Details
Optical Storage
Panasonic has officially announced its new 8x Blu-ray Disc writer, the LF-PB371JD. This new drive features 8x BD-R, 8x BD-R DL and 2x BD-RE writing speeds as well as a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 8x. Here's part of their press release, translated from Japanese.
panasonic lf-pb371jd 400.jpg

Details
Optical Storage
Back in July, Pioneer announced that it had developed the world's first 16-layer optical disc with a capacity of 400GB. Following new research conducted by its engineers in Japan, the company has now announced that a 20-layer 500GB disc is feasible.

A 20-layer optical disc is now viable, following research by our team of engineers at Pioneer HQ, Tokyo. Each layer of the disc can store 25GB of information to provide a mammoth 500GB of storage.

The news follows the International Symposium on Optical Memory (ISOM) and Optical Data Storage, held during July in Hawaii, where Pioneer Corporation presented its research, defining draft specifications for the 500 GB disc.

The ISOM had previously outlined the industry objective of creating a 20-layer disc to be available between 2010-2012.

Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
Things aren't looking good for Prodisc. Earlier this week, the company asked a local court in Taiwan for protection against its creditors to prevent them from seizing its assets. According to the China Economic News, Prodisc has also filed for corporate restructuring and will be shutting down its optical disc business. Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
DigiTimes is reporting that CMC Magnetics will be raising the OEM price of blank CD-R and DVD+R/-R discs by 10% in August. The company also plans to raise the price again in the fourth quarter of 2008 in an attempt to improve the profitability of optical disc production.

CMC Magnetics, who plans to adjust its OEM quotes for blank CD-R and DVD+R/-R discs up by 10% on average in August according to a previous report, plans to further hike OEM prices in the fourth quarter of 2008 in an attempt to significantly improve the profitability of optical disc production, according to company chairman Robert Wong.

Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage

I-O Data Japan has announced a new Blu-ray Disc writer based on the Panasonic SW-5584. The BRD-SP8 features 8x BD-R, 8x BD-R DL and 2x BD-RE writing speeds as well as a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 8x. Here are some of the specs:

i-o data brd-sp8 400.jpg

Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
Lite-On Europe announced this week, that it will begin shipping its new 22x DVD writers in October. Along with SecurDisc, the drives will support a new feature called SmartErase. Similar to Plextor's PlexEraser technology, SmartErase destroys the data on CD-R and DVD±R media without physically damaging the disc.

Details
Optical Storage
Despite the failure of HD DVD, China is moving ahead with its own version of the format. While the CBHD (China Blue High-definition Disc) promises lower manufacturing costs and royalty fees, Taiwan's drive manufacturers believe that it will have a hard time competing with Blu-ray Disc in the Chinese market. Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
Buffalo has announced a new series drives based on Panasonic's 8x Blu-ray Disc writer, the SW-5584. The internal BR-816FBS and external BR-816SU2 feature 8x BD-R, 8x BD-R DL, 2x BD-R LTH and 2x BD-RE writing speeds and a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 8x. Here are some of the specs:
buffalo br-816fbs-bk 400.png
Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
Pioneer Japan has announced two new 20x DVD writers, the DVR-A16J (PATA) and DVR-S16J (SATA). Along with support for Labelflash, the two drives feature 22x DVD±R, 12x DVD-RAM and 12x DVD±R DL writing speeds and Pioneer's new Optimal Write Speed function. Here are some of the specs:


Writing Speeds:
DVD+R: 20x, 18x, 16x, 12x, 8x, 6x, 4x, 2.4x
DVD-R: 20x, 18x, 16x, 12x, 8x, 6x, 4x, 2x, 1x
DVD+R DL: 12x, 10x, 8x, 6x, 4x, 2.4x
DVD-R DL: 12x, 10x, 8x, 6x, 4x, 2x
DVD+RW: 8x, 6x, 4x, 3.3x, 2.4x
DVD-RW: 6x, 4x, 2x, 1x
DVD-RAM: 12x, 8x, 6x, 6x, 3x, 2x
CD-R: 40x, 32x, 24x, 16x, 10x, 4x
CD-RW: 32x, 24x, 20x, 16x, 10x, 4x

Read Speeds:
DVD-ROM (Single): 16x Max
DVD-ROM (Dual): 12x Max
DVD±R: 16x Max
DVD±RW: 13x Max
DVD±R DL: 12x Max
DVD-RAM: 12X Max
CD-R/ROM: 40x Max
CD-RW: 32x Max

Buffer: 2MB

The DVR-A16J and DVR-S16J will ship in mid-July and are expected to cost about 10,000 Yen ($95US). More information on both drives is available on Pioneer Japan's website. Add a comment

Details
Optical Storage
LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling sent out a press release this morning, announcing the worldwide availability of color-background LightScribe-enabled DVDs. These discs are offered by a number of leading media brands and come in five colors: red, orange, yellow, blue and green.
LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling announced today that LightScribe-enabled DVDs are now available worldwide in five new vivid color-background DVDs for LightScribe images: red, orange, yellow, blue and green. With the five rich and saturated background colors, consumers can add even more individuality, creativity and flair to their customized LightScribe DVD labels, just as they have with CDs.

Precise, silkscreen-quality black text and graphics labels can be burned onto the label-side of LightScribe-enabled stunning, jewel-toned background color DVDs. In addition to the distinctive, visual impact, the color-backgrounds make it easier to organize a collection of music, photos, videos, or file backups.

The color-background DVDs as well as color background CDs, are offered by leading media brands, including Aleratec, HP, Imation, Memorex, Philips, Primeon and Verbatim.
If you'd like to read more, LightScribe's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
  1. Pioneer Develops World's First 16-Layer 400GB Optical Disc
  2. Pioneer Obtains OEM Orders From HP For BD Combo Drives
  3. Flex-Lite DVD Media Disc Offers Substantially Lower Shipping Costs
  4. ProAction Media Introduces Cheaper, Thinner And 100% Recyclable DVD Media
  5. ProAction Media Introduces Cheaper, Thinner And 100% Recyclable DVD Media

Latest Reviews

Latest Headlines

Copyright © 2024 CDRLabs.com. All Rights Reserved.