About Blu-Ray DVD Players?

~Ms. Q~

What makes them different from normal DVD players? Are they better?
Please help me, I am clueless :)

Answer
Blu-Ray is the evolution forwards of the DVD from a device that uses a RED laser and stores 4 or 8GB to one that uses a blue laser (the light is smaller wavelength than red light is so you can fit more information on a disc) and stores around 50 to 400GB.

the ordinary DVD can hold a 2 to 3 hour movie at 480 or 575 lines resolution with 5.1 sound using MPEG4 compression.

a blu-ray can hold a 3 hour movie at 1080 lines resolution with 7.1 or 9.2 sounds so both video and sound have MUCH M4UCH better quality using MPEG4 or newer compression plus can have interactive Java and web links embedded.

some 'upscaling DVD's can take the 480 lines and interpolate it to 1080 lines all this does is smooth edges and not add any detail. the difference between upscaled DVD and blu-ray is very noticeable (like reading with or without glasses you see so much more detail).


A DVD can play normal DVD's and CD's but NOT blu-ray disks

a Blu-Ray can play DVD's Cd's and blu-ray's

despite some people saying the blu-ray will be replaced this year by broadband its not happening as blu ray prices are coming down and sales shooting up. a HD movie on broadband can take 12 hours to download and take 2 months usage allowance and still not match the blu-ray quality.

Blu-Ray player price?

Ryan

im looking for a blu-ray player around $150 or less. anybody know of any. and i would prefer if it is not a black friday only sale.

thanks in advance

Answer
I am assuming you live in the United States. If so, there are good sales on Samsung and Sony Blu-ray players for 199.99 at bestbuy.

Samsung BD-P1500
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8735327&type=product&id=1201913483931

If you can stretch out an extra $50, this is a superb blu-ray player. It is profile 1.1 out of the box but samsung includes a USB 2.0 drive in the back of the unit so you can update it through USB or even CD to be the new 2.0 profile standard. I know a few families that own this exact player and none of them have had any problems. The player has relatively slow loading times when loading blu-rays but that is to be expected with all blu-ray players. Samsung includes a loading icon to remedy this which can allow you to at least know when it is loading and when it is not. The sony player is very good as well since Sony are the main innovators of blu-ray.

If the extra $50 is too big of a stretch, there is an insignia blu-ray player going for $149.99 at best buy.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8777344&type=product&id=1204332499513

Unfortunately with this unit, there is no ethernet port in the back or a USB port in order to upgrade to profile 2.0 so it is not exactly future proof in terms of extra content if that is what you enjoy in blu-rays. I personally do not care about the extra features they bundle and always just watch the movie. If you share the same views then this player would be fine as it plays blu-rays fine. The main downside with this player is that the display isn't exactly the brightest and it does not bear the mark of the popular companies such as Samsung, Sony, LG, Pioneer, etc. that make quality products day in and day out.

Hope I helped.

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Can anyone recommend a Blu Ray Player?

ekawaguchi

I need one that can play regular DVD's as well as Blu Ray / HD and one that has 1080 output. And preferably under $300. Any suggestions?

Answer
Google "best Blu-ray player" and you will find several comparative reviews (the 3rd link below is to one of the better ones).

But I want to focus on the results of my search for a player. While only recommended for those who value excellent video and audio performance over loading speed and "the latest" features, the best deal right now is, arguably, the Pioneer BDP51FD from 6th Avenue Electronics. This is the $600 MSRP model that is in all important ways is almost the same as the $800 MSRP Pioneer Elite BPD-05FD ... but is on sale for $284. (link 1). Most professional reviews were on players with early firmware. Since V1.17 (Current V1.25a) this player has really come into it's own.

The main pros are: excellent build quality and components; exemplary DVD scaling, CD audio quality (Audiophiles rate it as one of the best CD players available), and BD video quality; multichannel analog audio with built in support for Dolby TrueHD (and DTS HD master to follow via a firmware update); excellent "tweekability".

The main cons are: it is Profile 1.1 (and can't be updated to 2.0 ... which means no internet connectivity for updates or on-line extras ... but relative to audio and video quality this is relatively unimportant); relatively slow DVD layer change on some disks, limited bass management over analog audio outs, some reports of sensitivity to scratches on disks.

