A more attractive price isn’t the only thing that sets the new Sony Blu-ray player apart from the current model. I got a look at the new player here, and noticed several differences, cosmetic and otherwise.
The player is much slimmer than Sony’s current model, the BDP-S1. It also lacks the mirrored front found on the BDP-S1, and it has improved button design on the front panel (for example, the power and eject buttons are still near the top of the unit, but these are now softer and easier to press, as opposed to the annoying, hard-to-press slim metallic buttons now found on the BDP-S1.
Other improvements: the BDP-S300 adds support for playing audio CDs and decoding Dolby Digital Plus audio; and it integrates Sony’s new Bravia Theater Sync technology for synchronizing compatible Bravia devices (including LCD televisions introduced today, and new audio/video receivers). Like the BDP-S1, the BDP-S300 doesn’t support advanced audio compression technologies Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master; it only supports the core audio stream contained within those two codecs.
The BDP-S300 is the first dedicated Blu-ray device priced by its manufacturer for sale at $600; Sony’s four-month-old BDP-S1 costs $1000. That lower price matches the price of the 60GB PlayStation 3–a device considered by some as a comparatively inexpensive entry Blu-ry player.