TDK, a major supporter of the Blu-ray Disc format, said it has developed a method using blue laser technology to capture up to 200 GB on a single disc -- double the capacity of TDK's existing 100 GB Blu-ray prototype. A single 200 GB blue laser disc could store as much as 18 hours of HD video when encoded at 24 Mbps.
TDK said the current Blu-ray Disc standard permits 25 GB single-layer and 50 GB dual-layer discs. But the Japanese firm said a new signal processing innovation "stretches the physical limits of optical media," resulting in 33.3 GB capacity for each of the disc's six layers. As with the current 100 GB Blu-ray disc, TDK's new double-storage 200 GB blue laser disc is single sided.
TDK said Blu-ray Disc is designed to be expandable for future breakthroughs in capacity, and cites its latest 200 GB advancement as proof that Blu-ray technology is open to further refinements. As for what this development may mean for the existing Blu-ray Disc format, and for rival HD DVD, stay tuned.
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