DVD-RAM Recorders Capture 70% Consumer Marketshare in Q1 Says NPD Group

[Jerry Jones]

http://www.digitalproducer.com/2003/06_jun/news/06_16/npd0617.htm

"As sales of recordable DVD products continue to skyrocket, feature-rich, stand-alone consumer recorders based on the DVD-RAM format are leading the way, having captured 70.2 percent of the U.S. DVD consumer recorder market in the first three months of 2003, according to leading market information company The NPD Group."

Interesting.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[paulw]

It dosn't surprise me Jerry as DVD-RAM is the ideal media for this application. Now if only the one with 120G hard disk included in them would come down in price in my part of the world..

[wkulecz]

Panasonic leads because the competition is very limited and lame right now. This will change quickly as APEX is about to introduce a cheap DVD+R/RW stand alone recorder to be sold at Walmart etc.

http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG20030609S0042

Joe blow will take one look at the price of DVD-RAM media which won't play in most other players compared to DVD+RW which will play in maybe 1 in 3, and most likely choose DVD+RW on the simple minded basis of media cost.

Unless Panasonic can get over the idea that adding $40-$100 worth of hard drive somehow adds $300-$500 worth of "value" to the consumer I predict this statistic will be reversed after Xmas. Twiddling the buttons on the remote to "edit" I predict is far too much trouble for 90+% of the population to bother with, negating the main advantage of DVD-RAM with hard drive recorders. Although clearly those of us one this forum are likely more intrested in the DVD-RAM recorders.

I just bought a 10-pk spindle without cases of DVD+RW for $19.95 (K-hypermedia brand). So far they've been fine for data, haven't used them for video since my main DVD player won't play DVD+RW.

--wally.

[Jerry Jones]

I was able to play a DVD+R disc recorded by a Philips DVDR 985 stand alone player/recorder - in my Panasonic LF-D311 DVD-R/DVD-RAM drive!

(I never tested DVD+RW, however. Still, I think it would work because a DVD-RW disc works in the Panasonic LF-D311 drive even though the drive only records to DVD-R and DVD-RAM.)

So one might actually be able to use a 'hybrid' system...

1. record discs in the Apex DVD+R/DVD+RW stand alone recorder;

2. then edit the files using a Panasonic LF-D311 DVD-R/DVD-RAM drive as the 'read' device from which you could extract files to the hard drive for editing using Ulead software;

3. then save to a DVD-R disc, which might actually play just fine in the Apex DVD+R/DVD+RW player/recorder.

Interesting question, eh?

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net