Sure, you could buy an upconverting DVD player to play any standard DVD at HD resolutions on your fancy HDTV. After all, they’re only about $100 new, sometimes less, and the upscaling stuff actually looks incredible. But with Sony’s latest Blu-Ray player at only $599, the idea of going truly hi-def for discs is looking good. What’s more, besides being cheaper than Sony’s $1000 previous Blu-Ray player, the new BDP-S300 will also feature CD playback. No, really!

Sure, it’s only hi-def is from Blu-Ray discs, which are more expensive than standard DVDs, and the library of compatible titles is limited, but being the first company to price a player at such a low price point is a shot across the bow of HD-DVD. By introducing a player that the average consumer could actually afford (if they wanted to), Sony has finally done something right in its latest format war-of-attrition.

Now if it can keep the prices of discs down, and get a few other studios on-board, Sony might actually win this one, something it hasn’t done with a format since the Reagan administration.

Sony announces cheaper Blu-ray player [Seattle PI]