First Blu-ray PCs to Come from Fujitsu

Fujitsu will become the first computer manufacturer to ship computers with integrated Blu-ray drives when it releases desktops with the technology in Japan this June, the company said Tuesday. The news follows an announcement by Toshiba Monday that it would begin shipping HD DVD-enabled laptops by mid-May.

The company is covering all bases; Fujitsu will also release an HD DVD-capable laptop around the same time as the desktop. Either way, the new models will come with a steep price tag for the Japanese market.

The desktop, which would include a 37-inch LCD display, will retail for 600,000 yen ($5,063). The notebook would also be fairly expensive, setting the consumer back 400,000 yen ($3,371). Toshiba's models are expected to retail for a similar price.

Other big-name players are also announcing plans to include the new DVD technologies in their latest PC models. NEC will have its line of HD DVD-capable computers out by the fall, and is considering offering Blu-ray as well. Sony, meanwhile, will have its first Blu-ray Vaio PCs shipping by summer.

The computers will be the second wave in a coming battle for supremacy in the next-generation DVD market. The first HD DVD standalone players from Toshiba are due by mid-month, with Blu-ray following in late May.