14 DAY TRIAL // Toshiba unveiled today their new Qosmio G40/F40 series of notebooks to come with an HD-DVD optical media writer. The company has managed once again to push the notebooks' limits until they have become a true replacement for desktop computers. The model is industry's first notebook to feature an HD-DVD recorder and can write HD camcorder video or digital terrestrial broadcasts on HD DVD-R and HD DVD-RW media at 2x speed.
The notebook features a 17-inch widescreen that includes Toshiba's "HD QosmioEngine" that delivers sharp and crisp HD playback with natural colors. The "HD Rec" format allows the user to record HD content on conventional DVD discs, while the "Dubbing 10" feature gives the user the opportunity to execute up to 9 copies of a single protected DVD.
The Dual Digital TV tuners allow the user to record two channels at the same time, and then burn the recording on an HD-DVD-R or an HD-DVD-RW disc. If the TV broadcast is protected, the number of allowed copies will be limited to 9, just like any protected DVD. At the moment, HD DVD-R media are available in Japan under the MKM brand. HD DVD-RW media are still unavailable and there are no signs that they will hit the market anytime soon.
Toshiba's Qosmio G40 is powered by a 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and an nVidia GeForce 8600 GPU and includes a Harman/Kardon 4-speaker sound system, two ground digital tuners, 2GB of memory and 802.11 a/b/g wireless LAN. The G40 model comes with a 400GB hard drive and a 17 inch (1,920?1,200) display, while the F40 comes with a 200Gig drive and 15.4 inch (1,280?800) display. As for the operating system, both notebooks run Windows Vista Premium.
The Quosmio series is scheduled to hit the Japanese market on December 21, just in time for Christmas. The Qosmio G40 will have a retail price of $3526, while the Qosmio F40 will sell for $2650.