Blu-ray for Cars? Panasonic says Yes

[jw]

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There’s still no Blu-ray Disc drive in the works from Apple, but consumers may soon be able to enjoy Blu-ray in their cars.

Panasonic has unveiled a Blu-ray Disc player for cars, which will be available later this year only in Japan.

According to Newlaunches.com, which translated Panasonic’s Japanese press release, the two-part system starts with the CN-HX900D, a Windows-powered DVD/CD player, GPS, tuner, amplifier and 7-inch LCD high-def screen, with both iPhone and iPod compatibility. The separately sold CY-BB1000D Blu-ray player can be installed in the car and connected to the first device, allowing for back-seat high-def viewing.

Pricing and availability outside of Japan were not disclosed.

In the car, I am still happy with the DVD as its a 9" screen and the resolution cannot be that much better. Furthermore why would I blow that kind of change if I cant enjoy it

[ckent22]

Originally Posted by jwbbud

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In the car, I am still happy with the DVD as its a 9" screen and the resolution cannot be that much better. Furthermore why would I blow that kind of change if I cant enjoy it

To give the people in the cars behind you something good to watch .

[crazyBLUE]

Originally Posted by jwbbud

In the car, I am still happy with the DVD as its a 9" screen and the resolution cannot be that much better. Furthermore why would I blow that kind of change if I cant enjoy it

You mean you dont drive & watch movies at the same time jwbbud .

[jw]

nope, sometimes i wish i could

[haste]

the viewing distance calculator i use says you would need to sit 1.1ft away from a 7" 16:9 screen to resolve all details at 1080p. does anyone sit that close to the screen in a car? maybe if the screen is in the front seat headrest, but not at the ceiling.

[Dynamo of Eternia]

The purpose for having a Blu-Ray player in your car isn't for the extra PQ and AQ over DVD.

As more people adopt Blu-Ray in their homes, and start buying the Blu-Ray versions of movies instead of DVDs, they will begin to emass a collection of movies that cannot be played on a car DVD player. That's why having an in-car Blu-Ray player will be helpful. It will play any movies from their collection (Blu-Ray or DVD) when on the road.

If a family is going on a long trip, and the kids want to watch Iron Man, but it was only purchased on Blu-Ray, then they are out of the luck without rebuying the movie on DVD. And to rebuy each movie twice for this purpose would be silly.

Sure, some companies like Disney are including the DVD with the Blu-Ray, but that's not a standard across the board.

So, this is still a good idea.

[CosmoKid]

This is the only reason I love digital copies. My head unit accepts SD cards and plays video while in motion so the digital copy just gets thrown on SD. It plays in my head unit and and connected head rests.

Long live the digital copy!

[Musashi]

I think this is much like the inclusion of digital copies; add more ways for one copy of the movie to be played in more places.

[Anthony P]

In the car, I am still happy with the DVD as its a 9" screen and the resolution cannot be that much better. Furthermore why would I blow that kind of change if I cant enjoy it

1) you only need one set of movies (can't play the latest BD you bought in the car without one)
2) if it is portable (not this model) then you never need to stop (i.e. start in car, get to destination, hook it up to a TV)
3) in a car you tend to be real close to the screen.

[bageleaterkkjji]

buy the 11" oled and stick it in the back seat

[dialog_gvf]

Originally Posted by jwbbud

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In the car, I am still happy with the DVD as its a 9" screen and the resolution cannot be that much better. Furthermore why would I blow that kind of change if I cant enjoy it

Think music.

Many people have better sound systems in the car, than in their home.

Gary

[syncguy]

DVD PQ is more than enough for any practical screen size that would fit in a car. There is absolutely no case for blu-ray when PQ is considered in a car. PQ is rather different to sound quality in this context.

However, the overwhelming and most relevant reason for car blu-ray players is the universal compatibility. It is indeed a mandatory requirement that you could play your disk anywhere you like. Keeping two disks one for the car and another for home may not be practical. Digital copy could do the job in the short term. However, blu-ray car player could be the long term solution.

Yes, I am for it - I think blu-ray car player is a must (with digital copy and dvd compatibility).

[cembros]

my sirus sat radio is plenty enough for me, i could see it being usefull for parents with a large blu ray collection and some young kids though

[kevinbr100]

cool! too bad by the time these things go mainstream here, the biggest auto you will be able to buy will only have room for a 3 inch screen! and no passengers . suvs and full size cars are unfortunately headed the way of the dinosaur due to bankrupticies and price of oil . im holding on to my tahoe as long as possible . even if you cant afford to drive it you can sit in it and watch bluray movies .

[cembros]

Originally Posted by kevinbr100

cool! too bad by the time these things go mainstream here, the biggest auto you will be able to buy will only have room for a 3 inch screen! and no passengers . suvs and full size cars are unfortunately headed the way of the dinosaur due to bankrupticies and price of oil . im holding on to my tahoe as long as possible . even if you cant afford to drive it you can sit in it and watch bluray movies .

screw that if anyone thinks im going to put my ass in a death trap smart car has got something comming. Hey isnt there a hybrid taho, keep on truckin

[tron3]

Portable blu-ray players do NOT play at 1080p. Only to an external 1080p TV. If you have specs which say otherwise, please provide a link.

Panasonic's DMP-B15K portable BD player has something like a 1080 x 600 resolution on an 8.9" screen. While that is not like 720p, it is much better than 480 x 720.

A portable usually has a "lap top" viewing distance. 1080p at that size and distance is a complete waste. Maybe 720p one day when manufacturing prices come down.

[steve1971]

Your kidding me right? Blu ray in cars? Whats next! This will be an open invitation to have your car or truck broken into for sure. This is a dumb idea in my book.

[syncguy]

Unless you have a sticker indicating that you have blu-ray player, no one would know about it to break-in. Anyhow, in the future blu will be common and would be same as DVD.

[dadkins]

http://gadgetynews.com/tag/cn-hx900d/

"The CN-HX900D is a Windows powered GPS, CD and DVD player with a 5 channel amp that also sports Bluetooth, a One-Seg tuner, 7 inch LCD (1,280×720), 40GB hard drive and iPhone / iPod compatibility."

"Once you’ve got all that you’ll need to hook it up with the CY-BB1000D which is the optional Blu-Ray player that supports everything except Blu-Live."

Everything?

Blu-ray scaled down will be better than DVD scaled up.
If it has outputs(HDMI?), hanging a LCD or Plasma in the back ala Pimp My Ride would be great!

EDIT: AH HAH!!!
http://www.itechnews.net/2009/04/23/...lu-ray-player/
"Panasonic presents the new Strada CY-BB1000D, an in-dash Blu-ray player for your car. The CY-BB1000D supports playback of Blu-ray, DVD as well as AVCREC DVD. This in-dash Blu-ray player can be used with the Strada CN-HX3000D, an in-dash DVD/CD player with 5.1-channel audio. It supports Bluetooth and Google Map. Both devices offer HDMI connection."