With Blu-ray now the de facto high-definition optical standard, it was only a matter of time until one of the big-name manufacturers released a portable disc player.

Conveniently ignoring laptops with a Blu-ray drives, Panasonic has been first to step up to the plate with the DMP-B15, which includes an 8.9in LCD with a native WSVGA (1,024x600) resolution. It also features an HDMI connection for exporting the video to larger screens, as well as an SD card for, presumably, making it into an expensive photo frame. There's also BD Live compatibility, as well.

Announced in January, the player isn't shipping until May, and Panasonic wouldn't be drawn on price.

My thinking is that if you're going to release a portable Blu-ray disc player, you might as well go the whole nine yards and ship it with a 1080p-capable screen. To me, it's kind of a pointless release because it's not much more than a netbook with a Blu-ray drive, but whatever floats your boat,.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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