Right on the heels of the mostly well-reviewed BD-P1200, Samsung is charging ahead by announcing two new Blu-ray players for the fall. The BD-P1400 offers a few important features that enthusiasts have desired in a Samsung player. First, there's support for 24 frames per second output, which many claim can reduce judder when viewed on a compatible display. We haven't been able to detect a difference with 24 frames per second output so far, but we're holding our final judgment until we've paired players up with more compatible displays. The BD-P1400 also has internal decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD (we're still waiting for confirmation that this means DTS-HD Master audio), which means that most AV receivers (those equipped with either HDMI or 5.1 analog audio inputs) can be used to amplify the high-resolution soundtracks. It also keeps some of the key features of the BD-P1200, like an HDMI 1.3 port, an Ethernet jack to upgrade the firmware and 5.1 analog audio outputs.
The BD-P2400 shares all the features of the BD-1400 plus it adds HQV video processing. Considering that we've seen consistently excellent performance from both Blu-ray and HD DVD players that feature this chip, we're expecting the BD-P2400 to be popular with image quality enthusiasts.
The BD-P1400 will be available in September, with an MSRP of $550. The BD-P2400 will be available in October, with an MSRP of $650. Samsung has also previously announced that it plans to release a "Duo HD" player this year, capable of playing both HD DVD and Blu-ray discs, though the company has yet to specify pricing and availability.
