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Toshiba is driving demand of the standard DVD with the launch of a new advanced player, after abandoning its efforts to beat Blu-ray with the now defunct HD-DVD format.
The XD-E500 is an upconverting player which apparently improves the visuals of a standard DVD disk, while costing much less than a Blu-ray system at $149.99.
At a product demonstration, Toshiba was insistent the device was not a Blu-ray rival. "If you want Blu-ray, go get Blu-ray. This product is meant to improve playback of DVDs," said Louis Masses, director of product planning for the audio and video group at Toshiba America Consumer Products.
This follows various reports that the mainstream audience is happy with standard DVDs, and is reluctant to migrate to Blu-ray yet.
Link: Associated Press
