Toshiba External USB 2.0 HD DVD Drive, Blu-ray Camp Jealous

Seemingly out of nowhere, Toshiba has started shipping the PA3530U-1HD1, an external USB 2.0 HD DVD drive. It’s not even all that expensive, either, appearing on online stores like Newegg for $370. (Yes, the 360’s external HD DVD drive is only $200, but that pigeonholes you into watching high def movies on the 360. You have more of a choice of where to watch with this one.) It’s quite slim, too, so it’s not hard to imagine toting this alongside your laptop in order to watch high def movies on all those long flights.

In addition to reading HD DVD discs, the drive can burn CDs, single- and dual-layer DVDs. Not a bad find, this. Too bad Blu-ray’s victory is inevitable, at least according to Sony.

Product Page [Newegg via PC Perspective]