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Panasonic Details DMP-BD50 Pricing and Features
Tue May 06, 2008 at 03:00 PM ETTags: Panasonic, Hardware (all tags)
Panasonic has announced the spring debut of its much-touted DMP-BD50 player, which boasts BD-Live among other expanded capabilities.
As reported in January and further detailed via press release today, The BD50 adds BD-Live functionality, which lets viewers access online content such as images and subtitles to further enhance the viewing experience.
The BD50 also offers next generation sound capabilities using integrated decoders for lossless Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio.
"Panasonic was the first to bring a Blu-ray player with Bonus View (Final Standard Profile 1.1) to market and now with the DMP-BD50 we are again leading the industry with the inclusion of BD-Live," said Paul Sabo, Panasonic, National Marketing Manager Entertainment Group.
The Panasonic DMP-BD50 will be available this spring and has a suggested retail price of $699.95.
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
CES: Panasonic Intros First BD-Live Blu-ray Player
Sun Jan 06, 2008 at 04:37 PM ETTags: Panasonic, CES 2008 (all tags)
Panasonic has unveiled plans to release the very first BD-Live Blu-ray player, the DMP-BD50.
The new player will include all of the features of the company's recently-released DMP-BD30K (read our review), plus internal TrueHD/DTS-HD Master Audio decoding and analog outputs allowing for full 7.1 channel surround sound when connected with a 7.1 channel amplifier and speakers.
The player's BD-Live functionality will enable users to connect the DMP-BD50 to the internet to download such data as images and subtitles, and to join in multi-player interactive games that are linked to bonus movie content contained on Blu-ray discs.
"Panasonic was the first to bring a Blu-ray player with Bonus View (Final Standard Profile 1.1) to market and now with the DMP-BD50 we are again leading the industry with the inclusion of BD-Live," said Gene Kelsey, Panasonic Vice President Entertainment Group. "The beauty of the Blu-ray player is that we can now see movies the way the film maker intended, in glorious HD video and audio. The consumer can now combine the new generation DMP-BD50 with a VIERA flat screen televison to create a true living in high definition experience."
No word yet on pricing or a release date for the player. Stay tuned...
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Previews Latest Blu-Ray Disc Player [Press Release]
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- Hardware Review: Panasonic DMP-BD30 (Nov 26, 2007)
CES: Panasonic Intros First BD-Live Blu-ray Player
Sun Jan 06, 2008 at 04:37 PM ETTags: Panasonic, CES 2008 (all tags)
Panasonic has unveiled plans to release the very first BD-Live Blu-ray player, the DMP-BD50.
The new player will include all of the features of the company's recently-released DMP-BD30K (read our review), plus internal TrueHD/DTS-HD Master Audio decoding and analog outputs allowing for full 7.1 channel surround sound when connected with a 7.1 channel amplifier and speakers.
The player's BD-Live functionality will enable users to connect the DMP-BD50 to the internet to download such data as images and subtitles, and to join in multi-player interactive games that are linked to bonus movie content contained on Blu-ray discs.
"Panasonic was the first to bring a Blu-ray player with Bonus View (Final Standard Profile 1.1) to market and now with the DMP-BD50 we are again leading the industry with the inclusion of BD-Live," said Gene Kelsey, Panasonic Vice President Entertainment Group. "The beauty of the Blu-ray player is that we can now see movies the way the film maker intended, in glorious HD video and audio. The consumer can now combine the new generation DMP-BD50 with a VIERA flat screen televison to create a true living in high definition experience."
No word yet on pricing or a release date for the player. Stay tuned...
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Previews Latest Blu-Ray Disc Player [Press Release]
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- Hardware Review: Panasonic DMP-BD30 (Nov 26, 2007)
Hardware Review: Panasonic DMP-BD30
Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 01:03 PM ETTags: Joshua Zyber, Panasonic, Hardware (all tags)
Is the first Profile 1.1 Blu-ray player worth your high-def dollar? High-Def Digest reviewer Joshua Zyber puts Panasonic's DMP-BD30 player through its paces. |
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By Joshua Zyber
Hitting store shelves at an MSRP of $499.95, Panasonic's new DMP-BD30 is one of the more affordable Blu-ray players currently on the market, as well as the first to be compliant with the format's Profile 1.1 specification (more on this below). That makes for a pretty winning combination, but does it live up to its potential as a category killer?
