Toshiba Has Staggering $$ HD DVD Losses

Now that Toshiba has left the HD DVD format in the past, you might be wondering to yourself: what kind of financial motivation might have been behind this move? While it is hard to speculate exactly how this played into the final equation, we can tell you the Japanese consumer electronics giant took a huge hit in this area.

A recent Bloomberg story tells us exactly how bad Toshiba got slapped. The company reported it would take "a  45 billion yen charge to write down the value of its HD DVD assets, forcing Toshiba to face its first annual profit drop in six years." That works out to nearly $454 million American.

Taken into further analysis, Toshiba said specific losses in the HD DVD group almost doubled "to 65 billion yen this fiscal year, compared with the 50 billion yen deficit forecast earlier." That is $656 million American, give or take.

How ever you look at it, that's an ugly ending folks.

Toshiba Conducts HD DVD Exit Interview with WSJ

Much like a fired employee might do on his way out the door, Toshiba did an exit interview of sorts in yesterday's Wall Street Journal about its HD DVD trials and tribulations. The interview was conducted with Toshiba CEO Atsutoshi Nishida.

Nishida told the WSJ, in summary, that Toshiba realized the time was near when Warner Bros. threw in the towel and switched to Blu-ray at CES. It seriously hurt HD DVD market share and made Toshiba see the battle could not be won. The company did not, however, throw its support behind Blu-ray, but instead promised to develop standard DVD players which improve upon the "upconverting feature" as a way to remain competitive.

HD DVD Nearing End?

Could it be game over for HD DVD? We here at HDDVDFreak feel like of late it has been nothing but negative news to report. Now comes word from industry sources Toshiba could be killing the format altogether some time shortly.

The Hollywood Reporter, citing sources, said Toshiba is "widely expected to pull the plug on its HD DVD format sometime in the coming weeks...after a rash of retail defections that followed Warner Home Video's announcement in early January that it would support only the rival Blu-ray Disc format after May."

Speculation suggests substantial losses related to HD DVD hardware production, dips in HD DVD disc sales and defects from the HD DVD camp may have made Toshiba finally cash in its chips. Toshiba denied it was planning to end HD DVD, but did say it is continuing  "to study the market impact."

HD DVD Ad Runs During Super Bowl

If you happened to miss the HD DVD Super Bowl ad which aired yesterday, we got word someone had put it up on YouTube to view. You can see it above. Dealerscope reports the ad reportedly cost $2.7 million dollars.

Best Buy + Toshiba= 9 Free HD DVDs!

If you have not yet purchased a HD DVD player and are waiting for the right deal to lure you in Best Buy is currently offering a very sweet promotion. It nets you a player + nine free HD DVDs.

This special limited time promotion, according to Best Buy, has you first select any two HD DVD titles under $35. You then choose from a sales list of Toshiba HD DVD players. From there you can follow rebate instructions to get five more HD DVD titles by mail for free.

The first two titles chosen become free when you pick which player you want. This is in addition to getting two free HD DVDs which come packaged with the chosen player.

[via Punch Jump]

Toshiba Dropping HD DVD Player Prices

Toshiba revealed some new HD DVD marketing initiatives today to help bolster sales of the HD DVD format. These moves come as the company declares "record-breaking unit sales in the fourth quarter of 2007."

Toshiba says it had "#1 sales volume in the next generation DVD category with an approximately 50 percent market share in 2007" as well as having an 80 percent plus market share in next generation DVD notebook computers.

In order to entice consumers more into HD DVD, Toshiba dropped prices on some of its players. The entry-model HD-A3 will be $149.99, the HD-A30, with 1080p output, $199.99, and the high-end HD-A35, $299.99. The company will also be conducting "an extended advertising campaign" across multiple media channels.

Toshiba Pushes Ahead with New HD DVD Players

Toshiba is proceeding with the roll out of its next generation of HD DVD players even as it struggles to deal with the news of Warner Bros. fazing out production of HD DVD videos. The CE manufacturer unveiled at CES four new third generation HD DVD players, all available now and ranging in price from around $300 to around $800.

