Two new Blu-ray heavyweights on the horizonNot to be outdone by all the other manufacturers making a mint overcharging for Blu-ray players (PS3 notwithstanding), Denon announced its own Blu-ray player recently for the ice-cool price of US$1,999. The DVD-3800BDCI will be available in the US this fall.
We're still scratching our heads why Denon couldn't include an Ethernet connection, found on players like the Samsung BD-P1200, instead of making you rely on SD cards. Aside from version 1.1, the new reference player will include the step-up version of HQV's video processor, known as Realta. Current HQV-equipped units, like the aforementioned Samsung, get the step-down Reon processing, which to our eye works pretty dang well. Realta is said to improve the video quality of Blu-ray discs, and so it may inspire purchases that version 1.1 wouldn't. It's worth mentioning that simultaneous secondary A/V track playback, along with an Ethernet port, are standard on all HD-DVD players regardless of price. In terms of audio, the DVD-3800BDCI will internally decode the new higher-quality surround Dolby TrueHD soundtracks (we're not sure yet if it can also decode DTS Master soundtracks, although the one we photographed was missing the DTS-HD Master logo) and can pass both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio via bitstream to a compatible receiver like one of Denon's new models, the Onkyo TX-SR605 or Sony STR-DA5300ES for example. Unfortunately the new Denon Blu-ray player lacks DVD-Audio and SACD playback, which might make it a more compelling purchase for audiophiles invested in those formats. Speaking of formats, Denon's spokesman was careful to mention that the release of the DVD-3800BDCI didn't necessarily mean the company was an exclusive supporter of Blu-ray, a statement that naturally leaves open the possibility of Denon producing a combo HD-DVD/Blu-ray player. | |||||
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