Samsung's slim BD-C7500 Blu-ray player
Photo: Samsung

While 3D TV certainly garnered a lion's share of the attention at CES, one key element to its success will be the availability of 3D content that can be played on 3D-enabled TVs. Now that the Blu-ray Disc Association has finalized its 3D specifications for players, several major brands announced Blu-ray players that will include 3D capability. Beyond 3D, many new Blu-ray players can act as Internet entertainment gateways, providing access to the growing library of content—including streaming movies—available via the Web.

Here's a quick summation of what happened in the Blu-ray area at CES:

LG's BD590, with a built-in 250GB hard drive
Photo: LG Electronics

LG Electronics: LG announced several new Blu-ray players with access to LG’s NetCast online service, which offers streaming movies from NetFlix, CinemaNow, and Vudu, plus Pandora Internet radio. The BD590 is the only Blu-ray player we’ve so far seen with a built-in 250GB hard drive that can be used to store music, photos, videos, and movies purchased from Vudu. The flagship player, which has built-in Wi-Fi, is DLNA compliant, and it includes Gracenote’s MusicID-Stream, which provides info on a song or artist playing in a movie or video. Other models include the BD570, which has the same features as the BD590 except for the hard drive, and the BD550. 

LG also announced several new Blu-ray home theater systems, including the LHB975, a 5.1-channel system with NetCast access and wireless rear speakers and subwoofer.

Panasonic: Panasonic’s 3D-enabled Blu-ray player is the DMP-BDT350, which features dual HDMI outputs, one HDMI 1.4, and the other HDMI 1.4-compliant. I was told that the player will send 3D TV Blu-ray signals to a newer 3D TV via the HDMI 1.4 output, while the HDMI. 1.4-compliant output (presumably it's lacking the 3D feature) is used to send audio-only signals to an A/V receiver equipped with with either HDMI 1.3 or HDMI 1.4 inputs.

Panasonic's 3D-ready DMP-BDT350
Photo: Panasonic

The company also announced three standard Blu-ray models that will be available this spring: the entry-level DMP-BD45, the DMP-BD65, a step-up model, and the top-of-the-line DMP-BD85. The BD65 and BD85 models have access to the company’s Viera Cast online service, which includes streaming movies from Amazon and Netflix and Pandora Internet radio, plus internal decoding of Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master audio. The BD85 has 7.1-channel analog audio outputs and a “tube sound” simulator, and comes with a wireless Wi-Fi adapter; the adapter is an option on the BD65 player.

Panasonic, which launched the industry’s first portable Blu-ray player last year, announced two new portable Blu-ray models: the DMP-B500 and DMP-B100. The B500 has a 10.1-inch screen, the B100 8.9 inches, plus built-in wireless capability and access to the Viera Cast online service. Both have SD card slots; the B500 supports high-def AVCHD video files.

Samsung: Samsung unveiled several new Blu-ray players that will support its Internet@TV online service, now with Samung Apps,
which includes access to streaming movies from Blockbuster, Netflix and
Vudu. The BD-C6900 is its entry into the 3D sweepstakes. The player has a glossy transparent top, 7.1-channel analog outputs, and built-in Wi-Fi. It’s also wireless DLNA compliant.

A super-slim flagship player, the BD-C7500, is just 1.1 inches high. The player, which can be wall mounted, placed on a 25-degree stand or placed flat, has a grayish woodgrain design. The BD-C6500 player, a step-up model, shares many of the C6900's features, except for the 3D capability, and has a more conventional design. A third model, the BD-C5500 lacks some features found on other models, such as built-in Wi-Fi support. All the new players will launch this spring at still-undisclosed prices.

Sharp: At Sharp, the big news was Blu-ray players with
access to streaming movies from Netflix: the mainstream BD-HP24U ($280) and a step-up player, the
BD-HP70U ($500), a wireless-ready model that has a second USB port that
accepts an optional Wi-Fi dongle. Both are slim-line models with piano-black finishes, and they'll be available during the fourth quarter
of this year.