Toshiba said its third generation family "starts with the entry level HD-A3 player featuring 1080i output capability. The other two new models, Toshiba's HD-A30 and HD-A35, output 1080p resolution (1920 x 1080p), the highest HD signal currently available. Both models are capable of outputting signals at 1080p/24 frames per second so consumers can enjoy movies in their native frame rate. The HD-A30 and HD-A35 models also feature "REGZA® Link" (HDMI™-CEC), allowing two-way control between the HD DVD player and a TV through an HDMI connection.

All Toshiba HD DVD players also feature twin video processors and advanced audio to deliver an immersive home theater experience with features such as picture-in-picture video and audio commentary. Thanks to the Ethernet port and flash memory built into every Toshiba HD DVD player, movie lovers also can enjoy the benefits of Web-enabled network connectivity. Plus, Toshiba's third generation players have a new slim design cabinet that is approximately ¼-inch slimmer than second generation models."

Catch the full Toshiba press release after the jump.

New Toshiba Notebook Offers HD DVD-R/RW Drive

Toshiba is getting ready to unleash in the United States its first notebook to feature an HD DVD-R/RW optical drive. Announced at CES, it's called the Qosmio G45-AV690 and you can expect to be a pretty penny for this high end notebook PC: around $3,200.

The Qosmio G45-AV690, with its HD DVD-R/RW optical drive, will let you burn, erase and re-burn data, including home-videos, entire photo albums and music libraries onto a single HD DVD rewritable disc. The laptop is built around a 17-inch widescreen display which offers 1080p resolution. This is truly meant to serve as a desktop replacement model given its size and functions.

Other features of the G45-AV690 will include HDMI output, an Intel Core 2 Duo T9300 processor, NVIDIA’s GeForce 8600M GT GPU3 and Microsoft’s DirectX 10 technology. You also get a bunch of nice add-ins like four Harman Kardon Bass Reflex stereo speakers with a built-in subwoofer, a 1-bit Digital Amplifier, Dolby Home Theater technology and a built-in Web cam. You'll find this all pales though to the HD DVD burner.

Toshiba Release 3rd Generation of HD DVD Players

Toshiba officially release their 3^rd generation HD DVD player lineup at Cedia. The new models, the HD-A3, HD-A30 and HD-A35 are bit thinner than their predecessors and support 1080p24, except for the A3 that is limited to 1080i.

The A30 and A35 will also support CE-Link (HDMI-CEC), allowing two-way control between the HD DVD player and a TV using a simple HDMI connection.

The A3 ($299.99) and A35 ($499.99) are expected in October and the A30 ($399.99) is expected this month.

Source

New HD DVD Recorder From Toshiba

It looks like Toshiba is full of energy when it's time to think about new HD DVD products. The company just unleashed a new VARDIA hybrid HD DVD / HDD recorder in Japan. The new 600GB RD-A600 and 300GB RD-A300 feature a pair of digital hi-vision HD tuners, Firewire, and HDMI and can write to HD DVD-R and DVD-RAM/R/RW media in addition to their respective hard disks. Impressive? Sony, Panasonic and Samsung should be looking at this product.

How much would you be ready to pay for a product like this? What about ¥200,000 (about $1,643) for the RD-A600? That sounds like a reasonable price for a first generation recorder like this one. The North American model will probably be even lower. The RD-A300 costs $199 less and the only difference is the hard disk size.

Availabilty: Later this year…

Buy a HD DVD Player Now for Less Than $200

The HD DVD group has a nice offer for people who want to buy a HD DVD Player from Toshiba. From now to the end of July, if you buy a Toshiba HD DVD player, you will receive 5 HD DVD movies for free, a $100 value at amazon prices.

You can buy he HD-D1 (first generation) at $290.41 right now and the HD-A2 (second generation) is available for $329.99 [affiliate links]. This is still over $200 you would say but if you claim you free movies, your HD DVD player will have cost you only $190 or $229.99 depending on the model you choose. Interested? I am!

I didn't thought we could break the $200 mark so soon! What is the trick? There is no trick but the choice of movies is limited to the following titles:

Apollo 13, Casablanca, Four Brothers, The Rundownm U-571, Seabiscuit, Constantine, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Blazing Saddles, The Perfect Storm, The Chronicles of Riddick, Dukes of Hazard, Sky Captain and the Wolrd of Tomorrow, U2: Rattle and Hum and We Were Soldiers.

