Blu-ray discs to break 100GB capacity threshold, Intra-Hybrid discs on the way as well

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We know what you’re thinking… only being able to store 50GB of data on a Blu-ray disc is so lame. Well, fear not gulper of the gigabyte, because it looks like a new, higher capacity Blu disc is on the way. The new disc technology, dubbed BDXL, will have the ability to store up to 128GB of data for write-only discs and 100GB for re-writable discs. The Blu-ray Disc Association is touting the new discs “provide professional enterprises with a compact, stable and long term solution for archiving large amounts of sensitive data, video and graphic images using a proven and widely accepted optical technology.”

Intra-Hybrid discs are also an interesting development coming out of the Blu-ray camp:

The Intra-Hybrid Blu-ray Disc (IH-BD) incorporates a single BD-ROM layer and a single BD-RE layer so as to enable the user to view, but not overwrite, critical published data while providing the flexibility to include relevant personal data on the same physical disc. This allows for consumer specific applications where combining published content with related user data on a convenient, single volume is desirable. Both the ROM and the RE layers on IH-BD discs provide 25GB of capacity.

Of course to leverage this new technology will require a new Blu-ray player and/or writer that has the ability to decode these new discs… but you knew that. Pricing and availability of the new equipment has yet to be determined. Hit up the link for the official press release.

[Via Pocket-lint]

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10 Comments
  • http://www.facebook.com/Drummer85 Creamy Tuna Casserole

    While this all sounds great, with the continued advancement of technology, this basically means nothing for the average Joe Techie, like me.

  • philip

    What’s the point of physical media anymore when everything is available online?

    • ZPrime

      Never underestimate the bandwidth of a FedEx/UPS truck full of physical media. Sometimes the quickest way to move a LOT of data around is to mail it.

    • Kratos

      Wow. What an idiot.

      Sounds like a bitter Xbox/HD-DVD fanboy.

  • rcmadiax

    This is great news. I’m very glad that they continue to advance Blu-ray further. This would be great for all the old DV tapes I have to transfer into a digital format. Plus BD’s are more reliable than a hard drive in my opinion.

  • QuickWeevil

    Hopefully this only applies to BD as storage media. It would suck to have to purchase another player like switching from DVD to first-gen Blu-Ray. Would the PS3 just need an update to read these? That would be nice! I know its just an update to be able to read the 3D Blu-Rays that are coming…

  • meske

    With magnetic prices being so low, this makes little to no sense for an enterprise, especially with the “cloud” approaching. For this to be a viable solution, you would need an optical jukebox attached to a robotic library, otherwise it’s a manual process. I think BR should stick to movies while they still have a chance to recoup their investment before distribution goes completely online.

  • Neo

    Didn’t GE developed 500GB disc using holographic technology? Keep it up Blu-Ray disc association ur almost there. NOT!!!

  • Martin

    I’m sorry but if you need 100gb to store a movie that is a very bad encoding technology. 10 Years from now we are going to laugh at the fact that movies are so big. In a time where everything is going to portable and streaming digital format why would you invest in a technology that takes up more space and longer to stream. Hate all you want but devices like Apple TV will be the future of movies and video and 100gb files are not going to fly. Swett I can store 10 HD movies on my TB HD. Or I could just live with 720p and buy then from iTunes. No seems to complain the shitty quality of MP3 and eventually people will live with lower res 720p or non blueray 1080.

  • ryan l

    Everybody forgets that consumer technology often debuts in vertical markets.

    Much of the data stored today consists of medical images. 64 slice, MRI, PET scanners and the such create very large files, storing these files in the cloud can be cumbersome because of the amount of data that must be called/recalled. Servers in house with magnetic storage can be a solution but they require always on power consumption (not very green) and hard drives have a fairly high failure rate compared to physical media.

    Meske is right though about the need for a robotic jukebox, good thing primera and others have already thought of that.

    This will not filter down to end user retail customers immediately but if data storage is available and cheap people will use it.

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