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To be showcased at CEATEC JAPAN 2001 in early October, the DMR-HS1 contains a 40Gb hard drive, capable of recording 52 hours of content, and can also burn 12 hours' worth of material onto a double-sided DVD-RAM or DVD-R disc.

The unit also reads DV-recordings via i-Link (IEEE1394 or FireWire) and users can set up a Play List - a list of still images that

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bookmarks sections or chapters of your DVD.

A burn performance of 12-speed is pretty nippy compared to the competition and you can also record back onto the hard disk from a DVD-RAM or -R disc too.

Considering that the TV is where most people prefer to watch their DVDs, DV-camcorder footage and TV programmes, this commandeering of technology that used to be considered the domain of the PC will lead to fierce battles between the front room and the beige box, as well as between the rival DVD formats. HP's DVD burner for the PC utilises the DVD+RW format, which has a lot of industry support, but perhaps whoever wins the coveted spot under the telly will win the format fracas by default.

The DMR-HS1 will launch in Japan at the beginning of December for 200,000 Japanese Yen (about £1,150). There are no details for UK pricing and availability. See Matsushita.