Panasonic UB820/UB9000 4K UHD Blu-ray player

[Muyfa666]

Originally Posted by By_His_Strypes

I'm finally upgrading my player in the near future. I'm going with the 820 model.

Good for you. It’s a solid choice.

[Chareth]

Originally Posted by Ben_R

I’d be buying what I could and storing it until needed. The player market is extremely limited now. OPPO and Pioneer no longer sell players.

Thanks for this. I'd certainly got the impression of the market being limited.

Am I right that Panasonic haven't released a new 4K player since 2019? That seems concerning, unless they've just seen no need to release new models.

Are there any signs that Panasonic is withdrawing from the 4K player market?

If so, I'm inclined to take your advice and pick up an 820 now so that I'm covered.

[Naiera]

There is no need to develop new players. The current selection has all the features they need.

[Sango]

Originally Posted by Muyfa666

It does seem like the HDR button is needed to actually change HDR presets.

I ordered two remotes, as I'm not 100% sure which one will be best;

N2QAYA000175 (US?)
N2QAYA000172 (UK/EU?)

It depends on which one you want. Some of the buttons vary depending on the country remote you want.

N2QAYA000174 - Canada
N2QAYA000175 - US
N2QAYA000172 - UK/EU/OC
N2QAYA000212 - China
N2QAYA000244 - Hong Kong
N2QAYA000173 - Japan

Reference - See manuals
https://av.jpn.support.panasonic.com...000/index.html
https://av.jpn.support.panasonic.com...index_jpn.html

[Jonathan McLeod]

I think the worry about Panasonic discontinuing the 820/9000 is a bit overblown. They more-or-less have that corner of the market to themselves, certainly at the 820 range there's nothing to match it. Sure it's a bit of a niche product, but the fact it's almost never discounted, and in the UK at least the RRP has gone up 17% in the last year, suggests that wholesalers and retailers aren't sitting on lots of unsold stock.

[Ben_R]

Originally Posted by Chareth

Thanks for this. I'd certainly got the impression of the market being limited.

Am I right that Panasonic haven't released a new 4K player since 2019? That seems concerning, unless they've just seen no need to release new models.

Are there any signs that Panasonic is withdrawing from the 4K player market?

If so, I'm inclined to take your advice and pick up an 820 now so that I'm covered.

I’m not sure when the last one was released. Grab an 820, you know you want to. Don’t forget to go multi region for blus at the same time.

Originally Posted by Naiera

There is no need to develop new players. The current selection has all the features they need.

Maybe we were just spoilt in the past with the amount of dvd and Blu-ray players being released. The player market just seems stagnant.

Originally Posted by Jonathan McLeod

I think the worry about Panasonic discontinuing the 820/9000 is a bit overblown. They more-or-less have that corner of the market to themselves, certainly at the 820 range there's nothing to match it. Sure it's a bit of a niche product, but the fact it's almost never discounted, and in the UK at least the RRP has gone up 17% in the last year, suggests that wholesalers and retailers aren't sitting on lots of unsold stock.

Everything is going up, i’m not sure that figure is indicative of anything other than inflation. Another way to look at could be that the 17% increase is to cover losses in player sales.

[mdhaus]

Originally Posted by Jonathan McLeod

I think the worry about Panasonic discontinuing the 820/9000 is a bit overblown. They more-or-less have that corner of the market to themselves, certainly at the 820 range there's nothing to match it. Sure it's a bit of a niche product, but the fact it's almost never discounted, and in the UK at least the RRP has gone up 17% in the last year, suggests that wholesalers and retailers aren't sitting on lots of unsold stock.

I agree. It certainly doesn't appear that Panasonic is having problems selling the players. The days of having tons of manufacturers making the players is most certainly over...But there will likely continue to be a market for a couple of manufacturers to create them. It wouldn't make sense for Panasonic to stop making a product that is clearly moving a fair number for them.

