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CNET Editors' Take
June 25, 2009 8:51 AM PDT
Vizio has announced that its VBR100 Blu-ray player will come out in July with a $188 price tag.
Back at CES 2009, Vizio announced the VBR100--a $200 Blu-ray player, complete with Profile 2.0 compatibility, 7.1 analog outputs and an April release date. Well, the April release date didn't happen, but the rest of the details are still accurate and Vizio is now planning on releasing the VBR100 as a Wal-Mart exclusive, coming in July at an even lower price of $188.
Much has changed in the Blu-ray market since January, with ultrabudget $100 players showing up and most name-brand players featuring streaming Internet content from Netflix, YouTube and Amazon Video On-Demand. The VBR100 is still an interesting product, mostly because it's the cheapest player we've seen to offer 7.1 analog outputs. That's good news for anyone on a budget looking to get a few more years out of their non-HDMI AV receiver, as you'll be able to use the VBR100's 7.1 analog outputs to take advantage of Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio at their full resolution.
For more information on getting into Blu-ray on a budget, check out our Blu-ray shopping tips.