Cosmetics, Connections, and Setup
The BD30 is rather small for a Blu-ray model. The front of the unit has a flip-down panel, beneath which is an SD Card slot (useful for displaying JPEG images or creating a slide show). Next to this is another motorized panel that will automatically flip down when the disc tray is ejected. Like many Blu-ray players, positioned above the front LED display is a bright blue light, as if to announce, "Hey, this is Blu-ray!" This one is brighter and more distracting than most. Fortunately, the LED can be dimmed in the player's Setup menu, and the brighter light can be turned off with the setting labeled "SD Card LED Control".
On the back are located the expected assortment of video and audio connections: Composite and S-video (both useless for High Definition, so don't bother with them), Component Video, HDMI, and both Coaxial and Optical S/PDIF. The HDMI output is Version 1.3 compliant (more on this below). There are separate sets of stereo and 5.1 analog audio outputs. Disappointingly, the unit does not have 7.1 analog outputs as found on Panasonic's earlier DMP-BD10 model.
The remote controller is one of the ugliest I've ever owned, with a frustrating button layout featuring no fewer than three separate Menu commands. There's a button for the Pop-up Menus available during Blu-ray playback, a button for jumping straight to the Top Menu (if the disc offers one), and another button called Sub Menu that brings up an on-screen menu of other menu options. Neither the Pop-up Menu nor Top Menu buttons work during Standard-Def DVD playback. The only way to access the main menu on a DVD disc is to hit the Sub Menu button and scroll down to the "Menu" command, which is aggravating and far from intuitive. Also annoying is the player's reliance on the Return button (a command I'd never had to use on any previous player) any time you're done with a menu screen and wish to exit it. At the bottom of the remote are two new buttons called "PIP" and "Secondary Audio" that are specific to Profile 1.1 features.
A word of caution about the initial setup: The player defaults from the factory to a resolution setting of "Auto," which will output 1080p60 video if connected by HDMI, or 1080i if connected by Component. If your HDTV doesn't support 1080p input signals (not all do), connecting by HDMI may lead to either a blank screen or garbled video. The Troubleshooting section of the owner's manual advises pushing the Stop and Play buttons simultaneously to reset the resolution. If that doesn't work, try connecting a set of Component cables for the preliminary installation so that you'll be able to navigate through the setup menus to change the resolution.
The BD30 boots up very quickly for a next-gen player. I clocked the time from power on to disc tray ejection at 20 seconds. Loading time for a disc is not much better than my last Blu-ray player, however. One of my slowest Blu-rays ('Dirty Dancing') took a solid minute from tray retraction to the first appearance of the disc menu. Navigation of disc menus is also rather slow and clunky.
The player's setup screens are pretty straightforward for the most part, though again the unit does require use of the Return command to navigate them. During movie playback, the Display menu will provide information on the video and audio codecs encoded on the disc (a feature we disc reviewers find very helpful), but will not distinguish between the DTS-HD High Resolution and DTS-HD Master Audio formats.
As with all High Definition disc players of either the Blu-ray or HD DVD formats, the DMP-BD30 is perfectly capable of transmitting HD video up to 1080i resolution over the Component Video outputs so long as the software being played allows it. Should a Blu-ray disc be flagged with an Image Constraint Token (ICT), the player will be forced to downscale the video output to 480p Standard Definition. Fortunately, at the time of this writing no Blu-ray discs have yet been burdened with an ICT flag. Per restrictions set by the DVD Forum, Standard-Def DVD playback is always limited to a maximum 480p resolution over Component, and can only be upscaled to higher resolutions over HDMI.
Using the HDMI connection, video may be output at resolutions up to 1080p60 or 1080p24 (the latter on Blu-ray discs only). For more information on the distinction between these two formats, see my earlier What's the Big Deal About 1080p24? column. Selecting the "Auto" resolution setting defaults everything to 1080p60, except when the 1080p24 function is also activated, in which case suitably encoded Blu-ray movies will output at that rate. Standard-Def DVDs or 1080i Blu-ray content will all be upscaled or deinterlaced to 1080p60 unless a different resolution is specifically chosen.
