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(Credit: LG)

Netflix has been on a roll in 2009, adding its Internet streaming video-on-demand service to an ever expanding list of devices. In just the past few weeks, the big news has been the imminent arrival of Netflix streaming on the PlayStation 3, along with more rumors that it will be coming to the Wii as well. Best Buy's Insignia brand has debuted a Netflix-capable Blu-ray player that lists for $149 (and has already been seen on sale for as little as $99). And Roku has delivered two new versions of its mini set-top box, lowering the entry-level price to just $80 for the non-HD version. That's in addition to Netflix's availability on the Xbox 360, TiVo DVRs, and Blu-ray players from LG and Samsung, and an increasing number of TVs.

With those notable changes in the Netflix landscape, we thought it was a good time to update our overview on Netflix streaming. (A recap follows, for the uninitiated; the Netflix-savvy can jump straight to the list of Netflix-compatible products.)

Netflix offers a library of 12,000-plus streaming titles over the Internet, available on an "all you can eat" basis for any customer on the $9 per month (one DVD movie by mail at a time) or higher plan. So, in addition to getting DVD (or, for an additional premium, Blu-ray) discs by mail, Netflix subscribers also get unlimited access to thousands of hours of on-demand programming. Just add the titles to the "Instant Queue" in your Netflix account, and they'll be available on any compatible device once you pair it. (The setup procedure, as outlined by CNET's Molly Wood, is quick and easy.)

There are a few downsides. Almost none of the available movie content would be classified in the "new release" category--the newest titles are usually at least a few years old. Also, the availability of titles ebbs and flows--many are available for a window of 60 to 90 days, after which they may or may not return a few months later. And many of the videos aren't available in their native wide-screen format. Also, you have to manipulate your queue from a PC browser. Aside from a list of new and notable titles, you can't search the available offerings and pick new selections that aren't already in your queue.

That said, we think the advantages are palpable. ... Read more

(Credit: Sony)

With its new $300 price tag, the PS3 Slim has been selling like crazy, and the fact that it's an excellent Blu-ray player is at least part of the reason.

Since Blu-ray's inception, the PS3 has been our reference Blu-ray player, only recently getting edged out of the top spot by the Oppo BDP-83. Now that the new 3.00 firmware has been released, we've had some time to put the PS3 Slim through our Blu-ray testing suite.

The good

Blu-ray performance

Testing the image quality of the PlayStation 3 has always been a challenge, mainly because it does not deinterlace native 1080i content to 1080p at 60 frames per second. That means test discs specifically designed to assess Blu-ray image quality--like HQV, Spears and Munsil, and Qdeo--aren't helpful; they all feature 1080i content and the PS3 just passes it along without processing. The PS3 Slim is no different in this regard. Not much Blu-ray content is available in 1080i, however, so this quirk of the PS3 isn't a huge problem in real-world scenarios.

Without the comfort of our reliable test discs, we switched to our favorite challenging passages from actual program content. The kitchen scenes during chapter 2 of "Sunshine" are often difficult for lesser players, but the PS3 Slim had no problem rendering the ridged cups or striped shirts. It also handled the end of chapter 6 on "Ghost Rider," where we sometimes see moire in the grille of the RV on players with faulty 1080i deinterlacing. A couple of select scenes from "Spider-Man 3" looked flawless as well.

Ever since we realized the PS3 didn't have an IR receiver, we've expected Logitech to release a Harmony remote with built-in Bluetooth support. Somewhat surprisingly, that day still hasn't come, with the company opting to release the Logitech Harmony Adapter for PlayStation 3 instead.

The recently released SMK Blu-Link universal remote offers what we've been waiting for since 2006: a single remote that controls all your gear, without a dongle. It's capable of controlling six devices and it uses a library of IR codes, similar to the cheap universal remotes you might pick up in a drug store. If the code isn't in the book, the Blu-Link can also "learn" it by pointing the device's original remote at the Blu-Link. We can't say how well the remote will work in practice, but from the image, it looks as if Blu-Link took some smart design cues from the TiVo "peanut" remote, with convenient DVR controls and a large directional pad up top.

