Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-Ray Disc Player
From Sony

plays Blu-ray high-definition discs (selectable output resolution: 1080p signals available through HDMI output only; 720p/1080i signals available through HDMI or component video) * built-in audio decoding to PCM for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS * bitstream audio output for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS-HD, and DTS-HD Master Audio * BD-Java interactive capability * BRAVIA Sync for control of compatible Sony TVs and components via HDMI *

Manufacturer's Description

Revel in astounding HD clarity with the BDP-S350 Blu-ray Disc player. The most noticeable additions to this year's model are the Ethernet port that lets you download firmware updates directly to the player, and -- with one of those firmware updates -- access web contetent encoded to Blu-ray discs via BD-Live, compatibility with the Bonus View feature of select Blu-ray movies, and a USB port that allows you to add more storage to access the growing number of special features that will be available given the immense storage capacity of Blu-ray discs themeselves. This player also outputs a Full 1080/24p True Cinema picture, and upscales your existing DVD collection to 1080p when using an HDMI connection. Dolby TrueHD capability delivers lossless sound that is true to the original studio master. Bringing it all together is the new icon based Xcross Media Bar, which provides simple navigation of the player's menu system.

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More Picture

See Everything Your HDTV Can Show You with Full HD.

6 Times the Picture Data on DVDs
See everything your HDTV can show you. Blu-ray Disc's Full HD 1080p resolution produces over 2 million pixels per frame to produce a razor-sharp picture with unmatched depth and clarity that takes full advantage of the capabilities of today's 1080p HDTVs. That's six times the picture data contained on DVDs, which are encoded at only 480p.

24p True Cinema Video Output
Most of all Hollywood movies are shot at 24 frames per second, and Blu-ray Disc movies are mastered at 24 frame per second, so it is only fitting that the Sony Blu-ray Disc Players can output your films at 1080/24p for a true film-like experience at home. Of course, Sony Blu-ray Disc Players can also output at 1080/60p for more traditional HDTV sets on the market. Either way Sony has you covered for the best picture possible in Full 1080p.

Backwards compatible and Upscaling
All existing Blu-ray Disc players will play your standard DVD collection without a problem. And with built-in 1080p video upscaling, they'll look even better.

Key Features

• True 1080p Output (Learn more)
• Dolby TrueHD compatible (Learn more)
• Ethernet connection for BD-Live Compatibility and firmware updates (Learn more)
• USB Port Allows More Storage for Access to More Special Features, Like Bonus View (Learn More)
• Higher Bit Rates mean less video compression (Learn more)
• Emmy-Award Winning Xross Media Bar Interface (Learn More)
• Bravia Sync for Easy Connectivity (Learn More)

In the digital world, picture quality is not just about resolution, but also about bit rates. The higher the bit rate, the more data that is processed, typically resulting in higher video quality. DVDs have a maximum video bit rate of about 10 megabits per second (Mbps). In comparison, Blu-ray Disc is capable of video bitrates up to an incredible 40 Mbps. The bottom line, higher bit rates allow for the least amount of data compression for HD video that looks closest to the original video source.

More SoundThe BDP-S350 is compatible with Dolby TrueHD, Dolby's next-generation lossless technology developed for high-definition disc-based media. Dolby TrueHD delivers tantalizing sound that is bit-for-bit identical to the studio master, unlocking the true high-definition entertainment experience on next-generation discs. When coupled with high-definition video, Dolby TrueHD offers an unprecedented home theater experience that lets you enjoy sound as stunning as the high-definition picture.

• Delivers enthralling studio-master-quality sound that unlocks the true high-definition entertainment experience on next-generation discs.

• Offers more discrete channels than ever before for impeccable surround sound.
• Compatible with the A/V receivers and home-theaters-in-a-box (HTIBs) of today and tomorrow.
• Dialogue normalization maintains the same volume level when you change to other Dolby Digital and Dolby TrueHD programming.
• Dynamic range control (Night mode) enables you to customize audio playback to reduce peak volume levels (no loud surprises) while experiencing all the details in the soundtrack, enabling late-night viewing of high-energy surround sound without disturbing others.