Since my projector is compatible with 1080p24 resolution, I chose that for my testing of Blu-ray movie playback, all of which looked terrific as expected. I've read comments from owners claiming that the BD30 outputs a sharper picture than the Playstation 3 console. I wasn't able to make that comparison myself, but to my eyes video quality looks identical to my previous Sony BDP-S300 player, appearing neither sharper nor softer to any noticeable degree. That's far from a complaint, as I was always perfectly satisfied with the S300 and anticipated no less here.
Picture controls including Contrast, Brightness, Sharpness, and Color are available through the Display menu. Generally speaking, I advise adjusting these in the display device if possible, not the disc player. Also provided are Noise Reduction enhancements. I played around with these a bit, but didn't care for the results. They didn't seem to affect noisy video content much at all, but did visibly soften real picture detail. Use of these functions is likely to come down to a matter of personal taste.
For Standard-Def DVD playback, it's worth noting that 4:3 aspect ratio discs will be automatically pillarboxed into the center of a 16:9 screen. Using the "Screen Aspect" setting in the Sub Menu, the player does have an option to zoom those in non-anamorphic letterbox format to the appropriate dimensions.
I'm saddened to report that deinterlacing of 1080i Blu-ray content (music concerts, nature programs, etc.) and upconversion of Standard-Def DVD are both seriously flawed. After testing with the Silicon Optix 'HQV Benchmark' (in both DVD and Blu-ray varieties) and the 'Spears & Munsil VRS Evaluation & Optimization DVD', the player failed just about every deinterlacing test I threw at it. There were terrible jaggies visible on all diagonal lines, waving flags, racecar tracks, hockey videos, and more. On film-based material with a simple 3:2 cadence, the unit performed acceptably, but any badly-flagged or complicated content just fell apart. This is simply not the unit's strength. I would recommend outputting 1080i Blu-ray content as 1080i and letting the HDTV display handle the deinterlacing, and I would not advise using the DMP-BD30 as a primary upconverting DVD player at all.
Like all Blu-ray players, the BD30's Coaxial and Optical S/PDIF outputs can be used to transmit standard Dolby Digital and DTS audio, or PCM up to 2-channels. Advanced codecs such as Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD cannot be transmitted over S/PDIF and will be downconverted to standard Dolby or DTS using those connections. For more information on these new audio formats, see my Blu-ray and HD DVD Audio Explained article. The player also has 5.1 analog outputs useful once again for standard Dolby Digital or DTS, as well as PCM 5.1 soundtracks.
In a major disappointment, the BD30 does not incorporate DD+, TrueHD, or DTS-HD decoding, as Panasonic's prior DMP-BD10 model did. The feature was likely left out to meet the lower price point. As a result, this means that those advanced codecs cannot be decoded internally for output over the 5.1 analog connections in full quality. As with S/PDIF, they will be downconverted to standard Dolby or DTS. This also applies to the HDMI output if connected to an A/V receiver by any version of HDMI up to and including 1.2a.
On the other hand, the DMP-BD30 does have an HDMI 1.3 output, and will transmit the raw bitstreams for any of these audio formats to a compatible receiver for external decoding. This requires that the receiver have its own HDMI 1.3 input and the necessary decoders. Since those are relatively new features, anyone with a receiver more than a year old is basically out of luck, and will not be able to listen to the full high-resolution quality of DD+, TrueHD, or DTS-HD without upgrading to a new receiver.
In a positive development, the unit offers full speaker size, delay, and level calibration controls for the analog audio outputs, which gives it a big leg up over comparable models from Samsung and Sony. Strangely, the controls for this are not located in the Audio section of the setup menu, but rather under the "TV/Device Connection" section.
[Important Note: Extensive testing by users revealed that, in its early firmware versions, the DMP-BD30 had incorrect LFE levels when using the HDMI output. PCM soundtracks, or any other audio format decoded to PCM within the player, suffered –5 dB LFE suppression over HDMI. This problem was corrected with Firmware Ver. 1.6, issued on February 25, 2008. Users relying on the HDMI connection for audio are strongly advised to apply the latest firmware update.]
