History Platform / LaserDisc

The [=LaserDisc=] format incorporated quite a few novel features that became taken for granted during the DVD era. As discussed above, the sophisticated audio capabilities of [=LaserDisc=] were refined and simplified for DVD, with almost no differences in capability besides the necessary removal of analog audio tracks. Just as notable, but far less well-known, is how [=LaserDisc=] brought ''anamorphic'' films into the home by way of "squeeze" discs, the term used by Pioneer in Japan. As TheNineties progressed, 16:9 widescreen televisions were already on the horizon, and companies like Pioneer knew that the days of 4:3 were numbered. To this end, they began offering films on [=LaserDisc=] in "squeeze" format, which shrank the letterbox bars above and below the picture and intentionally distorted the image, so that the film returned to its correct aspect ratio when viewed in 16:9. The net result was a dramatic 33% increase in image resolution, compared to a standard 4:3 letterbox title. In the end, only a tiny handful of films were released on Squeeze LD, and the format was never even available at retail outside Japan.[[note]]Warner Bros. released five of their films on Squeeze LD in North America, but these titles were not actually available to buy––they were promotional items, given only to those who ''purchased'' a brand new 16:9 Toshiba television.[[/note]] As it turned out, the Squeeze LD method is ''exactly'' the same technique DVD later used to store anamorphic film content, on thousands upon thousands of releases. When viewing a film on DVD, chances are it is in "squeeze" format, just like the [=LaserDisc=]s from all those years ago.\\\

[[MeanwhileScene Meanwhile]], Magnavox was having its own problems with player manufacturing. The machines had a nasty habit of overheating, sometimes to the point of [[LavaPit melting the disc inside]]. Worst of all, Magnavox was calibrating each player [[BotheringByTheBook strictly by the book]], without regard for the [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem wild quality variations]] of MCA's early [=LaserDiscs=]. (''Truly'' worst of all was a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRAufdE73P0 [=LaserDisc=] informercial]] produced by Magnavox around this time, which devoted an alarming amount of screen time to Creator/LeonardNimoy inexplicably talking to a rock.) \\\

Meanwhile, Magnavox was having its own problems with player manufacturing. The machines had a nasty habit of overheating, sometimes to the point of [[LavaPit melting the disc inside]]. Worst of all, Magnavox was calibrating each player [[BotheringByTheBook strictly by the book]], without regard for the [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem wild quality variations]] of MCA's early [=LaserDiscs=]. (''Truly'' worst of all was a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRAufdE73P0 [=LaserDisc=] informercial]] produced by Magnavox around this time, which devoted an alarming amount of screen time to Creator/LeonardNimoy inexplicably talking to a rock.) \\\

The [=LaserDisc=] format incorporated quite a few novel features that became taken for granted during the DVD era. As discussed above, the sophisticated audio capabilities of [=LaserDisc=] were refined and simplified for DVD, with almost no differences in capability besides the necessary removal of analog audio tracks. Just as notable, but far less well-known, is how [=LaserDisc=] brought ''anamorphic'' films into the home by way of "squeeze" discs, the term used by Pioneer in Japan. As TheNineties progressed, 16:9 widescreen televisions were already on the horizon, and companies like Pioneer knew that the days of 4:3 were numbered. To this end, they began offering films on [=LaserDisc=] in "squeeze" format, which shrank the letterbox bars above and below the picture and intentionally distorted the image, so that the film returned to its correct aspect ratio when viewed in 16:9. The net result was a dramatic 33% increase in image resolution, compared to a standard 4:3 letterbox title. In the end, only a tiny handful of films were released on "squeeze" LD, and the format was never even officially available outside Japan.[[note]]Warner Bros. released five of their films on Squeeze LD in North America, but these titles were not actually available to buy––they were promotional items, given only to those who ''purchased'' a brand new 16:9 Toshiba television.[[/note]] As it turned out, the LD "squeeze" method is ''exactly'' the same technique DVD later used to store anamorphic film content, on thousands upon thousands of releases. When viewing a film on DVD, chances are it is in "squeeze" format, just like the [=LaserDisc=]s from all those years ago.\\\

