Quality Blu Ray Player

[Sammy13]

Hi All

Just purchased a Samsung LN40B650 120 Hz LDV HDTV. Stunning HD picture out of a Di@ectV HD DVR. Looking for a quality Blu-Ray player to supplement this tv. I have been reading, researching, etc. What I want is just a good quality player that will produce great picture quality and will not be obsolete in 2 years and perhaps has some "style" to it. Any suggestions?

SAM

[ZedsDead]

Well the two answers you're most likely to get are the PS3 and the Oppo BDP-83. Welcome to the forum by the way.

[Sammy13]

oh yeah looking to spend under $250. Sorry for not clarifying that.

SAM

[Rob J in WNY]

Welcome to the forums, Sammy13.

There are a lot of mainstream brands of BD players available. I have the Sony BDP-S350, which has been recently discontinued and replaced by the BDP-S360 (approximately $250 at your typical brick-and-mortar electronics store).

If you are looking for reliability, then Sony, Pioneer and Panasonic appear to lead the way on these forums. I have seen fewer complaints about these three brands than any else (albeit none have a perfect record). Keep in mind that in order to have the most reliable usage any BD player, you will likely have to make periodic firmware updates on it, which can be obtained from the manufacturer's website, or else, if the player is so-equipped, an internet connection directly to the player itself.

As far as having a player for more than two years, that is certainly possible, but it seems that manufacturers like to release new models every year or so, discontinuing prior models (but continuing support for them, to be sure).

My Sony BDP-S350 has been a flawless player for me for nearly a year now. I have made three firmware updates on it, and it has never let me down.

[bhampton]

PS3 is $299. It's a great value.

Sometimes you can find them cheaper. (There was a $219 refurbished deal direct from Sony the other day... maybe it's still going on.)

-Brian

[Ashamed Pegasus]

Panasonic BD60 - $172

Sony S360 - $182

Panasonic BD80 - $199

Best 3 options IMO for under $250... I would personally go with the Sony S360 but I'm biased towards that one because I own it...

[Lincoln6Echo]

Originally Posted by ZedsDead

Well the two answers you're most likely to get are the PS3 and the Oppo BDP-83. Welcome to the forum by the way.

Count me one of those that went with the Oppo BDP-83. One, well two, of the biggest selling factors for me was 1) Fast Load times (comparable or even better than the PS3) and 2) already being an owner of a DV-981HD. So I know Oppo's quality.

Yes, it was $500, but you get what you pay for. I researched the regular name-brand players and found a multitude of complaints for each one. Biggest of course being load times, and second, mainly cheapness of build quality or lack of fuctional remote. (Sony BDP-S360 missing an eject button on the remote, for example..)

[Rob J in WNY]

Originally Posted by Lincoln6Echo

Count me one of those that went with the Oppo BDP-83. One, well two, of the biggest selling factors for me was 1) Fast Load times (comparable or even better than the PS3) and 2) already being an owner of a DV-981HD. So I know Oppo's quality.

Yes, it was $500, but you get what you pay for. I researched the regular name-brand players and found a multitude of complaints for each one. Biggest of course being load times, and second, mainly cheapness of build quality or lack of fuctional remote. (Sony BDP-S360 missing an eject button on the remote, for example..)

It's funny that Sony removed the eject button on the remote for the S360 (I double-checked this and found this is true), but I wonder if Sammy13 will consider that, even in part, as important enough to double a $250 budget. I'll admit that I use the eject button my S350 remote most of the time, but in the end, I still have to walk to the player to remove the disc. The S350 and S360 loading times are compared as being only a few seconds longer than the PS3. Some players do take much longer.

If I wanted to spend $500 on a BD player, I would definitely go for the Oppo 83. Probably its greatest attribute is the excellent upscaling quality of DVD video which it delivers. That could be important to me, but I have to wonder how important it would be to Sammy13. Most players do a highly satisfactory job of upscaling DVD video over HDMI. I'm not at all displeased with the upscaling on my Sony BDP-S350.

