The Blu-ray equipped SC-BT100 HTIB system Panasonic showed onstage at their CES press conference is set for US release in the same "spring" timeframe as the DMP-BD50 standalone Blu-ray player. HTIB systems are all about convenience, so rest assured that Panasonic threw in some niceties for your other gear: iPod dock, an SD card slot and AVCHD support for your videos shot (hopefully) with a Panasonic video camera. If the 5.1-channels you get out of the box aren't enough, you can add one additional pair of speakers with an optional transceiver unit. All in all, it looks like a pretty good HTIB system: 5-disc changer, Blu-ray final standard (1.1), DTS-HD MA and Dolby TrueHD and 5.1 channels (with wireless surrounds) for $1000. We would advise, however, you take the 250-Watt power rating with a grain of salt.

The Criterion Collection's long-awaited HD debut -- delayed by that annoying format war -- finally has a date, as well as a list of the first movies getting a definitive release in 1080p. If that wasn't enough, try this bit on for size: They won't charge viewers extra for the privilege. That's right, according to the e-mail that went out to subscribers today, all Blu-ray releases will feature HD picture and sound (no word on what codecs, although we expect nothing but the best considering the company has been mastering and restoring all releases in HD for years now), all the supplemental content and a matching (unspecified) price to their standard DVD editions. The complete email and list of a dozen movies follows after the break, along with a note that The Last Emperor will also be released in its original theatrical version on both formats for $39.95, while Walkabout will be an all-new edition.

[Thanks, Erik]

Sun Microsystems's pledge to aid the widespread development of interactive content on Blu-ray wasn't the only thing going down today at the JavaOne Conference in San Francisco. Rather surprisingly, famed musician Neil Young announced plans to "release his entire music archive on Blu-ray discs that can be updated over the internet." Reportedly, the first installment of Young's archive will cover 1963 to 1972 and will be released as a ten-disc set this fall on Reprise / Warner Bros. Records, and subsequent archives will be released chronologically and "include some previously unreleased songs, videos, handwritten manuscripts and other memorabilia." Stressing Blu-ray interactivity, it was also noted that fans could download more songs, photos and tour information via their internet-connected decks. Needless to say, we're pretty stoked about the whole ordeal, and can only hope that more artists follow suit in serving up their work via Blu-ray.

[Thanks, JDS]

If you're looking for a standalone Blu-ray player that hits all the checkmarks, make room for the Panasonic DMP-BD50 on your list. After being teased with this unit at CES, only to see it go to European consumers first, it's finally official in the US of A. BD-Live support gets tops billing in the press release, so rest assured that once the floodgates of internet-enabled additional content are opened, you'll be ready to surf. Considerably more usable right now, the next-gen Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA audio codecs (also with in-player decoding) are there as well. Good stuff, but the $700 MSRP is little extreme for what amounts to an internet-enabled disc spinner, and won't exactly be invigorating those struggling Blu-ray player sales.

[Thanks, Mike S]

Although it's all water under the bridge now, we still find it interesting that Viacom's recent earnings statement confirmed that Paramount received compensation for dumping Blu-ray. But contrary to the New York Times article, Variety is reporting that it was only $29 Million, instead of $150 Million. This is of course only cash, and it is still entirely possible that the other $121 Million included future revenues that didn't materialize once things fell apart, but we have a hard time believing Paramount received that much in promotional services or free replication. And while the Warner payoff rumors weren't from a source as sound as the NYT, we'll still be keeping an eye on revenue statements from Engadget and Warner's shared parent company all the same.

[Via Format War Central]

We're beginning to lose count of how many times we've been around this carousel, but just in case you thought yet another rumor would bring the Blu-ray-infused Xbox 360 any closer to reality, Microsoft's out to put the kibosh on your wildest hopes and dreams. Following up on the latest round of whispers that surfaced last Friday, Redmond proclaimed to GamePro: "As we have stated, we have no plans to introduce a Blu-ray drive for Xbox 360." The statement also noted that "games are what drive consumers to purchase game consoles, and we remain focused on providing the largest library of blockbuster games available." Right -- which totally explains your prior relationship with HD DVD.

Yeah, you heard us. We're bored with looking at all these "other surveys," it's time to have our own. We've seen that sales of Blu-ray players have been relatively disappointing thus far in 2008, even after the format war was over. We've heard that heightened prices, occasional shortages and Profile confusion were the causes. But we're interested to see if you -- the most diehard of them all -- have paid attention to any of that. Are movie / HD lovers still buying now that there's one true winner? And if so, are you snapping up the safe bet (read: PlayStation 3), waiting for a Profile 2.0 deck or grabbing up another standalone unit in order to not miss a minute of that 1080p glory? Let us have it below.

There's been a lot of press about how Blu-ray players sales are disappointing right now, with everyone expecting sales to go up after HD DVD threw in the towel. The problem is that HD DVD just recently went belly up and anyone who followed the format war knows that this could be the worst time since Blu-ray was released to buy a Blu-ray player. This is because the latest Blu-ray titles are finally taking advantage of the latest audio codecs and the latest interactive features, but the players that are currently available are not only unable to take advantage of the latest features, but also cost more than the next generation that is due relatively soon. So while it's fun to say the reason people aren't buying is because DVD is good enough, or because the cost is too high; we prefer to think that consumers are smart enough to know that it's better to wait a month or two for the full featured, less expensive players.

