CES 2009

(Credit: Panasonic)

One of the biggest disadvantages to Blu-ray has been its lack of portability. While DVD players are virtually everywhere and portable DVD players are cheap, when you buy a Blu-ray Disc you're typically limited to watching it in your home theater. The Panasonic DMP-B15 looks to address this; it is the first portable Blu-ray player and it's also designed to be used easily around the house with a built-in stand. Here are the details.

Key features of the Panasonic DMP-B15:

• 8.9-inch WSVGA (1,024x600) LCD screen
• Three-hour rechargeable battery
• Profile 2.0 compatible
• Bitstream output for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-Master Audio
• HDMI output
• SD card slot
• Optional headrest-mounting bracket for car use
• Access to Viera Cast Internet content, including Amazon Video On-Demand
• Pricing and availability TBD

While the DMP-B15 includes a lot of cool features (HDMI output, Viera Cast), the 3-hour battery life seems pretty limiting, especially if the real battery life is closer to 2.5 hours. That means you'll be racing against the clock to finish watching some longer Blu-ray movies and don't even think about pausing. It's also worth pointing out that the image-quality advantages of Blu-ray are going to be nearly imperceptible on the 8.9-inch screen, even with it on your lap. That being said, it is the first of its kind and it looks to be a decent solution for those with growing Blu-ray libraries who want to take their movies on the go.

Panasonic's new Blu-ray players

(Credit: Panasonic)

It seems weird to put Lo-Fi VHS tapes and 1080p high-definition Blu-ray movies in the same box, but that's exactly what you'll be able to do with Panasonic's DMP-BD70V, which (as far as we know) is the first combination VHS/Blu-ray player. Aside from adding VHS playback, the specs look to be identical to the standard DMP-BD60 Blu-ray player. Here are the details.

Key features of the Panasonic DMP-BD70V series:

• Blu-ray and VHS playback from a single player
• Profile 2.0 compatible
• Onboard Dolby TrueHD and DTS-Master Audio Essential decoding
• SD card slot and USB input
• Access to Viera Cast Internet content, including Amazon Video On-Demand

This might be a compelling option for those who still have home movies in VHS format, but this seems like a niche product. It's time to convert your VHS tapes to DVD, everyone. For more information on this player, check out our more in-depth coverage of the DMP-BD60, which is similar but lacks VHS playback.

Panasonic had a stand-out 2008 on the Blu-ray front, with the DMP-BD35 earning the first Editor's Choice award for a standalone Blu-ray player. After mastering most of the basic Blu-ray functions, like BD-Live and high-resolution audio decoding, it looks like the two new players, the DMP-BD60 and DMP-BD80, are mostly incremental updates to the existing Blu-ray players, with the biggest new feature being Viera Cast support.

Key features of the Panasonic DMP-BD60:

• Profile 2.0 compatible
• Onboard Dolby TrueHD and DTS-Master Audio Essential decoding
• SD card slot and USB input
• Access to Viera Cast Internet content, including Amazon Video On Demand

Key step-up features on the Panasonic DMP-BD80:

• 7.1 analog audio outputs

You'll also notice these players support DTS-HD Master Audio Essential, rather than standard DTS-HD Master Audio. This new form of the DTS-HD audio codec is mostly the same, but it drops support for some of the more advanced DVD audio formats, such as DTS 96/24, DTS ES, ES Matrix, and DTS NEO 6. However, if a DVD has one of those soundtracks, you won't be left without sound, as it will just revert to standard DTS audio. It also loses support for DTS-ES Matrix and NEO 6 on Blu-ray, but those soundtracks are rare on Blu-ray movies.

Call us spoiled, but even with Viera Cast and Amazon Video On-Demand support, we're disappointed that these players don't have support for Netflix Instant Streaming, which is quickly becoming our favorite value-added feature for Blu-ray. We also had our hopes set on Panasonic including Wi-Fi on these next-generation players--as is included on both the LG BD370 and the Samsung BD-P3600--as not many people have Ethernet connections in their living rooms. Panasonic won the standalone Blu-ray player war in 2008, but it looks like the door is wide open for the competition to make some progress this year.