Samsung Electronics yesterday introduced its new 32-speed CD-ROM drive with an autobalancer that reduces the noise and vibration levels that higher speed drives face. The new SCR-3230 drive uses a ball bearing system to balance the CD-ROM in the drive while it is spinning, thus reducing unwanted movement. The problem of noise has come about because of the ever increasing speeds at which CD-ROMs are being played, increasing the scope for imperfect vibration levels. 24-speed and higher CD-ROM drives use constant angular velocity (CAV) technology which spins the CD-ROM faster than its predecessor, constant linear velocity technology. CAV also spins the CD-ROM at a variable rate which enables a higher transfer rate on the outside of the disk. The SCR-3230 drive can achieve a maximum rotational speed of 6700 rpm allowing data transfer rates of 4800Kb per second and access times of 80Ms. The unit has a 512K buffer memory enabling faster access to large volume of multimedia data. The product is compatible with CD-R/RW recording technology.
