NEC presents first HD DVD drive

At the IFA 2005 NEC is introducing the world’s first 5 ¼ inch PC drive for HD-DVDs. The HR-1100A will be in the stores in October and is quite capable of also playing the more established DVDs and CDs.

This has been made possible by a laser head that has been developed by NEC, which can read not only the usual red and ultraviolet light but also blue light. With the new HD DVD standard storage capacity is increased to as much as 64 GB – more than 13 times that of a standard DVD, and up to 16 hours of HD quality recordings and playback are available. Home cinema projectors for even the smallest living room are another new product.

This unit has been patented by NEC and even when placed as close as 6.4 centimetres from a wall it can produce a projection area with diagonals of more than a metre.