3X DVD-ROM for HD

DVD3XThe first 3X DVD-ROM has been successfully produced
DCA (Doug Carson & Associates, Inc.) announced that the first 3X DVD-ROM was successfully mastered and replicated at a North Carolina facility on Saturday, January 17, 2007 using MIS 8.5 DVD formatter software.

So what the heck is 3X DVD-ROM?
A dual layer, pressed, DVD-ROM variant.
Total capacity ~8.5GB.
UDF 2.5 file structure.
HD video using AVC or VC-1 codecs.
720p resolution.
Supports AACS.
Must be played in an HD DVD player.

3X DVD-ROM was dead before it was born
This has to be one of the most useless formats I have seen in a long time. This format is going no where fast. It can NOT be played back on standard DVD players, yet they are calling it a “DVD-ROM variant”. Due to the limited capacity, it will be limited to lower resolutions such as 720p. It will cost more to author compared to a standard DVD. It will have to compete with HD DVD, can only be played on HD DVD players and will be much less attractive than real HD DVD media. Say hello and goodbye to 3X DVD-ROM, because we won’t be seeing much of it ever again…

Update: I fixed some incorrect details in the article.
Update2: Apparently 3X DVD-ROM is an official DVD Forum format. I removed sentences from the original article that suggested otherwise.

About Wes Novack

Wesley Novack is a Technologist working in the software industry, with extensive experience building and managing highly available applications, services, and systems in the public cloud. He has a breadth of experience in online publishing, the consumer electronics industry, and building internet communities. Wes enjoys hanging with his family, skateboarding, hiking, the vegan lifestyle, and a good cup of tea. You can find him on Twitter @WesleyTech.

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8 Comments on “3X DVD-ROM for HD”

  1. Yeah go sit in the corner, stupid 3x discman. No one likes you. Why sniff gasoline when you can have crack instead?

    From the company that brought you HD-Betamax and the big screen black and white TV comes 3x DVD. Complementary Atari 2600 E.T. game included.

    No one cares when the fat kid finally passes the finish line.

  2. It’s like D-VHS only worse! But HD DVD fanboys are saying this is the perfect answer and that this format is perfect for a company like The Criterion Collection.

  3. Yeah, this “format” is ridiculous.

    Who’s going to support it?

    The Blu-ray exclusive studios? nope… it’s an HD DVD related product.
    Universal? nope… they’re putting ALL their weight behind HD DVD.
    Neutral studios? highly doubtful.
    Definitely not Warner, they’re all about Total HD.

    Who does that leave? Possibly some small content providers or one of the “neutral” studios. That’s not going to be enough for this “format” to survive or even get noticed.

    Say hello and goodbye to 3X DVD.

  4. Blu-ray has a similar technology called BD-9. It is basically the same thing (red laser, DVD structure, et al).

  5. I think this would be a great format for those of us who have an HD camcorder and a standard DVD-RW drive in our pc, and have a stand alone HD-DVD player such as the toshiba HD-A2. I have lots of home video in HD but haven’t been able to burn the HD content to use on a standard TV.
    I’ve been waiting for something like this, now if Nero can let us burn the 3x format it would be great.
    This is kind of like the SVCD format.
    A true HD-DVD burner is too pricy for most of us.
    I picked up the HD-A2 for less then 400 bucks.
    I don’t think this 3x format will take off for mass produced movies, but for the home user I THINK it will take off.

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