For all of Microsoft's denial, the Xbox 360 Blu-ray console rumors just will not die. In fact, they are getting more and more specific. The Chinese language Economic Daily News is reporting that Pegatron, an OEM subsidiary of ASUS, has won the order from Microsoft to assemble the Xbox 360 with Blu-ray Disc ROM drive -- shipments are expected to being in Q3 of this year. Now come on Microsoft, just come clean on the matter, we won't tell anyone.

Can't get enough Sunrise Earth? Fantastic. Discovery has just announced that it will be bringing its Sunrise Earth: Seaside Collection to both DVD and Blu-ray on June 11th, and judging by the sound of things, it looks to be a real winner for showing off the capabilities of your setup. Focusing on sunrises above crystal clear bodies of water, you'll find scenes from Maine's Acadia National Park, Australia's Great Barrier Reef, Polynesia, Costa Rica, Turkey's coastline, California's Point Reyes National Seashore, Ninagiak Island and a couple more locales for good measure. Of course, submersing yourself in such grandeur won't run you cheap, as the BD version will ring up at $59.95, while the lowly four-disc DVD set can be had for $10 less.

One step forward, two steps back. Just days ago we found that Blu-ray sales as a whole were up over 300-percent year-over-year from Q1 2007, but new data from NPD has found that sales of BD players -- Sony's PlayStation 3 notwithstanding -- sunk a staggering 40-percent from January to February in the US. Furthermore, sales only grew 2-percent from February to March. Of course, these figures tie in nicely with ABI Research's take that Blu-ray wouldn't "dominate" the market until players broke the magical $200 price point (and included Profile 2.0), and it also makes sense that the PS3 would lead the sector until 2013 if things continue at this rate. According to NPD's Ross Rubin, an "overwhelming majority [of surveyed consumers] said they weren't investing in a new next-generation player because their old DVD player worked well and next-gen players were too expensive." That pretty much sums it up, now doesn't it?

[Image courtesy of kev]

It's no shock that Profile 1.1 players have lost their luster with Profile 2.0 being all the rage, but we figured it prudent to pass along CNET's recent review of the CES-announced BDP7200 just in case. Philips' BD player features a fresh, attractive design, supports Dolby TrueHD / DTS-HD Master Audio in bit-stream format and performed excellently in 1080p24. So, what's the problem, you ask? Unfortunately, there's no onboard decoding of the previously mentioned audio codecs, no Ethernet port for firmware upgrades, an inability to understand Profile 2.0 and "subpar image quality in standard 1080p mode." All in all, the 6.4 out of 10 rating screams "mixed bag" to us, and while this particular device may actually be right for some, we'd certainly take a gander at the review linked below before diving on in.

There's simply no question that the beauty of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (above) can only truly be appreciated after a winding drive down from Kailua Kona (or Hilo, for those who love the rain), but for folks without weeks on end to spare waiting to see lava flow from some of those majestic creations, a forthcoming film should give you the next best look. Volcanographer Mick Kalber has assembled an hour-long movie entitled Kilauea's Flow to Waikupanaha, and while we'd generally brush something like this off, a recent writeup about it most definitely caught our eye. We thought we had already seen HD DVD's last hurrah back in March, but if KHNL-8 is to be believed, the forthcoming flick will be available on Blu-ray and HD DVD. Granted, there's no release date mentioned, but given that red has been decomposing for months now, we're tempted to believe someone was simply misinformed.

The last HD DVD exclusive studio to announce Blu-ray titles won't be the last to release, as Paramount has announced its first Blu-ray movies will hit the street starting on May 20th with Face/Off, Next, and Bee Movie. But the fun really starts in June, as the long awaited award winning There Will Be Blood and Cloverfield are both due on June 3rd. Then a few weeks later, the first day and date title will come with The Spiderwick Chronicles on June 24th. So with the last studio finally lined up, it won't be long until we really get to see DVD and Blu-ray go head to head and once and for all find out if the new Blu format can make a run at the defending champ.

[Via Blu-ray.com]

The strike is behind us and most shows are back on the air, but don't think you've felt the last of its effects, DVD and Blu-ray boxed sets for most of this season's TV shows will be a few episodes shorter than normal. Apparently the idea of charging a little less is just too outrageous, according to Video Business, Disney plans "extra" features like lengthened episodes and looks behind the scenes -- you know, exactly the kind of thing we've come to expect from our boxed sets. Still interested? Grey's Anatomy fans can look forward to the series Blu-ray debut September 9 (Lost hits December 9), part of a strategy to hit shelves closer to the upcoming seasons so fans might remember who McDreamy & McSteamy are. Mentions of possible Xbox Live debuts, or HD cases of Dirty Sexy Money and Ugly Betty were unfortunately missing.