DVD Forum gives three-layer, 51GB HD DVD the thumbs up
Format's fans must buy new players?
The DVD Forum, the organisation that oversees DVD and HD DVD technology, has approved Toshiba's proposed triple-layer, 51GB disc structure. The move paves the way to exceed - for now, at least - the 50GB capacity of a two-layer Blu-ray Disc.
Toshiba's 51GB HD DVD
Toshiba revealed the three-layer disc back in January 2007 before formally submitting the medium to the Forum in April.
Standard single- and dual-layer HD DVDs offer 15GB and 30GB of storage, respectively. Adding a third layer would have taken the overall capacity to 45GB, still less than a 50GB BD, so Toshiba's boffins worked to get an extra 2GB onto each layer of the three-tier HD DVD.
What's unclear at this stage is whether today's HD DVD drives and players will be able to read the new disc. However, with such a small number of HD DVD devices out there - relative to DVD players - only a limited number of early adopters are likely to be affected, and these are the kind of folk who are generally happy to upgrade in any case.
The Forum is also investigating a further format, one that fits a standard, single-layer DVD to the back of a two-layer HD DVD in order to allow standard definition content to be included for ordinary DVD players, effectively future-proofing the disc. The format is expected to be approved before the end of the year.
COMMENTS
Choices? Really?
Personally, I'm just curious as to where this Anonymous Vulture managed to find a Choices Video that wasn't closed down, let alone stocked plenty of Blu-Ray discs.
Misinformation as ever...
...always amazes me how little some people know and post on threads!
It's a good step forward, nice to see one of the key reasons i believe HD DVD will succeed and that is that the idea was passed to the governing body and awaiting approval, rather than just issued as per the BRA.
As for present gen players not necessarily being able to play it, i notice no-one mentions that no-one mentions that only the PS3 will be able to play v1.1 discs of BR (due out end of this month) no other current player can... then when v2 (if Sony make up their mind) god knows!
The Betamax reference could be poignant, think who made it and then think who makes the DVD formats.... though in this instance i personally don't believe that BR is the superior format.
Pointless ... unless
the actual readers could read these new disks
All things considered
I'm hoping that HD-DVD will win the fight. What made me switch camps? Well... HD-DVD has no region locking. If you're in a country where good shows and movies are attainable only via imported discs, you'll know how that's important.
Re: Holographic media?
upto 3.9 terabytes (theoretical maximum)
your looking at several years before the common consumer could get their hands on a holographic drive and discs because they will of course be sold to large corporations with large storage needs for an extortionate price for quite awhile after release.
