We’re gamers, but we like our gadgets, right? We also like our mobile gaming. But mobile TV or recorded programs? Unless you like jerry-rigging some content and plugging it into a memory card for your PlayStation Portable (PSP), you’re probably not used to taking your movies and TV shows with you on the go. Panasonic and Comcast want to change your mind in 2009.
Today at CES, Panasonic and Comcast unveiled the AnyPlay Portable DVR (P-DVR), which will let Comcast customers record programming at home and take it with them on the road. The P-DVR will be available in “early 2009.”
The AnyPlay P-DVR Model TZ-LC100 incorporates digital video recording functionality into a Panasonic portable DVD player. The AnyPlay P-DVR features 60GB of digital video recording capacity, an 8.5″ folding LCD display screen and integrated speakers. Dual audio headphone jacks are also included for personal (i.e. “get the heck away from me and let me watch TV in silence”) viewing.
When placed onto its docking station, which also functions as a standard DVR set-top box, the AnyPlay P-DVR lets viewers watch and record their favorite television programs from their television sets. However, unlike a traditional set-top box, it can be taken out of its docking station so recorded programs can be watched anywhere. It also can playback DVDs and audio CDs.
For those of us without a DVD player in our cars, road trips with the kids might also have gotten just a bit easier. Reaason: the AnyPlay P-DVR comes with a 12V DC adapter for automotive use. When you’re at home, the AnyPlay P-DVR can be powered through the docking station, which also acts as a battery charger, or through its own internal battery when undocked.
The tru2way technology powering the AnyPlay is also behind another announcement Panasonic made today at CES: select models of Panasonic’s Viera HDTV will include tru2way technology and are expected to be available at retail later this year. In markets served by Comcast and other cable providers that have upgraded their networks to support tru2way technology, the Viera Plasma HDTVs are able to access the full range of interactive digital cable video services, including video on demand and interactive program guides without a set-top-box.