Taiwan drive makers oppose hybrid Blu-ray/HD DVD technology

If they ever hand out the Nobel Peace Prize for technology, well you can cross out Taiwan drive-makers off the list of nominees as they apparently disapprove of the impending union between the Blu-Ray and the HD-DVD. Optical Disc Drive (ODD) makers from the prodigal Chinese territory chose to say “no” to Japan-based NEC’s chip which supports both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats that could have put an early end to the next-gen optical media war.

While NEC claims their dual-standard chip will reduce manufacturing costs by 20-30%, Taiwanese firms said that the overall production cost of hybrid ODDs would still be higher than a single format drive. And why is this? Because they claim that other factors such as optical pick-up head and yields actually determine the total production value and the new chips are not going to be of any help in that respect.

Taiwanese ODD makers, however, remain open to other hybrid tech options such as the DVD Dual or the Super Multi.

Via DigiTimes

If they ever hand out the Nobel Peace Prize for technology, well you can cross out Taiwan drive-makers off the list of nominees as they apparently disapprove of the impending union between the Blu-Ray and the HD-DVD. Optical Disc Drive (ODD) makers from the prodigal Chinese territory chose to say “no” to Japan-based NEC’s chip which supports both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats that could have put an early end to the next-gen optical media war.

While NEC claims their dual-standard chip will reduce manufacturing costs by 20-30%, Taiwanese firms said that the overall production cost of hybrid ODDs would still be higher than a single format drive. And why is this? Because they claim that other factors such as optical pick-up head and yields actually determine the total production value and the new chips are not going to be of any help in that respect.

Taiwanese ODD makers, however, remain open to other hybrid tech options such as the DVD Dual or the Super Multi.

Via DigiTimes