Audio Video News

The era of scratched CD-Rs (and soon CD-RWs plus all flavors of DVD recordables) could be at hand. Scratch-Less Disc Industries has announced that their Scratch-Less optical discs are now available "at various retail outlets throughout the country and online at major Internet retailers."

Scratch-Less Discs are designed with built-in protection from physical damage caused by everyday handling and normal use. (Use as a coffee cup coaster does not fall in the category of normal use.) Each Scratch-Less disc has 20 small, patented Aero-Bumps. The bumps elevate the disc when not in use, helping the business side of the disc to avoid contact with your desk, notebook, floor, or other flat surface. (Sandpaper is not a flat surface.)

Scratch-Less discs include a secondary layer of protection provided by an added polymer coating that was co-developed with General Electric.

The discs are said to be compatible with "nearly all existing recording and playback equipment." In addition to the protection features, the discs include a slanted/raised edge that makes them easier to pick up off of a flat surface.

Currently available in CD-R format, Scratch-Less discs will quickly include CD-RW while DVD formats (DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD+RW, and DVD-RW) coming during the first quarter of 2006. The company says Scratch-Less discs will sell "at a slight premium" due to the "increased expense of adding the bumps and polymer during the manufacturing process".

Now why didn't someone think of this when vinyl records were the only high-fidelity disc around?