[Semp1]

Just go to sonystyle.com open a Sony visa so your first purchase is $100 off whatever you buy and get a ps3 slim which is normally $299 but you'll get 1 for $199. I don't think anyone on this forum will disagree there's nothing you'll get that even comes remotely close to as good of a player as the ps3 for that price.

[SlmShdy1]

If lack of an eject button is an issue, it's too bad the OP didn't get a Sony TV. Most Bravia TV remotes have player control buttons (play, pause, stop, eject). Just use Bravia Sync and you'd be set.

[Ashamed Pegasus]

The remotes may not have the eject button but the feature still exists with the player... If you have any of the Harmony Logitech remotes you can eject discs just fine... Not sure why the OEM remotes did not have this on them... But like Rob J said, you have to walk up to the player once you hit eject anyway to remove the disc...

[nocturnalentity]

I have had many Blu Ray players this year. Sony 350 & 360, as well as a PS3. Samsung, LG, Panasonic, & a Philips. I currently have the Philips in the master bedroom witch is a great player. The Panasonic in the guest room & the Sony 360 & PS3 in the theatre room. Now for your question. In my opinion the Sony 360 is the absolute best BD player I've ever owned. PQ is simply perfect. & no matter what AVR you may be useing you will get the new audio thats on BD. I haved had the 360 since it was released. I have played many BD's DVD's & CD's with it. Have not had a single problem with this player. I have with every other one though with the exception of the Philips.

[pieied]

I just did all the same research you are going through and ended up with the LG BD390. Check cnet.com it's not payed to do it's reviews. I just received it a couple of days ago and so far it has worked flawlessly. The picture is right on and of course the sound is there it's just how you get it out. Besides the PQ and audio, witch are the most important, you mentioned being obsolete in the years to come....well the BD390 is as close to not being that as can be.....it is WiFi capable out of the box, so firmware can be updated as needed or available, it can be hard wired if needed. With the internet you can stream YouTube, NetFlix, CinemaNow and now Vudo, so if you are a movie watcher "DA" it's all there and it is in your price range. I just payed $259 plus shipping and no tax. The only thing about streaming movies is your download speed. I think the Vodo.com site can check that. I think the minimum speed for HD download is about 4.5mg, but check the site for that info. You also said something about "style" ....I like the style of the BD390 it is a vary good looking HD DVD player. I had to do a lot of shopping to find the price I was willing to pay, but it's there...believe me I did it.

[pieied]

SORRY...the streaming movie site is Vudu not Vodo, and the correct download speed is about 4.5kbps for HD as recommended by Vudu. Here are some sites that will test your internet speed....speedmasters.org, pcpitstop.com, speedplexer.com. The last one is a download, so it will be a program you will have on your computer....this may be easier down the road....you will not have to remember the site. They are all FREE. Again sorry for the misinformation.

[lobo81865]

Originally Posted by pieied

I just did all the same research you are going through and ended up with the LG BD390. Check cnet.com it's not payed to do it's reviews. I just received it a couple of days ago and so far it has worked flawlessly. The picture is right on and of course the sound is there it's just how you get it out. Besides the PQ and audio, witch are the most important, you mentioned being obsolete in the years to come....well the BD390 is as close to not being that as can be.....it is WiFi capable out of the box, so firmware can be updated as needed or available, it can be hard wired if needed. With the internet you can stream YouTube, NetFlix, CinemaNow and now Vudo, so if you are a movie watcher "DA" it's all there and it is in your price range. I just payed $259 plus shipping and no tax. The only thing about streaming movies is your download speed. I think the Vodo.com site can check that. I think the minimum speed for HD download is about 4.5mg, but check the site for that info. You also said something about "style" ....I like the style of the BD390 it is a vary good looking HD DVD player. I had to do a lot of shopping to find the price I was willing to pay, but it's there...believe me I did it.

I have the 390 as well, and love it. I just ordered another one from Amazon. Of course the Oppo is my main player, but the LG's are great too. To the OP, I paid $239.00 to Amazon for the 390 at today's price, and got free super saver shipping.