Asus launches intelligent new Blu-Ray players

Following on from KitGuru's revelation that Asus has launched the Essence One audiophile amp at CeBIT 2011, we've now spotted a pair of full-spec Blu-ray players. Does this mark the beginning of a sustained Asus-assault on the living room?   You be the judge.

OK, so you'd expect a Blu-ray player to play Blu-ray discs. That's a given.

However, most of the cheap brands you find in Currys, Comet and other local electrical retailers won't have invested in advanced video noise reduction, Dolby True III, DTS-HD Master Audio and full compatibility with all of the playing standards that you're likely to encounter like DivX or Real.

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Asus completes the tick-box list with DLNA, Pandora, YouTube, Picasa and Flickr compatibility.

Rather than just giving you the chance to play your discs, the BDS-500 will, effectively, give you a media centre PC attached to your main TV. Nice.

For those who want to spend a bit more and get a bit more, there's also a BDS-700 option. Nice.

KitGuru says: As with all things, price will be crucial here. What we can say for certain is that Asus' ambition to become the new Sony is well on track. If it can get the pricing and marketing correct, then Asus could be a label that people get used to seeing under their TVs. Rather than contempt, familiarity in the living room tends to breed sales.

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