The rest of the system isn't bad either: DVI output for driving a second monitor at 1,920 by 1,200 pixels, support for up to 4 GB of RAM, gigabit Ethernet, four USB 2.0 ports, and FireWire port, Dolby Surround Sound with four speakers, 7.1 192 KHz/32-bit audio, 7-in-1 card reader, an 8× dual-layer DVD burner, and an Express Card slot. 1 Beyond will fit out the system with WIndows XP or Vista, and Adobe Creative Suite 3, Avid Express Pro with Mojo, and Grass Valley Edius are available as bundled software.

Of course, the GoFlex317 is intended for on-the-go high-definition video production and post-production work, not LAN parties, and carries a starting price tag in line with those purposes. Of course, the company might Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Extreme versions for a slightly lower price. Might be worth asking.

And if the GoFlex317 doesn't satisfy serious notebook fans…1 Beyond also makes military grade ruggedized notebooks.

Key features of the GoFlex317 HD:

Disk performance and reliability:

• Three SATA2 100 or 200 GB 7200rpm internal drives
• Performance of >60 MB/sec at RAID 5
• RAID 0/1/5 support

High system performance:

• Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4Ghz/ E6700 2.66Ghz or Core 2 Extreme Edition X6800 2.93Ghz CPU, 1066MHz FSB
• Up to 4 GB Memory
• PCI-Express buss
• Real time HD video editing with Effects

Superior Graphics:

• Latest NVIDIA GeForce Go 7950 GTX, 512MB, PCI-Express
• 17” 1920 X 1200 resolution polished LCD
• DVI connection for 2nd and 3rd monitor

Additional features:

• 8x DVD burner dual layer drive (Blu-Ray optional)
• High Definition audio, 8 channels 192 kHz/32-bit quality
• Dolby Surround Sound, S/PDIF, 4 speakers
• Built-in digital video camera and microphone
• Gigabit LAN, Wi-Fi A/G/N, Bluetooth, Infrared
• Express card slot
• Built-n 7-in-1 Card reader: MS, MMC, SD
• IEEE 1394 Firewire port, 4 USB 2.0
• Full size keyboard with separate numeric keypad

The 1.6in, 2.3oz HD camera head and compact control unit make the IK-HD1 well suited for broadcast applications and other imaging tasks where space is limited.

The IK-HD1 HDTV system uses Toshiba's proprietary 3-CCD prism block technology, delivering true color, good contrast and detail from the small camera head. Features include 1920 x 1080 resolution at 30fps; a C-mount lens flange and RS232C serial interface; and multiple outputs for HD-SDI (SMPTE 292M), analog RGB or Y/Pb/Pr.
Accessories for the system include a 4mm or 15mm lens and various lengths of camera cables.

Toshiba this week announced that it is to launch its first notebook PC with built-in rewritable HD DVD drive.

The Qosmio Series 2 will initially launch in Japan, where arguably they can put it to much more use that us lowly high-definition-catcher-uppers in the West.

The notebook will feature either the 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T7500 or 2GHz Core 2 Duo T7250 processor, 15.4 or 17 inch display offering 1,280x800 or 1,920x1,200 resolution respectively, plus 2GB of RAM, up to 400GB hard drive, TV tuners, and battery life of over three hours. Pre-installed with Windows Vista Home Ultimate (with Premium and Business capabilities)

Taking their place as a decent portable entertainment device, these notebooks can receive two TV channels at once, and record high definition content to standard DVDs, albeit in small amounts, thanks to HD Rec technology.

For those who've been in a cave for the last couple of years, Toshiba are probably one of the biggest fans of HD DVD (having developed it), and this notebook adds to their portfolio of devices which can read and write the high definition disc format.

They'll cost from $2,600 to $3,500, but no word on if and when they'll be arriving over here.

Source: TechDigest.tv

Dubbed CH-DVD (China High Definition DVD), the new high-def DVD has been developed by the Optical Memory National Engineering Research Center (OMNERC), a laboratory inside the Tsinghua University, in collaboration with other research institutes and manufacturing enterprises at home and abroad.

The relationship between Toshiba’s HD DVD and the CH-DVD is very close, since the latter is designed based on the HD DVD specifications, but also includes Chinese intellectual property. CHDA will play a leadership role in the promotion of CH-DVD, and will make a big push to launch CH-DVD player into the Chinese market in 2008.

