Some interesting facts about Blu-ray in the future.
Worldwide pre-recorded Blu-ray video disc production is on track to exceed 400 million units in 2010, an increase of nearly 60% compared with 2009, according to a new research report from Futuresource Consulting. When factoring in PS3 titles, overall BD production volumes are somewhat higher.
Do you own a Microboards CD/DVD/Blu-ray disc printer or publisher? If you do, you will be interested to know that Microboards has just released an all-new version of their publishing software suite, PrintWrite. Let’s take a minute to explore what the update is, why you would want it, and how to get it.
PrintWrite is a software program that comes with all of Microboards CD / DVD disc printers and publishers. It allows you to create, save, and print your own custom disc artwork and designs. If you have a publisher model (one with recording drives), the software also allows you to burn CD, DVD, and on some models Blu-ray discs.
PrintWrite 2 is the latest version of the program. While the original program worked, it wasn’t particularly known for its ease of use. That’s all changed with the new single-screen interface. You can see everything you need to at a glance without changing between multiple windows or programs. The software was designed with the needs of Microboards CX-1, MX-1, MX-2, and G3 users in mind.
Besides the new look, PrintWrite 2 also has additional pop-out panels that display information such as Job Status, Ink Levels, and Label Options. The program also displays recently-used label designs so they can be accessed quickly and easily.
Perhaps the biggest and most important new feature in PrintWrite 2 is its networking capabilities. This allows the your Microboards disc publisher or printer to be shared by multiple users over a network. Best of all, the network software supports an unlimited number of users, so there is no need to purchase any additional user seats.
The software gives administrators full control over which remote clients can access the publisher, including allow and block capabilities. This ensures that only authorized users can print and burn discs.
So how do you get a copy of PrintWrite 2? There are a couple of different ways to go about it. If you purchased your Microboards machine after October 1st, 2010, you can contact Microboards techsupport at 952.556.1638 to get an upgrade for free. Or contact Techware at 952.944.0083 x-22.
You can still get the newer version if you purchased your machine before October 1st, 2010 for a $299.
Microboards will begin shipping the new software with publishers such as the CX-1, MX-1, Microboards MX-2, and G3 within the next few weeks. The software is compatible with PCs running Windows XP, Vista, and 7.
Check in for our next blog about Techwaredist.com employees competing in the US Pond Hockey Championships Jan 21st through the 23rd on Lake Nakomis – Minneapolis, MN.
Bravo 4100 AutoPrinter: 100-disc capacity for print-only;
US$1995 (part# 63504)
Bravo 4101 Disc Publisher: 100-disc capacity + (1) CD/DVD drive;
US$2995 (part# 63500)
Bravo 4102 Disc Publisher: 100-disc capacity + (2) CD/DVD drives;
US$3295 (part# 63502)
New features include:
The Bravo 4100 Series will be shipping soon, preorders are now being taken. Call Techware @ 800-295-0083 for more information or to schedule a demo.
With the start of 2011, we would like to take a moment to reflect on the events of the past year in the disc duplication / replication world. 2010 was a year of ups and downs, and the CD / DVD duplication industry was no exception.
The troubled economy took its toll on the duplication industry with equipment manufacturer Verity Systems and packaging giant NexPak both going out of business. To be honest there needed to be some consolidation on the equipment manufacturing side and we expect weaker manufacturers to fall by the wayside in 2011.
On the media side, Taiyo Yuden cut back its production of CD-R, DVD±R and BD-R media from a current level of 110 million units/month to 65 million units/month. They also decreased inventory by roughly 40% and cut their staff nearly in half. Additionally, Taiyo Yuden also officially became JVC Advanced Media here in the United States. This move was made so TY could leverage the stronger JVC brand name in their marketing efforts here in the states. The only changes were in the box design and part numbers, the superior quality of the discs remains unchanged.
This year saw some major changes from Primera, who retired their famous Bravo II disc publisher in favor of the new Bravo Pro Xi and Xi2 line of automated disc publishers and printers. The new automated duplicators feature a larger capacity and faster robotics for better all around performance. The Bravo Pro Xi can also be outfitted with a Blu-ray disc burner, which was not available in the Bravo II duplicator.
