Sony Plans Lower-Cost Blu-ray Player
As part of an ongoing effort to get more people to use the next-generation Blu-ray format, Sony will be shipping a new, lower-cost player at some point in the next few months.
Expected to be released during early summer, the BDP-S300 will be priced at $599, although Sony was quick to note that it will feature the same capabilities of the much pricier BDP-S1, at $999.
In the current format war, Sony, Samsung, and other companies have been attempting to woo users into adopting Blu-ray over rival technology from Toshiba and the HD DVD camp.
United We Split
Last year, there was discussion of Sony and Toshiba combining their efforts for a unified format for DVDs, but that initiative was dropped after months of failed attempts to figure out the details of joining forces.
Toshiba president Atsutoshi Nishida noted at the time that the company would focus instead on its own product launches rather than resuming talks. Nishida did hint, however, that there could be a unified standard after the launch of several next-gen DVD players.
Analysts have noted that it would be easier for consumers if such a format were created, or if one of the formats would win out over the other. The format battle has been compared to the early days of video players, when Betamax and laser discs were trying to best VHS, only to be trampled into obscurity.
Both Blu-ray and HD DVD are fairly evenly matched in terms of potential adoption, noted IDC analyst Josh Martin, in a recent interview. He pointed out that consumers have wondered whether a “superplayer” might be created that would replace both formats. Much easier, he noted, would be for Sony and Toshiba to resume talks and head toward one of the existing formats.
Choice To Make
In rolling out a more affordable version of its…
