[HDTV1080P]

Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Player
(March 2009 Home Theater Magazine review, pages 64-66)

Kris Deering has reviewed the Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Player in the March 2009 Home Theater magazine on pages 64-66. The Panasonic DMP-BD55 and DMP-BD35 has a better picture quality with 1080I BLU-RAY discs since the video processor is better in the Panasonic players compared to the Sony BDP-S5000ES. Also the Panasonic players mentioned above have faster loading times compared to the Sony BDP-S5000ES. Another disappointment is the Sony BDP-S5000ES lacks 1 GB of built in memory and requires an external 1GB of memory to be added to the memory slot. At least Sony does throw in a free 1GB external Micro Vault flash drive for BD-LIVE bonus material. The Sony BDP-S5000ES list price is $2,000.

Some word for word quotes from the review that are mainly negative

"Since the BDP-S5000ES is BD-Live compliant, it includes a LAN connection for Internet connectivity. To meet the hard-ware spec's 1-gigabyte local storage requirement, Sony includes an external memory port and a 1-GB Sony Micro Vault flash drive with the player. The memory port only works with Micro Vault drives, so if you wish to bump up your BD-Live storage capacity, you'll need to stick with Sony." "This is far more expensive than generic USB thumb drives, and I'm hard-pressed to see how this approach benefits the user."

"At this point, I suspected that the BDP-S5000ES would incorporate a name-brand video-processing solution, and I was eager to test the player to confirm this. The BDP-S350 (HT, November 2008) was Sony's first Blu-ray player to include HD deinterlacing, although it was limited to 3:2-based material. Unfortunately, the BDP-S5000ES takes a step back in this department. With are standard 1080i HD deinterlacing tests, the BDP-S5000ES didn't pass our 3:2 - or 2:2 based deinterlacing tests. This is surprising at this price point, since there are a number of lower-end players that have no problems with these tests at all. There are only a few 1080i-encoded Blu-ray Disc out there, but it's still important for a player to offer the right video processing to maximize video performance with all discs. Considering the fact that Sony Music releases the majority of 1080i content on the Blu-ray market, it's even more baffling that this player doesn't offer premium-quality video processing."

"I was disappointed by the BDP-S5000ES video processing performance with our standard tests. High-end models from Denon and Pioneer Elite incorporate state-of the-art processing, and even low-priced designs from Panasonic and other manufactures offer excellent performance and pass our HD video-processing tests. Hopefully, this is something that Sony will address with future ES models. The video performance here is comparable to standard Sony Blu-ray players that are available for less."

"Disc loading times and navigation have also been a contentious issue with Blu-ray players. It almost like the more expensive the player is, the slower it gets. The BDP-S5000ES is a breath of fresh air for its price point, but it still has a lot of room for improvement. Load times were in line with the BDP-S350 and in the middle of the pack of recently tested players when it came to overall speed." "I just wish Sony had made the BDP-S5000ES's load times more similar to the PS3's, since there are now a couple of standalone Blu-ray players at this level - or even faster."

Some word for word positive quotes from the review

"The BDP-S5000ES is a tank when it comes to build quality. Sony didn't skimp a bit here. The chassis has a very upscale look and feel, with a machined front face and gold-plated reinforced connectors on the back. All the connectors have a solid feel and aren't the cheap stamped variety you'll find on most budget players."

"The Sony features a 7.1-channel analog output plus a separate two-channel analog output."

"The BDP-S5000ES did a fine job with BD-Live playback. I tested it with several Sony and Universal titles and didn't experience any glitches."

Conclusion

"I'm a bit on the fence when it comes to Sony's new flagship design. The build quality is impeccable and the player does a superb job with DVD and Blu-ray playback at 1080p/24. With full interactivity and advanced audio covered, this is a player that will serve the consumer's basic needs for a long time. And the step-up CD playback performance over analog is commendable. However, at this price point, I think consumers should expect more cutting-edge features like high-end HD video processing and wireless connectivity."

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