Wow, Maxell and InPhase Technologies have developed holographic optical media that features uncompressed storage capacities achieving 1.6 TeraBytes per disk and data rates as high as 120 MBPs. Optical media also is advantageous due to its long archival (50+ year) life.

The media is expected to have the lowest cost per gigabyte of any commercial quality removable storage. Of course, I've been hearing about large storage technology, including holograms for over 10 years it seems, so I hope this product isn't simply vaporware. When I can get my hands on it from CDW or Amazon I'll believe it.

"Holographic media makes it possible for millions of pages of information and high definition images to be held on one small, relatively inexpensive disc," said Steven Pofcher, senior marketing manager at Maxell. "Imagine having a person's entire medical history, complete with MRI images, or storing a broadcast network's entire HD Library on a single disc. These are both possible with holographic technology, which has such large capacity that approximately a half million 300-page books can be stored on a single disc."

Holographic recording technology utilizes intersecting signal and reference laser beams to store data in a number of 3D hologram images capable of saving hundreds of data pages in a single location. One 5¼ inch-diameter optical disc can store up to 150 million pages - more than 63 times the capacity of DVD. Also, with holographic recording, a multiple of form factors, such as discs, cards, etc., and laser wavelengths (red, green, and blue) can be used.

"Combining high storage densities and fast transfer rates with durable, reliable, low cost media, Holographic technology is poised to become a compelling choice for next-generation storage and content distribution needs," said Liz Murphy, vice president of marketing for InPhase Technologies. "Unlike other technologies that record one data bit at a time, holography allows a million bits of data to be written and read in parallel with a single flash of light. This enables transfer rates significantly higher than current optical storage devices."

The first generation of holographic media with 300 GB of storage capacity and a 20 MBPs Transfer Rate is scheduled for release in late 2006.