Sharp's 3-in-1 video recorder

We were sure someone would have done this already, but it appears not: Sharp has announced a video recorder that puts VHS, DVD and a hard disk in the same box, along with a satellite decoder. The hard disk is a moderate 80GB, compared to the 400GB at which the big boys max out; but there's the peace of mind that comes from having something in reserve should you run out of tapes or DVDs, as well as the extra space freed up in the TV cabinet by having everything in one box. They also state that you can record things freely around between the three units with no restrictions, though we assume that doesn't mean it zaps the copy protection on commercial DVDs. One caveat is that the satellite tuner will only record to either the DVD or hard disk.

The DV-HRW30 will be out on July 1 in Japan, for about Y95,000.

[Update: Someone did do this already, though only just--looks like Panasonic's rather similar DIGA DMR-E150V made it to Japanese shops on June 21. Looks like the Sharp model should start out a bit cheaper, though]

[Via ITmedia (Japanese)]