Why I buy this one ?
- Full HD 1080/60p,24p Video Output via HDMI connection
- DVD Upscaling to 1080p
- Uncompressed Multi Channel Linear PCM Output
- Build Quality with Rigid Beam Construction
- BD-Java Interactive Capability

What our customer's say!

"Pioneer, Sony, Samsung, etc. - Blu-Ray is awful", I've had the Pioneer Elite, a Samsung, and now a Sony BDP-S1 and I truly feel ripped off. They all take--no exaggeration--between 5 and 10 minutes to load, they're fussy, they freeze. When the disks are running, OK, they look good, but the bugs are endless. I've yet to speak to anyone who doesn't dislike his Blu-Ray player. I truly hate this technology.

"SunnyBoy", Sony's BDP-S1 Bluray player's built quality is like other flagship products (in the ES series) they built: SCD-1, DVP-S7000, DVP-S7700, DVP-S9000 etc. (Sony tends to build their first generation machines with every tools they have, but...)

After V3.7 firmware update, I would like to report the following (seen on my LG 32LC2D LCD TV set at 720p):

1. booting procedure is a little faster: about 50 seconds (not the first time booting).

2. disk loading takes about 20 seconds.

3. the machine responds to the remote control much faster: "almost" instantaneous, with at most 1 second of latency.

4. no glitches on most regular DVD playback I have tried so far (>100), and the up-conversion picture quality is as good as PS3, in certain area, it even surpasses that of PS3.

5. it still does not support CD playback! It cannot play SACD is quite strange to me, since its audio DAC (BB/TI PCM1738E, after that 2 dual OPs amps for using as L/R channel current output low-pass fileter and I/V conversion, plus another dual OP used as the second stage stage of LPF, with 3 PCM1738E in this configuration to handle 5.1 audio outputs) is capable of both DSD and PCM decoding. With the design out the output stage, it is very easy to modify the analog output signal to be fully balanced one. However, with PCM recorded red book CD, why BDP-S1 cannot decode? I am not sure whether this "problem" is due to the hardware limitation (first generation BD ROM drive does not read CD pixels), or Sony disabled CD playback in its firmware. Please SONY: enable red book CD playback, if it is disabled in the firmware!

Lots of people are debating whether they should get the new BDP-S300/350, BDP-S500/550 or the first generation BDP-S1 or even PS3. The decision depends on what you really want/afford to buy. All-in-one player: PS3 period. For people hunting for a dedicated bluray/DVD up-converting player: S3000/3500, S5000/5500 with warranty or you can buy S1 at really low price off e-bay (with/without warranty). Audiophiles need to keep away from BDP-S1! If you really want the top-of-the-line Sony Bluray player, get BDP-S2000ES (MSRP $1200). From technical side, BB/TI already discontinue the PCM1738 and the suggested replacement is its top-of-the-line PCM1796. Probably that audio DAC will be in BDP-S2000ES. Usually, not too many machine under 3K are using BB/TI PCM179X series DAC chips, stay tuned!

(Video equipments using: Sony BDP-S1, Sony PS3, Toshiba HD-A30, XtremeMac 4-1 HDMI switch, XtremeMac HDMI cables, LG 32LC2D LCD TV.)

"They will not make them like this again", Pictures do not do it justice.You will have to see Sony's BDP-S1 in the flesh to appreciate the fit and finish.Unfortunately when the market catches on, Blu Ray players will weigh about the same as an average laptop and feel flimsy.Just compare Toshiba's current Hd dvd players to their earlier models(HD-XA1 /HD-XA2)and you'll understand.In the meantime give yourself a treat;get one these before it's too late.And did I mention that the picture quality is excellent?

"Biggest waste of time", Well before, I bash the thing to death let me say, when it did play movies, it was short of breathtaking. My Toshiba AX2 is breathtaking! Anyways, the player performs fairly easily on most Blu-Ray titles. Here come the spin on everything. Recently did a firmware update at the service center because I noticed it was having difficulty playing some movies, and could't retreive any special features. SO they did the upgrades and ensured me the player was profile 1.1 compatible. I took the player home, and it wouldn't load any disks. So I hard reset the player over the phone with the service center, and that seemed to work for about 10 days. Then I would load a new movie it would start playing for about 5 mins the beep really loud at me then display an error prompt then shut down. Fair enough reset the player agian and everything worked fine. Well after about 5 days, I got fed up and took it back to the service center. They could not find anything wrong with the player? I brought in some movies, and they worked for about 5 mins then the problem came back. They took the cover off and watched the player do its thing, and no change? The guy was really stumped. The factory reset the player without any firmware updates. Everything was back to normal. The player worked great!!! Eventually after loading update by update, we seemed to have a working player again, untill the 1.1 profile came into play. The had modifiactions of the last update to see which one would work. Don't really know(not that techie). Finally I had a working player after about 5 hours at the repair depot. I took it home, and rented Pirates, and the new Harry Potter. Well, the gong show continued... I have now determined that the profile 1.1 stuff glitches, and I have since sold the player on EBAY for $199 with the last of my movies... Don't buy it and save your money...

