It's not official, but the word from our friend HD Guru Gary Merson is that Panasonic has a lot of cool hardware coming to America next year. The biggest news is that there will be Blu-ray decks that actually record HD video onto shareable BDs, something we hear about from Japan, but haven't seen in these parts. On the plasma front, Panny is working on NeoPDP 1080p plasma that would cut power demands by 50%, making them even more efficient than LCD. This efficient panel, says Merson, will be made in sizes all the way up to our beloved 103". And in another direction, Panasonic will be joining the coalition of the slimming, releasing plasmas under 1-inch thick. And now... we wait. [HDGuru]