Xross Media Bar

Xross (pronounced Cross) is Sony's Technical-Emmy award-winning graphic user interface for Sony WEGA and BRAVIA televisions and PS3 and PSX game systems. The interface features category icons spread horizontally across the screen that organize the viewing options (TV, Music, Internet, Tools, etc...). When a category icon is selected on the horizontal bar, a vertical bar appears showing the viewing options within that category. Using the directional pad on your remote, you can easily maneuver horizontally from category to category, then scroll vertically through individual viewing options to easily navigate through the wide range of programming available on today's televisions.

Ref & Read more...Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-Ray Disc Player

Acclaimed screenwriters including David Goyer (Batman Begins) Josh Olson (A History of Violence) and Alan Burnett (Batman The Animated Series) join forces with revered animation filmmakers on six spellbinding chapters chronicling Batman s transition from novice crimefighter to Dark Knight. These globe-spanning adventures pit Batman against the fearsome Scarecrow the freakish Killer Croc and the unerring marksman Deadshot. Using an arsenal of high-tech gadgetry from Wayne Industries Batman s ethical boundaries exist only where he chooses to place them leaving some fearful of his power. The sharp storytelling complemented by stylish art from some of the world s most visionary animators masterfully depicts the blurred lines of Batman as man myth and legend.Format: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: CHILDREN/FAMILY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 085391179511 Manufacturer No: 117951

Batman Gotham Knight - Details
Brand: Warner Brothers
Released on: 2008-07-08
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Formats: Animated, Color, Widescreen
Original language: English, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai
Number of discs: 1
Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
Running time: 76 minutes

Customer Reviews

I only wish there was a ZERO star option...
Horrible, horrible, horrible. I was so dissapointed with this project its not even funny. Do not waste your money on this, if you want good Batman animation go and get one of the Batman Animated Series sets. [Read on...]

 

Dragon's Lair (Blu-ray)
From Warner Bros

Buying Offer listing

Average customer review:

Dragon's Lair HD delivers the fun, tongue-in-cheek medieval adventure that made the original arcade games a hit. The Dragon's Lair games were the first fully-animated arcade games, and were favorites in the 1980s. Now the funny, fast action gaming experience is available on your Playstation 3, with the added bonus of HD technology. Sharper images, DVD-style bonuses and no more annoying pauses at decision points - all making a classic game even better. Comes with full-length visual commentary on the game All special features presented in 1080p

Features

• Become Dirk The Daring, a brave but bumbling knight is out to save Princess Daphne - again
• Control Dirk as he fights through Mordroc's castle and its many dangers
• New characters combine with advanced cel-shaded graphics for a bigger, better adventure
• Digitally restored and enhanced with 5.1 Surround Sound
• Features interviews with original creator Don Bluth, Gary Goldman and Rick Dyer

 

Reviews

Best Version I've played to date outside of the Arcade
I'm using a PS3 to play this classic game and I must say it is just great to play this once again. I can't wait until Dragon's Lair II comes out it will be a day 1 purchase for me.
The extra features on this are a must for true Don Bluth fans. It is great to see the creators of the game get some time to talk about it.
The game itself has an Easy and a Hard setting, as well as a Home and Arcade mode. I beat the game on Easy just to play through it, and it was just as good as I remember it to be. I don't have a 5.1 stereo system hooked up so I can't judge the audio but I'm sure it helps add to the game.
Back to the features, I really enjoyed the comparison to the versions that have been available through the years and how they showed them all side by side so you can see just how much better the Blu-ray version is compared to even the DVD or Lazerdisc versions.
I was playing this game while my niece (11) and nephew (9) watched and they loved it. I explained to them it was from the same people that made "The American Tail" and the first "Land Before Time."
At any rate I'm glad that I decided to pick this one up.