"First generation, and it shows.", We've got one of these in our office. It's slow - takes a very long time to start up, and is pretty unresponsive. Seems very finicky about disks with slight scratches. The "eject" button takes a long enough time to eject that you sit there wondering if you really ejected it and you hit it again, and it goes out about an inch and then goes back to tell you "no you hit it before I just decided to register both presses at the same time". Gets 2 stars instead of 1 because it actually plays disks and is basically functional, but I'd be upset if I got one for free (which I guess I kinda did). Looking forward to a 3rd or 4th generation version that's cheap, reliable, and more tolerant of scratches.

Read this reviews before You buy...

"Take a Wait-and-See Attitude", I am, as a rule, not one to buy first generations of any kind of product. I have a long history of owning problem-free Sony products, so I was willing to risk it with the BDP-S1 once I caught it on sale. Big mistake! While the picture quality is amazingly better than anything I've seen so far in a digital video format, the machine is glitchy as can be. Here's my thoughts:

Pros:

1. Much better audio than with any player I've ever owned. The channels are clearly separate and not muddy sounding as with other players I've owned. Some of that is the Yamaha receiver, but there've been other players connected to it recently and none match the BDP-S1 sound output quality.
2. The picture delivers as advertised when played with the Blue Ray discs. The 1080i upconversion (my TV doesn't support 1080p...another wait-and-see attitude for me) is not remarkable with standard DVDs, but there is a difference.

Cons:

1. Does not play CD audio discs. Not a big thing to me since I never played CDs in any of my previous DVD players, but for the price (see #5 below), this machine should have zero problems handling any previous digital data formats.
2. The boot-up speed is, in a word, awful. It takes a LONG time for the player to get to the point where the tray can be opened to insert a disc. After I'd first bought the player, I pressed the open/close button and, once the player had finished it's boot-up process, it opened and then immediately closed the tray, scratching the disc. I learned to wait until I see the "CLOSE" indication on the player before pressing the open/close button. This con sounds a bit trivial, but after several foot-tapping delays, it becomes insane.
3. The menu access is hit-and-miss with standard DVD discs. Some discs will allow you to go back to the previous menu when the MENU button is pressed on the remote, others will display the message "This operation is prohibitied by this disc" and then you're forced to stop the disc and either restart it again for this power cycle or reboot the entire player (see #2!).
4. Following the argument in #3, if you are able to restart the disc without rebooting the player, this process sometimes hangs the play mode into scan mode. When this happens, it's back to rebooting the player and, you guessed it, see #2.
5. There is no resume function that bookmarks your progress after power is removed from the player. So, if you have to reboot because you tried to access the menu with a standard DVD, you'll have to find where you were at manually once you are able to return to the movie. The resume works only on the current power cycle.
6. Even on sale, this player is enormously expensive.

I broke my own rule of avoiding first generation products based on brand loyalty and performance history. It's why I don't own a 2005 Mustang while I absolutely loved the redesign and my mouth watered every time one drove past. But in this instance, I turned a deaf ear to my better judgment, so I deserve what I got for having ignored my own cardinal rule. Don't make the same mistake. Wait and see what's next. It's my understanding that the next generation of Sony Blue Ray players will play CD audio. Save your money and frustration budget and wait.



"Best DVD player out there.", I have purchased numerous DVD players throughout the years and the Sony Blu Ray player is by far the best out there. It gives me the most clear HD picture far surpassing the old SD DVD players. It automatically determines what sort of DVD you have put into the machine, 480P and up and then plays it at the highest resolution available up to 1080P!! The Movie Studios are backing this machine and not the HD DVD players, and they have certainly made the right choice.

"Upconversion Not Like Toshiba HD-XA2", Does not compare to Toshiba HD-XA2 for Upconversion. Blu-Ray may be fine but nothing compares to the Toshiba HD-XA2 for Upconversion that is out there on the market.

"Everyone should have one", First I got the Sony Bravia Tv then I got the Sony Blue Ray (second generation) disc player. It's so good that I may stop watching regular TV and watch Blue Ray disks only. My goodness, the picture is ..... wonderful! I want to watch it all the time its so good.

"TOP NOTCH BLU RAY PLAYER", OUTSTANDING PICTURE AND SOUND QUALITY MAKE THIS BLU RAY PLAYER THE HD FORMAT TO OWN. BLU RAY IS TAKING A COMMANDING LEAD OVER HD DVD. BUY THIS PLAYER, OR THE LESS EXPENSIVE NEW SONY PLAYER THAT RETAILS FOR $499 FOR THE HD DISC FORMAT OF THE FUTURE.