Sony has joined the ranks of tapeless pro camera purveyors with the launch of the PDW-530 MPEG IMX/DVCAM optical disc camcorder. It uses cartridge based blue-laser optical discs (instead of the hugely expensive PC Card media of rival Panasonic) which can store 23.3GB per disc.

Apparently the company demonstrated the technology at the recent NAB Show by storing the camcorder in a freezer before whipping it out to record unthawed. Gives new meaning to the term ‘freeze frame’, no?

‘The blue laser disc offers familiar disc-type benefits, including split-second random access, no physical head contact during record/playback, and cost efficiency associated with the media. A single disc holds 90 minutes of DVCAM video material or 45 minutes of MPEG IMX material recorded at 50 Mbps, 60 minutes at 40 Mbps, and 75 minutes at 30 Mbps.’