Panasonic Begins Blu-Ray Production

magicchex writes "Panasonic has announced that they have begun pilot Blu-Ray production of dual-layer 50GB discs in their Torrance, California factory. They claim to already have an 80% success rate in production. Engadget and The Register, among other, have also reported on this." From the Register: "Matsushita's Panasonic subsidiary has retooled its US Blu-ray Disc (BD) production line to offer not only 25GB single-layer discs but also 50GB dual-layer media ... Panasonic's plant, located in Torrance, California, is still in the pilot stage, but the company claimed it is already punching out BDs with a yield of over 80 per cent - so it has to bin fewer than 20 per cent of the discs it produces, which seems rather a lot in the context of a low-cost, mass-market medium."

Comments

Free advice from "Mr. Betamax"

[plover]

Figures.

Long ago I decided I was going to go with HD DVD when it came out, mostly because Sony was backing Blu-ray. I'm kind of worried that Microsoft is backing it, because they're slightly more likely than Sony to get the DRM right. Regardless, I know that I am "Mr. Betamax" when it comes to predicting future technologies. I have about a 100% track record when it comes to making early adopter choices, which means I've had to re-buy 100% of my stuff.

So, here's some free advice to everyone: when I buy my first HD DVD player, the rest of you should breathe a collective sigh of relief and buy the Blu-ray gear, because it'll be guaranteed that I chose incorrectly. :-(

Re:Free advice from "Mr. Betamax"

[digitaldc]

Sony was backing Blu-ray.

So does that mean every blank blu-ray disc comes with its own rootkit?

Re:Free advice from "Mr. Betamax"

[sl3xd]

That's just the tip of the iceberg...

They're also including a new technology that wipes all memory of ever having watched the Blu-Ray disc. (Indeed, it will also wipe all memory of the disc's existence; prompting a consumer to purchase multiple versions of the same disc)

20% Failure

[Nom du Keyboard]

How do you determine a failed disc? Record on it, read it back, see that there are errors, and bin it? Oops, the disc was good, but we can't use it now.

BD, AD, BC...

[openfrog]

... the company claimed it is already punching out BDs with a yield...

"BDs" is interesting: it suggests some sort of priority over CDs. I can see the next generations as being called ADs, but that's when the competition will come up with BCs...

Throwing them away?

[Theodusian]

it is already punching out BDs with a yield of over 80 per cent - so it has to bin fewer than 20 per cent of the discs it produces

Whoa whoa whoa - they didn't say they threw any away, they just said that their yield is 80 percent. They're outsourcing their QA.... to US.

Re:Lifespan?

[killmenow]

I can't get burned CDs to last very long at all. I store them all in a safe, dry place: on the dash of my car...burned side up. What am I doing wrong?

Re:Lifespan?

[servognome]

Seriously, people who are serious about their data use more redundant, longer lasting(and by extension usually more expensive) media.

I for one accept nothing less than archiving my data on stone tablets.

Re:Rejected 20%

[borg007]

Microsoft is using them to produce Xbox 360 games.

Re:Lifespan?

[Ziviyr]

Checked out those new high density (6 commandments per!!) tablets yet?