The CH-DVD boasts with advanced copy-protection features (piracy being one of China’s greatest plagues), which should effectively prevent the spreading of pirated discs.

HD DVD and CH DVD are compatible, which means HD DVD players (with additional software) can read CH DVD, and vice versa.

The news of a third next-gen DVD format comes in a time of intense fighting between the two main rivals, Toshiba and Sony. Toshiba allegedly paid $150 to Paramount and DreamWorks for the two studios’ exclusive support for HD DVD, while Sony claimed at the end of August an early lead in front of its home ground rival, with 1 million Blu Ray discs sold in the US, and 250,000 sold in Europe. According to Sony's estimates, Blu-ray discs now account for 69% of the total high-definition market in Europe, with Sony titles making up more than 47% of the total European Blu-ray market.

However, with the launch of this third format, China becomes the preferred territory for the high-def battle. At the beginning of September, China Film Group, one of China’s largest film distribution groups, had also adopted the Bly Ray in detriment of HD DVD, while Toshiba responded with the launch of a super-cheap, $199 HD DVD player from Venturer Electronics, a Canadian-based distributor of Chinese made consumer electronics.

The player, which will be on North American store shelves in Q4 2007, is called SHD7000 and features 1080i video output, an HDMI connection (to upconvert standard DVD to near HD quality) and Ethernet connectivity, which allows for network access to studios and third parties via the Internet. Toshiba currently sells its HD-A2 HD DVD player for $299 after a $100 manufacturer’s rebate.

And to spice things up even more, on September 7, the DVD Forum officially approved on August 31 the 51 GB single-sided triple-layer HD DVD disc (an extension to the HD DVD standard, which was submitted by Toshiba in April) for production. With this approval, the HD DVD camp not only demolishes the Blu Ray camp’s argument that the BD is better because it can store more information, but also surpasses Blu Ray, which can only hold 50GB of data.

Source: eFluxMedia

The studio-created site, dubbed Universal Studios Home Entertainment Hi Def, is designed to be an extensive consumer portal for all things Universal HD DVD. Among the site's offerings are a FAQ covering the format's current interactive features, extensive technical support (including connection issues and a breakdown of common software and hardware error codes) and previews of upcoming releases.

But most exciting are a number of site sections still under construction, which seem to suggest that the studio is planning to use the site as a launching pad for future web-enabled content. Labeled "Coming Soon" are several features, including something called "U-Shop," which apparently will allow consumers to buy exclusive products while they watch the movie; "Best Buddies," where fans will be able to send friends pointers to favorite clips on a given an HD DVD title via the studio's "MyScenes" feature; and a dedicated Download Center.

Universal is also promising that additional content will be made available only to registered users of the site, including trailers and other exclusive material.

Source: Hi-Def Digest

The diagonal screen sizes of 65”, 52” and 46” are all full HD screen arrays of 1920 x 1080 pixels.

The qualities which make these new LCD monitors so truly professional are their build-quality and durability. They are specifically designed for displaying images 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.

With such reliability and longevity combining with the uppermost level of high definition imaging, these giant LCD monitors are targeting the seriously top end display applications, where only the very best will suffice.

Such applications could be as multi-view displays in broadcast control studios and OB vans, in large CAD/CAM workstations, in specialist round-the-clock monitoring rooms and in conference halls, notably where projection is not suited or is not feasible.

Other obvious uses are as point of sales (POS) and point of information (POI) displays, such as may be required for superior networked digital signage systems, like TV-TOOLS from JVC.

As to be expected of such displays, they are rich with features, like picture-in-picture (PiP), picture-by-picture (PbP) and tile matrix. Connectivity covers all possibilities: analogue and digital, video and data, looped-through DVI with wired remote control via RS-232.

Although the LCD displays come in the three sizes of 46”, 52” and 65”, there are actually four models in total, because 65” has a different model number according to whether it will be mounted in landscape or portrait mode.

The range has a common prefix is GD-FH standing for Graphic Display – Full HD, 1920 x 1080. With a base stand supplied as standard, other mounting methods are included in the optional accessories.

Prices start at under £4,000 and the range is available from November 2007.

Source: Broadcastbuyer