The world’s premier disc publishing equipment manufacturer Rimage was very busy this past year! They launched their new professional line of disc duplicators and printers, the 5400n and 3400 disc publishers. These new systems are based around the new Everest 400 thermal disc printer that is embedded with the robotics for an all-in-one system. Each of these machines boasts a huge 100-disc capacity and is available with your choice of CD / DVD burners and /or optional Blu-ray burners. The Rimage 5300n and 5100n disc publishers were quietly replaced by these two new units this past summer. As a side note, Techware has very attractive purchase and rental deals on a demo Rimage 5300n, 5100n and the latest 5400n unit.
On the supplies side, Rimage stopped selling the 1000-print transfer ribbons in 2010 for the Everest 600 (part# 2000491), Everest III and II (part# 203384-001) printers. These were both replaced by 500-print count ribbons. part number 2001469 for the Everest 400/600 printers and part number 203474-001 for the Everest III/II/I printers.
After such a tumultuous year, you might be wondering what the future holds for the optical disc industry. Our guess is that the need for Blu-ray duplication will grow in 2011. The CD and DVD industries have hit maturity, but the market for high-definition content is still on the rise. New technologies such as Blu-ray 3D and BD-XL will drive growth and sales in the duplication and data storage niches this year.
With prices on Blu-ray media and equipment rapidly decreasing, there will be an increasing number of people will be making the switch to Blu-ray this year. We will also see some exciting new products from Primera Technology (the 4100 series of Bravo duplicators/printers) as well as from the other top manufacturers Microboards and Rimage in 2011.
That is all for now. Please check back often as the DVD / CD / Blu-ray duplicator experts here at Techware will be regularly blogging about disc printing, duplication, replication, new equipment, supplies, repair, cost saving operating tips and more in 2011.
Following our earlier reported post about the BDXL discs, it looks as if Akibara News is reporting the announcement of both external and internal BDXL drives forthcoming.
These new drives should offer much needed storage and archival expansion for medical images which continue to explode in size as newer technology utilizing multiple scans and 3d become more commonplace.
It will be interesting to see which of the three major disc publishers (Microboards, Primera, Rimage) will be the first to market with integrated BDXL drives into there systems.
-via Engadget by way of Akibara News
Today Sharp Corp dropped a little press release about a 100GB Rewritable BluRay Disc. As of today the only drive capable of recording data is one of Sharps own – BD-HDW700.
Discs are expected to cost around 58 bucks or 58 cents per Gigabyte of data stored. They should be available to the general public on July 30th.
A team of scientists working in Japan have discovered a new crystal structure that could pave the way for optical discs with 1000 times more storage than current BluRay Discs.
The material, a new crystal form of titanium oxide, can switch back and forth between the metal and semiconductor states at room temperature when exposed to light, creating an effective on-off function for data storage.
It is “promising as a material for a next-generation optical storage device,” Ohkoshi told AFP by telephone.
-via
Interesting to see lots of activity on a fairly old technology (optical discs) it just goes to show that the utilization of physical media as an archive medium is alive and kicking.]
Photo credit:Flickr user SDCDeaCerte
Recent Press Release from Business Wire discussing future Blu-ray disc formats
“Leveraging Blu-ray Disc to meet this need provides 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.”
I have owned a 2006 Premier Sunsation 210RE for 4 years, and I’m looking at a new 2010 model. I have been extremely happy with my current Premier pontoon but looking to get a new one with a bigger outboard. While I love my current Premier, the 2010 models are even better.
If you are ever in the market for a pontoon give Les or Eric at Riverview Sports a call at (763) 441-1799, or email riverviewsports@aol.com. They have been extremely helpful and their pricing and service are second to none. Check out Premier Pontoons Minnesota for more details.
Rimage 5400n
Rimage has added two new, exciting and affordable products – the 3400 and 5400n. The 3400 has a 100-disc capacity, 2 CD/DVD burners, and the new Everest 400 printer. Cost on the 3400 is $6995.
The 5400n has the same specifications as the 3400, but has additional features like an embedded PC, front USB 2.0 port, and world class network software. Cost on the 5400n is $12,995.
Our next post will be about latest Rimage offering – the Rimage Evidence Disc System. It is a specialized hardware and software solution for law enforcement applications.