The Blu-Link lacks many of the niceties of the Harmony line of products, such as online programming and activity-based controls. However, the low $50 price may make it a good option if you're on a tight budget and just want basic control of all your gear in a single remote.

(Sources: Blu-Link via Engadget)

(Credit: Matthew Moskovciak/CNET)

We've covered just about everything you need to know about the PS3 Slim, but the sleuths over at Engadget HD (via a translated version of AV Watch) found a chart that indicates the PS3 Slim can bit stream both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. That change actually isn't that surprising, since the original limitation on the "old" PS3s was due to an older HDMI chipset; newer HDMI outputs have no problem bit streaming the high-resolution soundtrack formats.

(Credit: AV Watch)

We have a PS3 Slim review sample onhand, so it was easy to confirm the rumor. We had the PS3 Slim connected to the Sony STR-DN1000 receiver via HDMI, and we loaded up "Appaloosa," which as a Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. After making a few tweaks in the XMB, were able to make the STR-DN1000's display say "Dolby TrueHD"--confirmation that the Slim was sending the soundtrack in encoded bit stream format. Next, we loaded up "Master and Commander," which has a DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack, and that worked as well.

Unfortunately, the practical benefit of this feature upgrade is minimal. The "fat" PS3 could transmit Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio in uncompressed linear PCM format, providing the exact same audio quality as the bit stream versions. There are some cases where an AV receiver may process linear PCM differently than bit stream, but its rare. On the other hand, it's at least nice to have the option, especially for those guys who just have to see the words "DTS-HD Master Audio" light up on their AV receiver.

Four seasons of "Lost" are already available.

(Credit: Netflix/screenshot by John P. Falcone)

Several of ABC's top shows will soon be available to watch via Netflix's "Watch Instantly" online streaming service. The first four seasons of "Lost" are already available, and they'll be joined in September by "Desperate Housewives" (seasons four and five), "Grey's Anatomy" (season five), and "Legend of the Seeker" (seasons one and two). The deal builds on an earlier agreement to make Disney Channel content available on Netflix (ABC is a division of Disney.)

While most of these programs are already available for viewing online on ABC's Web site, the Netflix deal allows them to be watched on TV screens via a large and growing number of Netflix-compatible home video devices, including many Blu-ray players and home theater systems, some Internet-enabled TVs, the Xbox 360, and the $99 Roku Digital Media Player. The ABC content joins programs from rival networks, including Fox, NBC, and CBS, that have long been available on Netflix. (Disclosure: CNET is a division of CBS Interactive.) The online video streaming--available at no extra charge for Netflix subscribers on the $9 per month or higher rental tier--currently offers approximately 12,000 movies and TV shows.

As far as I'm concerned, this seems like another feather in the cap for Netflix. These sort of serialized dramas are perfect fodder for sequential online viewing. (The final season of "Lost" starts early in 2010, and Netflix subscribers who want to catch up--or start from scratch--can do so at no extra charge.) What's interesting to me is that ABC's making this move, which could potentially lower demand for sales of the same episodes on DVD and iTunes. One wonders how Disney board member Steve Jobs feels about it.

What do you think: Are you excited to see these ABC shows hitting Netflix, or does it just highlight some favorite shows of yours that still remain unavailable?

Here at CNET, we've taken a skeptical eye toward the high-end market for Blu-ray players. When videophile experts like the Criterion Collection and Joe Kane extol the image quality of the PlayStation 3, it's hard to see why anybody would spend more than $1,000 on a player. That being said, there's still a market for high-end Blu-ray players and that's exactly where Marantz's latest line of Blu-ray players is aimed at, with prices from $6,000 to $500.

