TDK Stacks Up 100GB Blu-ray Storage

A prototype of the new DVD arrived in Tokyo yesterday, and it doubles the first generation Blu-ray capacity of 50GB. The Blu-ray Disc Association has standardized a DVD format where two layers of the disc hold about 25GB each of data. There is no current standard for more than 2 layers yet. According to a MacWorld report, TDK advanced the timetable for increasing the number of available layers by a couple of years. Discs using four layers were not intended to be available until 2007. But TDK, holding a Tokyo exhibition of its technology, brought along their Blu-ray prototype. And the prototype can record faster than the current standard (72Mbps vs 36Mbps) in addition to its expanded storage capacity. According to a TDK spokesman, the company made the increase in storage possible by using a more powerful blue laser, and by making some changes to the material of the recording layer of the disc. TDK will now propose its standard to the Blu-ray Disc Association for adoption. Standards for single layer and two layer discs currently exist. The single layer Blu-ray disc can hold 135 minutes of high-definition video in MPEG-2 format, and still have room for two hours of standard video. The introduction of four layer discs once again complicates the conflict between backers of the Blu-ray technology, like Sony, and competing backers of a different standard, HD-DVD, as promoted by Toshiba. Toshiba had touted a recent update to its standard, by adding another layer to its disc to make it three layers with 45GB of storage. That had made the competition with Sony a closer one, but this development widens the gap again. Recently, here