Sony Optiarc Europe lets loose 24x AD-7240S DVD burner
by Darren Murph 
posted Mar 3rd 2009 at 4:31AM
[Via TG Daily]
optiarc posts
[Via TG Daily]
SonyNEC Optiarc projects sub-$100 Blu-ray optical drives by year's end
by Darren Murph posted Jun 6th 2008 at 2:50AM
If you'll recall, SonyNEC Optiarc was the same company that suggested BD prices would be halved by 2008 from what they were in late 2006, and while stickers are still relatively high on standalone decks, the prediction actually wasn't too far off. A new report from Tom's Hardware notes that the aforementioned outfit is expecting Blu-ray combo drives "to reach the $100 line before the holiday season." For around $50 more, it reckons you'll have access to slim-line notebook drives that handle the same duties. Granted, there's no real confirmation surrounding the assertions, and we'll be the first to blindly hope such wishful thinking comes true, but we'd say BD prices in general have a whole lot of falling to do in six short months for this one to even stand a chance.[Via TechDigest]
Optiarc unveils first Blu-ray players -- HD DVD says "uh oh"
by Thomas Ricker posted Mar 21st 2007 at 9:26AM
Blu-ray disc drive prices to be halved by 2008?
by Darren Murph posted Nov 18th 2006 at 5:21PM
Sure, it's no surprise to see bleeding-edge tech plummet in price soon after the initial craze is over, but Sony NEC Optiarc is estimating that Blu-ray disc drive prices will "drop 50 percent from current levels amid aggressive development" by other manufacturers. Shuji Minami -- the product business group's general manager -- is suggesting that increased production by alternative manufacturers will open up the currently tight supply line. We've heard Sony blaming the overwhelming shortage of Blu-ray components for its Playstation 3 supply quandaries, and we've assumed the inclusion of such a drive somewhat justifies (or not) the staggeringly high pricetag, but we can't say we're sharoosed that prices will be dramatically lower in just over 12 months. Regardless, the firm is touting Window's forthcoming Vista operating system as encouragement for more producers to hop on the (nearly empty) bandwagon, so if you're cool with holding out on (questionably beneficial) 1080p flicks for another year or so, you'll (unsurprisingly) find yourself a lot richer for it. But for you European blokes who'll be suffering the same launch day madness that we're still surviving next year, we highly doubt Sony will cut you any slack, especially considering how much dough they're already losing.
