Sony is updating its line of upper end “Elevated Standard” A/V receivers with three new models. The STR-DA4400ES, STR-DA3400ES and STR-DA2400ES receivers are priced at around $1,500, $1,000 and $800 respectively.

Sony said all three receivers will be available later this summer. Key features include 7.1 channel surround sound, support for advanced audio codecs like Dolby TrueHD, a new graphical user interface and auto audio calibration. You can get the full details of these new Sony ES A/V receivers after the jump.

Sony has released an update to it’s corporate strategy through 2010. It talks about initiatives to move Sony from recovery to the “leading global provider of networked consumer electronics and entertainment.” The most welcome short term news is that Sony will have a movie download service available to US PlayStation 3 owners this summer.

Japan and Europe will have to wait until later for once. More details should be coming “next month,” probably at E3. As far as Sony’s gaming business, they expect it to be profitable by March 2009, the end of this fiscal year. There you go, summer. You won’t have to wait as long as you thought.

Sony introduced earlier this week what it is calling the world’s camcorder with “Smile Shutter” technology. It is called the Sony HDR-CX12 and you’ll find it pricing around around $900.

The Sony HDR-CX12 make use of the company’s “Smile Shutter” technology, which detects and takes a photo when your subject smiles without having to switch to photo mode or press a photo button. This HD camcorder, which uses Memory Stick Pro Duo media for storage, can record full 1920 x 1080 video and 10-megapixel photos.

The portable is getting Google search, with stored memory of your last 20 searches. Another feature is that video played from a memory stick can be sped up or slowed down to suit your needs. Nothing very earth shattering, but welcomed nontheless.

Sony Japan just announced their new Bluetooth headphones, the DR-BT140QP. They’re pretty nice looking and promise to make you look less dorky.

They feature Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR with support for A2DP/AVRCP/HFP/HSP profiles and have onboard Lithium Ion batteries for up to 12 hours of continuous playback with a standby time of 200 hours. They also have a mic for hands-free action. They’ll be available in four colors black, white, silver and pink for about $139.

Sony topped off its announcements yesterday with word it was bringing new content to its BRAVIA Internet Video Link service. Chief among these is a partnership with popular video Web site YouTube.

Sony said its BRAVIA Internet Video Link device will now let people have access to millions of YouTube videos through connected BRAVIA LCD flat-panels at no additional charge. Models supporting this device include select 2007 and 2008 flat panels.

One of the worst things about a home theater aside from the wires is that the speakers tend to be big and bulky. Larger speakers often sound better, but they are hard to hide and can really mess up the looks of a room (so says my wife).

To go along with the new line of Sony Bravia HDTVs I wrote about this morning Sony has released a HT-IS100 Bravia Theater Micro System. The system is designed around five tiny speakers that are each about the size of a golf ball or a strawberry.

When it comes to LCD HDTVs Sony has some of the most popular sets on the market in its Bravia line. While LCD TVs and LCDs on notebooks share some of the same tech, notebook LCDs have been using LED backlighting for better picture quality and thinner profiles for a while now. The LED tech hasn’t been seen much in HDTVs until now.

Sony introduced seven new XBR HDTV models including models using TRILUMINOS LED backlighting and local dimming to provide better black levels and contrast. The TRILUMINOS LED system uses clusters of red, blue and green LEDs to produce improved color. The new models include screen sizes from 19 to 70-inches.

Once again Japan gets all the cool things. Like this latest, the Cinnabar Red PlayStation 2. It should be available on July 3rd, for the equivalent of $155 US. Perfect if you love rocking red, or if you have some sort of Hell theme happening. In fact, it would probably be at home in Hellboy’s house. Hell. Damnation. The damned. Red is the color of anger you know. I think it’s affecting me in a strange way.

The rumor reads like a scene from the gaming X-Files. Supposedly, a small group of PS3 owners were taken to a secret location in California where they got their chance to test a new Sony item. Not something made from alien technology, but a PS3 remote that mimics the Nintendo Wiimote.

Participants apparently enjoyed minigames like tennis, fencing and paintball. One source says one of the gamers spotted a “PS3 Fit” and was immediately mind wiped and carted away. Ok, I made that last bit up, but the rest is true. We think. The players also got to see some Quake on a laptop while using the device. Apparently, Sony has a long way to go before all the bugs are worked out

Sony in Europe is showing off a new upscaling DVD player which is pretty slim. It is called the Sony DVP-NS708H.

The Sony DVP-NS708H, like other upscaling DVD players, converts standard DVD video up to 1080p. The player itself is of a slim design, sporting a high-gloss black finish and compatibility with BRAVIA Sync to cut down on extra remotes lying around the media room.

Some good news for sound. The Sony Tubular non-directional speaker concept has now become a reality. The speaker is being released on June 20th, 2008 and it measures 325mm x 1845mm x 325mm and 12.5kg. The “Sountina” speaker is a transparent and organic glass tube that vibrates to expand sound a full 360 degrees.

You’ll get a frequency response of 50Hz – 20,000Hz, an input line, 13cm subwoofer speaker, 7cm medium speaker and the tweeter which is also made from organic glass. It’s priced at around €6500. If they add some color, every Jedi in the galaxy will be using them and matching colors to their lightsaber.

Everybody’s favorite whacked out, dancing, escape pod looking robot from Sony is finally making its way from Japan to the USA. The small egg-like bot can blast tunes from it’s built-in speakers, move its cute little flippers to the music and spin around. Is it useful? Hell no. And we like it that way.

The bot comes with pre-choreographed routines for songs. (”Also Sprach Zarathustra,” Avril Lavigne’s “Girlfriend”, Earth Wind and Fire’s “Boogie Wonderland”) You can also use the choreography software to create dances for own tunes. The 2GB bot can be had in black or white, and found online or in Sony stores for $400.

If you were hoping to somehow get your hands on that gun metal gray Metal Gear Solid 4 Playstation 3 bundle, here’s your chance. Konami has issued a press release showing that they exclusively will have a 40GB MGS4 PS3 bundle available for North American with the pre-sell starting on May 19th. This is not the same as the 80GB bundle we had talked about last month but a new offering available only from Konami.

The package comes with a Gun Metal Gray, 40GB Playstation 3, a matching wireless dualshock controller, Metal Gear Online, a Blu-ray disc with 2 hours of exclusive additional content and the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition game. The bundle is priced at $599.99 and will only go while supplies last so if you want one of these you’ll want to keep on top of this offer. In fact, you can add it to your Wish List on the Konami site now to keep up with the offer.

SONY just announced release dates for the long-awaited PlayTV add-on for the PS3 and Go!View video service for the PSP. PlayTV will allow the PS3’s hard drive to record TV shows thanks to it’s dual TV tuners. The included software has a 7-day programming guide, and recorded programs can be viewed remotely over Wi-Fi or transferred to the PSP.

SONY’s Go!View video service for the PSP will be subscription-based or on a pay-per-view system. Users can download TV content to their PSP from a dedicated website.