Sony’s new ultra DRU-530A Dual RW DVD burner was demonstrated earlier this year and now Sony officially announced its specifications. Appart from the 8x burning for DVD+R, 4X max. for DVD-R & DVD+RW, and 2X for DVD-RW discs, the ATAPI drive is a 40x CD-R burner. Availability is expected by the end of 2003. Sony will also launch an external version of the dual drive, the DRX-530UL. The new drives support up to 4X DVD+RW and DVD-R recording, as well as 2X DVD-RW, 40X CD-R and 24X CD-RW recording.

The drives come bundled with software by Sonic Solutions®, CyberLink, and MusicMatch®.

Specifications:

• Write Speed:
DVD-R: 1X, 2X, 4X** max.
DVD-RW: 1X, 2X** max.
DVD+R: 2.4X, 4X*, 8X** (ZCLV)**max.
DVD+RW: 2.4X, 4X* max.
CD-R: 4X, 12X, 16X**, 24X~32X P-CAV, 40X CAV max.
CD-RW: 4X, 8X, 12X, 16X, 24X PCAV** max.

• Read Speed:
DVD-ROM: 12X max.
CD-ROM: 40X max.

• Random Access Time:
200 ms (DVD 12X)
160 ms (CD 40X)

• Sustained Data Transfer Rate: 16.2 MB/s max. (12X DVD-ROM)
• Buffer Memory: 2MB
• Buffer Underrun Protection Technology
• Supported disc format: DVD-ROM, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-Video CD, CD-DA, CD-ROM (XA), CD Extra, Video CD, Photo CD*, CD Text, multi-session

• Software Contents:
Sonic Solutions RecordNow: CD/DVD Mastering Software with Quick Archive backup feature
Sonic Solutions DLA: Drive Letter Recording Software
Sonic Solutions MyDVD: DVD Video Editing and Authoring Software
Cyberlink PowerDVD: soft DVD player Software
MusicMatch Jukebox: Play, Record, and Organize your personal music

• OS: Windows 2000 or Windows XP Home and Professional Operating Systems

*Not supported with the bundled software, additional software required **High-speed DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, CD-RW discs are required.

The internal DRU-530A Dual RW drive will be available in December for an estimated retail price of around $270, and the external DRX-530UL model will be available in January for around $350.