The [=LaserDisc=] format incorporated quite a few novel features that became taken for granted during the DVD era. As discussed above, the sophisticated audio capabilities of [=LaserDisc=] were refined and simplified for DVD, with almost no differences in capability besides the necessary removal of analog audio tracks. Just as notable, but far less well-known, is how [=LaserDisc=] brought ''anamorphic'' films into the home by way of "squeeze" discs, the term used by Pioneer in Japan. As TheNineties progressed, 16:9 widescreen televisions were already on the horizon, and companies like Pioneer knew that the days of 4:3 were numbered. To this end, they began offering films on [=LaserDisc=] in "squeeze" format, which shrank the letterbox bars above and below the picture and intentionally distorted the image, so that the film returned to its correct aspect ratio when viewed in 16:9. In the end, only a tiny handful of films were released on "squeeze" LD, and the format was never even officially available outside Japan.[[note]]Warner Bros. released five of their films on Squeeze LD in North America, but these titles were not actually available to buy––they were promotional items, given only to those who ''purchased'' a brand new 16:9 Toshiba television.[[/note]] As it turned out, the LD "squeeze" method is ''exactly'' the same technique DVD later used to store anamorphic film content, on thousands upon thousands of releases. When viewing a film on DVD, chances are it is in "squeeze" format, just like the [=LaserDisc=]s from all those years ago.\\\

The [=LaserDisc=] format incorporated quite a few novel features that became taken for granted during the DVD era. As discussed above, the sophisticated audio capabilities of [=LaserDisc=] were refined and simplified for DVD, with almost no differences in capability besides the necessary removal of analog audio tracks. Just as notable, but far less well-known, is how [=LaserDisc=] brought ''anamorphic'' films into the home by way of "squeeze" discs, the term used by Pioneer in Japan. As TheNineties progressed, 16:9 widescreen televisions were already on the horizon, and companies like Pioneer knew that the days of 4:3 were numbered. To this end, they began offering films on [=LaserDisc=] in "squeeze" format, which shrank the letterbox bars above and below the picture and intentionally distorted the image, so that the film returned to its correct aspect ratio when viewed in 16:9. In the end, only a tiny handful of films were released on "squeeze" LD, and the format was never even officially available outside Japan.[[note]]Warner Bros. released five of their films on Squeeze LD in North America, but these titles were not actually available to buy––they were promotional items, given only to those who ''purchased'' a brand new 16:9 Toshiba television.[[/note]] As it turned out, the LD "squeeze" method is ''exactly'' the same technique DVD later used to store anamorphic film content, on thousands upon thousands of releases. When viewing a film on DVD, chances are it is in "squeeze" format, just like the [=LaserDisc=]s from all those years ago.


[=LaserDisc=] also [IncrediblyLamePun "pioneered"]] the idea of DVDBonusContent, such as DVDCommentary which first appeared on Creator/TheCriterionCollection [=LaserDisc=] release of ''Film/KingKong1933'' in 1984. Some of these releases had extra features that can't be found anywhere else, and some are highly sought-after by collectors. The 1993 [=LaserDisc=] boxset of the original ''Franchise/StarWars'' trilogy is still sometimes said to be the best release the series has gotten, since future DVD and UsefulNotes/BluRay releases don't have the unaltered versions of the films or the extensive extras and giant hardcover booklet that came with the set (the masters used for the original unaltered trilogy in the 2006 [=DVDs=] as extras were sourced from these discs).\\\

The [=LaserDisc=] format also [[IncrediblyLamePun "pioneered"]] the practice of DVDBonusContent, such as DVDCommentary which first appeared on Creator/TheCriterionCollection [=LaserDisc=] release of ''Film/KingKong1933'' in 1984. Some of these releases had extra features that can't be found anywhere else, and some are highly sought-after by collectors. The 1993 [=LaserDisc=] boxset of the original ''Franchise/StarWars'' trilogy is still sometimes said to be the best release the series has gotten, since future DVD and UsefulNotes/BluRay releases don't have the unaltered versions of the films or the extensive extras and giant hardcover booklet that came with the set (the masters used for the original unaltered trilogy in the 2006 [=DVDs=] as extras were sourced from these discs).\\\

[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/[=LaserDisc=]_41.png]]

[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/laserdisc_41.png]]

'''[=LaserDisc=]''' is an optical disc format, primarily used for playback of analog audiovisual content.[[note]]Okay, the format is not ''exclusively'' analog. Digital audio capability was added to the laserdisc specification around 1985, and virtually all titles released after 1990 contain a digital soundtrack.[[/note]] It was the first laser-based storage medium to be sold as a consumer product, and is the direct ancestor of formats like [=CD=], [=DVD=], and Blu-ray. The technology first began serious development in [[TheSixties the late 1960s]]; however, it didn't debut as a retail product until 1978 (United States), 1981 (Japan) and 1982 (Europe).