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For more information on the meaning of each of Blu-ray's hardware Profiles, please see my separate Blu-ray Profiles Explained column. In short, Blu-ray players released before November 1st, 2007 were all classified as hardware Profile 1.0, which did not require inclusion of secondary video or audio decoders for use with interactive Picture-in-Picture bonus features. Blu-ray Profile 1.1 adds those functions, and the DMP-BD30 is the first model compliant with the new specification.
Since this review is being published in advance of the availability of any Blu-ray discs with actual Profile 1.1 features, my coverage of this area must rely on the limited documentation present in the owner's manual. I assume that Picture-in-Picture and similar content will be accessible from the disc menus, as traditional bonus features are. The player also has "PIP" and "Secondary Audio" buttons at the bottom of the remote, so it seems that the video and audio for these features can be brought up independently.
Under the "Digital Audio Output" section of the player's setup menu and in the owner's manual are some confusing notes on how to configure the settings for use with BD-Video Secondary Audio content. The player's menus imply that you should leave the Secondary Audio setting "Off" until needed. If you leave it "On", all high-resolution audio formats including DD+, TrueHD, and DTS-HD will be automatically downsampled to standard Dolby or DTS quality (even if using the HDMI 1.3 bitstream transmission method) so that the secondary content can be mixed in. On the other hand, the owner's manual states "When playing BD-Video without secondary audio or clicking sounds, the audio is output as the same format as if 'BD-Video Secondary Audio' was set to 'Off'." What isn't clear is whether the high-resolution audio on Profile 1.1 discs will be downgraded automatically only when you turn on those features, or regardless of whether you use them or not. The whole thing seems a little overly complicated for its own good, but hopefully will be cleared up once the first discs start coming out.
The Bottom Line: Is It Worth It?
Each potential buyer will judge the importance of Blu-ray Profile 1.1 based on their own personal priorities. Previous Blu-ray models will continue to play all discs and traditional bonus features, so if you don't find support for interactive content all that important, this feature may not necessarily be a deal-breaker.
In any case, for the first Profile 1.1 compliant Blu-ray player, the Panasonic DMP-BD30 is a well-priced deal that offers excellent video quality on Blu-ray discs and the capability to bitstream advanced audio codecs to a compatible receiver (still a rare feature in Blu-ray players). On the other hand, it lacks the ability to decode those audio codecs internally as prior Panasonic models could, and has very poor deinterlacing and DVD upconversion quality. The BD30 isn't quite a perfect Blu-ray player, but it performs strongly in core areas and rates a worthy recommendation.
| Discuss this review in our forums, or check out other recent discussions. |
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Joshua Zyber's opinions are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of this site, its owners or employees. To view a complete collection of Josh's commentaries for High-Def Digest, click here.
- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Dirty Dancing (20th Anniversary Edition) (Blu-ray)
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- High-Def FAQ: Blu-ray Profiles Explained (Nov 23, 2007)
- High-Def FAQ: Blu-ray and HD DVD Audio Explained (Oct 12, 2007)
- High-Def FAQ: What's the Big Deal About 1080p24? (Sep 28, 2007)
- High-Def FAQ: Is HDMI 1.3 Really Necessary? (Aug 10, 2007)
Panasonic Unveils $499 Final Profile Blu-ray Disc player
Wed Oct 31, 2007 at 12:45 PM ETTags: Panasonic, Hardware (all tags)
By Steven Burke
Panasonic’s DMP-BD30K Blu-ray player will ship to stores within a week, packed with full Profile 1.1 compliance and advanced audio support.
The next-gen player had been expected sometime before Christmas, but the announced November 5th, 2007 ship date is sure to come as a pleasant surprise to those wondering how soon after the BDA’s October 31st profile 1.1 compliance deadline a stand-alone final profile Blu-ray player would be made available. Conflicting reports peg the official release date for either the 12th or 19th of November, but Panasonic VP of Corporate Development Eisuke Tsuyuzaki told Home Media Magazine that the player will be available “by the bucketload” for the holiday season.
According to specs posted on Panasonic’s website the DMP-BD30K will support a number of new features for a Blu-ray player. Its Profile 1.1 compliance means it will include dual stream audio/video support, enabling true picture-in-picture, a feature previously available only on HD DVD players.
