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Here she is — the world’s very first universal Blu-ray player. Oh sure, we may have heard of Denon’s absurdly expensive DVD-A1UD first, but that bad boy just got delayed for a second time over in Japan. OPPO, on the other hand, has managed to push out a few hundred of these BDP-83 decks to brave beta testers across America, and we were fortunate enough to score one. The player came boxed in what was far and away the most elaborate packaging we’d seen for a BD player — particularly one that’s priced at just $499 for the beta users (an MSRP for production units has yet to be finalized).

All the goods you want are here, including Blu-ray Profile 2.0 support, internal decoding of Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio formats, SACD playback and the promise of DVD-Audio compatibility in the future. Upon unboxing the unit, we were pleased with the rigid chassis and felt the design was simple yet classy. The remote seemed accommodating enough, and the port selection ’round back was admirable. We’re planning to fire it up this weekend to see just how far along this beta firmware is, but ’til then, hit the gallery below to have a look at what’s sure to become a favorite amongst well informed home theater aficionados.
Gallery: OPPO BDP-83 universal Blu-ray player hands-on

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We’ve already seen a number of mainstays in the turntable game crank out decks that easily archive vinyl records to MP3, and now we’ve got a new pair from Stanton making that same claim. The T.92 and T.55 USB turntables each feature USB and S/PDIF outputs and come bundled with Cakewalk Pyro Audio Creator and Audacity software. On the hardware front, you’ll find an S-Shaped tone arm for lower distortion and reduced record wear along with a built-in DSP with key lock for controlling tempo without affecting pitch. As for differences, the T.55 is a belt-drive turntable that features a straight tone arm, while the T.92 touts a high-torque direct drive motor. Check ‘em both right now at popular music retailers across the globe for $299 (T.92) and $199 (T.55). Full release is after the break.
Gallery: Stanton’s T.55 and T.92 USB turntables take vinyl to MP3 sans fuss

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We were able to spot a few of Panasonic’s latest innovations in the home theater space back at CES 2009, but we got a much more intimate look at things during a recent New York showcase. The new Blu-ray decks look nice, if not a touch plain. Not that everyone wants an Alienware-esque BD deck or anything, but we digress. The Blu-ray HTIB systems were particularly of interest, as these things are perfect for sneaking BD into homes that are currently DVD-only, and while we longed for more information on the portable DMP-B15, the on-hand reps didn’t seem too anxious to gush over technical specifications with us. Their loss, totally.
Gallery: Panasonic CES 2009 Blu-ray / HTIB lineup eyes-on

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We first got a peek at Panasonic’s DMP-BD60, DMP-BD80 and VHS-packing DMP-BD70V at CES, and now they’ve got official pricetags ahead of their April release. Beyond the VIERA Cast support for Amazon VOD, YouTube and other Internet content, this year’s decks also include improvements in power consumption, with the BD60 drawing 16% less juice than last year’s DMP-BD35. The DMP-BD60 can be had for a suggested $299, while the BD80 and BD70V are both priced at $399, depending on whether you prefer VHS or 7.1 analog outputs. Check out the CES 2009 hands on for a better look before these show up at a retailer near you.