theColster123
20-01-2009, 07:52 PM
Pioneer Unveils 400GB Monster Disc
Blu-ray could be about to go stupid-sized with the announcement of a whopper 400GB disc, created by Pioneer. While current BDs have one or two 25GB layers, Pioneer's new beast - demoed at the recent Taipei IT Month trade show - allows for up to 16 layers on a single disc, and they say it's PS3 compatible.
Increasing Blu-ray's already prodigious storage by a factor of eight opens up a wealth of new possibilities, especially when it comes to movie-playback. The full 50MB per second bandwidth of Blu-ray can be unleashed, resulting in absolutely pristine, zero-loss film transfers. Multi-disc TV series boxets could become a thing of the past too, with a single BD able to contain a full season run.
Deep Space
There are clear advantages for gaming too. Assuming Sony adopts Pioneer's new technology, developers would essentially have near-limitless storage on tap, meaning more content, better visuals and uncompressed 7.1 surround audio as standard. Realistically, however, gaming is unlikely to benefit in the short term. Thus far only MGS4 uses the 50GB disc while the majority of releases barely use 10GB. Creating all that extra game content means a huge additional investment from already cash-strapped games developers, most of whom also need to cater for the DVD-centric Xbox 360. But for the next generation With PS4, perhaps? The technology's there, and the sky's the limit.
So, what do you all think?
Should Sony take up the opportunity to invest in the 400GB disc?
Or do you think it's a waste of money, and no-one will use it to the full potential?
Discuss. ;)
Blu-ray could be about to go stupid-sized with the announcement of a whopper 400GB disc, created by Pioneer. While current BDs have one or two 25GB layers, Pioneer's new beast - demoed at the recent Taipei IT Month trade show - allows for up to 16 layers on a single disc, and they say it's PS3 compatible.
Increasing Blu-ray's already prodigious storage by a factor of eight opens up a wealth of new possibilities, especially when it comes to movie-playback. The full 50MB per second bandwidth of Blu-ray can be unleashed, resulting in absolutely pristine, zero-loss film transfers. Multi-disc TV series boxets could become a thing of the past too, with a single BD able to contain a full season run.
Deep Space
There are clear advantages for gaming too. Assuming Sony adopts Pioneer's new technology, developers would essentially have near-limitless storage on tap, meaning more content, better visuals and uncompressed 7.1 surround audio as standard. Realistically, however, gaming is unlikely to benefit in the short term. Thus far only MGS4 uses the 50GB disc while the majority of releases barely use 10GB. Creating all that extra game content means a huge additional investment from already cash-strapped games developers, most of whom also need to cater for the DVD-centric Xbox 360. But for the next generation With PS4, perhaps? The technology's there, and the sky's the limit.
So, what do you all think?
Should Sony take up the opportunity to invest in the 400GB disc?
Or do you think it's a waste of money, and no-one will use it to the full potential?
Discuss. ;)