The format was envisioned as a high-tech audiovisual successor to LP records, and though the two ended up having effectively nothing in common, laserdisc still bears a few vestigial similarities: physically, it's a double-sided 12" disc made of (clear) vinyl, stored inside a cardboard jacket. A laserdisc side can last up to 60 minutes, for a maximum play time of two hours on a single disc.[[note]]European (PAL-format) laserdiscs can hold up to 64 minutes per side.[[/note]] ''All'' laserdiscs are double-sided, though one side may be blank if the program is under an hour long.

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a substantial library of program material was published during the format's 23-year retail lifespan––especially in Japan, where laserdiscs were more popular than anywhere else. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001[[note]]in Japan. American LD releases stopped after 2000[[/note]], with industrial releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

The early years of laserdisc were turbulent, to say the least. For the first few years of the format's existence, a ''name'' could not even be agreed upon by Philips (Dutch electronics giant) and MCA (parent company of [[Creator/{{Universal}} Universal Studios]]), the co-developers of the format; the two companies had come up with their ideas separately, then decided to team up (especially with RCA's rival UsefulNotes/{{CED}} format looming on the horizon...nobody figured magnetic tape would amount to anything at first). Philips, in charge of player manufacturing under their Magnavox brand, preferred "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Video Long Play]]." MCA, handling the software side of things, called it "[[TotallyRadical DiscoVision]]."\\\

Laserdisc production in the early years of the format was plagued with problems. In a stunning example of corporate naiveté, MCA had assumed that manufacturing a laserdisc—a precision object constructed of many stacked, alternating layers of plastic, glue, and aluminum—would be [[IgnoranceIsBliss hardly more complex than pressing vinyl records]], allowing for a handsome profit margin on each disc sold. [=DiscoVision=] laserdiscs were made (largely by hand) in a facility that was not equipped with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleanroom clean rooms]], and [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong was the former site of a furniture factory.]] Needless to say, the quality of early laserdiscs was horrendous, with return rates exceeding 90 percent. MCA's profit margins on [=DiscoVision=] titles [[RichesToRags evaporated practically overnight]]. Corporate panic ensued, and [[DamageControl retail prices were raised]] in an ultimately-futile attempt to cut their losses.\\\

Meanwhile, Magnavox was having its own problems with player manufacturing. The machines had a nasty habit of overheating, sometimes to the point of [[LavaPit melting the disc inside]]. Worst of all, Magnavox was calibrating each player [[BotheringByTheBook strictly by the book]], without regard for the [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem wild quality variations]] of MCA's early laserdiscs. (''Truly'' worst of all was a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRAufdE73P0 laserdisc informercial]] produced by Magnavox around this time, which devoted an alarming amount of screen time to Creator/LeonardNimoy inexplicably talking to a rock.) \\\

Both companies were pushing the envelope incredibly far for what was, after all, a [[TheSeventies '70s]] consumer product, and making too many critical mistakes along the way. The end result was technological chaos. [[GoneHorriblyWrong Magnavox's players largely could not play MCA's laserdiscs]]; when they did, the image onscreen was often covered with snow and distortion, and the audio was usually filled with static.\\\

And let's not even get into the subject of ''laser rot'', which is discussed in detail further down this page. Suffice to say that the [[ElementalRockPaperScissors bane of laserdisc's existence]] first appeared here, during the [=DiscoVision=] era, and it would continue rearing its ugly head [[RecurringBoss on a regular basis]] right up until the twilight years of laserdisc in the late [[TheNineties 1990s]].\\\

All of this was in spite of the fact that, at the last minute before launch, playing time per disc was [[DesperationAttack temporarily slashed]] from two hours to just 50 minutes, making them (supposedly) [[DestructiveSaviour much easier to manufacture and play back]]. (The ensuing side effect––that all early [=DiscoVision=] movies had to span across two or ''three'' laserdiscs instead of being contained on just one––[[IDidWhatIHadToDo added insult to injury]] for those unfortunate early adopters, and helped to drain MCA's coffers even further.) To this day, watching an old [=DiscoVision=] laserdisc is a fraught experience because [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness you simply have no idea what you will see or hear... if the disc will even start up at all, or how long it will keep playing]] if it actually ''does'' start.\\\

Barely out of the gate, laserdisc had essentially shot itself in the foot at a critical time in history, just as home video was within reach of the average consumer at long last. As laserdisc stumbled through its first years on the market, most buyers brought video cassette recorders into their homes instead. The entire [=DiscoVision=] debacle, and RCA's own issues with their CED disc system, ensured that videotapes, not videodiscs, would be the standard format for home video entertainment during the [[TheEighties '80s]] and [[TheNineties '90s]]. As the seventies came to a close, the laserdisc format itself was practically dead, less than two years after its debut.

