Blu-ray

Panasonic DMP-BD55

Price $399.99 Release date October, 2008

Pros

7.1 analog outputs do not require an expensive receiver for users to enjoy full surround
Profile 2.0 capable
good option for those with older high quality receivers

Cons

better to get the cheaper BD35 if you have a receiver
better to spend the extra money on a receiver upgrade
Bluray is still too expensive

Yamaha BD-S2900

Price $1,199.00 Release date August, 2008

Pros

High definition audio bitstream output (Dolby TrueHD, dts HD-MA)
5.1 analog pre-outs
Gold-plated connectors

Cons

No BD-Live
No Ethernet port
Can't upgrade the firmware

Philips BDP7200/37

Price $400.00 Release date April, 2008

Pros

Decent value-priced Blu-ray player
Excellent video quality
Excellent audio quality

Cons

Extremely slow load times: over 60s from boot to movie
Sluggish reponse from remote control
Poor OSD; opaque, lacks detail

Pioneer Elite BDP-95FD

Price $999.00 Release date October, 2007

Pros

Supports all major high-definition audio formats
Ethernet port for streaming media across network
HDMI-CEC technology for controller other HDMI-connected devices

Cons

Expensive - $1K
5.1 analog outputs instead of 7.1
Not Profile 2.0

Sony BDP-S550

Price $400.00 Release date October, 2008

Pros

Profile 2.0 support with BD-Live
7.1 DTS HD-MA and Dolby TrueHD decoding
7.1 analog audio outputs

Cons

Not as much value as a PS3

Sony BDP-S350

Price $400.00 Release date July, 2008

Pros

Supports BD-Live
Ethernet port for Web-content and firmware updates
Not as expensive as predecessor - BDP-S300

Cons

No local storage, therefore not Profile 2.0 compliant
No 7.1 analog audio outputs
Doesn't decode DTS-HD audio formats onboard

Sony BDP-S2000ES

Price $1,299.99 Release date September, 2007

Pros

Rigid drive bracket to reduce quivering
Solid beam chassis that minimizes vibration and improves playback
Aluminum insulators help isolate the player from external vibrations

Cons

Expensive compared to BDP-S500 with only a few improvements

Sony BDP-S500

Price $599.99 Release date September, 2007

The Sony BDP-S500 is a basic profile (1.0) Blu-Ray player capable of upscaling DVDs to 1080p via HMDI. It can display images at both 60p and 24p, and will play back video encoded in MPEG-2/MPEG-4-AVC and VC-1 codecs. The player is capable of 7.1 HDMI and 5.1 analog audio output, as well as uncompressed PCM sound, plus Dolby...