Sony's 3D-ready BDP-S770
Photo: Sony

Sony: At CES, Sony was one of a handful of companies announcing a 3D-enabled Blu-ray player, the BDP-S770, as well as several standard models that feature the same “monolithic” design used in several new TV series.

The 3D-capable BDP-S770 player, available this summer, comes with built-in Wi-Fi, internal decoding of Dolby TrueHD and DTD-HD Master audio, and access to Sony’s Bravia Internet Video platform, with access to streaming movies from Netflix and Amazon Video on Demand, plus Pandora and Slacker Internet radio. It can also play SACD audio discs, and it can upscale both standard DVDs and Internet video. It’s DLNA compliant, allowing you to share content stored on a home PC via a home network.
Two other Blu-ray players arrive this spring. The BDP-S570 is a step-up model with many of the same features as the S770, but without 3D capability. The BDP-S370 is a Wi-Fi-ready model.

Sony also announced three new Blu-ray home-theater systems, which include access to the Gracenote entertainment database to get artwork or information about an actor. The models can be controlled using an iPhone or iPod Touch using a free app that can be downloaded from the Apple app store. One model, the BDV-HZ970W, is 3D-capable.

Toshiba: Toshiba hit CES with three new Blu-ray models, including the 3D-enabled BDX3000. The player, as yet unpriced, will arrive in the second half of the year. All the new models will have access to online services, including streaming movies from Netflix and Vudu, plus Pandora Internet radio.

Two more mainstream models, the BDX2700 ($250) and BDX2500 ($200), will arrive this spring. The main difference is the 2700 has built-in Wi-Fi, while the 2500 is wireless-ready. Both have 7.1-channel analog audio outputs and support for AVCHD video.

Vizio: Vizio's newest Blu-ray player is the VBR200W, a full-featured, Wi-Fi-enabled model that includes the new Vizio Internet Apps (VIA) platform, with access to services including movies from Netflix and Vudu, plus Pandora Internet radio. The player will be available in March for $200.

—James K. Willcox

Has Google’s Android already faced its first battle with malicious software? It’s not clear whether a batch of banking apps (applications) recently removed by Google from the Android Market were actually malware. But the apps, created by an anonymous developer named 09Droid, certainly raised some suspicions.

Because they were unsure of the legitimacy of the apps back in December, some banks, including BayPort Credit Union and First Tech Credit Union posted warnings to their customers not to use them. Google has since taken them off its Android Market site.

If you’ve downloaded one of the apps yourself, you should remove it from your phone. Security software publisher F-Secure posted a list of 39 banks whose names were used in the apps. They include Chase, Deutsche Bank, TD Bank, Wachovia, and Wells Fargo.

It’s not clear what the apps were meant to do, according to F-Secure’s blog. They weren’t developed by the banks, so users couldn’t do online banking with them. F-Secure’s chief research officer Mikko Hyponnen speculates in Computerworld that 09Droid may have only been trying to cash in on the burgeoning Android market by developing and selling what were essentially shortcuts to the banks’ Web sites. But it’s also possible that user info could have been obtained, since the apps opened up the banks’ Web-interface pages.

For our latest advice on how to protect yourself online, visit our free Online Security Center. You can also find of Ratings of security software suites (available to subscribers) on our site.

Have you encountered suspicious software on your cell phone? Weigh in below.

—Donna Tapellini

Entourage eDGe e-book reader
Photo: Entourage

Amid a host of new e-book readers at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, the Entourage eDGe attracted some of the loudest buzz, and for some good reasons. Based on a demo of the device at Entourage's booth, however, the eDGe also has some awkward design compromises.

As the video below-—shot and generously shared with us by our colleagues at Which magazine, the U.K.'s independent consumer magazine—illustrates, the eDGe, set for a February launch at a price of $490, boasts two large (around 10-inch) screens. One employs e-ink technology, like other e-book readers, while the other uses the LCD technology found on laptop and smart phone screens.

The combination allows some helpful synergies between the screens. You can display color images, which appear only in monochromatic grayscale on the e-ink screen, in full color on the LCD screen.You can open a link embedded in an e-book on the facing LCD screen. You can drag and drop terms from the book you're reading into the eDGe's full Web browser, to get a definition or more information.

