re: Sony Delivers Living Room Pc With Blu-Ray Disc Technology (and CableCARD)

Brad — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 06:11:15 GMT

"The model # for the changer shows as VGP-XL1B3. I wonder if the B3 signifies Blueray."

Unfortunately, doesn't look like it. The XL1 system came with a "XL1B" changer, and the XL2 system came with a "XL1B2" changer. No changes in the changer (AFAIK - the internal writer might have been a little faster).

I have to believe that if the changer was to have Blu-Ray in it, it would be called "XL3B".

Anyway, just check out the CES reports on really poor integration of Blu-Ray and HD-DVD on the previewed Vista MCE systems. MS does not support HD-DVD and Blu-Ray in MCE. So, everyone is having to write their own plug-in software for the MCE interface (which launches an external player)! If you can't have the Blu-Ray discs listed in the "My DVDs" library, and play the discs within the MCE interface, what is the point?

I've been dreaming of a XL3 with a Blu-Ray changer for a year now. At CES 2006, Sony actually showed a proof of concept XL1 with an alleged Blu-Ray changer.

But with the poor state of Vista MCE in terms of next-gen disc playback, I just don't see Sony releasing a Blu-Ray changer yet.

I also noticed recently that Sony has a disclaimer on all of their Blu-Ray equipped PCs, saying that commercial Blu-Ray discs using non-MPEG2 codecs at full bitrate might not play well. And, yes, the XL3 has this same disclaimer (which may be why they don't seem to be marketing the XL3 too hard as a Blu-Ray movie playback machine).

re: Sony Delivers Living Room Pc With Blu-Ray Disc Technology (and CableCARD)

Pete — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:45:41 GMT

It looks like like the 200 disk changer is an option on the XL3, while it came standard with the XL2. The model # for the changer shows as VGP-XL1B3. I wonder if the B3 signifies Blueray.

re: Sony Delivers Living Room Pc With Blu-Ray Disc Technology (and CableCARD)

Kevin — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 04:52:38 GMT

That is a nice looking machine. $3300 is a bit much though.