16x DVD-RAM specification nearing approval

The Recordable DVD Council that represents the DVD-RAM
format has shown that 16x DVD-RAM format is edging closer to approval. The two
main backers of the DVD-RAM format Hitachi and Panasonic (Matsushita) have demonstrated 16x speed DVD-RAM writing on the new RAM media.

While DVD+R(W)/-R(W) formats have raced ahead in the speed of which they can be written, DVD-RAM has lagged behind at the 5x limit. This nearing specification by the Recordable DVD council gives the DVD-RAM format a boost and allows it to play catch-up with its rival formats.

While the new 16x media will be compatible with new DVD-RAM drives people with older 1-5x compatible drives will not be able to read or write these new discs. Of course the new 16x DVD-RAM compatible writers will be able to read and write older 1-5x DVD-RAM media. Along with this the DVD-RAM format writing strategy will be changed from Constant Linear Velocity to Constant Rotational Speeds (CAV) due to the increasing rotational speeds. While the new format has not been approved yet it is hoped to be approved soon.

Once the new DVD-RAM format has been approved then companies such as Hitachi , Panasonic and others can start shipping both optical drives and media. This is expected to happen before the end of 2005, but availability may mean it will be an early Q1 2006 release date for the media and hardware.

While the DVD-RAM format is waiting for approval the DVD+RW alliance will be getting ready to finalise and launch the 16x DVD+RW format which is expected sometime soon, though there is no roadmap for its release yet.

The Recordable DVD Council (RDVDC), the body behind the DVD-RAM specification, today announced its members have pushed the format's write speed to 16x.As part of the announcement, RDVDC backers Panasonic and Hitachi unveiled 16x DVD-RAM drives for PCs. Panasonic, along with Maxell, also demonstrated 16x media. Today's DVD-RAM drives and media are rated at up to 5x performance. The 16x rating is a maximum, with the new drives writing across a range of speeds from 6x up to the higher figure, with 16x discs spinning at a constant rotational speed rather than the constant linear velocity approach used in previous versions of the format.The upshot is that while 16x drives will read and write 5x discs, drives rated for 5x can't read or write to 16x media, the RDVDC admitted. Indeed, the 16x DVD-RAM specification has not yet been formally accepted by the DVD Forum, the body that oversees the DVD standard. However, the RDVDC said it expects approval to be grated "within the near future". Then, Panasonic, Hitachi and Maxell will be able to ship drives and discs. All it can say now, however, is that it expects drives and media to ship sometime before the end of 2005. Indeed, a roadmap provided by the organisation implies we're really looking at early Q1 2006 for volume availability.That will give the DVD+RW Alliance time to get its 16x DVD+RW technology out of the door. In March this year, the Alliance loosely forecast autumn availability for 16x rewriteable product, though it would not be drawn into naming a precise timetable. Today's fastest DVD+RW drives write at 8x, a speed introduced during the first half of the year.

Source: The Register