The new deck will also support advanced audio codecs via bitstream right out of the box. The DMP-BD30K complies with “dts-HD Advanced Digital Out,” which means it will bitstream both dts-HD High Resolution and dts-HD Master Audio to any HDMI 1.3 receiver with dts-HD Master Audio decoding. This has been confirmed via an early first review of the player by Big Picture Big Sound’s Chris Boylan.
For those with older HDMI receivers without advanced audio codec decoding or multi-channel inputs, the DMP-BD30K will support internal decoding of dts Encore (up to 1.5 Mbps) and Dolby Digital only, both of which are extracted from the Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD and/or MA tracks on select Blu-ray discs.
The DMP-BD30K also supports 1080p/24, 1080p/60, Panasonic’s P4HD (Precise Pixel Progressive Processing for HD), an SD memory card slot for AVCHD and JPEG playback and a host of output options including HDMI version 1.3b.
Panasonic has set a suggested retail price of $499 for the player.
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Introduces Next Generation Blu-ray Disc Player [Press Release]
- DMP-BD30K Blu-ray Player Specs [Panasonic]
- First Look at Panasonic's $499 DMP-BD30 Blu-Ray Player [Big Picture Big Sound]
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- Blu-ray Association Sets Fall Deadline For BD-Java Hardware Support (Mar 26, 2007)
Panasonic Releases $599 Second-Gen Blu-ray Player; Bundles Five Flicks
Tue May 15, 2007 at 01:51 PM ETTags: Panasonic (all tags)
Originally announced back in February, Panasonic says its second-gen Blu-ray player is now available, including a bevy of audio options and five free Blu-ray discs with purchase.
The new player (dubbed the DMP-BD10A) boasts an audio upgrade package that includes both Dolby True HD and DTS-HD.
Panasonic is offering the DMP-BD10A at SRP of $599.95, and to sweeten the offer is also including five pre-selected Blu-ray movies with each purchase: 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl,' 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest,' 'The Transporter,' 'Fantastic Four' and 'Crash.'
Cue the exec quote: "Panasonic is deeply committed to the success of Blu-ray," said Gene Kelsey, Vice President of Panasonic's Entertainment Group. "With the continuing flow of hit movie titles on Blu-ray, combined with aggressive pricing and the increasing awareness of consumers about the unique entertainment experience provided by high definition, the future looks very bright for Blu-ray."
Thanks to Robert S. for the tip!
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Introduces Next Generation Blu-Ray Disc Player [Press Release]
- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (Blu-ray)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (Blu-ray)
- The Transporter (Blu-ray)
- Fantastic Four (Blu-ray)
- Crash (Blu-ray)
Panasonic Blu-ray Firmware Upgrade Adds Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Support
Thu Apr 19, 2007 at 12:01 AM ETTags: Firmware Upgrades, Hardware, Panasonic (all tags)
Editors note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that only select Blu-ray players are able to extract the 1.5mbps DTS "core" of DTS-MA tracks. In fact, all Blu-ray players are capable of extracting the 1.5Mbps core dts track from any DTS-HD or DTS-HD MA program. We apologize for the error.
Panasonic has issued firmware upgrade V2.0 for its DMP-BD10 Blu-ray player, adding support for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD High-Resolution audio formats.
This new download first appeared Tuesday on Panasonic's official support website.
According to the documentation supplied by the manufacturer, it offers the following new enhancements and fixes:
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- Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD High Resolution Audio are supported. A new decoder is incorporated to support the latest high quality multi-channel surround sound formats.
- Functions of EZ Sync(North America) or VIErA Link(Europe/UK, Oceania) are enhanced.
- You can now seamlessly operate multiple connected components with one remote control.
- Improved playability and stability
Note that DTS-HD High-Resolution is not the same DTS format as DTS-MA Master Lossless Audio. Full decoding for DTS-MA is not currently supported by any Blu-ray hardware on the market. (All present Blu-ray players on the market, including Sony's PlayStation 3, are able to extract the 1.5mbps DTS "core" of DTS-MA tracks, though future firmware upgrades that can fully decode DTS-MA are promised.)
Full instructions for downloading the Panasonic firmware upgrade can be found at Panasonic's Support Site Download Page.
