posted June 10, 2002 12:00 AM by Marwin
Wired's June issue includes an article which discusses the advantages Blu-ray technology has compared to traditional red-laser. To summarize, Blu-ray increases the recording capacity to 27 Gbytes (13 hours of standard definition TV or two to three hours of HDTV) compared to 4.7 Gbytes recordable with DVD+RW/DVD-RW while still being backward compatible with DVD.