Sony® Blu-ray DiscTM Player BDP-BX2 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Outstanding quality. This blu-ray player produces a top quality picture. Setup was painless. However, if you like to add all devices to your cable box remote control, I could not get it to recognize this player. I tried all the Sony codes in the manual and then tried the learn process and the cable remote could not operate this player. Not a deal breaker but an annoyance. This player has BD Live which allows for firmware updates over your network but has to be hard wired. It has no wireless capabilty. It does not have some of the newer network features such as Net Flix, You-Tube, Pandora, etc. But with BD Live, maybe these capabilities will be added in future firmware updates. My unit arrived with .006 firmware version. Web site review indicated that version .007 was the latest firmware available. I called Sony for the .007 firmward disc and they sent it free of charge and it arrived in 4 days. Great service from Sony. There is a Quick Start option that I selected so I find this player to be very fast from disc insert to start of movie.
Bottom line: If you are looking for a top quality Blu-Ray player, you can't go wrong with this one. And the firmware can be updated as newer versions come available. If you want the latest internet features, they are not offered with this model. I would highly recommend this player.

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Enjoy Blu-ray DiscTM movies in Full HD 1080p quality and upscale your existing DVDs to near high definition with the Sony® BDP-BX2 Blu-ray Disc player.Connect to the Internet and access bonus interactive features on BD-LiveTM enabled Blu-ray Disc movies [external memory (sold separately) is required], and experience stunning, high definition audio with support for enhanced audio formats including Dolby® TrueHD and dts®-HD Master Audio. HDMI cable included. Plays Blu-ray DiscTM movies in Full HD 1080pPlays DVDs and upscales them to near high definition via HDMITMBD-LiveTM ready (requires USB flash memory)Dolby® TrueHD and dts®-HD Master Audio decodingDeep color output and x.v.ColorTM support (HDMITMv1.3)Quick start-up mode (appox. 6 seconds)Xross Media BarTM (XMBTM) based menu systemManage compatible home theater devices with one remoteHDMI cable includedAudio Features: Dolby® : Yes & Dolby® TrueHD bitstream out over HDMITM (V1.3)Dolby® Digital plus Decoding : YesDolby® True HD bitstream output : YesDolby® TrueHD Decoding : YesLPCM : Yes (multi channel decoder): Yes (HDMITM bitstream out)MP3 Playback : Yes (BD-R/RE/DVD+RW/+R/-RW/-R/CD-R,RW)5dts® Decoding : Yesdts® HD bitstream output : Yesdts® Output : Yes, & /DTS®-HD bitstream out over HDMITM (V1.3)"Convenience: Menu Options : XMB® inspired media barA/V Sync : YesBRAVIA® SyncTM : YesBit Rate Indicator (Video) : YesChild Lock : YesEasy Setup : YesFL LED Dimmer Off : YesMulti Disc Resume : NoParental Control : YesQuick Start Mode : YesStartup Screen : YesGeneral:

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Sony BDP-BX1 - Blu-Ray disc player - upscaling Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)First off, this IS the same player as the BDP-S350 however the remote included is a backlit remote that I believe is included with the BDP-S550 player. This BDP-BX1 also comes with a decent HDMI cable. Based on my research, Sony creates these different models at the request of the Big Box stores (BB, CC, etc...) to prevent shoppers from requesting they price match Costco, sam's Club, etc...
On to the Player:
This unit is profile 2.0 compliant. Blue ray discs load fairly quickly but the slight delay over standard DVD's takes a bit of getting used to. This is an inharent problem on any Blue-Ray player due to the sometimes heavy Java interface used for its menu structures. BD Live will require a USB memory stick to be inserted into the back of the player. I would suggest getting a 1 or 2 GB memory stick and just leave it there (not sure why Sony wouldn't include internal memory?). These memory devices are VERY economical at this point so this is no big deal. Be cautious when purchasing a memory stick though, many may not fit due to it's recession into the case a bit. I've read that the Kingstons work well.
Firmware updates are VERY easy; a "technologically challenged" person will have little or no problems updating the firmware if it becomes necessary.
I use the HDMI interface through my Denon 1909 receiver to my Pioneer plasma and the image quality is breathtaking; although this is expected from any Blue ray player. Standard DVD's play well and the image quality is as expected. It's upscaling ability matches my TV's upscaling abilities so no real improvement in video quality.
The audio quality is superb, though getting true HD audio (True Dolby Digital or DTS-HD) requires an easy change to the default menu setting (Select DD and DTS rather than bitstream if I recall correctly... just google it if having a problem); only do this if your reciever supports the HDMI HD Audio formats. DTS-HD in 7.1 (not too many movies in 7.1 but there are a few)is incredible and put a HUGE smile on my face to see my Denon reciever properly decode both HD-DD and DTS-HD. I notice only a small improvement from the HD audio (5.1) over the standard 5.1 audio and my system is a fairly good 7.1 audio system. The HD audio is NOT a reason to jump to Blue Ray but the image quality is.
The remote layout is acceptable and the backlit function is a nice feature. It lights up in a nice bright blue color rather than the typical boring greenish glow.
All in all I would highly recommend this player to anyone looking to jump into the Blue-Ray realm. If you have a nice TV that support at least 720P you will greatly appreciate Blue-Ray media. If you happen to have a reciever that supports the HD audio formats then you will find the HD audio to be the gravy.
With a good quality HD television, you will find that the upgrade to Blue-Ray from standard DVD is as large a jump as it was from VHS to DVD. Price points are finally making the Blue-Ray plunge a realistic jump for us mainstream folks rather than just the tech junkies.


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BD-Live brings you the next generation of interactivity, allowing you to download and stream bonus content such as additional scenes, shorts, trailers, movie-based games, and more. View feature provides "picture-in-picture" capability with select Bluray Disc titles - useful for viewing director or actor commentary while the movie plays. DVD Upscaling via HDMI gets the most out of your existing DVD collection by upscaling standard definition video to near HD quality. Precision Cinema HD upscale uses high bandwidth digital-to-analog conversion and processing to detect image changes at the pixel level, rather than at the level of whole scan lines.

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