DVDs that store 10,000 films 'on sale in five years'

[Gawdzilla Sama]

DVDs that store 10,000 films 'on sale in five years'

New data discs that store 10,000 times more than DVDs could be on sale in five years.


By Ben Leach
Last Updated: 8:05AM BST 21 May 2009

The discs could usher in an age of three-dimensional TV and ultra-high definition viewing, scientists say.

The ultra-DVD is the same size and thickness as a conventional disc, but uses nano-technology to store vast amounts of information.

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Scientists believe it could be on sale in five years and say it will revolutionise the way we store films, music and data.

Professor Min Gu, who led the research in Melbourne, Australia, aims to eventually produce discs that could contain as much data as 200,000 DVDs.

Prof Gu said: "We were able to show how nano-structured material can be incorporated on to a disc to increase data capacity without increasing the size of the disc."

A DVD can hold up to 8.5 gigabytes of information, enough for a movie, several special features and an alternative soundtrack.

Blu-ray discs, which were designed to replace them, can store 50GB, enough for a film and extra features in high definition.

But ultra-DVDs will be able to store ten terabytes - or 10,000GB.

A conventional DVD records music, pictures and computer files as digital code - a series of ones and zeroes.

The code is written as a series of pits under the clear surface of the disc and is read by a DVD player's laser.

Most DVDs have two layers of information - one on top of the other. The laser reads the first layer before adjusting its focus and reading the second.

The new disc stores information using two extra "dimensions" - the colour of light and the direction, or polarisation, of light waves.

[cowiz]

Meh, my porn collection is way bigger than that. Even just the "anal" category....