Panasonic today announced the availability of the DMP-BD10A, Panasonic's next generation Blu-ray Disc player, at a SRP of $599.95. The DMP-BD10A features an audio upgrade package that brings high end surround audio via the inclusion of 7.1 channel surround, Dolby True HD and dts-HD High Resolution Audio decoding technology. The DMP-BD10A also incorporates Panasonic's proprietary EZ-Sync system for integrated one-touch operation of Panasonic home-theater components. Included with each DMP-BD10A are - from Disney 'Pirates of the Caribbean', 'Curse of the Black Pearl' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest', 'Transporter' and 'Fantastic 4' from Fox and 'Crash' from Lionsgate.



"Panasonic is deeply committed to the success of Blu-ray," commented Gene Kelsey, Vice President, Entertainment Group, Panasonic. "We feel strongly about providing the ultimate high definition entertainment to the consumer and are thrilled to offer five Blu-ray mega hits with the purchase of the BD10A."

In addition to playing pre-recorded Blu-ray movie discs, the DMP-BD10A plays conventional standard-definition DVDs (with automatic 1080p up-conversion via HDMI) and conventional CDs. Other key features of the DMP-BD10A include proprietary P4HD technology for performing IP conversion at the pixel level for ultra-fine details, a 297MHz 14bit Video D/A Converter with 4X oversampling, video noise shaping that improves signal-to-noise ratios by shifting noise to an unused band, and theoretical support for nearly 4400 billion colors. The DMP-BD10A also incorporates Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital and dts decoding, and BD-J (Java application) interactive capability. The player is also compatiblw with the company's High Definition camcorder (HDC-DX1), via the AVCHD (H.264) codec.