Pioneer gave up producing flat TVs and buried the LaserDisc, but the company seems to still believe in Blu-ray. Yesterday, Pioneer Japan announced a total of three new Blu-ray players [JP], covering the low-end and high-end segments.
Costing $300, the BDP-120 (pictured) is the cheapest of the three new models. Strangely, it features a Kuro-Link interface (next to HDMI/USB/Ethernet and others). It supports BD Live and Deep Color (36bit) and 480/60i/480/60p/720/60p/1080/60i/1080/60p/1080/24p.
Pioneer also presented the BDP-320, which misses the Kuro Link but has a couple of features the BDP-120 doesn’t offer. For example, it supports Deep Color in 48bit and AVCREC, plays MP3s and offers PQLS (Precision Quartz Lock System) on two channels. The player will be priced at $450.
The BDP-LX52 comes with quite a hefty price tag: $880. It’s almost the same model as the BDP-320, but it features multi-channel PQLS.
All players will hit Japanese stores next month. Pioneer is yet to announce plans for overseas markets.