About.com does a summary slash overview of Pioneer’s upcoming BD player, the BDP-HD1. (Hmmm. Lots of BD players use the letters BDP. Blu-ray Player. Hmmmm.)

First off, like other BD players, this player does output 1080p on its HDMI output. It also upconverts DVD imagery to up to 1080p as well. On the audio side, this player decodes all the normal formats, of course, and new ones as well - DD+, DD TrueHD, and DTS-HD.

Strangely enough, while this player will read and play back BD and DVD discs, it can not play back audio from a CD. Which I personally think is a little retarded, for such an expensive player.

Maybe they’re hoping to make up for that with its networking support. “The Pioneer BDP-HD1 also features Networking functions via LAN/Ethernet connection. Networking functions allow for streaming of photos, music, and video content, from your PC, whether on CD or downloaded via the internet, to your Television.”

This preview says that the player will cost $1500. But I don’t think that’s correct. Didn’t they decrease the price to $1300? We’ll see when it hits store shelves (or maybe before!).

Overview and Perspective on the Pioneer BDP-HD1 Blu-ray Disc Player