Philips launches first Blu-ray drive – the TripleWriter
Philips has unveiled its first Blu-ray device – the TripleWriter (SPD7000) all-in-one PC Writer, which will write to and playback Blu-ray discs, along with most other popular formats.
The TripleWriter is a CD, DVD and Blu-ray drive, featuring a 2x (72 Mb/s continuous data-rate) read and write speed on BD-ROM, BD-R and BD-RE media, plus read/write (where applicable) for CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD+R, DVD+R DL, DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD+RW and DVD-RW. Bundled software is Nero 7 Essential.
Philips has also introduced some discs to feed the drive – 25GB and 50GB versions of the BD-R and BD-RE, all featuring a protective cover layer for "superior robustness". The coating also prevents fingerprints and scratches and makes the Blu-ray disc easy to clean.
The TripleWriter will be available in Europe from August 2006 onwards, priced at around £550.
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