All those still hanging onto your obsolete vintage first generation HD DVD players have a reason to plug in the network cable and turn them on one more time, as Toshiba has issued a version 3.0 firmware update for the HD-A1, HD-XA1 and HD-D1. Similar to an earlier update for the Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on, the patch tweaks network connectivity a bit as well as clearing up some HDMI handshaking issues. The update quietly came online April 26, and of course can be issued by burning it to a CD or calling Toshiba and requesting a disc by mail. So go ahead, pour a glass of wine, dim the lights and celebrate a little quality time with a two year-old box that still offers features some new players can't match.

[Via DVD Town]

If you'll recall, Dolby Technologies actually introduced its Dolby Volume solution last fall, but now the firm has announced that it'll be a built-in component of several Toshiba HDTVs. The REGZA ZH500 and ZV500 families, which launch in Japan next month, are both set to include the outfit's audio-processing technology, and in case you couldn't tell, it specializes in keeping volume levels consistent regardless of audio source. Finally, a simple method to overcome those blaring commercials -- just buy a new TV!

Although Best Buy was purging its stores of HD DVD titles months ago, it seems the dream is still alive in the Dominican Republic. Thanks to snapshots taken by a tipster who recently vacationed there, we get a real good look at what kind of premium the Toshiba HD-A3 (11,999 Dominican pesos, or around $353) is still pulling in. Even weirder? The only Blu-ray player in attendance was a PlayStation 3 (going for around $550). Either we've just hit the twilight zone, or folks move really slow in paradise.

[Thanks, Dennis]

A year ago today Toshiba was announcing ¥26.17 billion in profits for the quarter. Today, just ¥1.25 billion or about $12 million. In addition to the $580 million hit on account of its withdrawal from HD DVD, Toshiba also saw a swift decline in flash memory prices. While bad news for Toshiba on all accounts, we consumers are basking in a market dominated by a single high-def optical disc standard and cheap NAND and DRAM pricing. Sorry Tosh, but you won't find any tears around here.

In Japan, the hand can be used as a knife. You also can't swing a Yume Neko Smile cat without defacing a 1080p TV with built-in Ethernet and a hard disk drive recorder. Case in point, Toshiba's latest batch of REGZA LCDs, ten in all. The top of the line ZH500 series measures in at 52- (52ZH500) and 46-inches (46ZH500) with 120Hz VA panels, 4x HDMI (1080/60p, 24p) inputs, 3x Ethernet (with DLNA support), 2x USB, Bluetooth, Firewire, SD slot, and a DVR to record your shows to the built-in 300GB disk. These lack the eSATA jack found in the 42-, 37-, and 32-inch RH500 series, but you can add more disk over Ethernet via an I-O Data REGZA drive wrapped in DTCP-IP DRM to keep your HD recordings off the global torrents. Rounding things out are the 42- and 37-inch ZV500 series of 120HZ IPS panel LCDs and the relatively low-end, 42-, 37-, and 32-inch CV500 series of diskless TVs. Prices will range from ¥160,000 ($1,560) on up to about $5,850 when products start hitting shelves between April and June. Pics of the in/outs on the ZH500s after the break.

Read - ZH500 and ZV500 series
Read -- RH500 and CV500 series

Granted, Toshiba Imaging's IK-HD1 3CCD HDTV Camera may not matter much to the consumer as-is, but we're all about the progress. Ready to make its grand, er, wee entrance at NAB Show later this month, the aforementioned unit touts the planet's smallest HD camera head (1.6-inches; 2.3-ounces), which should give program producers in tight spots one less reason to not capture content in high-def. In that vein, Tosh even notes that its ability to capture at 1,920 x 1,080 at 30fps makes it "highly suitable for reality TV (you getting this, producers?), specialty broadcast, sports, news and commercials." We know, this totally opens the door for an HD version of Punk'd, but hey, you can't win 'em all.

