Sony 350 / 550 sightings??? (1 Viewer)

[Camper]

Since they are supposed to appear in July, i was wondering when the first sightings might be. It seems that since the Samsung 1500, Funai models were spotted some time before their actual announced release dates--it might be the case with the Sonys.

I heard one poster say that the someone told him the 550 would hit the stores at the same time as the 350. I hope that's true.

I also wonder if the 550 will be available at places like Sears or only at the electronic chains---they don't carry the current 500 only the 300.

If they hold the line on the $399 / $499 price point i predict they would crush the competition. I'd be more than happy to pay $399 for a sony 350 product versus any badge hiding a Funai. And I'd be more than happy to pay $499 for the 550 over the overpriced IMO Panny 50, Denons and Pioneers.

I have nearly given in and bought lesser players than these are expected to be a few times. I hope that they show up soon.

Any rumors or perferably facts on when this should appear??

 

[Camper]

WOW. Finally !!!

'Toys r Us' website has preorders available for the 350 !!!!

That's right the first place offering the Sony 350 is 'Toys r Us'

It's the 350 alright with all the features advertised for that model.

PRICE: $399.99 Yes, they held the price firm with the reports from months ago !!!!

RELEASE DATE: July 15, 2008 !!! Less than a month. I am so there and have been for a long time.

No word on the 550 from that site.

Check it out.

 

[Camper]

Now the 350 is up on the Circuit City website as 'coming soon'.

Price is $399.99 there as well !!

 

[Jeff F.]

Is the 350 profile 2.0?

 

[Camper]

That's the million dollar question---or rather the $100 question.

Some reports/sites say 1.1, some 2.0 & others admit they don't know.
The 550 is 2.0 for sure, but costs $100 more.

I am so anxious that I'll forgo the 7.1 analog and the DTS MA decoder on the 550 for the 350 since it is coming now!!

By the way Circuit City changed the S350 from 'coming soon' to now taking pre-orders. They show it as coming in stck July 8 !!! Just 11 days. Awesome.

 

[RickER]

I am gonna hold my wad for the 550. I own the Sony 300 now, and think its a fine, even if its a slow to load player. After i get the 550, my 300 will go to the living room.

 

[Camper]

Sure, but you've GOT a blu-ray player already !!

If you didn't & there was a model as good as the S350 coming out in 11 days could you hold out for two more months??

How long does Amazon usually take to list new products? They're being beat by 3 sites now!

 

[RickER]

Heck, its been hard to hold out anyway. I was tempted by the 500 when it came out. But yea, i see your point. I would see if i could find a way to get the 350 now, and then the 550 later. Like Christmas!
Kind of surprised Amazon doesnt have a place holder, at least for the new players? But i have not looked. Sometimes they "hide" stuff in the strangest of places.

 

[Robert George]

1.1 out of the box, upgradable to 2.0 with a firmware update to be released "later". The S550 will ship 2.0 (not at the same time as the S350).

 

[Paul.S]

Wow--whoda thunk Toys*R*Us? Thanks, Steve.

 

[Jeff F.]

If the 350 is upgradable to 2.0, does anyone know what the differences are between the 350 and 550?

 

[Darren_N]

From info on avsforum.com:

Sony

*BDP-S350 (Summer 2008 release, $400 MSRP)

Profile: 1.1 (2.0 ready)
HDMI: 1.3
Ethernet: Yes

Audio-
Internally Decode TrueHD: No
Internally Decode DTS-MA: No
Bitstream TrueHD: Yes
Bitstream DTS-MA: Yes
Analog Output: 5.1

+ external port for optional local storage


*BDP-S550 (Fall 2008 release, $500 MSRP)

Profile: 2.0
HDMI: 1.3
Ethernet: Yes

Audio-
Internally Decode TrueHD: Yes
Internally Decode DTS-MA: Yes
Bitstream TrueHD: Yes
Bitstream DTS-MA: Yes
Analog Output: 7.1

+ 1 GB of local storage included
+ external port for optional local storage


Not sure if it's accurate but it is consistent with other things I've read.

 

[Jeff F.]

Darren N - Thank you for the information. Looks like I'm going to wait for the 550.

 

[Camper]

Every site or spec i've seen for the 350 says it WILL decode DDTrueHD internally.

I don't thing too many people would be excited about it if it didn't.

 

[Camper]

Wow !!! Some very bad news..............

Someone at another site posted a photo of the 350 back panel and it has
2.0 analog outputs!! instead of 5.1 !!!

So if this matters to you (as it does to me) be very careful about buying this sight unseen.

Perhaps this was a photo of a european version?? I could'n't read the writing on the back, but I don't think the poster was trying to mislead or lie.
So before ordering this or buying from a store first check the display model or wait for an official review.

Now out of the box version 2.0, 7.1 analog outputs & internal decoding of ALL sound formats is starting to look like a bargin in the 550 for a $100 more.