Here's also the list of HD DVD players from Toshiba you can buy to be eligible to the offer: HD-A1, HD-XA1, HD-D1, HD-A2, HD-A2W, HD-XA2, HD-D2, HD-A20. This is pretty much all the Toshiba HD DVD players available right now…

This is beating the hell out of the Blu-ray camp who still have a hard time catching up HD DVD on player prices.

Firmware Update 1.5 for Toshiba’s HD DVD Players

Toshiba released a firmware update for many of their HD DVD Players currently on the market. If you are the owner of a HD-XA2, HD-A20, HD-A2, HD-A2W, or HD-D2, the firmware update 1.5 is for you. You need to connect to the internet using the Ethernet port to make the update or call Toshiba ((800) 319-6684) to get the update disc directly from them.

Why do I need this update you say? Here a Q&A released by Toshiba to answer this question:

Cheap External HD DVD Drive From Toshiba

What a nice surprise for HD DVD fans! Toshiba has started shipping the PA35-30U-1HD1, an external USB 2.0 HD DVD drive. It’s not even all that expensive, either, appearing on online stores like Newegg for $370.

The drive can also burn CDs and DVDs (single- and dual-layer). HD DVD speed is only 1x but you will get 4x to DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, and DVD-RW, 16x to CD-R, 10x to CD-RW, 2.4x to DVD+R DL, 2x to DVD-R DL, and 3x to DVD-RAM.

The PA35 delivers 7.1 channels of hi-res audio.

The Blu-ray camp is going to be jealous about that one. At least for a while.

Source

HD DVD Player for Less Than $200?

According to VideoBusiness, retailers are still upbeat about HD DVD, and some say they are anticipating a $100 price cut from Toshiba on its second-generation players. Retailers are saying we should see this price drop within 30 to 60 days.  That would bring the Toshiba’s entry model down to as low as $399.

Sources also mentioned to Videobusiness that we should see Toshiba’s HD-A2 to reach the $299 price point by fall of this year.

Toshiba didn’t comment on those price cuts but we can believe that retailers are getting these information from their representative that are probably doing everything to entertain retailers’ enthusiasm around the HD format.

What doesn't make sense here is that you can already buy the HD-A2 for $366 at Amazon [affiliate]. This is already a $133 price drop from the retail price. If Toshiba cuts the retail price by $100 or $200 by fall, and Amazon adds another rebate on top of that, could we see an HD DVD player for less than $200? This could be a deadly hit for Blu-ray.

Source

Amazon [affiliate]

Toshiba'S HD-XA2 Reviewed

While the first generation Toshiba players were little more than “specific-use” PCs, this 2nd generation player utilizes dedicated HD DVD circuitry, resulting in much faster operation. Slow start up was a major complaint of both buyers and reviewers.

The new player’s startup time from power “off” to “on” and “booted up” has been reduced to a tolerable 35 seconds. It takes just 22 additional seconds to load and begin playing an HD DVD disc. If you leave a disc in the player and shut it off, powering back up and playing the HD DVD disc will commence in 45 seconds.

The HD-XA2’s biggest improvement compared to 1st generation HD DVD players as well as competing Blu-ray units is its signal processing abilities, converting native 480i content to enhanced or high definition output (480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p).

According to HDGuru, Toshiba managed to release a more decent HD DVD Player this time. The loading time of the first generation was simply unacceptable. Still, almost a minute before you can start to watch a movie is even longer than Windows XP!

Bottom line the new HD-XA2 HD DVD player from Toshiba is a good player and you should be pleased with what you will get.

More details about the Toshiba through this Amazon affiliate link. The product is on sale at $809.99! This is $490 discount?!

Toshiba ships 2G HD-DVD Player

"Yes, got A2 from BB today! Had my A1 in to their repair facility for over a month and they said not repairable, so gave me exchange for A2. I tried to get A2 before lunch today but had not come in yet!

Behold, got phone call from BB at 1PM and UPS just delivered the first A2 shipment so dashed over and picked it up.

