If your electronics don’t stream content directly to your living room, they’re just plain lazy.

TV, Blu-ray player, receiver and media server manufacturers are pairing up with content providers to cut out the middleman — that being the consumer who actually has to go to a store to get movies or music.

Manufacturers at CEDIA Expo 2009 announced partnerships with Netflix and Vudu, showing off the fruits of their collaborations.

Vudu had a huge presence in LG's booth. LG kicked off the show by announcing that it's BD390 Wireless Network Blu-ray Player now has Vudu access.

Vudu, along with Netflix, YouTube and Yahoo Widgets, can also be streamed via LG’s line of Broadband TVs. The following components represent just a sample of the digital streaming products at CEDIA…

A new LED TV line was the centerpiece of Sharp’s CEDIA Expo 2009 booth.

And why not? “Eventually, we’ll probably be all-LED,” said spokesperson Melissa Non.

Sharp’s Aquos LED LCD TV Series, which began shipping in August, flanked a waterfall at the entrance of the booth. Attendees could take a closer look at the 32-, 40-, 46- and 52-inch models.

Demoing its LED technology, Sharp showed a stripped down TV with the “UltraBrilliant Full Array LED backlight” exposed. It was part of an emphasis on energy efficiency.

Sharp says its LED approach provides uniform brightness and color purity with higher luminance per watt so less power is needed. It adds that the series is mercury-free and exceeds the EPA’s Energy Star criteria for power consumption by up to 67 percent and has a long lifespan of 100,000 hours.

There was…

LG Electronics kicked off CEDIA Expo 2009 by adding Vudu to its BD390 Blu-ray player.

Vudu isn’t new to LG. The on-demand movie rental service was recently added to LG’s Broadband TVs, a line that also includes Netflix, Yahoo Widget and YouTube streaming.

So between the BD390, the Broadband TV line and a demo of the Vudu interface, LG’s booth had Vudu pretty well covered.

LG also showed several LED TVs, including the SL90 line that is slated to ship in October, featuring 42- and 47-inch models with Edge LED lighting and depth of only 1.15 inches.

OLED TVs were one thing missing from LG's booth. It was recently reported that LG plans to launch a 15-inch OLED in Korea and that a 40-inch model is planned for the “not too…

LG Electronics and on-demand movie rental service Vudu are covering their bases pretty well these days.

LG announced at CEDIA Expo 2009 that it's adding Vudu to its full-featured BD390 Blu-ray player via a firmware upgrade later in September.

That just adds to the crazy amount of video streaming and viewing options available on the wireless BD390 ($399), which can also stream YouTube, Netflix, and CinemaNow. It also supports networked video files and, of course, 1080p high-def Blu-rays and regular ol' DVDs.

For Vudu, it gives the service a pretty nice trifecta of recent partnership activity — we’ll count the one it already had with LG. Prior to CEDIA, the company had announced it would be able to stream its videos (plus other services it features such as Pandora web radio and Flickr photo sharing) directly from the latest LG…

Sharp’s new BD-HP52U Aquos Blu-ray Player will feature Netflix streaming.

The BD-HP52U, which is displayed in Sharp's CEDIA Expo 2009 booth, will ship in October.

Sharp expects Netflix streaming to be available in November. “We’re in the midst of signing a contract with Netflix,” says Sharp spokesperson Melissa Non.

The BD-HP52U models that ship in October will be able to get the Netflix "watch instantly" feature through an update, while the ones shipped after the contract is signed will be Netflix-ready.

Other features:

• RS-232 port
• BD Live support
• HDMI 1.3 digital output
• Deep Color
• AQUOS link
• Surround-sound formats include Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio via HDMI digital output
• Decodes Dolby Digital Plus
• Anti-vibration chassis

Sharp will join a growing list of manufacturers that have partnered with Netflix to offer its “watch instantly” library of 17,000 movies and TV titles. MSRP: $379

Sony has introduced the Profile 2.0 BDP-N460 Networked Blu-ray Player here at CEDIA Expo 2009 in Atlanta.

