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Blu-ray standards: Profile 1.0 vs. 1.1 vs. 2.0
Since we first heard the words "full profile", trying to decipher what Blu-ray players will have which features has been a surprisingly complicated affair. CNet took a minute to break down the differences between Profile 1.0, Profile 1.1 (aka Final Standard Profile or Bonus View) and Profile 2.0 (aka BD-Live). Profile 1.1 players with picture in picture capability (and movies to watch on them) are finally in sight, but we're still waiting to see when internet connectivity is available for the Blu-ray camp.
Samsung readying a third gen Blu-ray player?
Samsung already shocked us with the announcement of its BD-UP5000 hybrid HD DVD and Blu-ray player, but that doesn't mean they're getting out of the Blu-ray-only player game just yet. While the company's second generation BD-P1200 might have skipped a worldwide debut, rumors recently surfaced of a BD-P1400 model that is "stepped up". Hopefully that step up means BD Live, 1080p/24, PiP and persistent storage support, but in lieu of any specific details, we'll just have to wait to find out what the Blu-ray camp brings our way next.
CES: First generation Blu-ray players may not be "full featured"
TG Daily is reporting that the first generation of Blu-ray players, just announced, will not include hardware support for the vaunted BD-J interactive layer. Apparently the key word to look for when shopping for Blu-ray players later this year is "full-profile". Based on what's been reported, we can expect full profile players to launch at around $1800, while "basic" players may be closer to $1000. Is the Blu-ray spec as done as we've been lead to believe, if the players launching possibly six months from now aren't going to support one of the key features?Also in Blu-ray news, they expect to support streaming media over internet connections, as a way to get people to connect their players to the internet (and update their encryption). The last interesting note was about thier insistence about only wired connections and that they need to keep high definition off the WiFi airwaves. That is really weird to me, even if it only ships with a wired connection, how can they stop someone from using a wireless bridge? It seems silly. I really have the feeling we'll end CES not knowing much more than we already suspected about Blu-ray or HD-DVD.
