Low-Cost, High Speed and 2GB Capacity Make New TDK Drive and Media the Ultimate Solution for PC Backup and Multimedia Archiving

GARDEN CITY, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 8, 2002-- Extending and enhancing the storage flexibility of CD-RW drives, TDK today announced the introduction of the world's first CD-RW burner capable of packing 2GB of uncompressed data on inexpensive optical discs.

Priced at just a small premium over conventional CD-RW burners, the new TDK drive incorporates a MultiLevel (ML) read/write chip that adds a 2GB super-size mode to its standard CD-R/RW recording capability when used with TDK ML-R (write once) or ML-RW (rewritable) discs.

Ideally suited to the needs of office and home users who need a fast, affordable way to backup and archive large amounts of data, the new TDK drive is rated at 36X/24X/40X in ML mode. This enables users to archive 2GB of data in less than six minutes. An internal drive with ATAPI connectivity, the new drive is Windows XP compatible and will carry an estimated street price of just $199 when it is released in the second quarter of this year. 2GB TDK Certified Plus ML-R and ML-RW discs will be available to support the launch of the drive, and will be available at estimated street prices of $1.99 and $2.99, respectively. The drive will be available in retail and OEM versions.

Speed, Capacity, And Value

For day-to-day data backup and archiving, the speed, capacity and cost advantages of TDK's ML-enhanced CD-RW drive make it a powerful and affordable alternative to conventional recordable CD and DVD and solutions.

In its ML mode, TDK's new drive outperforms conventional CD burners in both capacity (2GB versus 650MB) and recording speed. That's because the new drive sustains its rated 36X ML recording speed over the full surface of the disc. In comparison, future 40X CD burners will only reach maximum speed on a portion of the disc; averaged over the full surface of the disc, a 40X CD burner may only achieve an average write speed of 31X.

And, though recordable DVD discs offers more than twice the capacity of ML media, TDK's ML-enhanced CD-RW drive records at about twice the speed of a DVD burner. For many value-conscious PC users, who will have to pay about $200 more for a DVD drive and twice as much for DVD recordable discs, the cost and speed advantages of TDK's ML CD-RW drive and media make it a compelling option for disc-based backup as well as many other archiving applications.

Commenting on the introduction of the new ML-enhanced CD-RW drive, Kuniyoshi Matsui, president of TDK Electronics Corporation, noted, ``The growth of the CD-RW drive business has been phenomenal, and ML technology will help sustain that growth, even as DVD burners begin competing in the higher end of the optical drive market. As a supplier of all three types of optical recording hardware and media - CD, ML, and DVD - we see each as complementary, not competitive. For video storage and playback compatibility with DVD-ROM and DVD Video, recordable DVD is the way to go. And for universal exchange capability, CD is the obvious choice. But for many business and home users, who are a seeking a practical, affordable, efficient way to handle day-to-day backups and archiving at minimum cost, our ML solution is an important new option.''

TDK's innovative approach to the design of high-performance CD-RW drives has made it a market leader in the CD burner business. In just two years since the introduction of its first veloCD ReWriter, the company has gained the number two market share in CD burners overall. TDK's new ML-enhanced CD-RW drive joins the TDK veloCD family of burners, offering users the broadest choice in speed and connectivity options in internal, external and portable designs.