Plextor launches its first Blu-ray drive

Plextor announces its first drive to use Blu-ray technology - the PX-B900A. The internal (ATAPI) re-writer drive is capable of writing and re-writing Blue-ray discs at 2x (BD-R and BD-RE) up to a maximum capacity of 25GB for single layer and 50GB for dual-layer.

Rudy de Meirsman, Sales & Marketing Manager of Plextor Europe, says: "We are delighted to be launching our first Blu-ray device. Plextor has a long history in providing premium, high reliability optical drives and the new PX-B900A is no exception. This launch marks the start of a family of Plextor drives utilising Blu-ray technology."

Blu-ray technology is a next-generation optical disc format for storing high-definition video and data. The name Blu-ray comes from the blue-violet laser used to read and write to the disc. A Blu-ray disc can store significantly more data than a DVD (up to 25GB for single layer and 50GB for dual-layer), due to the wavelength of the blue-violet laser being shorter - which allows more information to be stored digitally in the same amount of space.

The PX-B900A not only uses the latest Blu-ray technology, but is also a highly versatile dual-layer DVD drive that combines multiple formats - DVD+/-R/RW and RAM - into one. It can accept both 12cm and 8cm discs (in the horizontal position) and has a large 8MB buffer to ensure there is no data interruption. Write speeds: 2x BD-R/BD-RE, 8x DVD+R/-R/+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 4x DVD+R/-R DL, 5x DVD-RAM, 24x CD-R and 16x CD-RW.

The Plextor PX-B900A has been developed to strict environmental and recycling standards - to meet EU RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) and WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) directives.

The Plextor PX-B900A will be available from September/October 2006 at Plextor's network of dealers. It is covered by Plextor's Fast Warranty Service (2-year warranty in the EU, Norway and Switzerland (Collect & Return); other countries 1-year carry-in).

Features and specifications:

Interface ATAPI (IDE)
Loading mechanism Tray
BD-R (Single and Dual Layer) 2x
BD-RE (Single and Dual layer) 2x
BD-ROM (Single and Dual Layer) 2x
DVD+R DL 4x
DVD-R DL 4x
DVD+R 8x
DVD-R 8x
DVD+RW 8x
DVD-RW 6x
DVD-RAM (4.7GB) 5x (Write/Read)
DVD-ROM 8x
CD-R 24x
CD-RW 16x
CD-ROM 32x
Buffer size 8 MB
Bezel colour(s) included Both white and black