Because of their disastrous experience with [=DiscoVision=], MCA lost a fortune and was eager to be rid of the format. In 1980, Pioneer Electronics bought out [=DiscoVision=]'s rights and patents, and subsequently renamed it "[=LaserVision=]," with the format introduced in Japan in 1981. (Had Pioneer not stepped in, laserdisc as a format would have assuredly ceased to exist after 1980.) Although they would later use "[=LaserDisc=]"[[note]]This specific spelling[[/note]] as a brand name, [=LaserVision=] was the official name of the format until the early 1990s, when Pioneer finally began to use "[=LaserDisc=]" as the format's official name.\\\

Laserdisc is unique among home video formats for being an effectively ''uncompressed'' medium. Of course, data compression has no application for an analog medium like laserdisc, but even VHS is notorious for its poor resolution, especially with regard to color. Laserdisc, at least in theory, is capable of preserving the full bandwidth of a standard-definition master videotape, something that DVD—for all of its unflinching digital purity—can occasionally fail to do.\\\

Indeed, a well-mastered laserdisc, played back on a high-end machine, can deliver picture quality within spitting distance of a typical UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}. Some diehards still insist, to this day, that laserdisc is the superior format of the two. (Which isn't ''quite'' true when comparing both formats at their best, but considering the 19-year age gap between laserdisc and DVD, it speaks to [[TheyDontMakeThemLikeTheyUsedTo laserdisc's technical prowess]] that they can be seriously compared at all.)\\\

The audio capabilities of laserdisc also trade blows with DVD, with excellent-quality soundtracks available on most titles released during the '90s, often transferred directly from theatrical sound mixes at full resolution. (UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}s by default use a lossy compression scheme, and often have inferior sound mixes designed for the home.) [=LaserDisc=] data could be burned onto the disc in two different ways, Constant Angular Velocity (CAV) and Constant Linear Velocity (CLV). On CAV discs[[note]]Which have 30 minutes per side, and are also known as "standard play".[[/note]], once around the disc was one frame of image. The advantage of CAV was that freeze-framing, scanning forward and backward, etc., could be done by a simple mechanical variation of the motor speed. The disadvantage was that it wasted space; the data recorded towards the outside of the disc was spread out relative to the data close to the center. CLV discs[[note]]Which have 60 minutes per side. Also known as "extended play", these are the discs used for most movies.[[/note]], by contrast, wasted no space, but showing the picture while pausing, fast-forwarding, and such required mildly complicated math on the fly. Cheap [=LaserDisc=] players couldn't do it. Those that could were referred to as having "the chip". Note that one physical disc could have CLV data on one side and CAV data on the other. ''Film/TheFugitive'' has the first side encoded CAV, and the other two sides are CLV. Thus, if you had a cheap LD player, you could freeze-frame the movie only on the first side.

[=LaserDiscs=] are also perhaps best known among the video game community for being the format used to created well known arcade games such as ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'' and ''VideoGame/SpaceAce'', which pioneered the use of full motion video in video games. There was even a laserdisc-based console system called the "Halcyon", which was discontinued after only two games were released for it: ''VideoGame/ThayersQuest'' and ''NFL Football''. In the mid-1990s, Pioneer released the [=LaserActive=], a game console that was more of a high-end all in one solution that, aside from [=LaserDisc=]-based titles, could also play UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, UsefulNotes/SegaCD, UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16, and [=TurboGrafx=]-CD titles (and special titles that combined either the Sega or NEC stuff with laserdiscs); however, two different modules were required to play them. While lasting longer than the Halcyon, the [=LaserActive=] was also short lived with only several games released for it in Japan and North America.\\\

One thing that contributed to the longevity of the [=LaserDisc=] player in Japan was that it was the ''preferred'' media for Karaoke in the country. While the west frowns upon Karaoke and many other countries in Asia switched to the more compact (albeit inferior image-wise) [=VideoCD=] format, Japan stuck to [=LaserDiscs=] until it was finally discontinued in 2009 for no other reason than being an analog format. [=LaserDiscs=] are capable of carrying two distinct audio tracks: an analog stereo track and a digital stream which can pretty much be used for any type of audio. In the west, this was usually used for 5.1 Dolby Surround on premium releases and sometimes Spanish SAP or Descriptive Video Service (DVS) in stereo PCM, but in Japan, Karaoke discs used them as PCM stereo tracks that carried a minus-one version of the song to be sung along to. The ability to store PCM audio tracks also allowed for the creation of "CD Video" discs in the west that either featured a full-length movie with a digital audio track or combined a CD single in Redbook audio with a small analog video track featuring either a music video or an excerpt from a concert recording. While ambitious, the format only lasted four years due to [[MisaimedMarketing its inability to find a clear audience]]; more on that can be found on the UsefulNotes/CompactDisc's own page.\\\

