Sony on Tuesday announced the release of two new Blu-ray players as well as the BDV-E300 and BDV-E500W are 5.1-channel Blu-ray home theater systems.
The BDP-S360 Blu-ray Disc player supports reproduction of Blu-ray movies in Full HD 1080p and upscaling of existing DVD collection via HDMI to near HD quality. DVD/CD and AVCHD playback plays Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs, Audio CDs, and AVCHD-format discs.
The player also supports Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD audio codecs for up to 7.1 channels of high-definition sound and offers HD internal decoding and bitstream output via HDMI connections.
Sony said that the start-up mode begins operating the player in approximately six seconds from the time it is powered on. Featuring BD-Live compatibility, you can take full advantage of the Bonus View feature of select Blu-ray movies as well as acquire the latest features and updates as they become available. And navigation of the player's menus is a breeze thanks to the icon-based Xross Media Bar (XMB) menu system.
A built-in USB port enables you to connect portable USB flash memory in order to take advantage of specially created content on BD-Live enabled Blu-ray Disc media.
BRAVIA Sync technology utilizes the HDMI CEC function to easily turn on and control your compatible HDMI-connected components.
The BDP-S560 offers all the features of the BDP-S360 plus a built-in wireless functionality (802.11N/G/B/A). The BDP-S560 Blu-ray Disc player also supports Wi-Fi protected set-up (WPS) for an easy conection to WPS enabled wireless routers. It is also Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) ready for easy photo sharing with other DLNA-compliant devices.
The BDP-S360 and the BDP-S560 are expected to ship this summer for $300 and $350, respectively.
Sony also announced the BDV-E300 and the BDV-E500W 5.1-channel Blu-ray home theater systems. Both are BD-Live capable and support the same advanced codecs as the BDP-S360 and the BDP-S560, and include Sony's Digital Media Port for additional options for connecting and controlling accessories such as portable music players. The BDV-E500W also comes with integrated S-AIR wireless audio capabilities, for transmitting audio up to 164 feet from the main system.
Available in June, the BDV-E300 and the BDV-E500W will sell for approximately $600 and $800, respectively.