Panasonic previews next-gen Blu-ray players

Panasonic has revamped its Blu-ray Disc player line, with new models targeting consumers in the US and Japan.

Stateside buyers can now get their mitts on the DMP-BD10A, a $600 player that comes with five bundled discs, including the first two Pirates of the Caribbean films, Transporter, Fantastic 4 and the (slightly) more intellectual Crash.

The player can pump out pictures at 1080p via its HDMI connector and plenty of technological jiggery-pokery to produce a near-perfect picture, Panasonic claimed. It has full BD-J support for disc interactivity, and can play content stored in the camcorder-friendly AVCHD format.

Big in Japan? Panasonic's BDP-LX70 Blu-ray Disc player

Japan's latest BD player, Panasonic's BDP-LX70, doesn't hit the market until June, which adds Burr-Brown digital-to-analogue converters for the main six of the eight sound channels it can feed. On the video side, it can play content at true 24 frames per second, provided a compatible display has been connected via the HDMI port.

The BDP-LX70 will be priced at ¥170,000 ($1414/£712/€1040).