Lasse Penttinen
28 Dec 2002 8:10
We already published a little news blurp about the laser optics suitable for 16x speed DVD recording, but now I just found a PCWorld article on the topic that gives one a lot more information.
Each bump in the speed of optical drives means the laser, which is used to create the light beam that burns data into the disc, has to be made more powerful. When DVD writers first came out, they required 50 milliwatt lasers. The jump to 2X speeds required a 70 milliwatt laser and, beyond today's 4X drives, the next generation of 8X drives will need a 140 milliwatt laser. Such products are already well on the way to being commercialized.
For users, the eventual arrival of 16X drives will bring big benefits. At that speed drives will be capable of writing data at 176 megabits per second (mbps) which means a complete 4.7GB DVD disc can be written in three and a half minutes, according to Mitsubishi. That compares with around 14 minutes for today's fastest 4X drives and almost an hour for a first-generation drive.
Samples of the new laser are expected to become available in June 2003. With the introduction of the new laser, Mitsubishi says it expects its monthly laser production to increase from the current 1 million to 1.5 million during 2003 and reach 2 million units in 2004.
PCWorld.com