While 6x Blu-ray writers, like the LG GGW-H20L, have been around for some time, media capable of these speeds has been in short supply. To meet these needs, Panasonic has announced the launch of the world's first 6x BD-R media. Available in both 25GB and 50GB capacities, these new discs have a maximum data transfer speed of 216Mbps.
Panasonic, the leading brand by which Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. is known, announced today that it has developed the world's first Write-Once Blu-ray Discs(BD-R) with 6X writing speed*. The new discs will be available in Japan with both 25GB and 50GB capacities in July.
Panasonic, which introduced the world's first dual-layer 1X BD-RE Blu-ray Disc in 2004**, 2X BD-R/RE Discs in 2006, and 4X BD-R Disc in 2007, is now launching the world's first 6X BD-R to meet consumer demand to write and read large amounts of data at a higher speed. The new 6X discs have a maximum data transfer speed of 216Mbps, which is 20% faster than that of 16X DVD-R discs. This transfer speed, along with the discs' high capacity, allows consumers to use these discs for a variety of applications such as storing High Definition video or backing up PC data.
The new discs have a wide power margin at any writing speeds from 1X to 6X. This enables high-quality recording, even if the drive's laser power fluctuates, resulting in greater overall drive compatibility.
Panasonic's 6x BD-R media will be released to the Japanese market in July. While Panasonic has announced a price, AV Watch expects the 25GB and 50GB discs to cost about 17,000 Yen ($16US) and 4,000 Yen ($37US), respectively. If you'd like to read more, Panasonic's entire press release can be found here.
