Blu-ray

Are you looking to add a high-end Blu-ray player to your home theater system? Marantz recently announced a deal where you can "Get some green by going Blu." The company is offering a $100 rebate on two of their high performance Blu-ray players, the BD7004 ($800) and BD5004 ($550).

Purchases must be made from authorized retailers from November 1, 2009 to December 31, 2009. Rebate forms must be sent in by January 31, 2010.

For more information on the Marantz BD7004 and BD5004 Blu-ray players and to download the rebate form, visit the company's website.

Sony has announced they will offer owners of BRAVIA HDTVs and Blu-ray players the opportunity to rent "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" a month before it is available at retail stores.

Those who purchase a networked BRAVIA HDTV or Blu-ray Disc player and register the device between Nov. 9, 2009 and Jan. 4, 2010, will receive a free 24-hour rental of the movie in HD. The movie will become available on December 8, 2009.

If you already own a networked BRAVIA HDTVs or have earlier BRAVIA models equipped with the BRAVIA Internet Video Link, the movie will be available to rent from Dec. 8, 2009 through Jan. 4, 2010, for $24.95. Read more

JVC today announced the availability of a new entry-level Blu-ray player. The new XV-BP11 not only plays Blu-ray discs, but adds playback of the AVCHD format, the high definition format widely used for HD camcorders, including JVC's HD Everio line.

JVC XV-BP11 Features

• Playable Discs: BD-Rom, BD-R/RE, DVD-Video, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, Audio CD, CD-R/RW
• Playable Formats: AVCHD, WMV, JPEG, MP3, WMA, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital plus, Dolby True HD, DTS, DTS HD Master Audio/Essential

Read more

Best Buy and Netflix announced this week two new Insignia Blu-ray players with Netflix streaming capability. The new Insignia Advanced Series Blu-ray Player (NS-WBRDVD) and the Insignia Connected Blu-ray Player (NS-BRDVD3) are now available for $249.99 and $179.99, respectively, at all Best Buy stores and online at bestbuy.com.

Both models are Internet ready, with the Insignia Advanced Series model using built-in Wi-Fi to connect to the Internet and the Insignia Connected player using an Ethernet connection. Both players feature Dolby TrueHD and they up-convert standard DVDs. Read more

Samsung just announced that Amazon Video On Demand is available on select Samsung HDTVs via a downloadable widget. Also, Blockbuster's Video On Demand service is now on select 2009 Samsung HDTVs, Blu-ray Players and Blu-ray integrated Home Theater Systems.

Owners of Samsung LCD and Plasma HDTVs Series 650 and above and Samsung LED HDTVs Series 7000 and above can download the Amazon Video On Demand widget for free using the Internet@TV – Content Service feature on their HDTVs.

Specific models featuring the BLOCKBUSTER On Demand service include Samsung Series 650 and above LCD and Plasma HDTVs and Series 7000 and above LED HDTVs. The service is also on Samsung BD -P1600, BD-P3600 and BD-P4600 Blu-ray players, as well as select Samsung Blu-ray integrated Home Theater Systems (HT-BD1250, HT-BD3252, HT-BD7200 and HT-BD8200) via firmware upgrade.

For more information visit www.samsung.com.

JVC Professional Products just launched its new SR-HD1500 and SR-HD1250 Blu-ray disc and HDD recorders. These are the first standalone Blu-ray recorders available in the United States, and feature a built-in hard disk drive for easy duplication and disc authoring without a PC.

With the SR-HD1500 and SR-HD1250, users can record and author professional BDMV (with menu) or BDAV discs. Advanced MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 (H.264) encoding provides support for HD and SD sources, and a built-in format converter can downconvert HD content for recording to a standard DVD. The units support BD-R or BD-RE (erasable) Blu-ray discs. Read more

Sony's new BDP-N460 Blu-ray Disc player not only plays Blu-ray Discs and DVDs, it streams on-demand entertainment from the BRAVIA Internet Video platform including movies, TV programs, and music from YouTube, Slacker, and, later this fall, Netflix.

The BDP-N460 Blu-ray Disc/DVD/CD player delivers full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema output, is BD-LIVE capable, and uses Sony's Precision Cinema HD Upscale technology to convert standard-definition signals (480i) to near HD quality. And, its Precision Drive technology helps to detect and correct wobbling discs from three directions, supporting warped or scratched Blu-ray Discs and DVDs during playback.Read more

Pioneer's flagship Blu-ray Disc player, the Elite BDP-09 is the world's first Blu-ray Disc player to achieve THX certification. The BDP-09 is BD-Live Compatible and has 4GB of Internal Memory, 8 Wolfson Audio DACS, PQLS Jitter Free Audio Transmission, and 16-Bit Video Processing LSI. The BDP-09 is available now for $2200.

A perfect complement to the BDP-09, Pioneer announced that its Elite EX Series in-wall speakers have attained THX Select2 certification as well. Add to that Pioneer's top-of-the-line Elite A/V Receivers (which are the world's first and only THX Ultra2 Plus Certified receivers with Class D digital amplification) and you've got a complete THX Certified audio video system with sound and features that are hard to beat.

To find out more information on Pioneer's THX Certified audio and video products, visit www.pioneerelectronics.com.

Panasonic's new SC-BTX70 may not look like a Blu-ray home theater system with its upright stance, but it is that…and more. It includes a Blu-ray Disc player, an iPod dock, an SD memory card slot and a USB terminal, all in its front panel.

The SC-BTX70 is a 2.1 system, yet gives you virtual 7.1 channel sound using Panasonic's advanced proprietary surround technology that delivers Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD virtual 7.1-channel surround sound through the two speakers and subwoofer. The system's 96-kHz Surround Re-master function even enhances the sound quality of CDs and raises the quality of the multi-channel audio data on Blu-ray Discs and DVDs for realistic sounds.

The SC-BTX70 also has Panasonic's PHL Chroma Processor Plus and High Precision 4:4:4 for original cinema quality playback of Blu-ray discs. Also, connecting the SC-BTX70 to the Internet, you can view videos on YouTube, photos on Picasa as well as access the Amazon Video-on-Demand (VOD) online movie rental service. Internet games can also be played and Blu-ray Disc bonus content can be downloaded with the BD-Live feature.

The system will be available in September 2009 for $999.95.

Samsung just announced the availability of YouTube on select Samsung Blu-ray players. Owners of the BD-P1600, BD-P3600 or BD-P4600 Blu-ray players will be able to view YouTube content by uploading the service at no cost.

To access YouTube from your Samsung Blu-ray player, simply press a button on the remote control from the main screen. Videos can also be searched via a mobile phone-like on-screen key pad. The categories listed are very similar to that on the YouTube website. Please note that to use this service, the Blu-ray player must be connected to a wired or wireless internet connection.

For more information on Samsung Blu-ray players, visit www.samsung.com