Marantz Blu-ray players: from $6,000 to $550--photos

To be fair, the $6,000 Marantz UD9004 is loaded with features. It's a true universal player (Blu-ray, DVD, CD, SACD, DVD-Audio) and it takes AV fidelity so seriously it offers up two HDMI outputs (one for audio, one for video) to further reduce the chance of either signal becoming degraded in any way. Other high-end touches include stereo XLR outputs, a RS-232, and Silicon Optix's REALTA HQV processor to handle video chores. Of course, the $500 Oppo BDP-83 is also a universal player and has been getting rave reviews from home theater enthusiasts (ours to come soon). Whether the UD9004 is worth the extra $5,500 is your call. Marantz also offers a step-down universal player, the UD8004, for $2,200.

The step-down players are more reasonably priced, with the BD7004 coming in at $800 and the BD5004 coming in at $550. While the spec sheets hit all the major features we look for, we still find it surprising that premium Blu-ray players (like the Onkyo DV-BD507 earlier this week) are shying away from offering streaming Internet content, like Netflix and Amazon Video On Demand, on their Blu-ray players.

What do you think? Is low-resolution content like streaming Netflix completely out of place on high-end players like the UD9004? Or are even videophiles occasionally willing to lower their standards in the name of instant gratification?

Onkyo is best known for its home theater systems and AV receivers, but the company also produces both Blu-ray and DVD players. Today, Onkyo announced the latest Blu-ray player in its line, the DV-BD507.

The DV-BD507 is the company's first Profile 2.0 player, which means it can play back BD-Live features available on some discs, although you'll need to have an SD card in the slot to download the content. (There's no onboard memory.) Like virtually all the Blu-ray players this year, it has onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio Essential, so you only need an HDMI-compatible receiver to take advantage of those formats. There's also for support Deep Color and x.v. Color, but since we haven't seen any Blu-ray content that supports either format, you're unlikely to get any benefit out of this.

The DV-BD507 is available today with a list price for $450, but it's hard to see how its basic feature set will be competitive at that price. LG's BD390 costs $50 less and offers Netflix and Pandora streaming, built-in 802.11N Wi-Fi, 7.1 analog outputs and 1GB of onboard memory. Perhaps the DV-BD507 has superior build quality, but we imagine most consumers will go for the extra features.

Buying an HDTV these days is almost like buying a Ford in the early 1900s; you can get any color you want, as long as it's glossy black. That might not exactly work in your modern kitchen decor; at least that's the thinking behind Toshiba's recently announced 19LV612U, which comes out in September.

The 19-inch LCD features a stainless-steel finish on its front panel; turn it to the side and there's a slot-loading DVD player built-in. The display has 1,366x768 native resolution and its basic connectivity (one HDMI input, one component video input, PC input and one standard AV input) should be enough to cover most kitchen setups, although many competing models have two HDMI inputs.

The hardest sell for Toshiba will be the 19LV612U's $350 list price, as it's easy to find competing 19-inch LCD/DVD combos for about $100 less.

The maker of the CinemaNow video service says it wants to start adding 3D movies to its repertoire.

Sonic Solutions is working with Nvidia, Samsung, and Mitsubishi to start delivering video in a variety of 3D formats to PCs and some 3D-capable TVs. Whenever it does become available--which is not clear yet because Sonic isn't ready to discuss which hardware partners it's working with--the movies will be delivered via the same method as the company's CinemaNow service.

You'll need these glasses at home if Sonic Solutions' 3D download service gets off the ground.

(Credit: Erica Ogg/CNET)

The technology, however, is still new. It will only work with devices with graphics processors optimized for 3D, which mostly means it will work on PCs with 3D-capable monitors. Some Samusng and Mitsubishi TVs that are 3D-enabled might also work. In all cases, you'll still need plastic 3D glasses.

Though Sonic Solutions actually sees Blu-ray as the best way of delivering 3D content, there are several issues holding that up: the technology has not been agreed upon by all the parties that subscribe to that standard. In the meantime, Sonic says its video service will be a great way to fill the gap, since there are a growing number of 3D movies in the theater.

"We see an opportunity to bridge that time gap," said Michael DiMaria, vice president of product management for CinemaNow. "Ultimately, we believe Blu-ray will be the dominant format for the distribution of 3D content. In the meantime, there's plenty of content available and several ways to display it."