Audio Video News

The problem with technological progress is that it litters our racks with legacy components and faces us with painful choices: That old VHS machine isn't getting much use. Should I exile it to the closet? But then, what if I want to play something from the tape library? If you're Japanese, you won't have to decide. That's where Panasonic will introduce a hybrid Blu-ray and VHS recorder next month.

Not only will the DMR-BR630V write Blu-ray discs and VHS tapes. It will also have a 320-gigabyte hard drive, so you can record and dub to either format. Or both. It's also a convergence player, thanks to Panasonic's Viera Link.

Price will be $1450. Considering that the product replaces three other devices, it might even be worth that to many folks with a rack that needs decluttering. Will Panasonic bring it to the U.S.? So far, no one in the Blu-ray camp has sold a BD component recorder (as opposed to a component player or a recording computer drive) in this country. Stay tuned.