CDs 'could be history in five years'

Ananova ^ | November 12, 2003

[Perseverando]

CDs 'could be history in five years'

Compact discs could be history within five years, superseded by a new generation of fingertip-sized memory tabs with no moving parts.

Scientists say each paper-thin device could store more than a gigabyte of information - equivalent to 1,000 high quality images - in one cubic centimetre of space.

Experts have developed the technology by melding together organic and inorganic materials in a unique way.

They say it could be used to produce a single-use memory card that permanently stores data and is faster and easier to operate than a CD.

It's claimed that turning the invention into a commercially viable product might take as little as five years.

The card would not involve any moving parts, such as the laser and motor drive required by compact discs. Its secret is the discovery of a previously unknown property of a commonly-used conductive plastic coating.

US scientists at Princeton University, New Jersey, and computer giants Hewlett-Packard combined the polymer with very thin-film, silicon-based electronics.

The device would be like a standard CD-R (CD-recordable) disc in that writing data onto it makes permanent changes and can only be done once. But it would also resemble a computer memory chip, because it would plug directly into an electronic circuit and have no moving parts.

A report in the journal Nature described how the researchers identified a new property of a polymer called PEDOT.

PEDOT, which is clear and conducts electricity, has been used for years as an anti-static coating on photographic film. Researchers looked at ways of using PEDOT to store digital information. In the new memory card, data in the form of ones and zeroes would be represented by polymer pixels.

When information is recorded, higher voltages at certain points in the circuit grid would "blow" the PEDOT fuses at those points. As a result, data is permanently etched into the device. A blown fuse would from then on be read as a zero, while an unblown one that lets current pass through is read as a one.

Story filed: 18:07 Wednesday 12th November 2003

[stanz]

Just download them and hope for the best.

[goodnesswins]

Oh...I'm sure they'll make the packaging NOTICABLE....that's what you'll be paying for.

[Sunshine Sister]

Boy am I feeling old!

[discostu]

Yeah, as I get older and my eyes get worse I grow more annoyed with CD covers.

[blackdog]

Well now I have reason #1,258 to explain to my wife why we do not need a new computer at this holiday season.....

[abner]

Ahhh, Yes...

[stands2reason]

That's one thing I miss about albums. I like the sound, but you can't take them in your car, and I'm planning on having children someday anyway...

[proxy_user]

Yeah, sure....

[discostu]

Cool! I've got an old "portable" GE with a slipping belt I've been wanting to refurbish. Sure I've got a cool snazzy new one too, but you can't have too many functioning turn tables.

The new ones coming out are cool. Classic retro stylings, and most of them also have a CD player.

[abner]

Let's see. First the albums (I'm old and remember albums), then the cassettes, eight tracks anyone (all the other old timers will remember those), and now CD's.

You forgot reel to reel... My dad had reel to reel... It was great.

[Bon mots]

It's already history. So is the CD. I have this:

I'll never go back to lugging around CDs again!
I don't care if they make them the size of an aspirin. I don't need it nor do I want it. The ones I carry are the size of a bit and byte.

[blackdog]

And let's not forget the perfect use for your album covers.....Those seeds just rolled out of the weed and could be neatly funneled down the crease.

[tom h]

I disagree with you IMHO. The fundamental limitation of CDs are that they require moving parts to work -- a drive to spin them. The trend of technology has always been away from moving or otherwise "active" parts, especially in the last 20 years.

For this reason alone the CD will become obsolete.

[Paul C. Jesup]

Yea, the RIAA and MPAA would love to make everything a pay-per-listen/view instead of pay-per-copy.

Given their tyrannitcal actions over the years, I would love to see them go down in flames.

[SengirV]

This just in, HDTV will make the traditional TV we all grew up with obsolete in a couple of years - 1988

[Viva Le Dissention]

You're right about vinyl still being around, but that's only because a good record player beats the pants off of a good cd player in sound quality any day of the week.

Now, I've only heard SACDs a couple times, and if Sony ever decides to lower the price of those things a little bit, they really might be able to give vinyl a run for its money.

But it all depends on the sound quality on these new things as to whether it goes anywhere in the long run.

[discostu]

I'm not saying CDs will be around forever, not by any stretch. But whatever replaces them will need to fit the environment. One of the reasons DATs never took off was they were too small and too easy to steal (or lose).

Everything becomes obsolete eventually, but I don't think this technology as is will do it to CDs. With some modofications it could, but right now it's too miniaturized (there actually are reasons not to keep making things smaller).

[fiscally_right]

"Scientists say each **paper-thin** device could store more than a gigabyte of information - equivalent to 1,000 high quality images - in one **cubic** centimetre of space"

Hmmm....

[radioman]

Great link...Thanks!

[discostu]

Some of it is sound quality, thoughg these days with EQs you can make that pretty even. I know for me there's a tactile sensation to LPs that nothing else has that makes them very emotionally satisfying. It feels good to take that 12" platter from it's sleave, look it over for flaws, give it a quick dust, put it on the turn table, start the spin, grab the needle (never liked automatic arm movement) and place it on the record, that {schwunk} sound as the needle first makes contact with the lead section. There's a part of me that will always consider that a vital part of listening to music and no other format has it.