Under Construction

Dec. 2010
See Internet TV for streaming sources (e.g. Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, ...) supported.
model price 3D wi-fi BD-
Live
Cons Rsch CNet
score
Consumer Rpts Am-
azon score
Comments
score versa
tility
load time
Panasonic DMP-BD85 $180   y4 y4 r 3.5 83 4 3 4.3
Sony BDP-S570 $150-200 y y3 y b 4 81 bb 4 4 4
LG BD590 $350-290   y y b 4 81 3 4 4
Samsung BD-C6900 $223-250 y y2 y r 4 83 4 5 3.3
Samsung BD-C6500 $220   y   r 4 83 3 4 3.3
Panasonic DMP-BDT100 $200 y r y     82 3 4    
Panasonic DMP-BDT300 $350 y   y     82 4 3    
LG BD570 $160       r 3.5 81 3 4
LG BD550 $125         3 80 3 4
Oppo BDP-83 $500         4 85 3 4
Samsung BD-C5500 $140   r     3.5 81 bb 3 4
Sony BDP-S770 $250 y y y     83 3 4   SACD
Sony Play Station 3 $325   y y b 4        
Sony BDP-S470 $150 y r y r   80 bb 3 4
wifi: y-built-in, r ready
Consumer Rsch: b-best, r-runner up
Consumer Reports results - All are 1080P, recommended and have highest BD and DVD picture quality and highest remote rating unless otherwise noted.
All have Multichannel digital audio via the HDMI cable and coax or optical, a few have analog-audio outputs.
BB=Best Buy

BluRay-Player.net ranks them: 1. Panasonic DMP-BD85, 2. LG BD570, 3. Sony BDP-S570

See Streaming Internet Audio/Video to your TV

2. Samsung BD-C6900
Several reviews on amazon say the wi-fi on the Samsung BD-C6900 is not fast enough to keep up with Netflicks.
Supports Samsung Apps - Apps designed for their mobile phones.

3. Sony BDP-S570
Several people have reported unreliable wi-fi performance with the Sony BDP-S570. Others have said it was OK. One review on amazon said that in addition to unreliable wireless performance, It reports usage back to SONY and its partners IP addresses using undocumented ports. It maintains essentially adware cookies that track a user's history with the device. If you attempt to block the various reporting addresses with your firewall, the device then fails telling you that the "Network is Unavailable".
  Most amazon reviews have been good.
  Some expressed frustration having to go thru Sony's gateway for Internet sources, some of which requires a fee.

4. Panasonic DMP-BD85
The Panasonic DMP-BD85 comes with a wireless adapter which allows you to put the antenna outside the box for better reception.
It requires 36 sec. to load a Blu-Ray disc which is a little slower than the other top rated models.
  It requires a SD memory card to get BD-Live.
  User interface is not the best.
Seems to have fewer wi-fi, streaming problems reported than others.

5. LG BD590
Some reported steaming setup must be redone periodically.
Netflix bug was fixed.

The NSZ-GT1 | Sony Internet TV Blu-ray Disc Player ($399) works with Google TV.
  Cnet Review

Overview:
Blu-Ray technology won out over HD DVD in the race for the next optical media standard. Named Blue because of the blue laser used providing shorter wave lengths for higher density.
Blu-Ray vs DVD: Blu-Ray gives better image quality, better sound quality, and more special features. All three are made possible by the larger storage capacity of Blu-ray, which is capable of storing 50GB of information on a single Blu-ray Disc, compared with DVDs, which can hold about 8GB.
  Features include pop-up menus while the movie is playing, picture-in-picture video commentary and the ability to download new content right from your Blu-ray player.

See: Blu-ray Quick Guide - CNET Reviews - CNET Reviews

Terms:
BD - Blu-Ray Disc

BD-Live - Profile 2.0
BD-Live
is a newly developed Blu-ray feature that enables you to access content via your internet-connected Blu-ray player.
BD-Live can allow you to download a variety of up-to-date content (e.g., refreshed previews and exclusive special features). BD-Live features have included automatic firmware updates, checking each time the device is switched on to see if it has been tampered with and report the same, Internet chats, scheduled chats with the director, Internet games, downloadable featurettes, downloadable quizzes, and downloadable movie trailers.
None of these features were listed as "must have" according to most.

BRAVIA (Best Resolution Audio Visual Integrated Architecture) - A sony name for it's high-definition LCD televisions, projection TVs and front projectors and for the PlayStation 3. It is also a service allowing internet TV thru the Internet. Sony also has a BRAVIA box ($200) that allows non-BRAVIA ready TV's to use the Internet TV service

DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance)
It defines a standard for moving movies, photos, music and other media from device to device. DLNA servers can store media in one location, and, without any setup or configuration, can stream the media to DLNA compliant players,

Dolby AC3 - AC3 (Audio Codec 3, Advanced Codec 3, Acoustic Coder 3)
Allows 5.1 channel output.

DTS - DTS is a series of multichannel audio technologies owned by DTS (Digital Theater Systems), Inc
DTS-HD is high resolution audio. See Blu-ray Audio Codecs Explained.

DSP/ASSP - Digital Signal Processing / Audio-Specific Signal Processor (or Application-specific standard products). Used with a CODEC to decode digital audio.

EDID - Extended display identification data - A data structure provided by a digital display to describe its capabilities to a video source (e.g. graphics card, Set-top box).

GTV - Google TV
Brings Android, Chrome, and Flash to your TV with devices running the android OS controled by a full keyboard.
As of December 2010 the Sony NSZ-GT1 and Logitech Revue were the only devices supporting GTV.
A Dec. 2010 Wall Street Journal article says that due to bad reviews, google has asked hardware companies to put off announcing new products until a new version of the software is available.

HDCP - High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection
  Commonly, though incorrectly, referred to as High-Definition Copy(right) Protection.

HDMI - (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) - The standard specification for cables connecting your player, network, computer or cable service to your screen (HDTV or digital PC monitor) or Home Theater System.
Has audio and video.
HDMI cables with ethernet are now available for about the same price and work even if you are not using ethernet. Future interfaces may require it.

LPCM - Linear pulse-code modulation - Digital Audio encoding common on Blu-Ray discs.
An upgrade to Dolby Digital and DTS audio used with DVDs.
See Blu-ray Audio Codecs Explained.

Profile - Profile refers to a set of required Blu-Ray player features. There have been three, 1.0, 1.1 (BonusView) and 2.0 (BD-Live)
Upcoming 3.0 is an audio only profile.

SACD - Super Audio CD - Some high-end Blu-Ray players will play SACDs. SACD is designed to provide high-resolution audio in both stereo and surround sound modes.

VOD - Video on Demand (Amazon)

Links:
Multi region Blu-ray dvd player N. America, Europe, Asia, ...
Blu-ray Community and Forums @ blu-ray.com
CNet
Blu-ray players/recorders - Product Reviews | ZDNet
Top 10 Blu-ray Players @ BluRay-Player.net
Consumer Reports (requires login)
consumer Research
Blu-ray Player Reviews @ HomeTheater.com Amazon
Review Round Up: $250 3D Blu-ray Players | Sound and Vision Magazine
Block Diagram (SBD) - Blu-ray Player and Home Theater Design - TI.com
Streaming Internet Audio/Video - Internet TV


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last updated 1 Jan 2011