Bluraydisc.com For Best Results

[Ailene Goldhirsh]

AccessMain menu and select Setup/LockIf your TV has Setup, select V-chip. Once V-chip is selected select "on" and then press enter.Select adjust standard and press enterUse the cursor to navigate the options and enter to block or unblock content.If your TV has Lock, press OK on your remote to lock or unlock content.

Regular HD has a pixel count of 1920 x 1080, 4K means your TV has twice as many pixels, resulting in better resolution and definition for your TV picture and color scheme. To enjoy 4K picture quality, please ensure your source device is able to broadcast 4K signal.

If you are connecting a source device, such as a Blu-ray player, gaming console, cable box, verify the device is 4K compatible and that the output setting is set to 4K and connected using 4K-rated HDMI cables.If you are using streaming services (such as Netflix, YouTube, Vudu) please make sure your internet connection has enough bandwidth to handle 4K streaming.

Check to see if the modem / router has power turned on.If you have a wired connection, make sure that the ethernet cable is properly connected to the modem / router.Confirm if the Internet light is showing activity (light blinking) on the modem / router.Shorten the distance between your unit and router. Check the name of your SSID and Password(Key).The name of your SSID and Password can be checked on the label attached on your router. If you have forgotten your Password, contact your ISP or router manufacturer. Check network settings on the unit.If you have any other device, such as mobile phone or computer, which has internet access, try connecting it with Internet to verify if internet access is available. If your other device is also unable to connect with Internet, contact your ISP or router manufacturer. Turn off this unit and the modem/router (if it has a power button), then unplug their AC cords. After 30 seconds, plug them back in and turn the devices back on. If you have a telephone / Internet modem with your cable service, then you may have to use its reset button or remove the backup battery to reset this type of modem. Now wait for the lights to show activity and try reconnecting.Turn on the DHCP function on the router.Using mobile Hotspot is not recommended. If problem persists, please contact ISP or router manufacturer.

Make sure HDMI cable is connected to TV and 3rd party device.Verify TV is on the proper input.Try a different turn on sequence for your components (TV, console, Blu-ray, etc.). If problem persists, access the menu on external device and set resolution higher than 480P.

Make sure your TV is plugged in to a power outlet and turn it on.If you are not able to seen any channels, please open the menu.If you are able to see the menu, this means the TV is working, we can check for other issues.Try to perform a channel scan to pick up channels, make sure your antenna is connected, if you have a cable box, make sure it's turned on, connected to your tv and have the correct input channel selected.

This usually happens due to poor signal strength. If you are watching over the air TV and experience this issue. Try changing your antenna's position. If the problem persists it may be necessary to install an amplified or outdoor antenna.This issue may present itself while using a streaming service like Netflix. For best results, keep the wireless router close to your TV or connect via Ethernet cable.

This message appears because there is no signal detected in the respective input. If you have a device connected via HDMI, match the input source with the HDMI number connected on the back of TV.Other connections such as AV or YPbPr (Component) have their own designated input, please make sure you are tuned to the correct input for these components.If you are trying to watch free local programming via a digitial antenna, please verify your antenna is properly connected and perform a channel scan.

Press the Pix Shape button on your remote control until the desired screen size is displayed.If you are connecting a computer or laptop to your TV set, open Main menu, select PC settings, select auto adjustment.

Verify the TV is connected to a working power outlet and it is turned onPress the MENU button on the remote control, if the MENU appears this indicates your TV display is functional.Change the input of your TV, by selecting Input on your remote control to match the input of the device you have connected to the back of the TV. Note: The ports on the back of the TV identify the input name. When connecting to a source device (Blu-ray Player, gaming console, cable box, etc.) please verify the device is turned on.

Sony really wants their PlayStation franchise to continue to dominate the gaming market. But they also want their fledgling high definition movie format, the Blu-ray Disc to become the de facto successor to the mighty DVD. So Sony made a choice, early on in the development of the PlayStation 3 (PS3) - to tie the gaming system and the new disc format together, effectively staking the fate of one on the success or failure of the other. Either of these tasks presents a significant challenge on its own, but tying the two new technologies together either represents true genius or utter madness. Whether it is the former or the latter will be revealed in the fullness of time.

The result of such a decision gives us a super-powerful next generation gaming console that also happens to include support for a full high definition 1080p movie format. At Big Picture Big Sound, we're really not that interested in gaming (not our bag, baby) but the fact that the PlayStation 3 represents one of the least expensive full-featured Blu-ray Disc players is quite interesting to us and we decided the PS3 was worth evaluating purely as a movie playback/home entertainment component. Can it compete with dedicated Blu-ray disc or rival HD-DVD players as a home theater component? Read on to find out.

Note: This review has been updated in April, 2008 with information from the 2.2 and 2.3 firmware upgrades. -Editor

Sony's PlayStation 3 is equally happy in its vertical or horizontal position.

It's a Dessert Topping... It's a Floor Wax... It's BOTH!