The second link is to an owners thread ... and many posts point out that this is one of the best Blu-ray players out there in terms of performance and quality. Overpriced at $600, but a steal at $284. Most of what you need to know is in the first few posts at the second link (e.g. #7).

Again .. this is a player for the videophile/audiophile ... not for those looking for glitz.

Other choices are summarized at the 3rd link.

About Blu-Ray DVD Players?

~Ms. Q~

What makes them different from normal DVD players? Are they better?
Please help me, I am clueless :)

Answer
Blu-Ray is the evolution forwards of the DVD from a device that uses a RED laser and stores 4 or 8GB to one that uses a blue laser (the light is smaller wavelength than red light is so you can fit more information on a disc) and stores around 50 to 400GB.

the ordinary DVD can hold a 2 to 3 hour movie at 480 or 575 lines resolution with 5.1 sound using MPEG4 compression.

a blu-ray can hold a 3 hour movie at 1080 lines resolution with 7.1 or 9.2 sounds so both video and sound have MUCH M4UCH better quality using MPEG4 or newer compression plus can have interactive Java and web links embedded.

some 'upscaling DVD's can take the 480 lines and interpolate it to 1080 lines all this does is smooth edges and not add any detail. the difference between upscaled DVD and blu-ray is very noticeable (like reading with or without glasses you see so much more detail).


A DVD can play normal DVD's and CD's but NOT blu-ray disks

a Blu-Ray can play DVD's Cd's and blu-ray's

despite some people saying the blu-ray will be replaced this year by broadband its not happening as blu ray prices are coming down and sales shooting up. a HD movie on broadband can take 12 hours to download and take 2 months usage allowance and still not match the blu-ray quality.

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What is the best blu ray disc player with wifi and netflix?

blu ray player on sale image

For Fun

OK. thanksgiving sales coming up and I am looking to replace my old dvd player with a blu-ray dvd player with wi-fi compatibility. looking for something that can connect to netflix and youtube. can you please suggest a good one/ i dont need the 3D one. does any player connect to hulu? or quick silver screen? thank you.

Answer
Sony BDP-S570 is one of them.

What is a Blu-ray player? Should I get my parents one for Christmas?

Jennifer R

What is a Blu-ray player? Is it what DVD's are turning into.

Are there movings being made for it, other than new releases?
Would it be worth getting my parents for Christmas?
Sorry, I said "movings" and I meant to say "Movies".

Answer
Blue Ray is one of two incompatible high definition DVD formats avaialble for viewing movies. The other format is HD-DVD. And neither of these is compatible with DVD Video the original format. However most Blue Ray or HD-DVD players or the new LG Dual format player also play DVD video discs. The opposite is not true. In other words you cannot play a HD-DVD or a Blue Ray DVD in a old DVD video player. And only the LG combination unit can play all three formats.

Some movies are released on Blue Ray and some are released on HD-DVD (and maybe a few might be released on both but it seems most theatrical houses have to favor one or the other). For the short term it is most likely releases will continue on DVD video since this is what most of the public has and therefore where the most sales will be. But it is anyone's guess as to how long this will continue since it depends on how the public adopts the technology or if internet based downloads exceed high definition disc sales.

Is it worth it? That is a good question and depends on a few things. How much you want to spend is part of it. HD-DVD and Blue Ray players that play only that one of the two formats plus DVD video go for about $399 without special sales on Circuit City or Best Buy sites or in their stores. The LG Player which plays all three (Blue Ray, HD-DVD, and DVD video) goes for about $1000. So it would be cheaper to buy two players for about $798.

And there is the other consideration. Only a HD Ready TV or monitor can display the high resolution from these players. So if they do not have a HD Ready TV or monitor it would cost you more to buy one of those. And that could be about $3000 and up depending on how big the screen size is of the set and what brand you buy.

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Should I buy a SP3 blu-ray player or the Sony stand alone blu-ray player?

blu ray player on sale image

MissNowMrs

I am interested in getting a blu-ray player and confused as to which one to buy! Which would produce better sound and image quality? I like the idea of the SP3 to play games on as well, but I'm not totally sure I would use it a lot to play games. Right now, the price for either seems to be about the same, so I am torn - please help! Thanks for your input!

