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The DMP-BD30 is expected to ship to retailers in mid-November and will retail for about $499. Full details can be found on Panasonic's website. Add a comment
Panasonic, a leader inHigh Definition technology, announced today the introduction of theDMP-BD30, the next generation High Definition 1080p Blu-ray Disc player.The DMP-BD30 is the first Blu-ray player to be introduced with FinalStandard Profile, which adds a variety of new and enhanced features to theBlu-ray arena and one that separates the Panasonic Blu-ray player from therest of the field. Also unique to the DMP-BD30 is the inclusion of an SDMemory Card slot for playback of High Definition content recorded in theAVCHD format. The SD slot also allows for viewing of digital still imagesrecorded to an SD Memory Card.
Final Standard Profile is an advanced function added to the Blu-raystandard, which opens the door to new functions such as Picture-in-Picture(which displays a second image in a sub window) and Audio Mixing (allowsthe consumer to switch the sound between the main and sub windows).
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Also there was Dan Silverberg, VP of high-definition media for Warner Home Video, which since Paramount’s move to the HD DVD camp is the only studio to support both next-generation formats.While Silverberg may just be saying what Blu-ray backers want to hear, it's possible that Warner is ready to choose a side in the battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD. Let's just hope they choose a side soon so it can come to an end. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
That may not be for long, Silverberg said. “One thing that may be changing is our strategy,” he said. “When both formats launched and hardware prices were high, we made a decision to support both formats and let the consumer decide. But now that hardware pricing is affordable for both Blu-ray and HD DVD, it appears consumers no longer want to decide — so the notion of staying in two formats for the duration is something we are re-evaluating now that we are in the fourth quarter.”
Silverberg noted that Warner has the top-selling Blu-ray title of all time with 300 and is consistently No. 1 or No. 2 in both Blu-ray sales market share and in number of Blu-ray titles in the market.
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Blu-ray DVD titles outsold rival HD-DVD titles by almost 2-to-1 in the first nine months of the year, but analysts expect additional HD-DVD support and new hit releases to "transform" the high-definition DVD battle score in the fourth quarter.These numbers are still quite small, especially when you consider that more than 8.3 million "Transformers" DVD's were sold in the first week alone. Unfortunately, high-def sales probably won't come close to these numbers until there is one clear winner. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
Home Media Research, a division of Home Media Magazine, said on Tuesday total U.S. sales of Blu-ray discs, using a Sony Corp -backed technology, totaled 2.6 million units from January 1 through Sept 30, versus 1.4 million HD-DVD discs sold.
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Microsoft, according to insiders at Toshiba owner of the HD DVD patents, claim that Microsoft is working on a brand new Xbox that will incorporate not only a new HD DVD drive but a large hard drive and new entertainment software that is a spin off from its struggling media centre offering.While Microsoft has denied in the past that they are working on an HD DVD equipped Xbox 360, I would not be surprised if one was in the works. Hopefully they can get it out on the market before the format war is over. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
The device is being developed in response to the PS3 driving sales of games software and Blu-ray content in several countries. A recent Sony Brand Wave study conducted in five countries including the UK, Australia, France Germany and Spain revealed that a key reason that consumers are buying a PS3 is because it includes a Blu-ray player.
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Samsung today has issued a firmware update to its BD-P1000 and BD-P1200 Blu-ray players. The firmware is in response to these reported issues, but it also makes some other performance tweaks, according to Samsung.It's good to Samsung responding this quickly. Hopefully, we'll see an update from LG in the near future as well. If you're having trouble finding the firmware updates, they can be downloaded here (BD-1000P) and here (BD-1200P). Add a comment
The BD-P1000 firmware update may be downloaded from Samsung's site and burned to disc. The firmware fixes the freeze-up issue reported with Fox's BD+ titles.
The BD-P1200 firmware update, which may downloaded via Samsung's site or installed via the player's ethernet connection, improves playback compatibility in some movies, fixes the BD+ issue, enhances performance of in-movie games, and fixes audio noise in some movies.
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If you'd like to read more, Panasonic's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Panasonic, the leading brand by which Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. is known, starts sample shipment of a new-generation UniPhier system LSI (PH1-ProII = nickname, MN2WS0038) from October 2007, in which next-generation AV data compression/decompression (codec) technology is applied to UniPhier, Panasonic's original digital consumer electronics integration platform.
The new-generation UniPhier uses the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, a next-generation codec. It can compress full-HD large image data down to one third to half that of the conventional methods while keeping high level definition. It also extends the recordable time significantly for the same media, and can realize smooth image data communication.
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HD DVD set-tops have reclaimed their dominance over Blu-ray standalone players, according to weekly NPD Group unit sales figures cited by Toshiba.Video Business also reports that Toshiba expects to sell 5 million PC-based HD DVD drives in 2008. By putting the drives in desktop and notebook computers, Toshiba hopes to make the format competitive with the Playstation 3. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
HD DVD players began outselling Blu-ray models starting in mid-September and regained a year-to-date lead of a little over 50% through the rest of the month, said Jodi Sally, Toshiba VP of marketing of digital A/V products.
Year to date, according to NPD figures she cited, HD DVD players command 53% of sales; Blu-ray players, 44%; dual format players, 3%.
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Quick to respond to the PS3's European price-cut, the HD DVD Promotional Group has issued a statement to say that they believe it will have "minimal impact" on the next-gen DVD market.In my opinion, the HD DVD Promotions Group should be concerned. While they once dominated the high-def standalone player market, they've started to fall behind in recent months due to the introduction of cheaper Blu-ray players. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
"The European PS3 price cut will have a minimal impact on the adoption of next generation HD formats. The real battleground is in sales of standalone players and HD DVD is out in front by a massive margin." said Ken Graffeo, co-chairman of the Group.
As well as giving Sony a much-needed sales boost in the gaming market in the run up to Christmas, the new 40GB PS3, that will be £299 when it's available later this month, will also be one of the cheapest Blu-ray players on the market.
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While many speculated that BD+ was the cause of these problems, they appear to be an issue with BD-J. Samsung and LG are reportedly aware of the problem and are working on a fix. However, it is unknown when firmware updates will be available. Add a comment
But while the discs have generally been well-received (our own Peter Bracke raved about the audio/video quality in his review of 'Silver Surfer'), what was initially a cause for celebration has become an exercise in frustration for some Blu-ray fans as incompatibility issues with some players have hindered playback of the discs.
The most severe problems have been reported on Samsung's BDP-1200 and LG's BH100, which are both said to be incapable of playing back the discs at all. Less catastophic issues (error messages and playback stutter) have been reported for Samsung's BDP-1000. The discs appear to play back fine on all other Blu-ray players (including the PlayStation 3), although users have reported lengthy load times of up to two minutes.
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Blue Ray Technologies is launching a new television division to serve the burgeoning Hi-Def TV market with Blu-ray discs. With virtually all network and cable shows now shot in High Definition, a new market for Blu-ray DVDs is springing up for TV fans.If you'd like to read more, Blue Ray Technologies' entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
The home market for TV show on DVD is well-established: about 100 "Complete Season" sets, specials and TV movies are released every month - more than tripling new theatrical titles.
Complete Season releases can actually be cheaper to networks and consumers than regular DVDs as 13 episodes will fit into a single 25 gigabyte Blu-ray disc, rather than four DVDs. Boxed DVD sets retailing at $49 -$79 presently could be sold in the $29 -$39 range, with store prices being much less.
