Panasonic to Bring Blu-ray Disc Burners to Europe

Panasonic will soon begin selling Blu-ray Disc-based video recorders in Europe, it said Thursday at the IFA electronics show in Berlin. The company put its first Blu-ray Disc burners on sale several years ago in Japan but the planned launch of the products in France later this year marks the first time they will be available in Europe.

Using the recorders, consumers will be able to record high-definition TV programs to Blu-ray Disc without losing quality. The only other options available are to record at standard definition to DVD or VHS tape or in high-definition to hard-disk drive, although the latter makes saving favorite programs difficult because of the limited amount of disc space available [...]

Panasonic unveils rugged ultra-mobile pc

Panasonic will be announcing an ultra-mobile pc for field workers suitable for extreme environments in August this year for around $2,499.

Following features are:

• Processor : Intel Atom
• Dimensions : 7-inches wide, 6-inches deep, and 2-inches high
• Screen : 5.6 inches
• Keyboard : QWERTY
• Memory : 1 GB
• HDD : 16 GB removable drive
• Camera : 2 mega pixel
• Battery : 9 hours

Along with that, WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G mobile internet connectivity is also available.


"Panasonic has built the new Toughbook CF-U1 but our customers have designed it," said Kyp Walls, director (Product Management) at Panasonic Computer Solutions. "The form and functionality is a direct result of more than two years of feedback solicited from an array of government and commercial organizations seeking to address the needs of a broad range of mobile users," Walls said.

The computer operates on Windows XP, Windows Vista (OSes) is good for construction sites, mining operations, refineries, warehouses etcetera.