Posted Mon Jan 29, 2007 at 12:22 AM PST by
Just how strong is a Blu-ray disc? Apparently, sturdy enough to withstand a scrubbing by steel wool and the sharp edges of a pizza cutter, as one enterprising fan proved with a homemade video recently posted to YouTube.
I guess we can file this one under the "Too much time on their hands" category, but one passionate (or just plain deranged) YouTube user decided to test out Blu-ray's much-touted, TDK-developed "Hard Coat" disc protection technology. Promoted by the format's backers as the ultimate in damage resistance, it is applied to every Blu-ray disc to protect against physical vulnerability. It also offers a thicker buffer versus rival HD DVD, which currently employs the same, less stringent protective coating as standard-def DVD -- which, as anyone who has rented a much-played disc from Blockbuster knows, is all too easy to decimate.
So this new PlayStation 3 owner (who goes only by the user name "KyleOrl"), decided to test out the marketing claims with a series of "Stress Tests," subjecting the PS3 bundle disc 'Talladega Nights' to a host of indignities -- including degradation by way of ballpoint pen, a pizza cutter and the punishing strains of Guns 'n' Roses "Welcome to the Jungle." Yet the Blu-ray disc took a lickin' and kept on tickin':
Despite the graphic, unsettling nature of the video (it makes 'Saw III' look like "Romper Room"), we have to give Blu-ray props for being so resistant to the sadistic whims of the YouTube generation. Ultimately, it a took a Jason Voorhees-sized butcher knife to take down 'Talladega Nights.' Impressive!
Still, if you want to keep your high-def disc collection intact, our best advice is don't try this at home.
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