Toshiba is whetting our gadget appetites with this sleek VARDIA hybrid HD DVD / HDD recorder in Japan. The 600GB RD-A600 and 300GB RD-A300 feature a pair of digital hi-vision HD tuners, Firewire, and HDMI and can write to HD DVD-R and DVD-RAM/R/RW media in addition to their respective hard disks. In fact, the HDD is the only point of divergence between the models. They’ll cost as much as $1,643 for the RD-A600 model when these start shipping later in the year.

Don’t count on a definite date though. Toshiba just released a HD-A2 HD DVD for $199 (after rebate), but their inventory is at zero, while Crutchfield had to increase the price by $100 as backlog orders come pouring in.
source: Impress

Sony has begun shipping out their newest blu-ray disk player to major electronic retailers. The BDP-S300, now at an affordable rate, is expected to "broaden the high-definition disc player market." As a product of Sony, the player is not without its tricks. It hypes an output of 1920 x 1080/24p high-definition video, which is the highest resolution high-definition signal available through an HDMI connection. And speaking of HDMI, it could be used to create a multi-channel linear PCM digital audio output for excellent surround sound. Any owner of an entertainment system would be sure to love this feature. The player can also support various video formats, including MPEG2, MPEG4-AVC and VC1.

The new BD player is compatible with most standard DVDs, as well as the added bonus of 1080p upscaling through HDMI to 1080p capable HDTVs. It supports BD-ROM, AVC-HD Media, DVD video and DVD playback from DVD/DVD+R/+RW encoded discs, CD playback, as well as MP3 audio files and JPEG images stored on DVD recording media.

The player will be available in the near future at Sony online stores and other retailers nationwide at the price of $499.