Best "budget" 4K UHD Player

[wormraper]

looking at one of the budget players for the living room. I already have a Ps5, a Panny UB820, and an X800 in the main home theater room, and am looking at a more "budget" one for the front of the room.

deciding between the UB-150, the UB450 and the Ub420

now, I know the UB-150 and the UB-450 are basically the same player, just without and with DV respectively.

My TV doesn't have DV on it out front, but that may change one day as the TV is over 7 years old and who knows when I may need an upgrade. that being said, this TV is for light viewing when I'm bored and don't want to boot up the whole theater system (no sound system, just TV and player) so having DV isn't some super necessary thing, but if the player I get has it, then so be it.

anyways being that the 3 players are withing $20-$50 of each other at MOST, which would be the more reliable player? do the 150/450 have any benefits over the more costly 420? are they LESS reliable than the venerable 420?

I've heard that the 150/450 run ice cold compared to the 420, so they don't need that whining fan that always irritates me on the UB820 that I have (and I assume the UB420 has). But at the same time I'm not sure how well they're built compared to the venerable 420/820

I tend to have stuck to the big UB820, X808 sets as my main ones, but just looking to see what my best best in terms of a solid reliable player that doesn't NEED all the frills and addon's of the higher end stuff. It's living room player that is going to be used for lazy man viewing vs. dedicated theater room. so see what my best bets are in the $200 or under range

[HeavyHitter]

I would go for the UB450. I might actually pick up one soon as a backup player. The 820 is the only UHD player I own. The 450 can play 4K content on a USB which is a big plus to me as it uses a different chip vs the 820.

I was not impressed with the build of the 420 when I owned it. I mean, it operated fine but the 820 is of better build quality.

[trespoochies]

Yep, the Panasonic 450 does a fantastic job for a very low price.

[Robert Zohn]

Panasonic's DP-UB420P-K is on sale now for $219.99, which includes double boxed delivery to your home.

Panasonic's step-up UB820 is also on sale for now just $449.99, and the flagship UB9000P1k is on sale for $999.99, all include double boxed Nationwide delivery.

[trespoochies]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

Panasonic's UB450 is on sale now for $219.99, which includes double boxed delivery to your home.

Panasonic's step-up UB820 is also on sale for now just $449.99, and the flagship UB9000P1k is on sale for $999.99, all include double boxed Nationwide delivery.

I see the 450 currently at $171.23.

https://a.co/d/bkL5tWO

[bl4ck]

Originally Posted by wormraper

.. I'm not sure how well they're built compared to the venerable 420/820

It's even worse than 420, it's catastrophic if we compare the quality to x800m2. 150 450 >> Ugly menu, no bitrate info, no possibility to change the remote code, no audio buttons and subtitles, remote? another disaster, Irritating operation of the drive tray. Loud drive operation during loading.

[mdhaus]

I'd pick up the Panasonic 450. It's a tremendous deal for $200 or less.

[CreasyBear]

Another vote for the UB450. Solid player.

[Guydowood]

So the consensus thus far is the 450 has no disc loading issues like the 820 has been doing?

[pr0darek]

Originally Posted by CreasyBear

Another vote for the UB450. Solid player.

What kind of world do we live in if this is a solid player

Originally Posted by Guydowood

So the consensus thus far is the 450 has no disc loading issues like the 820 has been doing?

If your 820 is having problems it means it is broken.

[CreasyBear]

Originally Posted by pr0darek

What kind of world do we live in if this is a solid player

A world where only a few companies even make players.

And this is talking about budget players. It's a solid player for $200 or less, complete with Dolby Vision and HDR10+ support.

[ronand]

The 450 is a cheap pile of plastic and the drive is very poor. Yes it will play discs but I wouldn't exactly call it a solid player.

[wormraper]

dang, didn't realize I was going to stir up a hornet's nest lol.

one thing I will say is sad. comparing my 2011 Blu-ray players against the modern day 4K players is just sad. the build quality and optical drive quality were light years better, and I barely paid about $90 for each of them
(I still have my venerable Sony S590 still, even though the drive tray started sticking recently. best player I ever bought and I got it at a pawn shop 4 months after it was released in 2012 for $45 lol.. I played THOUSANDS, if not tens of thousands, of hours on that player)



so far though, from what I'm reading the 450/150 will do the job for cheap, but not exactly the best well built. If I want a better BUILT player (as good/bad as that is) then the UB420 would be better. correct me if I'm wrong

[wormraper]

Originally Posted by trespoochies

I see the 450 currently at $171.23.

https://a.co/d/bkL5tWO

he was probably talking about the 420 and mistyped. the 420 is on sale for $219.99

[trespoochies]

Originally Posted by ronand

The 450 is a cheap pile of plastic and the drive is very poor. Yes it will play discs but I wouldn't exactly call it a solid player.

I have this player. And yes, while it feels more plastic, it plays and performs very well.

What's the deal with people needing a "solid" player in terms of how it feels like? I never understood this. It sits on a shelf and we pop discs in and out. What other things are people using it for that it needs to be a "solid" build? For the price, it's an excellent value - and plays region free blu's.

[Guydowood]

Originally Posted by trespoochies

I have this player. And yes, while it feels more plastic, it plays and performs very well.

What's the deal with people needing a "solid" player in terms of how it feels like? I never understood this. It sits on a shelf and we pop discs in and out. What other things are people using it for that it needs to be a "solid" build? For the price, it's an excellent value - and plays region free blu's.

That’s a great question. I’ve had my 820 since 2021 so perhaps its use has had its due considering the hit or miss 4K disc loading issues. I have never fully used any player the streaming apps. So the 450 not having those is fine with me. I’m just pissed that a $500 player shouldn’t shit the bed and I’m not in the market to drop $1K on the flagship panny. I just ordered the 450 for $171 off amazon and we shall see how well this goes.

[Deadend45]

Originally Posted by pr0darek

If your 820 is having problems it means it is broken.

Or Grey-market bought.

Originally Posted by trespoochies

What's the deal with people needing a "solid" player in terms of how it feels like? I never understood this. It sits on a shelf and we pop discs in and out. What other things are people using it for that it needs to be a "solid" build? For the price, it's an excellent value - and plays region free blu's.

In theory and often in practice the bigger players make less operating noise. The 450 does not work with the 'top menu' trick that works on the 820 or so I have read.

[trespoochies]

Originally Posted by Deadend45

Or Grey-market bought.



In theory and often in practice the bigger players make less operating noise. The 450 does not work with the 'top menu' trick that works on the 820 or so I have read.

Yes it does. I’ve commented on it before and even added some comparisons between this the 820. The noise isn’t any louder then the 820 or any other player.

[Robert Zohn]

Originally Posted by trespoochies

I see the 450 currently at $171.23.

https://a.co/d/bkL5tWO

Originally Posted by wormraper

he was probably talking about the 420 and mistyped. the 420 is on sale for $219.99

Sorry for my typo, wormraper is correct, I mean to say Panasonic's DP-UB420P-K, which is a very nice step-up with tone mapping from the UB450. Not use if the DP-UB420P-K supports Dolby Vision.

[trespoochies]

Got it. Yeah, the 420 does not have DV, which is why I went for the 450 which does. But the 450 is pretty recent compared to the 420, so that was the only non-expensive option besides the 820 for a long time.