Newsgroups: alt.cd-rom,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.cd-rom Path: cdrom.com!barrnet.net!parc!biosci!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!math.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!csn!col.hp.com!news.dtc.hp.com!hpscit.sc.hp.com!hpuerci.atl.hp.com!i3125s0.atl.hp.com!rkd From: rkd@atl.hp.com (Randy DeLoach) Subject: Re: Plextor 4x CD-ROM Press Release Sender: news@atl.hp.com (placeholder for future) Message-ID: Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 02:32:46 GMT References: Nntp-Posting-Host: i3125g2.atl.hp.com Organization: Hewlett-Packard Atlanta Information Technology Center X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1.4] Followup-To: alt.cd-rom,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.cd-rom Lines: 96 Xref: cdrom.com alt.cd-rom:3110 comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.cd-rom:2316 Dennis Mitsch (dmitsch@netcom.com) wrote: : The following is the "official" press release for the new Plextor : Quad Speed CD-ROM drive. : For those who don't like to read, the gist is: : Conforms to standard 5.25 Half Height Internal Form Factor : 600Kb/sec, 220 ms access time : 70,000 hr mean time between failure, 2 year warranty : 1 megabyte of on-board cache : SCSI-II interface, Kodak Photo-CD Multi-Session, XA & : MPC-II compliant. : List Price: $549.00 : I would guess (no one tells me anything :-) that the drives should : start appearing in quantity around the middle of june. (Egghead : will be carrying them for sure) : =====================Press Release Starts Here======================= : For Immediate Release: : PLEXTOR Begins Shipments of World's First : Internal SCSI Quad Speed CD-ROM Drive : 4PLEX(tm) Models Feature 1MB Buffer : Santa Clara, CA, May 2, 1994 -- Plextor announced today that shipments : of the world's first internal SCSI quad speed CD-ROM drive will begin : in June. Plextor's 4PLEX(tm) PX-43CH CD-ROM drive has a 600KB/sec data : transfer rate, a 220ms access speed, and a 1MB buffer. The drive also : will be available in an external configuration, the 4PLEX(tm) PX-45CH. : Plextor's parent company, Shinano Kenshi Co., Ltd. of Japan, used its : expertise in miniature motor production to make this breakthrough : possible. Plextor's 4PLEX(tm) drives spin a CD-ROM disc at 4 times : the standard speed, resulting in a significantly faster data transfer : rate. A fast data transfer rate provides a viewer with CD-ROM based : video, graphics and animation that appear on screen smoother and more : natural than ever seen before. : "Anyone can build a quad speed drive if you allow the development : engineers to use big motors," said Robert Tatar, Plextor's Vice : President. "That's why a few companies already have external quad : speed drives. The real trick is to see who can shrink the CD-ROM : drive's motors to fit the standard half-height drive size that can : be mounted in any PC. Shinano Kenshi's engineers developed two : newly patented technologies to bring this type of drive to market : before any other company." : "We want to make quad speed drives available to everyone who is : interested in multimedia," continued Tatar. "NEC, which thus far : has only an external quad speed drive, seems to feel that 4X drives : should be limited to the 'professional' or 'developer' market, and : has priced them accordingly. Plextor is committed to making quad : speed drives in configurations and prices that are accessible to all." : "The 4PLEX(tm) drives make two statements about where Plextor sees the : CD-ROM market headed," said Tatar. "First, a SCSI-based drive is what : is needed if you expect high performance from your system. IDE and : ATAPI drives won't be able to cut it as the overall market migrates : to multitasking operating systems like Chicago (Windows 4.0), WindowsNT : and OS/2. Second, our 1MB buffer recognizes that the way in which : people use PCs is changing. We think video is becoming a key element : in many applications. Our 1MB buffer lets PC and Mac users utilize : CD-ROM's video capabilities to their fullest." : The internal 4PLEX(tm) PX-43CH drive has a list price of $549. If sold : with an accompanying 16-bit SCSI interface board, the price is $599. : The external 4PLEX(tm) PX-45CH drive has a list price of $649. If sold : with an accompanying 16-bit SCSI interface board, the price is $699. : Plextor's 4PLEX(tm) models have a 70,000 hour (15% duty) mean time : between failure (MTBF) and are backed by a two year warranty and : toll-free technical support. 4PLEX™ drives are built at Shinano : Kenshi's ISO 9002 approved factory in Japan. They are SCSI-2, XA : and Kodak PhotoCD multisession compatible and meet MPC Level 2 : specifications. : For Further Information Contact: : Plextor : Phone: (800) 886-3935 : (408) 980-1838 : Fax: (408) 986-1010 : -- : The opinions expressed are my own, they are in no way an offical : statement or policy of Plextor Corp, fruits, vegtables, minerals : and are not used in hospitals or recomended by doctors. : Dennis Mitsch - dmitsch@netcom.com