Aleratec has announced that they've developed a commercial grade disc repair system. According to their press release, the Aleratec DVD/CD Disc Repair CG can remove scratch damage from CD's and DVD's in as little as 5 minutes.

Aleratec, Inc., leading developer and manufacturer of Aleratec Award Winning "Prosumers' Choice" solutions for the Blu-ray, DVD/CD, USB duplicating, and DVD/CD publishing markets introduces its new Aleratec DVD/CD Disc Repair CG that removes most light, medium, or heavy scratch damage from any photo, music, movie, game, data DVD or CD. The Aleratec DVD/CD Disc Repair CG is a commercial grade disc repair system that will repair most damaged discs in as quickly as 5 minutes. It includes two 500ml bottles of finishing solution, repair pads, a 3 1/2" disc holder that makes fixing scratched 5" and 3 1/2" discs as easy as 1-2-3 and it is powered by a 1/4 HP motor.
The Aleratec DVD/CD Disc Repair CG is available now for an estimated retail price of $525. Full details can be found here. Add a comment
DigiTimes has reported that the demand for half-height and slim-type DVD burners has been higher than expected this quarter. As a result, the supply of key components like pick-up heads and digital signal processors has been well short of demand.
HLDS is suffering insufficient supply of pick-up heads (PUHs) and DSPs (digital signal processors) and as a result the company's shipment volumes of some H/H DVD burner models and 9.5mm super slim DVD burners are short of demand by as much as 20-30%, Son pointed out. However, the gap in shipment volume is much smaller for H/H DVD-ROM and Combo drives as well as 12.7mm slim-type DVD burners, Son indicated.

Lite-On IT is facing a shortage of PUHs used in H/H DVD burners and, in turn, has felt pressure from its US and European clients in asking for shipments to be sent by air instead of sea, according to recent reports.
If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
I-O DATA Japan has announced a series of drives based on the LG's new "Super Multi Blue" drive, the GGW-H20N. The internal BRD-SH6B and external BRD-UXH6 feature 6x BD-R, 4x BD-R DL and 2x BD-RE writing speeds and a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 6x. The two drives can also read back HD DVD-ROM's at 3x. Here are some of the specs:



Writing Speeds:
BD-R: 6x
BD-R DL: 4x
BD-RE: 2x
DVD±R: 16x
DVD±R DL: 4x
DVD+RW: 8x
DVD-RW: 6x
DVD-RAM: 5x
CD-R: 40x
CD-RW: 24x

Read Speeds:
BD-ROM (Single): 6x
BD-ROM (Dual): 4.8x
BD-R: 6x
BD-R DL: 4.8x
BD-RE: 2x
HD DVD-ROM: 3x
DVD-ROM (Single): 16x Max
DVD-ROM (Dual): 8x Max
DVD±R: 12x Max
DVD±RW: 10x Max
DVD±R DL: 8x Max
DVD-RAM: 5x Max
CD-R/RW/ROM: 40x Max


The BRD-SH6B and BRD-UXH6 will ship in the middle of September and are priced at 63,500 Yen ($552US) and 69,000 Yen ($600US) respectively. More information can be found here. Add a comment
Believe it or not, its been 25 years since the first Compact Disc was manufactured at a Philips factory near Hanover, Germany. Since then, more than 200 billion discs have been sold, enough to circle the earth six times. The CD has also helped pave the way for other digital technologies including the DVD and Blu-ray.
Exactly 25 years ago tomorrow, on August 17, 1982, Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE:PHG, AEX:PHI) manufactured the world’s first Compact Disc at a Philips factory in Langenhagen, just outside of Hanover, Germany. The invention of the CD ushered in a technological revolution in the music industry as CDs - with their superior sound quality and scratch free durability - marked the beginning of the shift from analogue to digital music technology. The CD became a catalyst for further innovation in digital entertainment, helping pave the way for the launch of DVD and the current introduction of Blu-ray optical media. Having played a key role in the innovation of digital music, at home and on the move, consumers continue to witness huge advances in entertainment and lifestyle technologies.
I don't know about you, but this news makes me feel especially old as I grew up listening to music on vinyl and cassette. If you'd like to read more about the history of the Compact Disc, head on over to Philips' website. Add a comment
DigiTimes has reported that drive manufacturers in Taiwan have received inquiries and orders from large retail channels in the U.S. and Europe. According to the article, these retailers may plan to promote the sales of Blu-ray equipped PC's during the upcoming holiday season.
As BD burners are still very expensive, international PC brands are adopting them only for high-end PC models while DVD has remained as the mainstream standard of burners, the sources indicated. Therefore, their order volumes of BD burners are low, typically 2,000-3,000 units for a single order, the sources pointed out.