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a substantial library of program material was published during the format's 23-year retail lifespan––especially in Japan, where laserdiscs were more popular than anywhere else. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001[[note]]In Japan. American LD releases stopped after 2000[[/note]], with industrial releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a substantial library of program material was published during the format's 23-year retail lifespan––especially in Japan, where the format enjoyed its greatest success. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001[[note]]In Japan. American LD releases stopped after 2000[[/note]], with industrial releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a vast library of program material became available during the format's 23-year retail lifespan, especially in Japan. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001[[note]]In Japan. American LD releases stopped after 2000[[/note]], with industrial releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

'''[=LaserDisc=]''' is an optical disc format, primarily used for playback of analog audiovisual content. It was the first laser-based storage medium to be sold as a consumer product, and is the direct ancestor of formats like [=CD=], [=DVD=], and Blu-ray. The technology first began serious development in [[TheSixties the late 1960s]]; however, it didn't debut as a retail product until 1978 (United States), 1981 (Japan) and 1982 (Europe).

The format was envisioned as a high-tech audiovisual successor to LP records, and though the two ended up having effectively nothing in common, laserdisc still bears a few vestigial similarities: physically, it's a double-sided 12" disc made of (clear) vinyl, stored inside a cardboard jacket. A laserdisc side can last up to 60 minutes, for a maximum play time of two hours on a single disc. ''All'' laserdiscs are double-sided, though one side may be blank if the program is under an hour long.

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a vast library of program material became available during the format's 23-year retail lifespan. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001, with industrial releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

The early years of laserdisc were turbulent, to say the least. For the first few years of the format's existence, a ''name'' could not even be agreed upon by Philips (Dutch electronics giant) and MCA (parent company of [[Creator/{{Universal}} Universal Studios]]), the co-developers of the format; the two companies ahd come up with their ideas separately, then decided to team up (especially with RCA's rival UsefulNotes/{{CED}} format looming on the horizon...nobody figured magnetic tape would amount to anything at first). Philips, in charge of player manufacturing under their Magnavox brand, preferred "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Video Long Play]]." MCA, handling the software side of things, called it "[[TotallyRadical DiscoVision]]."\\\

The early years of laserdisc were turbulent, to say the least. For the first few years of the format's existence, a ''name'' could not even be agreed upon by Philips (Dutch electronics giant) and MCA (parent company of [[Creator/{{Universal}} Universal Studios]]), the co-developers of the format. Philips, in charge of player manufacturing under their Magnavox brand, preferred "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Video Long Play]]." MCA, handling the software side of things, called it "[[TotallyRadical DiscoVision]]."\\\

Laserdisc production in the early years of the format was plagued with problems. In a stunning example of corporate naiveté, MCA had assumed that manufacturing a laserdisc—a precision object constructed of many stacked, alternating layers of plastic, glue, and aluminum—would be [[IgnoranceIsBliss hardly more complex than pressing vinyl records,]] allowing for a handsome profit margin on each disc sold. [=DiscoVision=] laserdiscs were made (largely by hand) in a facility that was not equipped with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleanroom clean rooms]], and [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong was the former site of a furniture factory.]] Needless to say, the quality of early laserdiscs was horrendous, with return rates exceeding 90 percent. MCA's profit margins on [=DiscoVision=] titles [[RichesToRags evaporated practically overnight]]. Corporate panic ensued, and [[DamageControl retail prices were raised]] in an ultimately-futile attempt to cut their losses.\\\

All of this was in spite of the fact that, at the last minute before launch, playing time per disc was [[DesperationAttack temporarily slashed]] from two hours to just 50 minutes, making them (supposedly) [[DestructiveSaviour much easier to manufacture and play back]]. (The ensuing side effect––that all early [=DiscoVision=] movies had to span across two or ''three'' laserdiscs instead of being contained on just one––[[IDidWhatIHadToDo added insult to injury]] for those unfortunate early adopters, and helped to drain MCA's coffers even further.) To this day, watching an old [=DiscoVision=] laserdisc is a fraught experience because [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness you simply have no idea what you will see or hear; if the disc will even start up at all; or how long it will keep playing]] if it actually ''does'' start.\\\

Barely out of the gate, laserdisc had essentially shot itself in the foot at a critical time in history, just as home video was within reach of the average consumer at long last. As laserdisc stumbled through its first years on the market, most buyers brought video cassette recorders into their homes instead. The entire [=DiscoVision=] debacle ensured that videotapes, not videodiscs, would be the standard format for home video entertainment during the [[TheEighties '80s]] and [[TheNineties '90s]]. As the seventies came to a close, the laserdisc format itself was practically dead, less than two years after its debut.