I know there are many questions, and I only had chance to do quick test but so far it's much better than A1 for performance. I checked out the first problem title for most folks with E.O.Days and played TrueHD track flawless not lag, pause or hiccups at all. Then checked out some of KK just to be sure it works and just fine with it."[AVSForum]

Toshiba began the shipment of their second generation HD DVD player. This user from AVSforum just received the HD-A2 player. If most of the annoying bugs and unacceptable loading times of the A1 are corrected, Toshiba could expect better sales figures for this unit. We will have to wait and see in a few weeks if that becomes a reality or not. Check the Toshiba website for more information on the HD-A2 Player.

via Gizmodo

Toshiba new Slim HD DVD Drive for Laptops

Here’s the Toshiba slim HD DVD optical drive for laptops. The SD-L902A measures 12.7-millimeters in height and integrates a blue laser that can read and write to HD DVD-R, access HD DVD-ROM media and act as a multi-drive to read and write to to DVD and CD discs.

A second generation HD DVD player from Toshiba

Toshiba today announced the release of their second generation HD DVD player this fall in the US. The new players named the HD-A2 and HD-XA2, should be available this fall and are very similar to the europeen models announced earlier. The XA2 will feature an HDMI 1.3 output with 1080p. According to hdbeat, the A2 will start shipping in October for a price of $499, while the HD-XA2 will debut in December with a price-tag of $999.

Can Toshiba Drop the HD DVD Format?

According to Reuters, Toshiba said it aims to ship a total of 500,000 HD DVD players and recorders worldwide in the next 7 months.

U.S. and Japan. We plan to ship another 300,000 by the end of the year," Yoshihide Fujii, the head of Toshiba's digital consumer business, told Reuters in an interview on Saturday. Toshiba believes it can ship 200,000 units in the first quarter of 2007.

HD DVD vs Blu-ray war and if studios are dropping the format, Toshiba could probably do so as well.

Toshiba Announces Qosmio(TM) Digital Entertainment Notebook with HD DVD-ROM Drive

Toshiba today introduced the Qosmio(TM) G35-AV650, the first notebook PC shipping in the U.S. to incorporate an HD DVD-ROM drive(1) that allows users to enjoy the dazzling realism and clarity of high-definition digital entertainment in a portable device.

Toshiba Tours America to Promote the Launch of HD-DVD Players

Toshiba America Consumer Products, L.L.C. ("Toshiba"), announced today details of an integrated marketing communications plan to launch its line-up of HD-DVD Players. The Toshiba HD-DVD Players, models HD-XA1 and HD-A1, will be the first HD-DVD Players to hit the U.S. market and will begin shipping to retailers in March of this year.

Broadcom Powers Toshiba's HD-DVD Players with a High-Performance HD Video Decoder Chip

Broadcom Corporation today announced that Toshiba's recently announced (HD-XA1 and HD-A1) HD-DVD Players use Broadcom's high definition audio/video decoder chip. This high- speed multi-codec decoder chip enables Toshiba's box to decode and output compressed content from an HD-DVD formatted disc.

Toshiba Introduces Line-Up Of First HD-DVD Players for the U.S. Market

Toshiba unveiled today the market launch details for its line-up of the first High Definition DVD players for the U.S. market. The new HD-DVD Players, models HD-XA1 and HD-A1, will take advantage of the superior capabilities of the HD DVD format, including outstanding visual quality supported by leading- edge video compression technologies, the high resolution audio specifications and the capability for enhanced functionality including, Advanced Navigation, also referred to as "iHD."

