Technology Saves The Day

This may be the most wonderful technological breakthrough in the last 10 years.

Researchers at electronics giant TDK have developed a tough new coating that promises to make scratched DVDs a thing of the past and that will help usher in an emerging data storage format with 10 times the capacity of the current DVD standard.

In a test conducted by CNET News.com, a DVD treated with TDK's coating survived a determined attack with a screwdriver and a Sharpie permanent marker with no effect on playability--a remarkable feat considering how easily standard DVDs can be damaged, for example, by children.(emphasis mine)

If this technology ads $2.00 the price of a DVD I would have to buy a lot of movies to equal what I've spent replacing damaged discs.

There's a lot of stuff in the story about something called "Blu-ray" that lets you store like 50GB of data on a DVD. Apparently they can do this now but the discs are highly susceptible to damage. this coating could make 50GB DVDs an everyday item. Whatever, I'm just thrilled to know that the next copy of Shrek I buy may be my last.

Posted by: Stephen Macklin at 03:14 PM | No Comments | Add Comment