However, American and European retail channels have recently made inquires to Taiwan makers about OEM/ODM production of built-in BD burners and some of them have placed relatively large orders, as many as 20,000-30,000 units per order, the sources noted. These channels may plan to promote sales of BD-burner equipped PCs during the peak period prior to the 2007 holiday season, the sources pointed out.
Toshiba really needs to get going if they want to grab a share of the PC market. While the company has shown off a few HD DVD writers, they've been limited primarily to high-end laptops. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
Verbatim Europe has announced that they will be unveiling the world's first single-sided dual-layer HD DVD-R media at IFA. These new discs are rated at 1x and can hold 30GB of data or 4 hours worth of high-def video.
Verbatim and its Japanese parent company Mitsubishi Kagaku Media (MKM) will be unveiling the world’s first single-sided dual-layer HD DVD-R. The twin-layer storage medium offers a capacity of 30 Gigabytes and can be written to at 1 x speed. The European official market launch will be held at the end of August at the IFA in Berlin.

Verbatim is the first brand to launch a single-sided, writeable dual-layer HD DVD-R with 30 GB of data capacity, which is compatible with current drives and burners in the market. The new, high-definition medium offers space for up to four hours of film material in HD quality. “The growing popularity of high-definition TV and programmes in particular is pushing up demand for recording media with a high storage capacity for high-resolution content," says Torsten Leye, Marketing Manager Optical at Verbatim.
No word on price or availability. As we find out more, we'll let you know. In the mean time, Verbatim's entire press release can be found her e. Add a comment
CyberLink sent out a press release today, announcing that their BD Solution suite is being shipped with Pioneer's new Blu-ray Disc writer, the BDR-202, Blu-ray Disc combo drive, the BDC-S02.
CyberLink Corp. (5203.TW), a leader in digital home solutions, announced today cooperation with Pioneer Europe NV to include CyberLink BD Suite with Pioneer's Blu-ray Disc writer, the BDR-202, and Combo Blu-ray Disc drive/DVD burner, the BDC-S02.

With the rapidly expanding range of Hollywood movies available on Blu-ray Discs, as well as the increasing demand for storage of high-definition home movies, CyberLink BD Suite provides users with key tools for burning and enjoying content on their home PCs.
If you'd like to read more, CyberLink's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
For the last few years, the market has been plagued with "fake" DVD media. Produced by second or third tier manufacturers, these discs use a MID code, or M-Code, from better known brands. TDK, Imation and Verbatim have finally decided to do something about this. According to DigiTimes, they plan to ask Japanese authorities to ban the import of blank DVD media with pirated MID codes.
International brands of optical discs in the Japan market, including TDK, Imation and Verbatim, plan to ask Japanese authorities to ban the import of blank DVD+R/-R discs that pirate their M-Codes, which would affect some second-tier makers of optical discs in Taiwan because they are producers of a large portion of such DVD+R/-R discs, according to industry sources in Taiwan.

The M-Code is a manufacturer identification code built into an optical disc to allow burners to read the parameters expressed in the code so as to automatically adjust writing speeds and power use to reach optimal recording, the sources explained. Each brand has its own M-Code and only its OEM makers are licensed to use its identification code, the sources pointed out.
While CMC and Ritek have already responded, stating that they are using fully licensed M-Codes, the ban is expected to have a negative impact on two or three of Taiwan's other manufacturers. If you'd like to read more, the entire article an be found here. Add a comment
Sony America announced three new multi-format DVD writers today. Along with the slim external DRX-S70U, Sony unveiled two new desktop models, the DRU-840A and DRX-840U. These two drives feature 20x DVD±R, 12x DVD±R DL, 12x DVD+RW and 12x DVD-RAM writing speeds.

The 840 series of drives is Sony’s latest crop of multi-format DVD burners that support 20X DVD±R recording speeds, delivering a full 4.7 GB disc of video, data, music or images on standard 16X DVD+R media in about five minutes. In addition, the drives can record on 8.5GB DVD+R Double/Dual layer and 4.7GB DVD+RW discs at 12X speed.

The internal DRU-840A drive and external DRX-840U burner come bundled with the Nero 7 Express DVD/CD mastering software. The new DRX-S70U burner has a slim design to compliment a notebook or desktop PC, supports 8X DVD±R recording speeds, and comes with a full version of the Nero 7 software suite. All three burners support both dual and double layer formats, as well as CD-R/RW recording.
The DRU-840A is available now for about $70. The DRX-840U and DRX-S70U is expected to ship next month and are priced at $110 and $130 respectively. Full details can be found here. Add a comment
While HD DVD writers are few and far between, this hasn't stopped Ritek from developing media for them. The company received certification for their 1x HD DVD-R and 1x HD DVD-RW media back in May and, according to a report by DigiTimes, recently obtained certification for their new 2x HD DVD-R discs.
Ritek, the second largest Taiwan-based maker of optical discs, has secured certification for blank 2x HD DVD-R (recordable, write once) discs, according to industry sources in Taiwan. The company had already achieved certification for its 1x HD DVD-R and 1x HD DVD-RW (rewritable) discs in May 2007.

In addition to the HD DVD format, Ritek has obtained certification for blank BD (Blu-ray Disc)-R discs, while CMC Magnetics, the largest Taiwan-based maker, received the same certification earlier in late April of this year, the sources indicated. Japan-based Mitsubishi Kagaku Media (MKM), Matsushita Electric Industrial (with Panasonic as brand name) and TDK were the first three recipients of such BD-R disc certification, the sources noted.
If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment