Report: Toshiba to sell Blu-ray player
Once the major force behind the failed HD DVD format, Toshiba may finally be launching its own Blu-ray player, according to a report in Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun.
Toshiba, which lost the HD DVD vs. Blu-ray battle in early 2008, is reportedly readying a player that will read both Blu-ray discs and DVDs and will appear in stores by year's end.
Quoting unnamed sources, Yomiuri Shimbun reported over the weekend that Toshiba had been thinking of developing yet another technology to combat Blu-ray but gave up the ghost because of the huge growing market for Blu-ray players and discs.
The company will start with play-only models but may consider a recordable Blu-ray player if market demand calls for it, the newspaper said. Toshiba's entry into the Blu-ray arena would mark the last holdout among all the major electronics manufacturers.
Toshiba fought long and hard in its two-year battle promoting HD DVD over Blu-ray, finally admitting defeat in early last year. Since then, the tech world has wondered if and when Toshiba would unveil a Blu-ray player.
Lance Whitney wears a few different technology hats--journalist, Web developer, and software trainer. He's a contributing editor for Microsoft TechNet Magazine and writes for other computer publications and Web sites. You can follow Lance on Twitter at @lancewhit. Lance is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and he is not an employee of CNET. 
Well that's good. Since you know. All Blu-ray players play DVDs. It helps when you fulfill the requirements.
Also there's the benefits of holding a physical disc in your hand which you'll have to watch whenever forever.
My public library also carries Blu-ray Discs now. My Blockbuster has for some time, and rentals are the same price for BD and DVD. Per-watch viewing (at least for me) hasn't seemed to increased.
I don't know. Personally I prefer having physical media. It lasts a long time when you buy it, is high quality, etc. I still have VHS tapes and I'll be watching them for years. I still have DVDs. Same. I won't be rebuying them on BD, but at least new movies will be bought on BD. I'll have my BDs for a long time as well, I can pick every title I bought from my collection and play it on a whim without buffering in the highest quality with the best sound.
- by hightechfanboy July 22, 2009 1:37 PM PDT
- "If you can't win against the enemy, join them" It will be stupid for toshiba to come up with a new format to fight blu-ray, sounded more like some egos got hurt and not a good business decicion. Look at Sony they went along with VHS and waited the right time when they knew consumers needed a better format to go along with those flatscreens tvs that were pooping everywhere.
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