Ref: Dragon's Lair (Blu-ray)

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Blu-ray Video Games, Blu-ray

Sony BDP-S300 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player
From Sony

Features

• Full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema Video Output
• DVD Upscaling to 1080p via HDMI
• BRAVIA Theatre Sync (HDMI-CEC)
• BD/DVD/CD playback(4) and AVC-HD with x.v.Color output
• Multi-channel Linear PCM & Dolby Digital Plus Decoding

Manufacturer
See and hear a whole new world of high definition with the incredible BDP-S300 Blu-ray Disc Player. The crystalline clarity of 1080p Blu-ray Disc movies1 and DVD upscaling2 has to be seen to be believed. Amazing 24p True Cinema3 2 output and cinema-tuned picture presets allow you to see movies exactly how the director intended. And with BRAVIA Theatre Sync, you can now you can control your compatible BRAVIA TV and AV systems3 from just one remote.

x.v.Color
Thanks to the adoption of a newly approved international color standard called xvYCC (an option in the HDMI v1.3 spec and which Sony participated in helping to create), the color space has been greatly expanded. 1.8 times as many natural colors as existing HDTV signals will now be faithfully reproduced. (x.v.Color capability is available on select BRAVIA televisions, Blu-ray Disc players and the PlayStation3 computer entertainment system.)

24p True Cinema Video Output
Many movies are filmed at 24 frames per second (fps) and prime time TV programs are videotaped at 24p. Seizing an opportunity, some studios are taking a purist approach and encoding high definition video content such as Blu-ray Disc in 24p. The BDP-S300 wisely takes advantage of this by including 24p output capability. The benefits are smoother and more natural-looking images that make watching television an experience to remember. (24p video input capability is available on select BRAVIA televisions.)

BRAVIA Theater Sync
Go beyond simple audio and video transmission with the "one-touch play" remote control feature that allows you to easily manage select BRAVIA televisions and Sony HDMI audio and video components with a single remote. (Available on select BRAVIA theater home A/V systems and components.)

Blu-ray'sHD resolution offers a vastly better picture than SD resolution availabel from regular DVD

More About Blu-ray
The format provides five times larger capacity than today's DVDs, with unprecedented storage capacity of 25 GB (single-layer) and 50 GB (dual-layer). Blu-ray Disc players will be fully backward compatible with current DVD formats, delivering entertainment content in full high-definition (HD) quality, under a secure environment made possible through the most advanced copyright protection technology.

Blu-ray Disc provides picture quality beyond anything available, with full capability 1080p/24 resolution in Blu-ray and Up to 40Mbps bit encoding - 5X current DVD. The theater quality "uncompressed" audio supports 8 channels of Liner PCM, Up to 32 streams of audio, interactive capability, seamless menus, integrated games, hi-def bonus and educational features. Java will allow for more dynamic, more sophisticated interactivity.

Expand your workd with Sony products using Blu-ray Disc technology. It;s the heart of an outstanding line of Sony products with Blu-ray Disc technology that extends beyond the boundaries of high-definition and opens the new vistas for creativity, enjoyment, and interaction.

Discover unsurpassed picture quality and uncompressed audio on supporting media that goes beyond any other format you've seen. Immerse yourself in the unrivaled detail that lets you experiencemore in every movie, every game.

Movies

Find a huge selection of great movies available now on Blu-ray Disc

The best names in entertainment suppor Blu-ray Disc technology. Seven of Hollywood's major studios -- with 90% of home entertainment sales -- ensure the most extensive library of high definition titles, with hits from SOny pictures, Walt Disney, MGM, 20th Century Fox, Warner Brothers, Paramount, and Lions Gate. You'll find more titles coming every month.

Blu-ray Disc was created to match the accelerating growth in digital consumer electronics and computer technology. The platform supports the convergence of film, music, gaming and other computer entertainment in a single standard. Sony Computer Entertainment's adoption of Blu-ray Disc ROM technology in the next-generation PlayStation 3 system was announced at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo.

Capacity Without Compromise
Everything that DVD can do, Blu-ray Disc does and more. Blue laser technology enables up to 50 GB of storage -- five times the capacity of DVD. That's room for nine hours of HD. Or 23 hours of SD. Or tens of thousands of songs. Unbelievable data storage.

