The Sony BDP-S2000ES is the flagship product in Sony's Blu-Ray player lineup. It was first released in September 2007 and has an MSRP of $1299.99. The BDP-S2000ES bears Sony's "ES" designation to denote that it meets their Elevated Standards found in legacy Sony equipment. At $1300, it is significantly more expensive than the next model down: the Sony BDP-S500 that retails for $700. Improvements over the BDP-S500 include a more modular circuit board design that separates the audio and video circuitry, a sturdier (and arguably striking) chassis design, and IR-in.