This along with its higher-end siblings is pioneers last (for now) in-house manufactured player,due to a shaky alliance with Sharp Co.I don't know for sure which parts the other japanese giant has undertaken to produce,but supposedly Sharp are to be responsable for outer casings,buttons & user interface boards.Pioneer will still be in charge of the picture & sound dept,and this is where we come in with respect to this player....Gobsmacking could be one word for picture,awesome could be another for the sound it produces.Thats exactly where this player intends to please,simply excellent S&V.Its also a unit that you will know where your hard-earned has gone as soon as you take it from the packaging.Nice gloss black finish,with bombproof build quality.Now,for people that like bells & whistles,it will fall short (so!),but for the tweakers of picture & sound,there are great results to be had.Its profile 2.0 along with on-board HD audio decoding and a generally fair user experience,but super picture quality along with a big,wide & crisp soundstage is where this BDP succeeds,without going into menu settings.If it becomes a purchase,you can be sure of you will sport a huge grin as soon as you see it in action.