Best Blu-Ray Players

The demise of HD DVD leaves Blu-ray as the only high definition format available for the consumers. While China dabbles in China Blue high Definition, CBHD, the rest of the World is slowly adapting to Blu-ray format. Also, the mandatory transition from analog television to digital television is driving up the sales of high definition TV sets in the United States. This has put a spotlight on DVD’s deficiencies compared to 1080P resolution delivered by the Blu-ray format. At the beginning of the transition from DVD to Blu-ray, the PlayStation 3 served nicely as a quality Blu-ray player. While the Blu-ray players from Sony, Panasonic, or Samsung provided competent players during the transition, they all had some initial problems. This led to some problem in selection Top Blu-ray players. Now, the Blu-ray player specifications are set and most players deliver similar viewing experience.

The visual and sound qualities are fairly even when you compare the Blu-ray players from any of the major manufacturers. What set them apart are the various features such as network streaming, Netflix service, Pandora service, or Amazon Video on Demand services. If you are a gamer, PS3 will most likely satisfy you. However, choosing a standalone will come down to your preference in features. We are listing few of the best Blu-ray players to be released so far.

Here are the criteria that we set in order to determine best Blu-ray disc players:

Features

Designs

Performance

Video Quality

Sound

OPPO BDP-83 Blu-Ray Player with SACD & DVD-Audio

Review:
While not as widely known as Sony or Samsung, Oppo has made a name for itself with their high quality upconverting DVD players. Oppo is based out of China with many independent subsidiaries around World. Oppo Digital Inc. is a subsidiary based out of California and is responsible for producing the upconverting DVD players. Oppo DV-984H had excellent image quality to go along with SACD and 7.1 channel analog outputs. While it had great set of features, the main draw for the DVD player was its upconverted image quality. The upconversion of the standard DVD to 1080p resolution was one of the best in the industry. Given the track record, it is surprising that Oppo has waited long time to jump into the Blu-ray market. Nevertheless, Oppo has put together a very solid Blu-ray player. Read the rest of OPPO BDP-83 Review

OPPO BDP-83 Blu-ray Disc Player with SACD, DVD-Audio, and VRS Technology

Sale Price: $499.99

Average Rating:

LG BD390 Blu-Ray Player

Review:
Blu-ray players are finally hitting their stride this year with very good performances to go along with lower prices. Even the “base” models are loaded with features and excellent performances. The higher end models from the major manufacturers are priced well below $400 mark. This is far lower than the previous generation players. LG’s high end model, BD390, is priced around $350 and is crammed with features. LG adds very nice features on top of the already very competent BD 370 model. Read the rest of LG BD390 Review

LG BD 390 Network Blu-ray Disc Player

Sale Price: $489.99

Average Rating:

Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-Ray Player

Review:
The second generation Blu-ray players have started showing up at retails. Samsung, Panasonic, and Sony have produced some of the best stand alone Blu-ray players since the adaption of Blu-ray as the high definition format. Panasonic DMP-BD30 and DMP-BD50 variations have consistently been a great buy with great features with consistently good pictures. The Profile 2.0 supporting the BD-LIVE features were somewhat of luxury on the last generation players. Not so with players coming out this year. Along with Profile 2.0, high definition audio decoding and streaming capabilities have become defacto standards for most of the players announced at this year’s CES. At 2009 CES, Panasonic announced two mainstream Blu-ray players, DMP-BD60 and DMP-BD80, along with the VHS/Blu-ray combo player. As expected from the model numbers, the DMP-BD80 represents the high end model with more features than the DMP-BD60. Today, we are going to take a look at the DMP-BD60 model. Read the rest of Panasonic DMP-BD60 Review

	PROFESSIONAL 3 FT HDMI Cable for your Panasonic DMP-BD35 System or Player! Custom cable provides 36mbps, 2160p/60fps, 7.1 lossless digital HD audio and video! (Up to 240Hz) List Price: ~~$24.99~~ Sale Price: $9.99

Sony BDP-S360 Blu-Ray Player

Review:
Sony’s update to their BDP-S350 arrived later than its competitor’s update to their mainstream Blu-ray disc players. Most of the Sony’s competitors have released their updates for their Blu-ray players. This includes Samsung, LG, and Panasonic. While Sony was the main force behind the Blu-ray format, it had some trouble finding a firm footing with their stand alone Blu-ray players. This was partly due to the PS3 being able to handle Blu-ray playback in more than adequate fashion as well as the higher price than its competition. Nevertheless, the BDP-S350 and BDP-S550 were both very capable players with outstanding image qualities. The BDP-S360 went on sale few weeks after the competitor’s players were available to the public. The price point and the features are comparable to that of Panasonic DMP-BD60 and Samsung BD-P1600. Read the rest of Sony BDP-S360 Review

Premium 6 Foot HDMI Cable for your Sony BDP-S360 Blu-Ray Player. Supports 1080p/60fps Video and 7.1 Audio.
List Price: ~~$24.99~~
Sale Price: $0.01

Average Rating:

Panasonic DMP-BD80 Blu-Ray Player

Review:
Panasonic’s other Blu-ray disc player announced at 2009 CES is finally hitting the retailers across the internet and brick and mortal stores. The DMP-BD80 was the high end model announced along with the DMP-BD60. The DMP-BD80 adds few more features to the already solid DMP-BD60 model. Both players feature Profile 2.0, high definition audio decoding, and the video streaming via Panasonic’s own Viera Cast service. Technically, there are not too many differences between the DMP-BD60 and DMP-BD80. The players themselves look remarkably similar except for the 7.1 channel analog output in the back of the DMP-BD80 model. Read the rest of Panasonic DMP-BD80 Review

	PROFESSIONAL 25 FT HDMI Cable for your Panasonic DMP-BD80 System or Player! Custom cable provides 36mbps, 2160p/60fps, 7.1 lossless digital HD audio and video! (Up to 240Hz) List Price: ~~$99.99~~ Sale Price: $47.99