Product Description The BDP-S360 stand-alone player delivers full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema output, plus decodes the latest advanced audio codecs, Watch Blu-ray Disc movies in Full HD 1080p and upscale your existing DVD collection via HDMI to near HD quality. In addition to a superior picture, this player supports Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD audio codecs for up to 7.1 channels of high-definition sound. There's even quick start-up mode that begins operating your Blu-ray Disc player in approximately six seconds from the time it is powered on. Featuring BD-Live compatibility, you can take full advantage of the Bonus View feature of select Blu-ray movies as well as acquire the latest features and updates as they become available. And navigation of the player's menus is a breeze thanks to the icon-based Xross Media Bar(TM) menu system. Xross Media Bar(TM) technology - Xross Media Bar(TM) user interface makes it simple and intuitive to navigate television menus, controls, and user settings Ethernet port provides connectivity to a home broadband connection for network updates or BD-Live1 access Built-in USB port enables you to connect a portable USB storage device (sold separately) for additional storage capacity and lets you take advantage of specially created content on BD-Live1 with compatible Blu-ray Disc media. BRAVIA Sync technology - Utilizes the HDMI CEC function to easily turn on and control your compatible HDMI-connected components 24p True Cinema capable Unit Dimensions (Approx.) - 16.9 x 2.2 x 8.1 (430x56x207mm); Weighs 4.6 lbs
Great for the priceMarch 16, 2010 Harry H. Hu(Diamond Bar, Ca) It is a great buy for an entry level Blu-ray disc player with Sony name on it.
unhelpful audio settingsMarch 14, 2010 Hans Fugal(Santa Clara, CA) 0 out of 1 found this review helpful
A great player overall, and I think it does an excellent job of upscaling. Not the fastest load time but not unbearably slow.
I have had two problems with it: it and my Sony Bravia have had a devil of a time with the HDMI handshake recently. It worked flawlessly for a month, and now most of the time HDMI does not work. But occasionally it will for a brief period. Very bizarre. I finally broke down and hooked it up with component, and although that's 1080i not 1080p it does the trick. I haven't heard any complaints about it from others (esp. not with a Sony TV) so I am going to investigate my warranty.
The other problem is more definite and inherent in the player. HDMI audio to my TV is only stereo. I imagine this is because my TV reports during the handshake that it only has two speakers or something. But the TV does have a digital audio out which goes to my receiver. Other HDMI devices are able to send Dolby Digital 5.1 through the same pathway just fine, but this player does not. It does of course work to hook the digital audio output up to the receiver directly but this results in more things to change when changing sources.
The audio settings are rather non-intuitive and difficult to understand. I had to research online, e.g. avforums, to even figure out what most of the settings mean and how they would effect what signal gets sent where.
nice bluray overallMarch 14, 2010 Scott the sound quality I would rate 10/10, best I've heard. I have it hooked up with optical to a Yamaha digital sound projector and it rocks
picture quality is good. but in scenes with fast-moving stuff its not really smooth. I'm not terribly picky so I'm not going to say its bad, but could be smoother I guess
worth the money IMO
2 Months - stopped workingMarch 14, 2010 Jacque H. Moser Jr. 0 out of 1 found this review helpful
After 2 months of usubg a total of about 5 times -- the unit no longer works
Sound cuts outMarch 14, 2010 TigerPomme(CA United States) We bought this player in order to save on wear and tear to the PS3. Installation went without a hitch. Picture quality is as expected. Not too big on the feature set. Just play the movies, I don't need BD-Live or any of the other "extras." That's what I have my PS3 for.
Unfortunately, the audio is a major hassle. At first I didn't even realize what happened. While watching cartoon, the video fritzed for a split second and the audio cut out. At first I didn't notice the fritz, thought my son hit the mute button. So I fiddled with the audio and it came back again. Then it did it again. And again. And again. And again. At completely random times throughout the movie. I thought it was a bad disc so I swapped discs. Same problems. It fritzed even before I could get into the movies. Tried numerous "fix" the problem. All were either unsatisfactory or non-working.
So is the player to blame? I imagine so. The PS3 plays movies without a hitch. Is it a problem Sony could have been aware of? OH YES! There have been reports of this exact problem with different HDMI products dating all the way back to 2005! You would think all of the manufacturers, including SONY, would get their act together and make sure this doesn't crop up.