Why is the format called Blu-ray Disc™?

    This name is derived from the laser technology which uses a blue-violet laser to read and write data on the disc.

    Can a Blu-ray Disc be played in my existing DVD player?

    No. Because of the different structure of a Blu-ray Disc and the need for a more advanced laser in order to read it, DVD players cannot play Blu-ray Discs.

    Can WinDVD BD® for VAIO® computers play DVD-Video discs?

    Yes. WinDVD BD for VAIOPCs will play both Blu-ray Discs and DVD-Video discs.

    Blu-ray Disc has advanced copy protection technology. Will WinDVD BD for VAIO PCs need to be updated to continue to support it all?

    Commercial Blu-ray Disc content is often protected by various layers of DRM (Digital Rights Management) formats. The most common is AACS (Advanced Access Content System) while BD+ is another available mechanism. Blu-ray Disc players using these technologies periodically have their encryption schemes updated in order to thwart piracy. As these methods are improved the ?keys' for the Blu-ray Disc player to unlock the used schemes need to be updated as well.

    Please check the Sony eSupport website to ensure that your VAIO computer system has the most current version of WinDVD BD for VAIO PCs available which would include up-to-date keys.

    Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD use similar technology. Can WinDvD BD for VAIO PCs play HD DVD movie discs?

    No. Although Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD use a similar blue-violet laser technology, the disc structures are different which make the two formats incompatible with each other.

    With WinDVD BD for VAIO PCs, why do some Blu-ray Disc movies work and some do not?

    Blu-ray Disc is an evolving technology. More advanced video and audio technologies have been used since Blu-ray Disc technology was launched several years ago. However, previous generations of Blu-ray Disc players may not have the hardware capabilities to handle some of the features found on today's movie disc releases.

    Please check the Sony eSupport website to ensure that your VAIO computer system has the most current version of WinDVD BD for VAIO PCs available to better ensure compatibility with as many movie titles as possible.

    I use an HDMI™ output and cable (sold separately) to connect my VAIO® computer to my home theater set up. Why aren't all the surround sound technologies supported?

    HDMI output can carry the following audio streams to an A/V receiver:

    Up to 8 channels of uncompressed PCM audio - the A/V receiver would not have to do any decoding work
    Unprocessed surround sound sent as a bitstream - the A/V receiver would handle the decoding of the audio stream

    Current VAIO computer systems, however, do not fully support the following:

    Dolby TrueHD - the computer will send a 2-channel downmixed stream to the A/V receiver
    DTS-HD Master Audio - the computer system will send a 'core' standard DTS stream to the A/V receiver to decode
    Uncompressed PCM - the computer system will send a 2-channel downmixed stream to the A/V receiver

    Finally, some VAIO computer systems are not currently capable of sending bitstream audio. In this case, the computer will send a 2-channel downmixed stream to the A/V receiver

    I have an older VAIO computer system that features a Blu-ray Disc optical drive. What applications can I use to make personal movie discs and to back up data onto Blu-ray Discs?

    Early Blu-ray Disc drive equipped VAIO computer systems shipped with the following software:

    Ulead BD DiscRecorder for VAIO - burn BDAV format Blu-ray Discs of your favorite home videos.
    Click to DVD BD - create BDAV and BDMV format Blu-ray Discs of your personal videos.
    Roxio® Digital Media SE - archive all your precious data with this application.