TDK today announced the availability of a 16x DVD writer which, thanks to true Constant Angular Velocity (CAV) recording technology, is capable of burning a full standard 4.7GB DVD in less than six minutes. This cuts previous recording times in half and means that it is possible to record two hours worth of high-quality footage onto a durable DVD, making it even quicker to build up a home movie collection.

Not only does the drive have the fastest DVD speed available for both + / - formats, but it is also capable of recording a CD at 48 times the normal speed and a double layer DVD+R at four times the normal speed. This makes it consistently the fastest product on the market.

In addition to the super-fast recording times, the TDK writer can record onto double layer DVDs, which are capable of holding a massive 8.5GB of film, images or data. That?s up to four hours of DVD quality video, 3000 holiday snaps or a whole year?s back up for a small company.

While maintaining the ability to record large quantities of data accurately and at high speeds, TDK has also improved DVD writer noise and vibration levels. The 16x DVD writer includes a new small pick-up which means that it can read and write more quickly and accurately, even at spindle rotation speeds of up to 9600rpm, while maintaining a high recording quality.

Takumi Kigoshi, TDK product manager, commented, ?We have ensured that in bringing the fastest possible DVD recording speed to the market we have maintained other aspects that are important for users. It has the fastest recording times across the board and its ability to write onto double layer discs means it can record nearly twice the amount of data than a regular disc can in one go. Complete with Nero 6 software to help users with their DVD writing, the latest addition to TDK?s hardware range is the most comprehensive offering on the market.?

Availability of the TDK 16x DVD writer is September 2004 and the double layer TDK DVD+R media is October 2004.