Sony preps cut-price Blu-ray player

SAVE A FEW lusting techies, Blu-ray's too expensive for the average consumer - so Sony's toning it down a bit with the announcement of a new, cheaper Blu-ray player.

The system, dubbed the BDP-S300, will have exactly the same capabilities as the $1000 BDP-S1 Sony's currently got on the market, but will cost $599. Still by no means cheap for a glorified Betamax, but a significant step in the right direction.

Blooray rival HD DVD is the cheaper choice at the moment, with Toshiba having a player up for grabs for $499.

The new unit isn't as hefty as its bigger brother, the BDP-S1, on first glancing looking about the same size as your average DVD player. Just as its brother can, the model will be able to squeeze out a signal in the highest-of-the-high-definition format. It'll be able to play CDs too, which the BDP-S1 can't - which is pretty useless for a grand, really. µ

L'INQ
Seattlepi.com