Toshiba moves in with HD DVD

Darius Chang | May 11, 2006

The optical format war seems to be coming to a head, with competing Blu-Ray and HD DVD going head-to-head to succeed the DVD as the next-generation optical storage standard. Though desktop optical drives are already in production, the prohibitive cost of the new format is a major obstacle.

But come May 27, notebook enthusiasts can look forward to the first notebook with an HD DVD optical drive. Toshiba's flagship series will add a new member, the Qosmio G30, at the Mobile Netlifestyle in Singapore at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza. Besides expecting a quality entertainment experience with this system, the G30 is notable for having an integrated HD DVD drive.

According to Toshiba, the drive is not only compatible with current DVDs and CDs, but HD DVD disks will also be cheaper than its competitors as the manufacturing process is similar to current DVD production. We look forward to updating the Qosmio G30 review when the new HD DVD units roll into the region.