Despite superior sound and picture quality [=LaserDisc=] never caught on like [[UsefulNotes/{{VCR}} VHS]], but had a 5% market share until it was phased out completely by UsefulNotes/{{DVD}} in the year 2000. It was [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff more popular in Japan]] with 10% of households owning a [=LaserDisc=] player (which weren't discontinued until ''2009''). It was also popular in other wealthier East Asian regions, including Singapore and Hong Kong. Its popularity there was mainly due to the humidity in that part of the world causing mold to grow on magnetic tape, while optical media didn't have that problem. The [=LaserDisc=]'s quality came with some flaws. Storage capacity was quite low, and depending on the format would range from 30 to 60 minutes per side. Any movie that was over two hours would be a MultiDiscWork. The size of the disc also required a fairly noisy mechanism. In addition, the type of glue used to attach the two sides together was known to rot away, exposing the reflective layer inside and causing it to oxidize away, slowly turning the discs black and affecting playback and picture quality (this was called "laser rot" back in the day, and became more commonly known as "disc rot" after it was discovered to be possible in later optical disc formats as well). Perhaps more importantly, in the days before Tivo and other DVR devices, the [=LaserDisc=] couldn't tape your favorite shows.[[note]]Recordable, and even rewritable, [=LaserDiscs=] [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaserDisc#Recordable_formats did in fact exist]], but were marketed towards professionals and never achieved any significant penetration into the consumer market. This in addition to the fact that they were ungodly expensive and unaffordable to most people. Plus they can only record ''once'' like a UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}, assuming you're not thinking of DVD-RAM.[[/note]] That plus a steeper retail price for both the player and discs gave the VHS a decisive advantage. That said, in the '80s, the discs were significantly cheaper to buy than VHS tapes, which were largely intended for the rental market, which made [=LaserDisc=] popular with collectors. In the heyday of the medium the difference in quality between LD and VHS was significant enough that when LD aficionados bought a new disc, they would sometimes invite their (non-LD-owning) friends over to watch it at a "[=LaserDisc=] party" (as seen in the ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode "[[Recap/FriendsS3E17TheOneWithoutTheSkiTrip The One Without The Ski Trip]]"). Dropping prices for VHS tapes eroded LD's advantage when Hollywood began to focus on video sales and studios targeted [=LaserDiscs=] for expensive {{Limited Special Collectors Ultimate Edition}}s aimed at film buffs. Said film buffs also enjoyed the fact that {{letterbox}}ed versions of almost every film[[note]]Only films shot natively in widescreen.\\\

[=LaserDiscs=] are also perhaps best known among the video game community for being the format used to created well known arcade games such as ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'' and ''VideoGame/SpaceAce'', which pioneered the use of full motion video in video games. There was even a laserdisc-based console system called the "Halcyon", which was discontinued after only two games were released for it: ''VideoGame/ThayersQuest'' and ''NFL Football''. In the mid-1990s, Pioneer released the [=LaserActive=], a game console that was more of a high-end all in one solution that, aside from [=LaserDisc=]-based titles, could also play UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, UsefulNotes/SegaCD, UsefulNotes/TurboGrafx16, and Turbografx-CD titles; however, two different modules were required to play them. While lasting longer than the Halcyon, the [=LaserActive=] was also short lived with only several games released for it in Japan and North America.\\\