Answer
As of today the ONLY Blu-ray player worth buying is the the PS3 ... if you don't want a games machine or want the style of a stand alone player wait for the Profile 2.0 machines later this summer.

BUT before buiyng make sure you can benefit from Blu-ray or that the improvement is worth the ~$8-$10 higher price of disks (don't expect current sale prices to continue ... they are artificial) and cost of the hardware. For many people Blu-ray is not a significant improvement over upconverted DVD. At the least you MUST have an HDMI equipped HDTV (and preferably a 1080p model over 40") ... not to mention the need for a good audio system to take advantage of the advanced audio.

It's a lot of money ... so I suggest you get a demo on an HDTV as similar as possible to yours (size, resolution) AND watch from the same distance as you will use at home. Compare a DVD and Blu-Ray disk (preferably the same movie) --- don't just watch a Blu-ray demo disk they are often HD video totally unrepresentative of what you will see on movies.

Why get a Roku when a (cheaper) internet-capable Blu-Ray player can do the same thing?

Alex

Roku 3 costs $100. Internet capable Blu-Ray players can be had on sale for $40. What capabilities does a Roku 3 offer that a Blu-Ray (which can also play Blu-Ray discs) doesn't?

Answer
I have both a Panasonic BluRay player and the WD TV Live streamer.

The Panasonic required an additional wireless dongle ($90) to go live but the WD box cost only $99.

The Panasonic had 7 apps and in a years time was upgraded to 8. The WD LIve box came with .. 21 apps and now has over 30. Plus it gets firmware updates every few weeks.

My WD box interface is much nicer and more responsive than the "add on" apps on the BluRay player. The WD box also lets me plug in a USB flash or hard-drive and play computer files.

The Panasonic sometimes while playing BluRay disks gives me network errors mid-play even if I am not using the wireless. It's integration is ... less than stellar.

So I am a big fan of the external media streamers.

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What is the best blu ray disc player with wifi and netflix?

blu ray player on sale image

For Fun

OK. thanksgiving sales coming up and I am looking to replace my old dvd player with a blu-ray dvd player with wi-fi compatibility. looking for something that can connect to netflix and youtube. can you please suggest a good one/ i dont need the 3D one. does any player connect to hulu? or quick silver screen? thank you.

Answer
Sony BDP-S570 is one of them.

What is a Blu-ray player? Should I get my parents one for Christmas?

Jennifer R

What is a Blu-ray player? Is it what DVD's are turning into.

Are there movings being made for it, other than new releases?
Would it be worth getting my parents for Christmas?
Sorry, I said "movings" and I meant to say "Movies".

Answer
Blue Ray is one of two incompatible high definition DVD formats avaialble for viewing movies. The other format is HD-DVD. And neither of these is compatible with DVD Video the original format. However most Blue Ray or HD-DVD players or the new LG Dual format player also play DVD video discs. The opposite is not true. In other words you cannot play a HD-DVD or a Blue Ray DVD in a old DVD video player. And only the LG combination unit can play all three formats.

Some movies are released on Blue Ray and some are released on HD-DVD (and maybe a few might be released on both but it seems most theatrical houses have to favor one or the other). For the short term it is most likely releases will continue on DVD video since this is what most of the public has and therefore where the most sales will be. But it is anyone's guess as to how long this will continue since it depends on how the public adopts the technology or if internet based downloads exceed high definition disc sales.

Is it worth it? That is a good question and depends on a few things. How much you want to spend is part of it. HD-DVD and Blue Ray players that play only that one of the two formats plus DVD video go for about $399 without special sales on Circuit City or Best Buy sites or in their stores. The LG Player which plays all three (Blue Ray, HD-DVD, and DVD video) goes for about $1000. So it would be cheaper to buy two players for about $798.

And there is the other consideration. Only a HD Ready TV or monitor can display the high resolution from these players. So if they do not have a HD Ready TV or monitor it would cost you more to buy one of those. And that could be about $3000 and up depending on how big the screen size is of the set and what brand you buy.

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