Going Blu

After waiting many months for a decent Blu-ray player to be available (PS3 notwithstanding), Sony finally released the new BDP-S350 model as promised and I ended up buying it just a few days after it was released. I know I said I was going to get the BDP-S550 model, but I just couldn't wait another few months for it too arrive. The only thing I'm not getting is the ability to internally decode the DTS HD HR/MA codecs so I will end up upgrading my AV receiver at a later date to a HDMI model.

So far the BDP-S350 is great, the picture quality is awesome (equally good as my HD DVD Xbox 360 add-on) and is whisper quiet (something lacking on the 360). The unit is currently Profile 1.1 (Bonus View) but will be upgradable to 2.0 via firmware update by the end of this year. There is a USB port that will allow you to upgrade the storage to a 2.0 compliant 1GB capacity or larger if you like. Loading of BD discs is very fast, especially compared to previous models.

The Sony Xcross Media Bar looks just like the Sony PlayStation 3 interface (from what I've been told) and is a breeze to use. Years ahead of the Samsung DVD interface I had before. The physical size of the unit it much smaller than my second generation Sony DVD player I bought years ago and is comparable to the Samsung.

The player cost $399 but I used a $100 credit by applying for a Sony credit card so my net cost was "only" $299. I know that seems like a lot but it's still cheaper than the $500 I paid for my Sony DVD player when it was brand new.

I only bought a few BD movies for the kids (mostly Pixar titles). After looking at my DVD collection, I realized I almost never re-watch a movie a second time so I'm trying to put my NetFlix account to good use and just rent them. Also at an average price of $30 a pop, it's not cheap buying them. So far NetFlix hasn't started charging more for them as rumored.

Rob asked me why I didn't go with the PS3, since it's essentially the same price and I would get the gaming aspect for free. Basically here are my reasons:

1. The PS3 will not natively work with my Harmony universal remote. Since the PS3 uses Bluetooth, I would have to use a third party adapter to control the unit. A popular one called IR2BT had issues with the latest PS3 firmware update which required owners to ship the adapter back for the fix. Not good.
2. Although quiet for a next gen console, the PS3 makes more noise than a standalone unit. This annoys me when watching a quiet scene on the 360.
3. The PS3 uses more electricity, even when "powered" off.
4. The PS3, due to it's rounded design, is not stackable in my AV rack.
5. The PS3 doesn't bitstream any of the HD audio codecs, nor does it have any analog audio outputs. Not this is a big deal for me, but it is for some audiophiles.
6. I already own the Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360 for gaming. I don't need another console as much as I wouldn't mind playing MGS4 or Resistance, it's just not worth it for me.

Does this mean the PS3 isn't a good Blu-ray player? Absolutely not, as I've said before, its one of the best on the market. Since it contains multiple fast processors its more than capable of running the latest Java based BD's at very high speeds. It loads BD's faster than most standalone discs and was the first player to become Profile 2.0. I seriously considered getting it before I decided on the Xbox for gaming. Nonetheless I love the standalone BSD-S350 and look forward to many years of wonderful 1080P movie viewing on it.