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100GB discs point to 4K Blu-ray

An announcement by Singulus Technologies, a maker of replication machines that produce Blu-ray discs, points toward a new standard for 4K Blu-ray.

David Katzmaier Editorial Director -- Personal Tech
David reviews TVs and leads the Personal Tech team at CNET, covering mobile, software, computing, streaming and home entertainment. We provide helpful, expert reviews, advice and videos on what gadget or service to buy and how to get the most out of it.
Expertise A 20-year CNET veteran, David has been reviewing TVs since the days of CRT, rear-projection and plasma. Prior to CNET he worked at Sound & Vision magazine and eTown.com. He is known to two people on Twitter as the Cormac McCarthy of consumer electronics. Credentials
  • Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
David Katzmaier
2 min read

The Singulus Bluline II (above) is designed to produce 3D Blu-ray discs. The company has just announced a version designed to produce 4K Blu-rays.

A physical media standard for next-generation 4K video now looks closer than ever.

A German optical disc replication equipment maker by the name of Singulus Technologies has announced details on a new machine, the Bluline III, capable of manufacturing triple-layer Blu-ray discs that can store up to 100GB.

"The triple-layer Blu-ray discs with 100GB storage capacity, is the preferred playback medium for the new 4K technology" reads the Singulus release.

The current Blu-ray disc standard used by most home video releases supports capacities up to 50GB.

The announcement of machines capable of delivering higher-capacity pressed discs comes prior to any official word from the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), the industry coalition that's currently discussing a new standard for 4K Blu-ray in its committees.

But as HDTVTest.uk rightly points out, the new Singulus machines are as solid an indicator as any that an official 4K Blu-ray format is on the way soon: "After all, there would be no other use for a machine capable of manufacturing factory-pressed 100GB discs if a hardware update was not imminent."

The last such major announcement of a Blu-ray specification by the BDA was December 2009, when the association revealed the 3D Blu-ray spec. Plenty of 4K news is expected around the time of the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show in January, which seems a natural time for the BDA to make 4K Blu-ray official, absent any delays.

Sony's proprietary video player notwithstanding, lack of content is one of the major knocks against 4K. With the 4K-friendlier HDMI 2.0 standard finally official, and numerous new 4K sets hitting the market at ever-more-affordable prices, the industry's pumps are primed to address that lack.