[DavePS3]

Originally Posted by Reignman35

I have an 820 and so far it's been great. Do you find the extra cost of the 9000 is worth it? Have you seen any noticeable differences (other than the chassis build), that justify the increased price?

No difference in picture quality or sound. The 9 is just built like a tank made by Porsche. It's 20lbs.

[danny24]

Originally Posted by DavePS3

No difference in picture quality or sound. The 9 is just built like a tank made by Porsche. It's 20lbs.

The only difference between the 820 and 9000 other than premium build quality is the audio features and the disc drive is a little better. Basic performance though for the average user you won't notice a big difference.

Originally Posted by Jonathan McLeod

I think the worry about Panasonic discontinuing the 820/9000 is a bit overblown. They more-or-less have that corner of the market to themselves, certainly at the 820 range there's nothing to match it. Sure it's a bit of a niche product, but the fact it's almost never discounted, and in the UK at least the RRP has gone up 17% in the last year, suggests that wholesalers and retailers aren't sitting on lots of unsold stock.

If Panasonic discontinued their UHD players just like with Oppo the second hand prices would sky rocket. The 820/9000 models are obviously good sellers because they are still making them and don't feel the need to update them. I do wish they would do new firmware updates though.

[DavePS3]

Originally Posted by danny24

The only difference between the 820 and 9000 other than premium build quality is the audio features and the disc drive is a little better. Basic performance though for the average user you won't notice a big difference.



If Panasonic discontinued their UHD players just like with Oppo the second hand prices would sky rocket. The 820/9000 models are obviously good sellers because they are still making them and don't feel the need to update them. I do wish they would do new firmware updates though.

Audio only really differs if you use the stereo XLR outputs. I have both units.

[nachoju95]

Hi, has anyone bought the RattleByte mod for the 820? Is it difficult to install? The manual is not very clear on the subject of opening the player, to add the mod compromises the player? Or is it a simple install?

[panasonicst60]

Originally Posted by nachoju95

Hi, has anyone bought the RattleByte mod for the 820? Is it difficult to install? The manual is not very clear on the subject of opening the player, to add the mod compromises the player? Or is it a simple install?

If you know the basic of soldering, have a fine tip, have good steady hands, and good eyesight, it's fairly easy to be honest. If you don't have the four I mentioned, don't risk it.

[ronand]

Originally Posted by nachoju95

Hi, has anyone bought the RattleByte mod for the 820? Is it difficult to install? The manual is not very clear on the subject of opening the player, to add the mod compromises the player? Or is it a simple install?

If you need a manual to open the player then it's probably best you don't do it yourself. If you can solder with a very fine tip it's not terribly difficult.

[Muyfa666]

Are there any app to control the 9000? I can control all other devices in my setup with my phone, but not the 9000.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by Muyfa666

Are there any app to control the 9000? I can control all other devices in my setup with my phone, but not the 9000.

I haven't found one yet. You might be able to go through your AVR.

[nachoju95]

Originally Posted by panasonicst60

If you know the basic of soldering, have a fine tip, have good steady hands, and good eyesight, it's fairly easy to be honest. If you don't have the four I mentioned, don't risk it.

Thanks!! And anyone who has the functionality of external subtitles, from the RattleByte mod or Regionfreedom firmware, the functionality appears only for audio in English? Or is it only for the main or default audio language? Example: A movie that only has audio in Italian, the option would not be displayed, would it?

[ronand]

You just enable external subtitles in the menu and it will play the sub.srt file in the "sub" folder of your USB stick. It doesn't matter what language the srt file is in. If you want Italian subs you put an Italian srt file on the stick.

[Muyfa666]

Originally Posted by chip75

I haven't found one yet. You might be able to go through your AVR.

I don't have an AVR.

No point in searching for a app then.

Thanks.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by Muyfa666

I don't have an AVR.

No point in searching for a app then.

Thanks.

Does your sound bar have an App the controls other devices?

[Muyfa666]

Originally Posted by chip75

Does your sound bar have an App the controls other devices?

Not to my knowledge, no. The app only controls the soundbar as far as I can tell.