DVD-RAM
A recordable format supported by the DVD Forum. It has superior recording features but it is not compatible with most DVD-ROM drives or DVD Video players. It works well when set up like a removable hard disk.
What is the status of the DVD-RAM standard?
The DVD-RAM standard was approved by the Forum in July 1997, following a three-month evaluation of drive and media compatibility. More than 20 personal computer and storage media manufacturers from around the world took part in this evaluation. Today, more than 160 members of the DVD Forum have endorsed the standard. Over 94% of the DVD-ROM drives sold worldwide are produced by drive manufacturers who support the DVD-RAM format.
What DVD-RAM alternative formats have been proposed and what is the status of each?
The concepts and formats that have been discussed as alternatives to DVD-RAM include ASMO, DVD-R/W, RW, and MMVF.
In 1996, Hitachi, Maxell, and Fujitsu announced the MO-7 concept. In 1997, the consortium scaled back the capacity of its next-generation MO-drive standard from 7 gigabytes to 6 and changed the development's technical name from MO7 to ASMO (for advanced storage magneto-optical technology). According to the ASMO design guidelines, the proposed drives, which are still in development, will be able to read DVD. However, media will only be readable in the drives that record it. If the ASMO or MO-7 drives are introduced, it appears they will incorporate much of the same technology used in today's MO drives, making the drives and media too expensive for consumer or PC usage.
In 1998, Philips and Sony formed a new coalition to develop rewriteable DVD based on their 25-year-old CD patents. According to one industry observer's comment, "This is the best product designed by an accounting department I've ever seen." Supported by HP, Yamaha and Ricoh, the two firms say they will use their proprietary tracking and servo configurations to improve storage capacity (a difference of .4GB per side) and to "correct" the deficiencies of the DVD-RAM format which they previously agreed provided the best price/performance for end users.
Initially called DVD+RW, the coalition changed the format name to PC+RW (phase-change rewriteable) when the DVD Forum ruled that the DVD logo was not applicable to the splinter technology. Ultimately, the group settled on the RW logo.
Because of the performance and capacity limitations, it is expected that the faction's proposed products will be for data storage only and will not be a viable option for home video formats.
In 1998, Sony was quoted as saying that it if necessary, it will produce both DVD-RAM and RW product. Ricoh and Yamaha stated in June, 1998 that they have no current RW plans.
DVD-R/W technology has been proposed by Pioneer as a solution that would store 4.7GB per side and would allow the media to be read on DVD-ROM drives and DVD players already in the field. It does not provide random access storage.
MMVF is a multimedia video format proposal which would have 5.2GB per side and up to 10.4GB on dual-sided media. As with ASMO the recorded media, it would only be read on MMVF drives.