Toshiba Showcasing First Notebook Computer with HD DVD-ROM Drive at CES 2006

Continuing to drive the mobile computing industry with innovation, Toshiba's Digital Products Division (DPD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems Inc., is demonstrating an HD DVD- ROM drive-equipped Qosmio(TM) audio-video notebook PC at its CES booth this week, the first notebook computer to integrate an optical drive under the DVD Forum's new HD DVD media standard.
Combining stunning visual detail and enhanced audio capabilities, the HD DVD drive-equipped Qosmio will allow consumers to be able to enjoy high-definition video content anywhere in the home or on the go with external power. With its similar disc structure, HD DVD is backwards-compatible with the current DVD formats. The drive can read or write current DVD formats, allowing users to continue playing compatible discs in their existing DVD collections, offering the optimum entertainment notebook PC experience.
Other benefits of HD DVD include discs that offer 30GB of storage capacity, enough for playing long-running high-definition movies, and discs that are less sensitive to surface blemishes and fingerprints.
"Toshiba is leading the industry in bringing HD DVD technology to market to allow people to enjoy high-definition video content," said Mark Simons, vice president and general manager, Digital Products Division, Toshiba America Information Systems. "Our Qosmio line has always been at the cutting edge of digital convergence, but with HD DVD we are now integrating consumer electronics innovation into the notebook PC simultaneously with its introduction into CE products."
The Qosmio will feature several new technologies to enhance the playback of HD DVD video content, including:
--Intel� Centrino� Duo mobile technology-based platform (code- named "Napa") built around Intel's first mobile dual-core processor;
--the world's first 1-bit digital amplifier in a notebook PC, often featured in high-end audio systems;
--new bass-reflex speaker technology from harman/kardon�, allowing greater amplification and clarity;
--Dolby Home Theater(TM), delivering a richer, more engaging surround sound experience from stereo and multichannel audio sources through headphone, 2- or 5.1-channel speaker system;
--Toshiba original HD DVD playback software;
--new Toshiba Ultimate TruBrite(TM) display with enhanced color saturation for more life-like images that supports resolution up to 1080p signal format;
--and next-generation NVIDIA� graphics for state-of-the-art performance.
"Toshiba's new notebook offers the best in entertainment, combining their innovative notebook design with integrated HD DVD and Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005," said Kevin Unangst, director of Windows Digital Media at Microsoft Corp. "This is a fantastic advancement in delivering high-definition entertainment experiences in an affordable, flexible notebook form factor."
"With an integrated HD DVD drive, the Toshiba Qosmio is a great example of a cutting-edge notebook based on Intel Centrino Duo mobile technology that can deliver a generational leap forward in users' entertainment experiences," said Keith Kressin, director of marketing, Intel's Mobile Platforms Group. "Using Intel Centrino Duo- based Toshiba notebooks, people can more fully immerse themselves in music, games and high-definition movies, TV and video."
Qosmio (pron. "koss-mee-oh") is Toshiba's flagship "four-in-one" audio-video notebook PC featuring an integrated TV tuner, digital video recorder (DVR), virtual surround-sound stereo and all the capabilities of a powerful, full-featured notebook PC with Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005.
Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 delivers advanced computing and easy-to-use integrated digital entertainment, including live and recorded television, movies, music, photos and radio, that consumers can enjoy when and how they want. It provides an all-in-one digital entertainment hub, accessible on either a PC monitor or TV display, using a single remote control.
Pricing, availability and specific model number and configuration for the next-generation Qosmio with integrated HD DVD will be announced later in Q106. Some advanced HD DVD features may be limited in initial product.

Toshiba Exhibits HD DVD Player at CEATEC JAPAN 2005

Toshiba Corporation today announced that it would demonstrate its prototype HD DVD player at CEATEC JAPAN 2005, Asia's premier international exhibition of high-technology and electronics.

Toshiba's Statement on Intel and Microsoft's Announcement to Support HD DVD

Toshiba Corporation is delighted to learn that Intel and Microsoft Corporation have announced their support for HD DVD, the next generation DVD format.
Toshiba actively promotes HD DVD and serves as the chair of the DVD Forum, the industry organization that has defined the specifications of HD DVD as the next-generation DVD format.

Toshiba First in World to Develop Notebook PC with HD DVD-ROM Drive

Toshiba Corporation today brought high-definition imaging to portable computing with the development of the world's first notebook PC integrating a slim-type HD DVD-ROM drive. Toshiba plans to commercialize the new PC by the beginning of 2006, initially in Japan, giving computer users access to high definition video images recorded in the HD DVD format.

Toshiba Develops Dual-Layer HD DVD-R Discs

Toshiba Corporation today reconfirmed the flexibility and expandability of the HD DVD format with the announcement of a 30GB dual-layer HD DVD-R (recordable) disc that extends the capacity for a write-once next generation DVD disc.

Toshiba Announces Industry's First HD-DVD Players for the U.S. Market

Toshiba Corporation today marked a major milestone in the history of the consumer electronics industry and the world of home entertainment with the announcement of the March 2006 commercial launch of the industry's first HD-DVD Players in the USA.