Here at Engadget HD, we have a special place in our hearts for HDMI-CEC, but things can get sticky when buying components from different manufacturers. Fret not, as Onkyo's latest AV receiver manages to play nice with Panasonic's Viera Link, Toshiba's REGZA Link and Sharp's AQUOS Link all the same. The TX-SA606X, which is available in silver or a Mr. T-approved gold finish, also boasts HDMI 1.3 connectors, Dolby TrueHD / DTS-MA decoders, a 185-watt x 7 internal amplifier, optical / coaxial audio inputs and a smorgasbord of other video ports. Unsurprisingly, such a multifaceted unit won't run you cheap, as interested consumers will be asked to hand over ¥84,000 ($839) when it lands on April 29th.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Haven't you heard? OLEDs are gearing up to take over the display world, making your fancy LCD something you'll wrap fish with. Taking up the point in the quest for world domination is Sony's XEL-1, which we admit puts out a great, albeit small, picture. Lab tests by Tech-On, however, show the 11-inch display has an appetite for power that belies its diminutive size. Check out the link for some insight to the wizardry that makes the XEL-1 work, including ramping down panel brightness after turn-on and insertion of "blanking" frames. But eyebrows at the lab arched a little when the unit ate up 28.4-Watts to produce a pure white image. While that figure won't send your electric meter into Whirling Dervish mode, the CEO of Toshiba says that at sizes beyond 30-inches, OLEDs consume 2 - 3 times more juice than LCDs. These kind of challenges are nothing new to emerging technology, and we're sure manufacturers will get things under control; but for now (in an increasingly "green" world), there are still hurdles.

[Via SmartHouse]

Yeah, we've seen some retail mix-ups before, but this one really leaves us scratching our heads. We know -- it can take some time before word trickles down and stores start slashing prices once a major high-definition movie format kicks the bucket, but a full month after we sadly let HD DVD go, this particular Office Depot -- located in Houston, Texas -- still hasn't come to terms with reality. And yes, this was snapped within the last 24 hours.

[Thanks, Thomas]

This most certainly isn't the first time we've heard of a firmware update causing more harm than good, but apparently, the latest version -- which supposedly enables 1080p24 output on the HD-A30 / HD-A35 -- is creating all sorts of headaches. According to a lengthy thread over at AVS Forum, the HD DVD faithful that are hanging tight to their players are growing increasingly frustrated by the addition of jaggies on MPEG4 / AVC discs when played back in 1080p24 -- a problem that was also present in the last HD-XA2 firmware. Worse still, it seems as though Toshiba isn't stepping up to address the issue, and considering that its format has now passed away, many are wondering if a bona fide solution will ever surface. If you've been battling this very quirk, head on down to the read link to check out a few workarounds -- here's to hoping a real fix emerges in the not-too-distant future.

[Thanks, Colin H.]

Just in case Japan felt left out from all the LCD love Toshiba distributed at CES, rest easy, they have a 32-inch 1080p LCD on the way March 16. Equipped with 1080p/24 support, "Twin Velocity" motion processing, high res PC input, HDMI jacks and standard OTA tuners, the Regza 32C800 is expected to fetch about 190,000 yen ($1,819 U.S.)

[Via Impress]

While even the most steadfast red fans have accepted things are over for HD DVD, it appears Dreamworks Animation isn't able to let the format war go. Even though Paramount seems to have found a way out from under its exclusivity deal, Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg told Reuters he still needs to hear from Toshiba what to do with the truckloads of money HD DVD gave them about its agreement before making any Blu-ray release plans. He seems (to be the only one) worried about the upcoming DVD release of Bee Movie and what will happen there. An analyst quoted said they should certainly have this taken care of by the holiday season, which would only be six to eight months after HD DVD manufacturing has ceased to be. We have a feeling it won't take that long to turn Shrek Blu.

It's that time again, and this week's "How would you change" over on Engadget Classic has a whole lot to do with HD. We've been seeing comments flood in for weeks on who did what wrong and lots more he said-she said shenanigans, so we're finally giving you all a single venue to vent your frustrations. Go on, click over and loose your master plan for changing the format war.

In an attempt to clear their shelves of dead HD DVD weight, retailers are taking the obvious step of slashing prices. Others, like play.com are renaming the players. Thanks to the magic of Google cache, we see that Toshiba's "HD-EP30 HD DVD Player" (as it was known on February 15th) is now listed as the "HD-EP30 HDMI Upscaling Player with HD DVD High Definition Playback." Caveat emptor, as they say.

[Via TechRadar, thanks David]

Read -- Old listing (via Google Cache)
Read -- Current listing

It's not like there has been any shortage of deals on HD DVD hardware over the past few months or anything, but now that Toshiba (and almost everyone else on the planet) has officially yanked support for the format, prices are beginning to plummet en masse. First on the docket is the HD-A3 at Circuit City, which now sits at just $99.99 and comes with seven free titles, two of which are 300 and Bourne Identity. So yeah, if you've been waiting for this moment to snap up the failed format for cheap, hop on in -- but if we were betting souls, we'd say holding out just a wee bit longer would actually be in your wallet's best interest.

[Thanks, Dustin]