It's almost unfair to ignore one of the primary features of the PS3 in this evaluation (its gaming capabilities), but because of the price point and feature set, many non-gamers are drawn to the PlayStation 3. And these people want to know whether they'll be satisfied with the performance and ergonomics of the PS3 as a pure home theater/movie playback device.

The PS3 features a Version 1.3-capable digital audio/video HDMI output as well as other analog and digital outputs.The PS3 includes full 1080p playback of Blu-ray Discs as well as support for the latest HDMI 1.3 specifications (unlike most stand-alone BD players currently on the market). And although operating movie playback via the included wireless game controller is kludgey at best, there is also an inexpensive remote control available for the PS3 that looks and feels more like a standard DVD or BD player's remote.

The Set-Up

As with any next gen movie player (BD or HD DVD), there are a few initial set-up steps required in order to get the most out of your movie-watching experience. When the PS3 first boots up - which is remarkably fast, by the way, for those of us familiar with first and second generation BD and HD DVD standalone players - it prompts you with some questions about language, TV format, etc. To step through these menus, you need to connect the (included) game controller to the console via its hard-wired USB cable, which doubles as a charger - the controller can be unplugged later for game play and/or movie playback operation.

During the set-up, the PS3 offers to "auto detect" the maximum resolution setting for your TV if connected via HDMI. But in my case, it thought that my set supported full 1080p resolution when actually the connected monitor supported resolutions up to 1080i. This caused an annoying blinking of the screen on and off, which was resolved after I backed out of the auto-setup screen and manually selected 720p/1080i as the supported resolutions.

You'll also need to go into the audio set-up menus to set your audio preferences. This is one place where Sony made some odd choices. When you select the digital audio output settings on the PS3 (using an HDMI connection for video and audio), the two choices are only "PCM" or "Bitstream." These settings are used both for Blu-ray Discs and for DVDs.

For Blu-ray Discs, choosing the "PCM" setting will allow the player to convert Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks to multi-channel PCM sound. This multi-channel PCM can then be decoded by a wide selection of HDMI-enabled home theater processors and receivers currently on the market. Listening to a Dolby TrueHD track expanded to PCM and decoded by a high quality receiver produces some really excellent, wideband, highly dynamic discrete surround sound. The 2.3 firmware update (delivered 4/15/08) allows you to do the same with DTS-HD, converting these advanced lossless surround tracks to multi-channel PCM for decoding on your receiver.

Setting the audio output to "bitstream" instead will pass the native surround sound format (e.g., DTS or Dolby Digital) directly to your home theater processor or receiver for decoding. If your receiver does not support Dolby True-HD, Dolby Digital Plus or DTS-HD Master Audio, fear not, as the PS3 actually passes the "core" (legacy) DTS or Dolby Soundtrack from the stream on a Blu-ray Disc which still sounds pretty good.

But if you have set the digital output to PCM (on the PS3), then the behavior on standard DVDs is very different from the PCM setting on Blu-ray Discs. Instead of expanding the standard Dolby Digital or DTS track on the DVD into multi-channel PCM output, the PS3 actually downmixes the discrete surround soundtrack on the DVD to two-channel (stereo) output, thereby losing the discrete surround sound rear and center channels. The stereo PCM signal can then be decoded into virtual surround via Dolby Pro-Logic II or similar processing, but it won't be "true" (e.g., discrete) surround sound.

Next generation HD DVD players such as the Toshiba HD-XA2 maintain different audio settings for HD DVD and for standard DVD so they avoid this problem altogether. I'm really disappointed in this choice on the PS3 as it means I'll have to go back and forth in the set-up menu, depending on whether I'm watching a BD or DVD movie, in order to get the best possible sound quality for each format.

I also decided to configure the PS3's built-in wireless 802.11g networking feature to work with my home network. I've found this to be a little tricky on some network-enabled consumer electronics gear (including the Toshiba HD-XA2), but not so on the PS3. I had the networking configured and up and running within about 20 minutes. The player then detected that a new firmware version was available (version 1.7) and it guided me through the firmware upgrade, which went off without a hitch in a little less than 30 minutes.

Features and Ergonomics

Although most pictures of the PS3 show it in the tall vertically aligned position, I was happy to see that the PS3 has multiple rubber feet, to support both vertical and horizontal placement. This means you can slide it into a standard home theater rack without worrying about scratching the PS3 or having playback problems with the discs. Positioned horizontally the unit draws no undue attention to itself and fits right in with other home theater gear.

With the unit configured and the latest firmware freshly loaded, I started putting the PS3 through its paces. One of the first things I noticed was how speedy it was to load and begin playback of a Blu-ray movie. With the disc in the player, powering the unit up made it through the Sony boot menu and into Blu-ray disc playback in well under 30 seconds. That's less than half the time it took for Toshiba's HD-XA2 player to boot up and begin playback of an HD DVD movie.

A Few Words About Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD on the PS3

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