Although coy with any detail, Panasonic just put the industry on notice with its Blu-ray plans for the US. In a move to double its Stateside market share, Panny will begin bundling Blu-ray players with their plasma TVs next week. The move specifically targets Circuit City and Best Buy among other big-box retailers and "may" result in a discount. This according to Masayuki Kozuka, a general manager in charge of the company's storage device strategy. We'll take that as a
confirmed discount. After all, without a price drop, why bother -- it's not like
profile 1.1 support will be the cause for that huge upsurge in sales. A Panasonic spokesman also said that they would release two new "higher-end" (read: more expensive) Blu-ray players in January. We'll likely hear more on that little nugget at CES.
Update: Well, here you have it: Best Buy's offering a
$500 discount off their 50- or 42-inch plasmas when purchasing the DMP-BD30K.
[Thanks, Travis]
posted Dec 10th 2007 4:19AM
A sony pushing product with a panasonic?
I'd rather have a discount, or stub my toe..
What does this promotion have to do with Sony? Both the TV and the BD player are Pannys.
Letting your hatred for Sony blind you huh....Sony has nothing to do with this AT ALL. Both TV and BD player are from Panasonic (you know, one of the other huge companies that developed and promote Blu-ray)
I said "sony pushing", and it does push sony since they not only are important blu-ray developers but more notably supply the movies, or did panasonic start a movie company too? Didn't think so.
They are indeed. You can pick up the Panasonic-TH-42PZ77U 42" 1080p Plasma and blu-ray player for $1499 at BB this week. It's $1499 for the TV, $499 for the player, and then $499 instant savings.
This is Great!
Just wow. I bought the 42PZ77U two weeks ago for 1200, and this happens.
yeah, i just bought a Panasonic plasma about 3 weeks ago... i wonder if they'll hook me up with the discount and give me the player?? i will certainly be asking...
So does this qualify as a firesale or just dumping obsolete inventory?
The correct commercial term is bundling since the players are not being discontinued or announced as End Of Sale.
Panasonic has a good idea here - and sony will probably follow suit in one way or another. Samsung has already done its business with the BDP1400 at 299.99. This idea of the TV/BD deal is getting more popular, for obvious reasons. But much like the 299 blu ray, this will not last, its a holiday deal only, and will be canceled after the holiday ends. The problem I have with deals like this, is they offer them with B stock, or their second teir (paul, dont panic, itll probably be the PX77u or the PZ70u, not the PZ77, that set has the $300 retail credit through 12/24 right now). The new high end (799.99/999.99) units are pretty nice, look like the dmpbd10ak. I just worry about the output on the DMPBD30AK - the player in this deal. The unit it replaces is probably the worst blu ray on the market, and is resposible for more bad press on the format than the actual format (read: Its blu-ray's HDA2!).
Just found it on BBY: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?type=category&id=pcmcat138200050160
Wasn't Best Buy doing this sort of deal a while back giving a free PS3 + discount to people who bought a certain HDTV/HDTV of a certain price? Did that really work then? No. Will this really work now? No.
That player does not decode TrueHD audio. No sale.
Of course it does. It does TrueHD as well as DTS-HD-Ma bitstreaming.
I have a perfectly fine AVR that processes TrueHD PCM decoded by a player like most do. Are you saying I should buy a new AVR to decode TrueHD by bitstream which is the only way to hear TrueHD with this player? Right.
it would be sweet if it was for ANY panasonic plasma. i'd be getting one of their 58 inch models then! (58pz700u or 58pz750u)
Just wanted to give my two cents on Panny Plasmas. They rock!!! Plasma FTW!
Friends don't let friends buy projection.