January 7, 2008

CES 2008: What's Happening In The Blu-ray Department?

Blu-ray announcements galore at CES 2008. Sony is showcasing two BD-live prototypes, the Sapphire 3 and 4, both slated to be Profile 2.0. The PS3 is also rumored to be getting a BD-live upgrade in the near future. The company also announced plans to release a sub-$200 PC Blu-ray drive, although specs won't be released until tomorrow.

Samsung has announced a new dual-format player, the BD-UP5500, that will play "any HD format disc you have" according to Samsung product rep Nelson Allen. The players will display in 1080p resolution with 24fps playback meet Profile 1.1 standards.

Panasonic has unveiled the DMP-BD50 Blu-ray player with BD Live (Profile 2.0) and the ability to decode Dolby TrueHD as well as DTS HD Master Audio. SD card functionality is identical to Panasonic's current DMP-BD30. Check out a full fact sheet for the Panasonic DMP-BD50 here. Panasonic also announced the new SC-BT1000 home theater in a box with a built in Profile 1.1 Blu-ray player.

I'm sure we'll here a lot more from the Blu-ray camp as the week continues in Las Vegas.

Via Blu-ray.com