Versatiltiy Beyond the Ordinary
From movies to music to games to PC software and file backup, Blu-ray Disc is your solution! The system embraces pre-recorded titles (BD-ROM), discs that you can record yourself (BD-R) and discs you can re-record over and over again (BD-RE). So we can anticipate not only BD players for your living room, but also BD recorders, BD-based game consoles, BD drives for your personal computer and even BD camcorders using compact 8 cm (3") discs!

Manufacturer's Description -- July 2, 2008
Revel in astounding HD clarity with the BDP-S350 Blu-ray Disc player. The most noticeable additions to this year's model are the Ethernet port that lets you download firmware updates directly to the player, and -- with one of those firmware updates -- access web contetent encoded to Blu-ray discs via BD-Live, compatibility with the Bonus View feature of select Blu-ray movies, and a USB port that allows you to add more storage to access the growing number of special features that will be available given the immense storage capacity of Blu-ray discs themeselves. This player also outputs a Full 1080/24p True Cinema picture, and upscales your existing DVD collection to 1080p when using an HDMI connection. Dolby TrueHD capability delivers lossless sound that is true to the original studio master. Bringing it all together is the new icon based Xcross Media Bar, which provides simple navigation of the player's menu system.

Read on...

 

Blu-ray Disc player

Cloverfield [Blu-ray] (2008)

Actors: Mike Vogel, T.J. Miller, Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, Odette Yustman
Directors: Matt Reeves
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
Language: English, French, Spanish
Subtitles: English, French, Portuguese, Spanish
Region: All Regions
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Number of discs: 1
Rating:  PG-13
Studio: Paramount
DVD Release Date: June 3, 2008
Run Time: 84 minutes

Five young New Yorkers throw their friend a going-away party the night that a monster the size of a skyscraper descends upon the city. Told from the point of view of their video camera the film is a document of their attempt to survive the most surreal horrifying event of their livesSystem Requirements:Running Time: 84 minutesFormat: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY/MONSTERS & MUTANTS Rating: PG-13 UPC: 097361328546 Manufacturer No: 132854

One of the first things a viewer notices about Cloverfield is that it doesn't play by ordinary storytelling rules, making this intriguing horror film as much a novelty as an event. Told from the vertiginous point-of-view of a camcorder-wielding group of friends, Cloverfield begins like a primetime television soap opera about young Manhattanites coping with changes in their personal lives. Rob (Michael Stahl-David) is leaving New York to take an executive job at a company in Japan. At his goodbye party in a crowded loft, Rob's brother Jason (Mike Vogel) hands a camcorder to best friend Hud (T.J. Miller), who proceeds to tape the proceedings over old footage of Rob's ex-girlfriend, Beth (Odette Yustman)--images shot during happy times in that now-defunct relationship. Naturally, Beth shows up at the party with a new beau, bumming Rob out completely. Just before one's eyes glaze over from all this heartbreaking stuff (captured by Hud, who's something of a doofus, in laughably shaky camerawork), the unexpected happens: New York is suddenly under attack from a Godzilla-like monster stomping through midtown and destroying everything and everybody in sight. Rob and company hit the streets, but rather than run with other evacuees, they head toward the center of the storm so that Rob can rescue an injured Beth. There are casualties along the way, but the journey into fear is fascinating and immediate if emotionally remote--a consequence of seeing these proceedings through the singular, subjective perspective of a camcorder and of a story that intentionally leaves major questions unanswered: Who or what is this monster? Where did it come from? The lack of a backstory, and spare views of the marauding creature, are clever ways by producer J.J. Abrams and director Matt Reeves to keep an audience focused exclusively on what's on the screen. But it also makes Cloverfield curiously uninvolving. Ultimately, Cloverfield, with its spectacular effects brilliantly woven into a home-video look, is a celebration of infinite possibilities in this age of accessible, digital media. --Tom Keogh

 

Buying and Ref: Amazon.com: Cloverfield [Blu-ray]: Mike Vogel, T.J. Miller, Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, Odette Yustman, Michael Stahl-David, Matt Reeves: Movies & TV

Cloverfield, Blu-ray