Toshiba Brings HD DVD-R Notebook to U.S.

Toshiba has begun shipping its 17-inch Qosmio G45 notebook in the United States, making it the first U.S. notebook to offer HD DVD-R capability.

Even though Toshiba announced its Qosmio G45 back in January—and started shipping it in Japan in February—the company has finally brought its entertainment powerhouse Qosmio G45-AV680 notebook system to the U.S. market, making it the first notebook system offered to U.S. consumers with HD DVD-R capability.

“Already Toshiba’s premiere audio-video solution, the new Qosmio is a remarkable step forward in the digital renaissance, in terms of putting high-definition capabilities and creative multimedia tools into people’s hands,” said Mark Simons, VP and general manager of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.’s Digital Products Division, in a statement. “Whether you want to immortalize a recent European vacation on HD DVD, simply enjoy the perfection of studio-produced high-definition films with stunning Dolby surround sound, or listen to music, the Qosmio puts a world of opportunity at our fingertips.”

The Santa Rosa-based Q45 sports a 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU with 4 MB of L2 casche, 2 GB of RAM (expandable to 4 GB), 1 GB of Intel Turbo Memory, two 160 GB SATA hard disk drives, and a 17-inch 1,920 by 1,200 pixel LCD display (driven by an Nvidia GeForce 8600M GT graphics controller with 512 MB of VRAM) capable of displaying 1080p content at native resolution. That high-definition content can come from HD DVD discs, of course, or the included external USB HDTV tuner. The system also sports four Harmon Kardon Bass Reflex stereo speakers and a subwoofer, 802.11a/g/n Wi-Fi wireless networking, a remote control, an embedded Webcam and microphone, plus a fingerprint reader. Also on board: Windows Vista Ultimate, gigabit Ethernet, four-pin FireWire, five USB 2.0 ports, HDMI and S-Video output, a 5-in-1 media card reader, an ExpressCard slot, and a modem.

The base configuration of the G45 is available now at leading retailers and from Toshiba Direct for $3,199.99.