When will Blu Ray writer drives for PCs become available for under $100?

Tony

Wait at least 5 years.......................

Probably. It took DVD's about that long. Can't believe the prices of drives and discs now. Especially in the last 12months or so, they've fallen incredibly.

I'd say around 3-4 years

That sounds like plenty of time for DVD-RAM to catch on: it's the only game in town until Blu Ray is affordable. If DVD-RAM finally becomes accepted (and I think it is "just" 12x and 16x media unavailability and cost that is holding it back), it could make Blu Ray introduction take longer than the 3 to 5 years predicted here as people won't change until it hurts not to.

Tony

Why is DVD-RAM any good? Its been around since the start of DVD's, and it hasn't caught on yet. While it has been "accepted" for ages, a fewer number of drives support it. I don't see much point.

I think DVD-R discs will reign supreme until Blu-Ray is cheap enough

DVD-RAM had and has it's market, same for DAT and other things.

Dvd-Ram is a rip off. One disc goes for like $15-$20..thats like the same price as a blue-ray disc..3-5 YEARS!!WTFFFF...

I concur about DVD-RAM. In addition it should be noted that DVD-RAM only holds the standard 4.38GB, while the standard blue ray disc is over 20GB. Don't get me wrong DVD-RAM does have it's place and it's niche for serious data applications but beyond that the compatibility is so hit and miss (not to mention that the price has changed very little since it's launch) that it really can't be considered a viable format to take over for the next gen.

LOL

No its true..just cuz you Americans get all the stuff cheaper.

No tricky-to-use software required and more robust media and technology are the major points. See Wikipedia for more info on DVD-RAM benefits. Authoring media, such as DVD-R especially, are lame for backup and archiving. Sure, for casual consumer use, just about anything will work and just about everything is used. But for business data use, DVD-RAM is best. "All" that has held it back has been speed, cost and availability. Now the speed is there and cheap drives are available. It's just the media that's a problem still.

Blu Ray (note how I avoided adding HD DVD as a candidate) is years away from being mainstream. There is still a window of opportunity for DVD-RAM.

Projected cost (not yet available in USA) of 12x DVD-RAM disc: $9. 3x discs can be had now for about $4.

Blu Ray writer for a PC: $1000. Blu Ray 25 GB rewritable data disc $56. It's years away from mainstream use. What to use in the mean time: more of the other kludgy-for-data technologies like CD/DVD+-RW?

For me it's a no-brainer: if 12x and/or 16x DVD-RAM media becomes available "cheaply", I'll pop for the <$40 drive and relegate all the other formats to where they belong. I'll finally have removable media technology worthy of a PC (way overdue IMO). I personally have no/hardly-any use for CD/DVD+-R/RW, other then the occasional bootable CD, because I don't do all that CE stuff.

Hmm, the price is going down fast as we speak. The cheapest I can find from pricegrabber.com:

Sony BWU-100A: $799 at zzf or 750 at sonystyle

BD-R 25GB Recordable
Philips: $15.99 + shipping: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817115017
Memorex: $18 http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...ductId=2419148

BD-RE 25GB Rewriteable $16 and up: http://www.pricegrabber.com/p__Sony_...ort_type=price

Now I'm American, haha.

I always thought you were an off worlder.

The RE media actually costs more because all those low-ballers rape you on S&H (around $10 more for qty 1).

Anyway though, $750 is a LONG way away from $100 (and even that is too much if you consider that 12x DVD-RAM drives are about $40, but for better technology, $100 is a good buy-in point for mainstream early adopters at the consumer level). It's years away from being mainstream, that is the key.

I would be satisfied if it were at 200.00 USD.

blu-ray i aint even bothering with as it wont be affordable for atleast another 3years minimum.

whats the deal with dvd-ram ... is there any "real" advanatges over it compared to standard dvd-r/+r media? cause i dont see how it is "better" than standard dvd media... especially when price is sky high.

Data integrity!

well.. DVD-RAM is quality technology, it works well...

while the + and - are peices of shit. if you take an older CD or DVD that has been sitting on the rack for two years in your room (which is always at a constant 74 degrees fahrenheit in my house) 90% chance that it will not work. The advertised logetivity of discs is a lie.

A pressed disc lasts alot longer, but even they have their problems.. for example they are EXTREMELY easy to scratch, which is not an issue with DVDRAM as it is read from within a protective case...

I don't think DVD ram will die... but it will never be mainstream. Quality tech is always more expensive and always speciality stuff... Look at firewire vs usb, usb is crap, firewire awesome... usb wins cause its cheap.. Beta vs VHS? etc etc. Mainstream always go for the cheapest crap.. and because more people buy it production costs go down and it becomes even CHEAPER.

I hope blueray fails, its got the most invasive DRM tech ever created... on the other hand, the fact that PS3's will have it greatly increases its chances of success