It seems previous press release was removed and re-posted..Dunno what new..I read the new 1 and it looked same to me..The above link points to the new press release..

"..The new CRW8424 CD-RW drive from Yamaha is completely re-designed for highest reliability and quality. The new drive will write at 8X; rewrite at 4X; and read at 24X normal speed. The SCSI version is available now; the ATAPI version will follow soon.
The new optical head of the Yamaha CRW8424 is designed by Yamaha to assure optimum recording quality, and reflects their ten years of experience in the CD recorder industry. The CRW8424 boasts true, sustained 8X recording, surpassing in quality both 4X and 8X from the competition. Also new, is a 4MB buffer, to assure reliable, high speed data transfer.

CRW8424 Features
The new drives conform to standard Orange Book Part II and Part III. Disc-At-Once, Session-At-Once, Track-At-Once and Packet Writing are supported.

Some additional features include:
- Standard command sets (SCSI-3 MMC).
- 4MB DRAM data buffer to eliminate buffer underrun.
- RapidLinked(TM) Packet Writing for higher performance data transfer.
- SCSI models support synchronous data transfer for high-end duplication.
- Flash ROM for simple downloading of firmware upgrades.
- Full support of writing modes including packet writing, track-at-once, disc-at-once/session-at-once and multisession modes.
- Running Optimum Power Control (ROPC) for maximized media writing integrity.

Availability
The CRW8424S (SCSI model) drives are available now. The CRW8424E (ATAPI model) drives will be available in December, 1999.." NULL