BDP-09FD
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Hands-on / a look within Pioneer's Elite BDP-09FD Blu-ray player
Pioneer didn't bring a whole lot of firepower to this year's CEDIA (though it did toss in 16 new speaker models), but the star of its show was definitely the über-expensive Elite BDP-09FD Blu-ray player. Thankfully, the company had a couple of units setup for photographing, one of which was dissected within a glass case. Needless to say, we snapped images from each, giving you a rare look at what makes this thing worth $2,199. As with most of its Elite components (HDTVs notwithstanding), this unit was also on the chunky side, but it's still a beauty in our eyes. The gallery awaits your attention.
Pioneer Elite BDP-09FD Blu-ray player officially on the way, eventually
The Pioneer Elite BDP-09FD Blu-ray player -- its first with BD-Live, featuring 4GB of storage -- is finally official. Blu-ray discs will have their video treated to Pioneer's 16-bit video processor, Marvell QDEO and Renesas processing, including 24p support, plus the company's Adaptive bit Length Expansion that claims it restores 8-bit color on disc to the original 16-bit studio master. The audio side is treated to eight Wolfson Audio DACs, delivering full decoding and bit-stream output for all those high-res audio formats the kids like so much in a truly superior fashion. Dual HDMI 1.3a outputs capable of splitting or duplicating the workload, RS-232C control and heavy solid steel construction just further the point -- if you'd like to pay more than the price of a PS3 for a fully featured Blu-ray player, here's a good reason. The only truly sad news is that the $2,199 price and "2008" release date remain unchanged.
Pioneer Elite BDP-09FD Profile 2.0 Blu-ray player leaks out
Pioneer's last batch of Blu-ray players wasn't exactly earth-shattering, but if you're in the market for the highest of the high-end, it sounds like the upcoming Elite BDP-09FD might be worth waiting for. The first Pioneer unit to support Profile 2.0 and BD-Live, you'll also be getting 4GB of internal storage, eight independent D/A converters for each 7.1 channel (which means there are tons of receiver-caliber adjustments possible from the player), and 16-bit color output over two HDMI jacks. Should be out soon, for a whopping $2200.