Despite superior sound and picture quality [=LaserDisc=] never caught on like [[UsefulNotes/{{VCR}} VHS]], but had a 5% market share until it was phased out completely by UsefulNotes/{{DVD}} in the year 2000. It was [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff more popular in Japan]] with 10% of households owning a [=LaserDisc=] player (which weren't discontinued until ''2009''). It was also popular in other wealthier East Asian regions, including Singapore and Hong Kong. Its popularity there was mainly due to the humidity in that part of the world causing mold to grow on magnetic tape, while optical media didn't have that problem. The [=LaserDisc=]'s quality came with some flaws. Storage capacity was quite low, and depending on the format would range from 30 to 60 minutes per side. Any movie that was over two hours would require multiple discs. The size of the disc also required a fairly noisy mechanism. In addition, the type of glue used to attach the two sides together was known to rot away, exposing the reflective layer inside and causing it to oxidize away, slowly turning the discs black and affecting playback and picture quality (this was called "laser rot" back in the day, and became more commonly known as "disc rot" after it was discovered to be possible in later optical disc formats as well). Perhaps more importantly, in the days before Tivo and other DVR devices, the [=LaserDisc=] couldn't tape your favorite shows.[[note]]Recordable, and even rewritable, [=LaserDiscs=] [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaserDisc#Recordable_formats did in fact exist]], but were marketed towards professionals and never achieved any significant penetration into the consumer market. This in addition to the fact that they were ungodly expensive and unaffordable to most people. Plus they can only record ''once'' like a UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}, assuming you're not thinking of DVD-RAM.[[/note]] That plus a steeper retail price for both the player and discs gave the VHS a decisive advantage. That said, in the '80s, the discs were significantly cheaper to buy than VHS tapes, which were largely intended for the rental market, which made [=LaserDisc=] popular with collectors. In the heyday of the medium the difference in quality between LD and VHS was significant enough that when LD aficionados bought a new disc, they would sometimes invite their (non-LD-owning) friends over to watch it at a "[=LaserDisc=] party" (as seen in the ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode "[[Recap/FriendsS3E17TheOneWithoutTheSkiTrip The One Without The Ski Trip]]"). Dropping prices for VHS tapes eroded LD's advantage when Hollywood began to focus on video sales and studios targeted [=LaserDiscs=] for expensive {{Limited Special Collectors Ultimate Edition}}s aimed at film buffs. Said film buffs also enjoyed the fact that {{letterbox}}ed versions of almost every film[[note]]Only films shot natively in widescreen.\\\

The early years of laserdisc were turbulent, to say the least. For the first few years of the format's existence, a ''name'' could not even be agreed upon by Philips (Dutch electronics giant) and MCA (parent company of Universal Studios), the co-developers of the format. Philips, in charge of player manufacturing under their Magnavox brand, preferred "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Video Long Play]]." MCA, handling the software side of things, called it "[[TotallyRadical DiscoVision]]."\\\

Because of their disastrous experience with [=DiscoVision=], MCA lost a fortune and was [[AbandonShip eager to be rid of the format]]. In 1980, Pioneer Electronics bought out [=DiscoVision=]'s rights and patents, and subsequently renamed it "[=LaserVision=]," with the format introduced in Japan in 1981. (Had Pioneer not stepped in, laserdisc as a format would have assuredly ceased to exist after 1980.) Although they would later use "[=LaserDisc=]"[[note]]This specific spelling[[/note]] as a brand name, [=LaserVision=] was the official name of the format until the early 1990s, when Pioneer finally began to use "[=LaserDisc=]" as the format's official name.\\\

Meanwhile, Magnavox was having its own problems with player manufacturing. The machines had a nasty habit of overheating, sometimes to the point of [[LavaPit melting the disc inside]]. Worst of all, Magnavox was calibrating each player [[BotheringByTheBook strictly by the book]], without any regard for the [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem wild quality variations]] of MCA's early laserdiscs. (''Truly'' worst of all was a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRAufdE73P0 laserdisc informercial]] produced by Magnavox around this time, which devoted an alarming amount of screen time to Creator/LeonardNimoy inexplicably talking to a rock.) \\\

Barely out of the gate, laserdisc had essentially shot itself in the foot at a critical time in history, just as home video was within reach of the average consumer. As laserdisc stumbled through its first years on the market, most buyers brought video cassette recorders into their homes instead. The entire [=DiscoVision=] debacle ensured that videotapes, not videodiscs, would be the standard format for home video entertainment during the [[TheEighties '80s]] and [[TheNineties '90s]]. As the seventies came to a close, the laserdisc format itself was practically dead, less than two years after its debut.

Indeed, a well-mastered laserdisc, played back on a high-end machine, can deliver picture quality within spitting distance of a typical UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}. Some diehards still insist, to this day, that laserdisc is the superior format of the two. (Which isn't ''quite'' true when comparing both formats at their best, but considering the 19-year age gap between laserdisc and DVD, it speaks to laserdisc's technical prowess that they can be seriously compared at all.)\\\

Laserdisc is unique among home video formats for being an effectively ''uncompressed'' medium. Of course, data compression has no application for an analog medium like laserdisc, but even VHS is notorious for its poor resolution, especially with regard to color. Laserdisc, at least in theory, is capable of preserving the full bandwidth of a standard-definition master videotape, something that DVD is still capable of screwing up on occasion.\\\

Laserdisc is unique among home video formats for being an effectively ''uncompressed'' medium. Of course, data compression has no application for an analog medium like laserdisc, but even VHS is notorious for its poor resolution, especially with regard to color. Laserdisc, at least in theory, is capable of preserving the full bandwidth of a standard-definition master videotape, something that DVD is still capable of screwing up on occasion. Indeed, well-mastered title, played back on a high-end machine, can deliver picture quality within spitting distance of a typical UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}. Some diehards still insist, to this day, that laserdisc is the superior format of the two. (Which isn't ''quite'' true when comparing both formats at their best, but considering the 19-year age gap between laserdisc and DVD, it speaks to laserdisc's technical prowess that they can be seriously compared at all.)\\\