We'll keep you posted on any further firmware updates from Panasonic as they are announced.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Player Firmware Download [Official Support Site]
Panasonic Launches Firmware Upgrade V1.4 for DMP-BD10 Blu-ray Player
Thu Jan 18, 2007 at 03:39 AM ETTags: Hardware, Panasonic, Firmware Upgrades (all tags)
Panasonic has released the latest firmware upgrade for its DMP-BD10 Blu-ray Disc Player, enhancing the picture quality via HDMI outputs and other error-correction stability features.
Panasonic posted the firmware, dubbed Version 1.4, to its official download site this week.
Highlights of the upgrade include the following:
• Picture quality improvement via HDMI
• Enhanced playability and stability of Blu-ray discs
• Better response of chapter skip operations
• Support of the discs recorded on Panasonic AVC-HD Camcorders
For those unable or opting not to download the upgrade (which requires the ability to burn it to a CD-R via a PC), Panasonic is also offering a firmware CD to registered consumers via postal mail.
For more information on the CD version of the upgrade, visit Panasonic's Global Service Center Network web site.
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic DMP-BD10 Blu-ray Player Firmware Upgrade V1.4 [Official Site]
- Global Service Center Network [Panasonic Official Support Site]
Panasonic Goes Mammoth with Blu-ray/HDTV Holiday Promo
Fri Dec 08, 2006 at 04:14 AM ETTags: High-Def Disc Marketing, Hardware, Panasonic (all tags)
Looking for a holiday gift for the tech geek who has everything? Panasonic has just the ticket -- a Blu-ray/HDTV combo few can afford.
In the spirit of giving (and hey, it's a slow news Friday), we bring you this ultimate high-def gift idea, and perhaps the *biggest* next-gen promotion ever. Seems Panasonic is hyping its new DMP-BD10 Blu-ray player by bundling it with is new, absolutely gigantic 103-inch plasma HDTV -- a consumer electronics record for screen size.
How much will this little puppy set you back? Well, it's only $1,299 list for the Blu-ray player. And, oh, $70,000 for the 103-inch plasma.
"The concept is to sell it as a complete package," Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, Panasonic's VP of corporate development and general manager for the Blu-ray Disc Group told Video Business. "We have always demo'ed our 65-inch [TV set] with the [Panasonic disc player]. We want the plasmas as well as the set-top to work."
Okay, so we're being a bit sarcastic, if only because we can't afford $70,000. That doesn't mean we don't want it (admit it -- you do, too, or you wouldn't be reading a site called High-Def Digest). But it is a clever promo, and we hope it's successful. Seeing a top-quality Blu-ray image on a 103-inch high-end plasma sure seems enticing to us.
If you do decide to take the plunge and plunk down the $70K, Panasonic tells us that they will send a engineer to the intended installation location to ensure the wall can withstand the weight of the plasma. But will it fit under the Christmas tree?
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- Panasonic Focuses on Blu-ray's Bigger Picture [Video Business]
Panasonic to Launch Blu-Ray Alongside Largest-Ever Plasma TV
Wed Mar 29, 2006 at 04:30 PM ETTags: Hardware, Panasonic (all tags)
The upcoming launch of high-def DVD format Blu-Ray got another boost late yesterday, with
Panasonic's announcement that they will
release their first Blu-Ray DVD player this September, reports Reuters.
The company, which is not supporting rival high-def disc format HD-DVD, will price its Blu-Ray deck for "under $1500." Despite the high price tag, the company still sees up to 5 million of Blu-Ray units sold through to consumers in the first year.
"Unfortunately, there is some confusion between the two [high-def DVD formats] but based on the wide support for Blu-Ray in the industry, we expect the (growth) curve to be quite steep... across all platforms, including standalones, computers and gaming systems," said Reid Sullivan, Panasonic vp of merchandising.
Still, Panasonic is not hedging its bets that widespread studio and manufacturer support for Blu-Ray will be enough to win consumers over HD-DVD. To coincide with its Blu-Ray player, the company will debut a mammoth new 103-inch plasma HDTV -- setting an industry record for screen size -- in an effort to make the format's incredible picture capabilities impossible to miss.
"We're introducing technologies that will all tie in together to propel Blu-ray. The flat panel or plasma TV is the engine pulling the train," said Sullivan.
- Related links:
- Panasonic to Roll Out Blu-Ray Player in September [Reuters]
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