I think my Panasonic BD35 is dead

[complete_noob]

Just received my Panasonic BD35 today, setup was a breeze, and everything seemed to be ok. Went to see if I needed to update the firmware and saw that player was loaded with version 1.4. I checked the Panasonic website and saw that version 1.5 was available. I downloaded the North American version, followed all of the provided instructions on burning it to a CD-R, and loaded it into the blu-ray player.

The front display panel on the player was flashing "L DRV" for a while, the tray automatically opened afterwards, and the display then read "UPD NG." Tried powering down the player and powering it back on. The tray opens automatically everytime now and asks to "insert disc." I think the player is screwed up, and I can't find any helpful information on the Panasonic website aside from that I have to contact their tech support.

Seeing as I can't contact them until tomorrow, does anyone know if there's anything I can do? Is my player toast? Am I going to have to send it to a Panasonic repair center?