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Panasonic DMP-B15 hands-on

by Paul Miller posted Jun 23rd 2009 at 3:34PM Featured Story


While we got a quick look at the thing a few months ago, we were finally able to get our mitts all over Panasonic's new DMP-B15 portable Blu-ray player. With its bigger-than-a-laptop size and wild pricetag (for a consumer device), it's obviously a niche product, but that's not to say there aren't hints of consumer friendliness in here. Overall the hardware is light and strong, and while we felt a bit of heat venting out the sides, it's not uncomfortable, and the disc operation is virtually silent. Startup time and disc load times are comparable to most dedicated home Blu-ray players -- certainly not best in class, but passable -- and we couldn't get the player to skip despite our best efforts. The screen is really great, with a good amount of viewing angle and brightness for the category and plenty of resolution to differentiate HD content. We spotted a bit of pixel crunch in menus and stills, but once the motion started we could barely differentiate pixels. Sure, it's hard to imagine a reason for most people to pick up a DMP-B15 over a cheapish Blu-ray playing laptop -- the thing is monstrously thick, and can't even handle a traditional laptop-style screen orientation, only everything but -- but the hardware is reliable enough for kids to handle on the road, and the single-use makes it a good home Blu-ray player for plugging into that second HD-starved TV. Still, we're guessing most will wait to see what next year's (sure to be flush) crop has to offer.

Gallery: Panasonic DMP-B15 hands-on

Panasonic's DMP-B15 portable Blu-ray player: $800, ships this month

by Darren Murph posted Jun 1st 2009 at 10:01AM


It'll definitely run you less here in America than it would if you chose to import straight from Japan, but the planet's first BD-Live-capable portable Blu-ray player still ain't cheap. Today, Panny announced that its DMP-B15 -- which originally broke cover at CES -- will be shipping later this month in the US for $799.95. That nets you an 8.9-inch WSVGA display, VIERA CAST internet accessibility, an SD card slot, 2.5 hour rechargeable battery, HDMI output and BD-Live (Profile 2.0) functionality. Oh, and quiet kids on the next road trip to Gramps' pad, which is totally priceless.

Panasonic makes it official: Profile 2.0 DMP-B15 portable Blu-ray player

by Darren Murph posted Jan 8th 2009 at 6:17AM

Hard to say just how well this thing will or won't sell, but honestly, we see the value here being the portability and not necessarily the inbuilt display. The DMP-B15 portable Blu-ray player is fully Profile 2.0 (BD-Live) compliant and features an 8.9-inch WSVGA screen, VIERA Cast support, an HDMI output and an SD card. It'll ship this May for an undisclosed price -- so, do you (or your child) plan on picking one up?

Panasonic's CES 2009 wrap-up

by Darren Murph posted Jan 7th 2009 at 7:18PM


Panasonic just shocked us good fashion with some pretty incredibly HD-related releases at its CES 2009 press conference, and we figured we'd round 'em all up so you don't miss anything. Have a look below at the shots -- we'll be working to get more details (price, availability, that sort of stuff) as soon as it's ready.

Read - Hands-on with Panasonic's 0.33-inch thick Neo PDP Eco plasma
Read - Hands-on with Panasonic's DMP-B15 portable Blu-ray player at CES 2009
Read - Panasonic introduces wireless, 1-inch thick TC-P54Z1 VIERA plasma
Read - Three new Blu-ray players from Panasonic: BD60, BD80 and BD70V




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