New pricing makes “permanent storage” Cranberry DiamonDisc writers and discs more accessible
The recently launched Cranberry DiamonDisc, which the Ferndale, Wash.-based company calls the “1,000 year disc” for permanent storage of digital files, is now available at a reduced price. The entry point for purchasing a Cranberry Writer has been reduced from a bundle price of US$4,995 to buying the writer only for US$1,499. This puts the entry cost at a level for consumers and small businesses looking to preserve their digital photos and videos on a medium that doesn’t require special handling or storage and will last without worry for decades, if not centuries. Previously the writer was only available bundled with 150 discs.
Unlike conventional recordable DVDs and CDs, the Cranberry DiamonDisc has no adhesive layers, dye layer or reflective layer to deteriorate – thereby avoiding the “data rot” that quickly corrodes all recordable DVDs. The transparent Cranberry DiamonDisc is environmentally stable, unaffected by UV and changes in temperature and humidity.
Both the National Archives and the Library of Congress have warned that home-burned DVDs are unreliable after two to five years.
Dubbed the 1,000-year DVD, the Cranberry DiamonDisc is the only environmentally inert and permanent storage solution on the market, the company says. Cranberry founder David McInnis makes no apologies for the 1,000-year claim. “Permanent is permanent,” argues McInnis, “In reality, our goal is to provide the best permanent storage solution until another acceptable medium is available. We think this is it.”
