BDZ-S77 is the world's first Blu-ray disc recorder made by Sony and released in 2003. It was designed to record Japanese television broadcast for the Japanese consumer market. This machine was a beast and it costed US$3,800.

Sony BDZ-S77

BDZ-S77 with it's multimedia remote
Developer	Sony
Manufacturer	Sony
Release date	2003
Introductory price	US$3,800
Discontinued	Yes
Profile	N/A
Region	2 (DVD only)
Media	BD (BD-RE) DVD (DVD-Video, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW) CD (CD-DA)
Operating System	Unknown
CPU	Xilinx Spartan FPGA
Storage	None
Networking	No
Display	Composite video S-Video D-Terminal (D4) 720p (750p) Antenna output
Sound	Dolby Digital DTS PCM AAC
Power	AC 100V, 50/60 Hz
Dimensions	430 (W) x 135 (H) x 398 (D)mm
Weight	14 kg (30 lb)

Media

The recorder use only BD-REs, but they're a little different from today's as they stored in a caddy for protection and used 23GB storage. (Special coating developed by TDK, made it no need for a caddy for future models and BDs) Its recording only uses Version 1 of the BDAV format meaning newer versions aren't compatible. It is unknown if it's compatible with the newer 25GB or 50GB BD-REs. 

Early BD-REs used to come with a caddy for extra protection.

It also records using DVD-R, and also plays normal DVDs and CDs. It is not compatible with BD-ROMs (and the BDMV format) since it was not standardized and released three years later in 2006.

The BD-RE caddy inside the tray (Image: lancelot)

It also has a hard drive to record content instead of using a recordable disc. This machine was designed to record Japanese terrestrial television (digital and Hi-Vision analog). Recording television will not work outside of Japan, as the country uses the ISDB standard and requires a B-CAS card. It also uses the Ghost Reduction Tuner to reduce ghosting from analog signals.

EPG TV guide that is used in the recorder.

For audio, it supports PCM, Dolby Digital, and DTS for DVDs. For recording and playing HD content on BD-REs, it plays MPEG'S AAC. For recorded content from analog (standard definition) sources, it supports, PCM, Dolby Digital, and MPEG-1 Layer 2.

Hardware

This recorder uses a Xilinx Spartan FPGA and also uses a special video decoder chip, Sony FBX, to enhance picture quality.

 If you're not from Japan, it's kind of a waste of money to acquire it as it does not support BD-ROMs, newer versions of the BDAV format, TV recording is only for the IDSB standard, and it's only in Japanese. This machine is a relic of the past but most importantly, it's part of Blu-ray history that should not be forgotten.

Links

• Sony BDZ-S77 - Laserdisc Database
• Blu-ray Disc Format White Paper 2.A Logical and Audio Visual Application Format Specifications for BD-RE - August 2004
• Lancelot's article about the Sony BDZ-S77 (Japanese) 
• Lancelot's article about repairing and the insides of the Sony BDZ-S77 (Japanese)
  

Author(s) : Æ Firestone