Toshiba's Cell TV delivers a slightly-less ultimate eight tuner DVR experience December 10

Blu-ray and the Cell processor are back together again, now that Toshiba has jumped on the format and is ready to release its first Cell TV, the Regza 55X1, in Japan December 10. Just making it in 2009 as promised, the path to launch has cost this initial release the 4K resolution screen we'd hoped for, with a 1080p LED backlit display hooked to the aforementioned Blu-ray DVR, 3TB HDD and slick 3D GUI for navigating all sorts of content from the internet or recording from as many as 8 tuners at one time. Also pushed back? Some video on-demand services, but we're pretty sure that at this point a few software updates on the way isn't holding back anyone from the "ultimate entertainment machine."

Update: Our friends at Engadget Japan just pinged us to inform that Blu-ray was also one of the features left on the cutting room floor. Without that, our ¥1,000,000 is staying firmly in our theoretical Japanese wallet -- Toshiba, let us know how v2 works out.

[ArhcAngel Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:24PM]

Talk about hold out to all in in 60 seconds.

[wryker Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:30PM]

No love for the US at this time I guess especially with the internal HDD's.
Though I'm sure the price will be scary.

[bigcow05 Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:30PM]

The TV may be black but its a white flag for Toshi.

[Sycomunkee Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:01PM]

@bigcow05 How so? I believe they helped with the CELL design.

[Oli D Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:34PM]

@Sycomunkee Blu Ray

[Henway Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:32PM]

I never understand this. Japan has two National Channels and about 4 other channels. There really aren't multiple channels, and cable TV doesn't exist as we know it in the US. And the content they have? Ooooh! Cop dramas where the protagonists have brand new cars and have brand new accessories (that you're lucky enough to BUY) and live in places they couldn't even hope to afford on their meager salaries. Ooops. That's what a lot of content is like here, too. But in general their TV is crap. How many programs do you know of that have 30 seconds of "after the commercial" before the commercial, and then run a "before the commercial" segment for 30 seconds when they come back? There's just extremely little content there....

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 7th 2009 4:58PM]

@Henway
Have you ever seen Japanese game shows? Its well worth it

[Nitesh Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:33PM]

Could the box not be smaller? I mean yeah, there is a stripped down Cell processor and two hard drives (1 1tb and 1 2tb, i think?) but surely it could have been smaller. That thing is larger than the original PS3.

[305BuddyLuv Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:37PM]

@Nitesh

I think they are trying to out do Sony's XBR 10

[AlthalusTheThief Posted Dec 7th 2009 8:42PM]

@305BuddyLuv

Plus the 8 HDTV tuners in the boxes hence why it's so big

[AlthalusTheThief Posted Dec 7th 2009 8:44PM]

@AlthalusTheThief
Box not Boxes

[Jeff Kibuule Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:35PM]

Since when are there 3TB HDDs? O_O

[Tony Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:44PM]

@Jeff Kibuule
If there is a 3TB. It wouldn't surprise me. But with that size, 2 1.5TB drives could fit.

[Oli D Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:37PM]

@Tony
Or 3 1Tbs
Or 6 500Gb 2.5" Drives
Or 12 250Gb 2.5" Drives
Etc.

[AlthalusTheThief Posted Dec 7th 2009 9:28PM]

@Jeff Kibuule

Apparently it's one 2TB and one 1TB
That's the way it's split up for use anyway according to the Japanese website on the Cell TV.
And it has 8 HDTV tuners in the box hence the size of the box.

Cell + 8HDTV Tuners + 3TB total storage + Power Supply = Big Box

[305BuddyLuv Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:35PM]

OOOOHHHHH!!!

A TV with a PS3 chip in it; were can I get it...

[htd Posted Dec 7th 2009 3:43PM]

maybe one day we will have those functionality in a hacked ps3

[mRichardy629 Posted Dec 7th 2009 4:39PM]

@htd Not Likely

[Extinction Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:06PM]

@htd Europe and japan has it already.

[Digital1 Posted Dec 7th 2009 4:39PM]

.....Ok....So I think SCEA should release some of this kit on the PS3....But then Sony would be shooting themselves in the foot as everyone would just buy PS3s.......

[SirNoDroin Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:10PM]

Still want to know what the hell a TV is going to do with Vector processors. I guess they just want to prove the cell chip is "useful"

[SirNoDroin Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:13PM]

@(Unverified) retract my comment, I did some google and found they have found uses for vector mathematics in video compression/drawing...Please downrank me into oblivion

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 8th 2009 5:09AM]

@(Unverified) Vectors are just 128bit data words. The cell has dedicated processors (SPEs) armed with lots of registers and primitive instructions for very rapidly decoding / decrypting, and uncompressing data in vector sized chunks. Most TVs & STBs would have dedicated silicon for the heavy lifting stuff, but leaving it in software would allow more scope for significant software enhancements, such as support for new codecs, contains, post processing etc. It's just a shame that something as useful as the cell is relegated to TVs and games consoles. Something like a cell should be on modern CPUs, instead the PC suffers from a raft of extensions and and some retrofitted GPU based solutions like CUDA.

[mtkupp Posted Dec 7th 2009 5:54PM]

Maybe they'll substitute HD-DVD drives for the missing BD drives.

[praetor87 Posted Dec 8th 2009 2:02PM]

The built-in browser have flash?