High-definition optical disc format war April 2008, the firm estimated a total of 10.5 million Blu-ray households, including Blu-ray consoles and Blu-ray-enabled PlayStation 3s. High-definition optical disc format war The high-definition optical disc format war was between the Blu-ray and HD DVD optical disc standards for storing high-definition video and audio; it took place between 2006 and 2008 and was won by Blu-ray Disc. The two formats emerged between 2000 and 2003 and attracted both the mutual and exclusive support of major consumer electronics manufacturers, personal computer manufacturers, television and movie producers and distributors, and software developers. Blu-ray and HD DVD players became commercially available
Optical disc drive maximum speed (56× for CDs or around 18× in the case of DVDs) at which drives can operate. Current optical drives use either a "tray-loading" mechanism, where the disc is loaded onto a motorized or manually operated tray, or a "slot-loading" mechanism, where the disc is slid into a slot and drawn in by motorized rollers. With both types of mechanism, if a CD or DVD is left in the drive after the computer is turned off, the disc cannot be ejected using the normal eject mechanism of the drive. However, tray-loading drives account for this situation by providing a