Sony today announced two new Blu-ray player models which will be out later this year. The BDP-S350 will be ‘BD-Live Ready’ when it ships this summer. It will have an Ethernet port and will get BD-Live enabled via a downloadable firmware update after release. The other model is the BDP-S550, which will be BD-Live enabled when it ships in the fall. Both will also be Bonus View enabled, aka Profile 1.1, when they ship, as all players must now be. To quote the press release specs:
The players feature 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema output. They are compatible with most standard DVDs and feature 1080p upscaling through an HDMI connection to capable HDTV sets, improving the picture performance of existing DVD libraries.
The models offer 7.1 channel Dolby(R) TrueHD and Dolby(R) Digital Plus decoding and bit-stream output, as well as dts(R)-HD High Resolution Audio and Master Audio bit-stream output. The BDP-S550 adds dts-HD High Resolution Audio and dts-HD Master Audio decoding as well as 7.1 channel analog audio output.
The players support AVCHD discs encoded with x.v.Color(TM) (xvYCC) technology, an international standard for wide color space reproduction. The standard expands the current data range of video by about 1.8 times, allowing the players to output more natural and vivid colors similar to what the human eye can actually see. The players also feature compatibility with an array of video formats, including BD-R/RE (BDMV and BDAV modes), DVD+R/+RW, DVD-R/-RW, CD, CD-R/RW (CD-DA format), and JPEG on DVD//CD recordable media.
The BDP-S350 will have an MSRP of about $400, and the BDP-S550 will have an MSRP of about $500. Personally, I think those prices will be lower by the time they ship. And, of course, they’ll be available for less online.
The full release:
Feb 26, 2008 03:01 ET
Sony Adds New Blu-Ray Disc Players With Advanced Interactivity
New Models Feature Ethernet Port for Interactive Functionality and Easy Firmware Updates
LAS VEGAS, Feb. 26 /PRNewswire/ — Sony updated its Blu-ray Disc player line today with two new models that will be capable of accessing advanced interactive features such as BonusView and BD-Live.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080226/LATU018-a)
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080226/LATU018-b)
The BDP-S350 and BDP-S550 models both support BonusView (Picture-in-Picture) featured on some of the new Blu-ray Disc theatrical releases. The BDP-S350 model is BD-Live ready featuring an Ethernet port for an easy firmware update and access to Internet-based interactive content features. The BSP-S550 is BonusView and BD-Live capable when it ships.
Both models also feature an external port for local storage, so users can add optional storage device. The BDP-S550 ships with a 1GB storage device.
“Building on the exceptional picture and sound quality of previous players, Sony’s next-generation Blu-ray Disc models bring exciting interactive features to life and offer consumers a ground-breaking experience,” said Chris Fawcett, vice president of marketing for Sony Electronics’ Home Product Division. “These new devices bring home movie experience beyond the cinema and into a whole new realm of entertainment.”
The players feature 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema output. They are compatible with most standard DVDs and feature 1080p upscaling through an HDMI connection to capable HDTV sets, improving the picture performance of existing DVD libraries.
The models offer 7.1 channel Dolby(R) TrueHD and Dolby(R) Digital Plus decoding and bit-stream output, as well as dts(R)-HD High Resolution Audio and Master Audio bit-stream output. The BDP-S550 adds dts-HD High Resolution Audio and dts-HD Master Audio decoding as well as 7.1 channel analog audio output.
The players support AVCHD discs encoded with x.v.Color(TM) (xvYCC) technology, an international standard for wide color space reproduction. The standard expands the current data range of video by about 1.8 times, allowing the players to output more natural and vivid colors similar to what the human eye can actually see. The players also feature compatibility with an array of video formats, including BD-R/RE (BDMV and BDAV modes), DVD+R/+RW, DVD-R/-RW, CD, CD-R/RW (CD-DA format), and JPEG on DVD//CD recordable media.
The new models feature a slim design with reduced depth and height compared to previous models matching Sony’s new home-theater-in-a-box systems, the HT-SS2300 and HT-CT100 T-SS2300, also announced today. Optimized for Blu-ray Disc(TM), the new component systems feature three 1080p compatible HDMI(TM) inputs making them the perfect match for a Full high-definition home theater when connected to a new Sony BRAVIA(R) 1080p HDTV.
The new BDP-S350 ships this summer for about $400 and BDP-S550 will be available this fall for about $500. They will be offered at Sony Style stores, online at sonystyle.com, at military base exchanges, and at authorized retailers nationwide.
Contacts:
Greg Belloni
Sony Electronics, Inc.
858-942-4460
greg.belloni@am.sony.com
Danielle Wagster
Sony Electronics, Inc.
858-942-4159
danielle.wagster@am.sony.com
Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080226/LATU018-a
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080226/LATU018-b
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Sony Electronics, Inc.
CONTACT: Greg Belloni, +1-858-942-4460, greg.belloni@am.sony.com; or
Danielle Wagster, +1-858-942-4159, danielle.wagster@am.sony.com, both of Sony
Electronics, Inc.
Web site: http://www.sony.com/
