CES 2009

Philips' flagship BDP7310 Blu-ray player is BD-Live enabled and features DivX and WMV playback.

(Credit: Philips)

With Funai licensing the Philips brand in 2009, things have gotten a little confusing about just what's going on with Philips home audio and video products. But it appears that all the products that Philips announced at CES 2009--including three new Blu-ray players--are true Philips products. Philips had already planned out its 2009 line and Funai Electric will be taking over the production of that line this year.

The three models include the BDP3010 ($229.99), a profile 1.1 model, and two BD-Live capable players, the BDP5010 ($249.99) and the BDP7310 ($299.99). We say capable because the BPD5010 is upgradable to BD-Live, while the BDP7310 will be a Profile 2.0 or Live-enabled out of the box. The BDP7310 also offers DivX and WMV playback. We suspect all of them will carry street prices of less than $200 when they're released this spring.

Note: Philips also announced the HTS-5100B, a home-theater system with a built-in Blu-ray player that's due out in June. No word on pricing of that model.

The Philips 7000 series FlatTV line features a new design.

(Credit: Philips)

With Funai licensing the Philips brand in 2009, things have gotten a little confusing about just what's going on with Philips home audio and video products. But it appears that all the products that Philips announced at CES 2009--including the new 7000 series Flat TVs--are true Philips products. Philips had already planned out its 2009 line and Funai Electric will be taking over the production of that line this year.

Thus far, details are scant on just when the new 7000 series LCD TVs will be released and how much they'll cost. However, they do have a new design that features an ultrathin bezel surrounded by a rounded acrylic edge. The 120Hz, 1080p sets will range in size from 32 to 52 inches and they have a fast 2-millisecond refresh rate.

The press release also notes these models feature the proprietary "Halo-Free technology, which removes the faint halo accompanying fast moving action." This new video processing technology allegedly helps eliminate artifacts "that are prevalent in LCD technology."

As we said, we're still trying to get the lowdown on pricing and availability, but for the time being we'll leave you with a quote from the umbrella company, P&F (Philips and Funai), that now is the exclusive manufacturer and distributor for Philips televisions and home-theater products in the U.S.

"The new design and superior technology in our FlatTV line will strengthen our offerings in the fast-growing, large-screen HDTV market," says Todd Richardson, senior vice president of sales and marketing for P&F. "The ultrathin frame design differentiates Philips from other sets on the market and the technology inside is certain to win over even the most discerning HDTV consumer. Consumers can look forward to an unparalleled viewing experience, thanks to the unique combination of exceptional picture quality and design at an attractive price level."

We'll add details as we get them.