But two screens aren't better than one in all respects. When both screens are running, the eDGe claims a battery life of seven hours. While that's frugal energy consumption for a device with an LCD screen, it falls well short of the days of run time the eDGe claims when only its e-ink screen is operational.

The eDGe's two screens introduce ergonomic compromises. A 360-degree hinge does allow them to be oriented back to back. Yet the resulting two-sided tablet isn't very conducive to reading. It's many times thicker than other e-book readers, and especially than the ultrathin new QUE proReader and Skiff. And at a hefty 3.7 pounds, it's even heavier than my 1,542-page hardcover edition of Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. I can't imagine comfortably holding it in my lap for hour after hour of reading.

Like the Barnes and Noble Nook and Spring Design Alex, other dual-screen models, the eDGe is intriguing and innovative, and is reasonably priced given its two sizeable screens. Yet its marriage of two technologies may yield less than the sum of its parts.

—Paul Reynolds

Is this year’s Super Bowl finally going to nudge you off your La-Z-Boy and into a retail showroom for a new, perhaps bigger, TV? If so, here are 10 quick tips for making your HDTV shopping experience as super as the game itself.

1. Read the fine print. Ads for the Super Bowl are already out there, so scour them for hard-to-meet terms and conditions. Some may stipulate that deals are in-store-only specials. Others may be available only during select hours, or require you to pay the full price up front, then file for a rebate (which can involve an arduous redemption process). Also, check to see if the item you want is available "in limited quantities," which will likely be sold out by the time you get there.

2. Look for a store with a price guarantee. Be sure to find out if the store's price guarantee is in effect for sale items. With many stores, it's a 30-day window, with others it may be longer. You'll be protected against any price drops either by that store or its competitors for that period of time. It'll help you sleep better at night.

3. Check the last date of purchase required in order to receive "guaranteed" delivery or installation before kickoff. No one wants to host—or attend—a Super Bowl party where the chips and dip are the featured attraction.

4. Don't let a low price be the only reason for purchasing a TV. Broaden your options by deciding on a few models you'd like to own—and the features you think you'll need—before you start your Super Bowl shopping. With several good choices in mind, you'll have a better chance of finding a set you'd really like to own, not just one that that's comparatively cheap. If a set you want isn't a Super Bowl special, ask if the retailer can do anything with the price. There may be some wiggle room on other—often better—sets that aren't included in the promotions. The retail margins may be better on these sets, so the store could shave a few dollars off the price and still do better than with one of the promoted models.

5. Don't try to save money by opting for a smaller screen size. It may be tempting, but it's our guess that few if any TV owners wish they had purchased a smaller set, while many wish they had gone larger.

6. Check the store's Web site to see if the in-store deals are available online, enabling you to avoid the hassle and crowds. But make sure there's enough time for the TV to be delivered, or find out if they will let you order online and pick up locally. Also, some stores may have Web-only specials not available to in-store shoppers.

7. Use one—or several—of the online shopping "bots" that connect you to dozens of retailers selling the product you seek, sometimes at significantly different prices. Among the better-known bots: PriceGrabber, BizRate, DealTime, Froogle, MySimon, Shopping.com, Shopzilla, and Yahoo Shopping. BizRate and Shopzilla are affiliated, as are Shopping.com and DealTime, and you'll generally get the same results in each of those pairs. Compare the total purchase price, including tax, handling, and shipping, rather than just the price of the TV. Many sites let you sort the list by total price.

8. Check the store's return policy, and make sure that Super Bowl specials aren't exempted, or shackled by high "restocking fees" should you want to return the purchase.

9. If financing the TV through a store's "no payment, no interest" promotion, make sure you pay off the set within the allotted time. Most of these programs will back-date interest to the time of purchase, and charge very high interest rates, which could easily wipe out any sales savings.

10. Pay with a credit card. Some credit card companies will mediate on your behalf if there's a dispute. Also, some credit cards will double the manufacturer's warranty. Try to pay it off immediately so the interest doesn't wipe out your savings.

—James K. Willcox

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