Media Devices

Sony's "Elevated Standard" (ES) BDP-CX7000ES 400-disc Blu-ray Disc^TM and BDP-CX960 and MegaChangers, and its BDP-S1000ES single disc ES player will soon be available to consumers.

The Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger models  have the capacity for storing and playing 400 Blu-ray Discs, CDs and DVDS, providing consumers with new levels of convenience and accessibility.

You can organize your library by downloading information from Gracenote's MusicID® and VideoID^TM products.   When you insert a disk into the device, Gracenote technology downloads the title, release year, director, and some cast and genre information, allowing you easily search for your music or movies.

BDP CX-7000ES and BDP-CX960

The BDP-CX7000ES has 24p True Cinema^TM output with full HD 1080/60p. Conforming to high-quality ES standards, it has an RS232 connection and IR-in which enable it to integrate with third-party automation control systems.

Exceptional audio and video quality come from a 7.1 channel analog output, Sony's HD Reality Enhancer and Super Bit Mapping technologies. The HD Reality Enhancer continually analyzes each bit of the original source, reproducing detail and sharpening edges while at the same time reducing the effects of film grain.  Super Bit Mapping realizes true 14-bit equivalent color tone from 8-bit sources to provide smoother color gradation.

The BDP-CX7000ES allows you to use Sony's Precision Cinema HD Upscale Technology to upscale your standard definition DVDs to 1080p when the device is connected to a 1080p display via HDMI.

Advanced conversion and processing allows the Precision Cinema HD Upscale to detect changes in the image at the pixel level, while the moving and still parts of an image are processed by separate algorithms. This cause the backgrounds to be sharp while moving objects are devoid of motion artifacts.

The 400 disc BDP-CX960 MegaChanger also has 24p True Cinema output, full HD 1080/60p and Precision Cinema HD Upscale Technology.

The  BDP-CX7000ES and BDP-CX960 both have Ethernet ports that allow you to connect to your local home broadband network to access BD-Live^TM content and download metadata from Gracenotes and software updates. An extenal port for local storage allows you add your USB flash device in support of BD-Live content.

Both model supports  7.1 channel Dolby® TrueHD and Dolby® Digital Plus, DTS®-HD High Resolution Audio, DTS-HD Master Audio decoding and bit-stream output via HDMI.

The BDP-CX7000ES will be available in August at a cost of $1,000. The BDP-CX960 will be available in the fall at a price of around $800.

BDP-S100ES

The  BDP-S100ES is a single-disc Blu-Ray Player, part of the ES line. It has built in Wi-Fi® (802.11N/G/B/A) capability for easy BD-Live access.  It has full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema^TM.  Sony's Precision Cinema HD allow you to upscale standard definition DVDs to 1080p.

You can use an existing wireless home network to connect to the Internet so you can download and stream BD-Live content. You can download trailers, additional scenes, interactive games, short subjects and other content from select titles. You can use easy firmware updates to keep your player up-to-date with the latest Blu-ray Disc features and media.

The BDP-S1000ES is compatible with most wireless routers.  Wi-Fi Protected Setup^TM, which enables you to connect to enabled wireless routers easily and quickly, is supported.   The BDP-S1000ES is Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) ready, so that it can be connected to other DLNA compliant devices. This allows you to use your TV to watch digital photos.

The BDP-S1000ES also includes Sony's Super Bit Mapping, HD Reality Enhancer and Precision Drive HD technology.

The player also supports x.v. Color Technology and Deep color video output and is compatible with many video formats, which include BD-ROM/R/RE (BDMV and BDAV modes), DVD-+ Video/R/RW, CD/R/RW, and MP3/JPEG on BD/DVD/CD recordable media. It is compatible with advanced audio codecs including 7.1 channel Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS -HD Master Audio, and DTS-HD High Resolution Audio decoding and bit-stream output, as well as analog 7.1 channel output.

The BDP-S1000ES will be available in August 2009 at a price of around $700.

Sony's new BDP-S360 replaces its earlier popular S350 model, and is the first of the company's 2009 Blu-ray offerings. Fortunately, most of the qualities that made the S350 so popular are back for this upgrade, along with a bunch of bonus features that you're sure to love.

The BDP-S360 is a Profile 2.0 player and supports BD-Live Web capabilities plus BonusView picture-in-picture playback. It also offers bitstream output of DolbyTrueHD as well as onboard decoding.

Most companies in this market are beginning to offer Internet streaming through services such as Netflix or Amazon. However, Sony has not included that with this particular model in order to keep the price low.

There are several connection options: component video, HDMI, and composite video. For audio, there are HDMI, coaxial / optical digital and 2-channel analog.

The BDP S360 features a disc drive which supports, DVD, CD audio, BD, MP3, JPEG and AVCHD. There's also an Ethernet port for live Web connectivity.

Bottom line: It's not as feature-rich as other models, but for the price, the Sony BDP S360 offers as much as-and perhaps a little more than-most video fans will want.

The new LG BD390 is just too cool for words. Here we have three next-generation technology devices coming together in a way that you always knew should happen. The three technologies are HD video, Blu-Ray discs and the Netflix video service.

The BD390 is actually a completely Netflix-enabled player. It's a Profile 2.0 player and supports BonusView / picture-in-picture video playback as well as BD-Live Web capabilities. It also features bitstream output of Dolby's TrueHD as well as internal decoding. An earlier LG model, the BD370, lacked internal memory, but the BD390 suffers from no such lack.

In addition, the BD390 offers the buyer a gig of onboard memory and wifi support. It also boasts 7.1 channel analog audio outputs.

But the BD390 doesn't stop with Netflix in creating a perfect new-millennium player. It also supports YouTube video playback, and promises that soon it will also be able to play content from CinemaNow. When the CinemaNow support comes, it will include the ability to rent titles, having them streamed to your player much like Netflix streams them to your computer. You will even be able to download movies to a disc. This will be perfect for those whose connection is not fast enough to make playing and watching the video as its streamed practical.