Toshiba Ships HD DVD-R Notebook in Japan

Toshiba begun shipping its HD DVD-writing Qosmio G30/97A notebook in Japan...and says it plans to bring the system to international markets.

Electronics and computer maker Toshiba has begun shipping its Qosmio G30/97A (Japanese link) notebook computer in Japan, marking the first time a notebook system has shipped with an HD DVD-R drive. Toshiba announced the system in January at CES, but at the time didn’t reveal any pricing or available information; now, Toshiba is offering the systems to consumers for about ¥373,365 (just under $3,100 USD) and says the system will definitely be offered overseas, although the company still doesn’t have timetables or pricing.

The G30/97A is an entertainment-focused notebook with 1 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a standard 1 GB of RAM, and a 17-inch, 1,920 by 1,280 pixe LCD display powered by an Nvidia GeForce Go 7600 controller with 256 MB of dedicated video RAM. The notebook offers a bevy of A/V features including analog and digital TV tuner plus VGA, S-Video, and HDMI output. Add in gigabit Ethernet USB 2.0, 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi wireless networking, a PCMCIA slot, an ExpressCard slot, a multi-format media card reader, and the aforementioned HD DVD-R drive. The notebook weighs a hefty 10.6 pounds and will ship with Windows Vista Home Premium. But if you absolutely need to burn to HD DVD—to archive video footage or (ahem) back up precious media—the G30/97A can burn up to 15 GB on a single-sided HD DVD blank media—which Hitachi-Maxell is now offering to consumers for ¥1,500 each (about $$12.40 USD)—while you’re sipping a choice beverage and surfing the Internet at your favorite Internet café.