The BDP-N460 features access to YouTube and to Bravia Internet Video. Sony says Netflix streaming will be added later in the fall.

The BDP-N460 doesn't feature Wi-Fi, but it comes with built-in software for a $95 Linksys Wi-Fi dongle.

Other features:

• Full HD 1080/60p and 24p True Cinema output
• 7.1 channel Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, and DTS-HD Master Audio
• 7.1 channel L-PCM via HDMI after decoding
• Upscaling of 480i signals to "near HD quality"

The BDP-N460 also supports Deep Color video output and x.v.Color technology. Also included is an external port for local storage, and a front USB port to display photos.

MSRP: $250 in October


Sony BDP-N460 Networked Blu-ray Player

Looking to fill a void in the Blu-ray player market, Lexicon says it will launch the first THX-certified Blu-ray player.

The BD-30, which is currently going through the THX certification process, will be released at CEDIA Expo 2009 in September, according to Marc Kellom, VP of marketing for Lexicon parent Harman International.

With a preliminary price planned at $3,499, the BD-30 provides a big step-up option for consumers and bucks the trend toward lowering Blu-ray prices for the holiday selling season.

A high-performance Blu-ray option makes sense for CE pros, according to Kellom. He points out that many installers are connecting PlayStations or inexpensive components to high-end systems just for Blu-ray.

There is some competition in the step-up Blu-ray player market. Denon recently announced its DVD-A1HDCI, Marantz has several Blu-ray models and Sony just announced a

Cambridge Audio says it plans on releasing its first Blu-ray player — the 640BD — early in 2009.

The 640BD offers playback of 1080p/24fps HD and upscales DVD content to 1080p. The 640BD, which will be available in silver or black, features full HDMI 1.3 output.

Introduced at CEDIA Expo 2008, the 640BD includes bitstream output of HD Dolby and DTS surround-sound systems.

It also offers decoding of Dolby Digital EX, DTS ES, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD and DTS HR surround-sound.

Other features:

• Full set of analog video outputs
• Ethernet Connection
• S/PDIF and Toslink
• Dedicated 7.1 and stereo analogue outputs

Cambridge Audio didn't release pricing for the 640BD. Prices of Blu-ray players, however, have reportedly been dropping.

DacMagic Digital-to-Analog Converter

The company also showed its new DacMagic upsampling digital-to-analog converter at CEDIA Expo 2008.

The DacMagic uses Adapted Time Filtering…

Sharp introduced two lines of AQUOS LCDs and two Blu-ray players today on the first day of CEDIA Expo 2008.

The first new LCD line is the AQUOS D85U Series, which features 52-, 46- and 42-inch models with 176-degree viewing angles.

The 1080p LCDs have five HDMI v1.3 inputs with Deep Color and 120Hz Fine Motion Enhanced technology.

The D85U Series also employs the "Power Saving Mode," that enables active contrast and active backlight to reduce the energy of the television while in use.

These models are compliant with Energy Star standards.

Other features in the D85U Series include:

• Sharp's proprietary 10-bit Advanced Super View (ASV)/Black TFT Panel with Spectral Contrast Engine UD (Ultra Dark)
• Two component video inputs
• A built-in ATSC, QAM and NTSC tuner for access to DTV and analog TV channels
• An RS-232C input for custom installations and a PC input

The D85U Series comes in a piano black…

LG officially launched its BD300 network Blu-ray player, which streams movies and TV shows from Netflix, at a press conference at CEDIA Expo 2008.

The BD300 targets homeowners by offering 1080p Blu-ray video compatibility, upscaled DVD content playback and instant access to Netflix's online library.

The player supports 24Hz and 60Hz video refresh rates and next generation audio formats. While the player comes as BD-Profile 1.1 (Bonus View), company officials emphasize that firmware updates are easy because it's an Ethernet-based networked player.

Steve Swasey, vice president of corporate communications for Netflix, says that LG was the first electronics company to realize the potential of the new service Netflix was about to offer.

"[The streaming media announcement at CES 2008] garnered enormous attention from the news media and LG was the first to embrace and the first to make it a reality," says Sweeney.

Netflix has a library of about…