The spiel for the SD memory cards from Panasonic is the same as Sony's for their memory stick, namely: fast, large capacity, ease of use, dependability, and data storage.
Panasonic developed the SD memory cards with memory manufacturer SanDisk and Toshiba, which between the three companies control the majority market share for all solid state memory cards sold worldwide.
Speed differences between the SD memory cards and other memory formats weren't disclosed at the show, but Panasonic reps did tell us they're confident the SD cards are the fastest solution currently.
To drive home the point of the SD memory cards in terms of how Panasonic is looking to implement the new format over the coming years, they displayed several concept devices from microwaves to wearable watch-MP3 players that all used the new cards.
Prototype Panasonic Digital SD memory Card-based MP3 Player
Some of the concepts will go into production, like the MP3 player, others will be left as purely theoretical exercises, but none of the behind-glass units at the show besides the MP3 player were operational. That should give readers a hint as to when we'll actually be seeing SD-compatible devices from Panasonic.
In any case, the lines have been drawn, and Sony and Panasonic will now go about their traditional pattern of getting the lion's share of the other consumer electronics manufacturers like Sharp, Pioneer, Philips etc, to support their version of memory storage in the future.
VDR-10000: While Sony was mysteriously vague about plans to support DVD-RW, DVD-RAM, or DVD+RW in terms of a recordable DVD player solution, Panasonic was busy showing their early recordable DVD-RAM player, the VDR-1000.
Panasonic calls the VDR-10000 the "world's first DVD video recorder" and with good reason. The sleek black box is scheduled for a worldwide debut as early as summer 2000.
This is in contrast to the other DVD recordable units we saw from Pioneer and Sharp, who both stated that "Christmas 2000" is their current target for a retail arrival.
Panasonic's VDR-10000 can record up to 2 hours of video on a single-sided 4.7GB DVD-RAM disc, at a resolution of 480p progressive scan. Multiple resolution and visual quality settings are possible, letting the user specify exactly how much recording potential they desire, up to a maximum of 6 hours of recording at a sub-250 line resolution (lower than current VHS tape).
No price or other details were revealed about the VDR-10000, however Panasonic reps told Sharky Extreme off the record that a price of "$1750 - $2250" should be expected.