With the exception of Japanese ''Hi-Vision'' discs (which could only play on selected players from the same region and required a matching television set), [=LaserDisc=] is an ''uncompressed'' medium. A well-mastered title, played back on a high-end machine, can deliver picture quality within spitting distance of a typical UsefulNotes/{{DVD}}. Some diehards still insist, to this day, that laserdisc is the superior format of the two. (Which isn't true, of course, but considering the 19-year age gap between laserdisc and DVD, it speaks to the technical prowess of this format that the two can be seriously compared at all.)\\\

And let's not even get into the subject of ''laser rot'', which is discussed in detail further down this page. Suffice to say that the bane of laserdisc's existence first appeared here, during the [=DiscoVision=] era, and it would continue rearing its ugly head on a regular basis right up until the twilight years of laserdisc in the late [[TheNineties 1990s]].\\\

And let's not even get into the subject of ''laser rot'', which is discussed in detail further down this page. Suffice to say that the issue began right here, during the [=DiscoVision=] era, and it would continue rearing its ugly head on a regular basis right up until the twilight years of laserdisc in the late [[TheNineties 1990s]].\\\

'''[=LaserDisc=]''' is an optical disc format, primarily used for playback of analog audiovisual content. It was the first laser-based storage medium to be sold as a consumer product, and is the direct ancestor of formats like [=CD=], [=DVD=], and Blu-ray. The technology first began serious development in [[TheSixties the late 1960s]]; however, it didn't debut as a retail product until December 1978.

Laserdiscs are strictly playback-only, but a vast library of program material became available during the format's 23-year retail lifespan. The final consumer laserdisc releases came out in 2001, with industrial-only releases (mostly for [[KaraokeBox Japanese karaoke venues]]) winding down the following year.

And let's not even get into the subject of ''laser rot'', which is discussed in detail further on. Suffice to say that the issue began right here, during the [=DiscoVision=] era, and would continue rearing its ugly head on a regular basis right up until the twilight years of laserdisc in the late [[TheNineties 1990s]].\\\

Both companies were pushing the envelope incredibly far for what was, after all, a [[TheSeventies '70s]] consumer product, and making too many critical mistakes along the way. The end result was technological chaos. [[GoneHorriblyWrong Magnavox's players largely could not play MCA's laserdiscs]]; when they did, the image onscreen was often covered with snow and distortion, and the audio was usually filled with static. This was in spite of the fact that, at the last minute before launch, playing time per disc was [[DesperationAttack temporarily slashed]] from two hours to just 50 minutes, making them (supposedly) [[DestructiveSaviour much easier to manufacture and play back]]. (The ensuing side effect––that all early [=DiscoVision=] movies had to span across two or ''three'' laserdiscs instead of being contained on just one––[[IDidWhatIHadToDo added insult to injury]] for those unfortunate early adopters, and helped to drain MCA's coffers even further.) To this day, watching an old [=DiscoVision=] laserdisc is a fraught experience because [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness you simply have no idea what you will see or hear; if the disc will even start up at all; or how long it will keep playing]] if it actually ''does'' start.\\\

'''[=LaserDisc=]''' is an optical disc format, primarily used for playback of analog video content. It was the first laser storage medium to be sold as a consumer product, and is the direct ancestor of formats like [=CD=], [=DVD=], and Blu-ray. The technology first began serious development in [[TheSixties the late 1960s]]; however, it didn't debut as a retail product until December 1978.

The format was envisioned as a high-tech audiovisual successor to LP records, and though the two formats ended up having effectively nothing in common, laserdisc still bears a few vestigial similarities: physically, it's a double-sided 12" disc made of (clear) vinyl, stored inside a cardboard jacket. A laserdisc side can last up to 60 minutes, for a maximum play time of two hours on a single disc. ''All'' laserdiscs are double-sided, though one side may be blank if the program is under an hour long.

The format was envisioned as a high-tech audiovisual successor to LP records, and though the two formats ended up having (effectively) nothing in common, laserdisc still bears a few vestigial similarities: physically, it's a double-sided 12" diameter disc, stored inside a cardboard jacket. A laserdisc side can last up to 60 minutes, for a maximum play time of two hours on a single disc. ''All'' laserdiscs are double-sided, though one side may be blank if the program is under an hour long.