Blu Ray player

[Will]

Haven't been paid for a bit, and have some cheques coming my way next week.

I have been planning to purchase one in the sales, anybody got any recommendations?
What should I be looking for in one? I can't be arsed to spend loads, but something that wouldn't get outdated too quickly.
Also, whats the best way to connect them? HDMI?

[Spitfire]

im not sure if its still the case, but a ps3 was the best value Blueray player about for quite a long time.  yea hdmi is the best way

[Jonny]

To be quite honest, I wouldn't go for the PS3 for the blu-ray player. Why do you want a blu ray player? What's wrong with DVD? Or do you have a widescreen and want full leisure usage of it?

Unless you have a big widescreen, blu-ray/PS3 isn't worth it.

[Will]

Well I need a DVD player basically, but why spend £30 now when it will be better to upgrade in a year?
May as well spend the extra now. And yeah, would like to make use of the HD-ness since my TV has it

[Denim n Leather]

Prices have dropped sharply on Blu-ray players. The PS3 is not the least expensive option, though it's still the best choice if you want a full server/gaming/Blu-ray/interweb solution.

Blu-ray is really stunning on a 1080p display that's been properly set up.

[_tom_]

I'm not an expert but I'd go for a PS3 just because its so much more versatile than a standalone player and I've heard the blu-ray player and upscaling on it is good as well. Plus Little Big Planet looks awesome.  I'm considering getting one when the prices go down, just for that game really :lol:

[Tellboy]

If you're not interested in the gaming side then the Sony BDP-S350 is great. I got mine from Amazon - it was on offer for £154.99 but now appears to be listed at £174.99. Should be some good sale prices in the next few weeks.

[Will]

That looks like a good one, I was also looking at TSRTS to buy :P

Ben, what do you mean 'if set up properly', I understand literally, but what would I be doing that is hindering its full capability? (your about to suggest a crazy sound system?)

Thanks for the help, I don't really want a PS3 because for the price of it, I won't use the games, I don't really care for them.

[Denim n Leather]

Ben, what do you mean 'if set up properly' but what would I be doing that is hindering its full capability? (your about to suggest a crazy sound system?)

Nah, not at all. What I meant is that you would want to make sure that the video of your display is calibrated correctly. Without a colour analyzer this cannot be done 100%, but you can greatly improve the quality of your video by making sure that the colour, tint, brightness, sharpness, etc aren't crushing any part of the colour spectrum, nor distorting the image.

There's a great setup DVD called the Avia Guide To Home Theater that walks you step by step through this process and is perfect for the casual viewer.

In fact, many of the test patterns that you need are on most THX DVD releases under the menu option THX Optimizer, but without the know-how (and the proper colour filters that come with a setup DVD like Avia) the patterns are useless.

To take it one step beyond would be to have someone (like myself) do an ISF calibration on your display. That will involve making sure that the grey balance is correct first. (Essentially means that you are ensuring that the display is putting out the proper ratio of red:green:blue). This often means going into the service menu for your display.

The really gung-ho method is to get your own colour analyzer from Sencore and a copy of Digital Video Essentials and doing the ISF calibration yourself.

[mikeluke]

I got the Sony at £159 on Amazon just before Xmas - came with 3 free discs and another 2 free on registration - excellent buy! Mind you I did lash out on a TV too.... Blockbuster were also doing a good deal with some discs and free rentals bundled in

[jibidy]

Ive heard that if blueray doesnt doesnt start making more money, then manufacturers are going to start investing in upscaling or a new format....does this sound like bullshiff?

[Denim n Leather]

Ive heard that if blueray doesnt doesnt start making more money, then manufacturers are going to start investing in upscaling or a new format....does this sound like bullshiff?

Yes.

Blu-ray is the stop-gap until two things happen: our notion of 'bandwidth' is eliminated, and usable storage in the multi-TB range becomes common. Then all mechanical sales will be done away with and you will be downloading everything.

[ailean]

Ive heard that if blueray doesnt doesnt start making more money, then manufacturers are going to start investing in upscaling or a new format....does this sound like bullshiff?

If it doesn't make money then SOMETHING will happen. The problem with bluray is that (as good as it is) it's not THAT big an upgrade from DVD, it's not a must have, it's a nice to have, where the VHS to DVD became a must have. Investing in a new format will only work if they can come up with a must have, and that's unlikely as not everyone can view HD yet, let alone another format. I'm lucky enough to have a HD tv and a PS3. I own 2 bluray (non game) shows, 1 which came free with the PS3, the other I bought. If I want to buy a film or TV show I'll buy the DVD because it's a 1/3 of the price and the picture quality is still pretty good. I suspect they might well start investing a a really good upscaler for regular DVD's, I also own an Xbox 360 and the upscaling on that is pretty good (colour isn't great though) and that's just a tacked on feature to a games console (I have the early version with the hardware upscaler).

One trick they might pull is to stop releasing DVD's and sell only on bluray, but the DVD domiance is too big for that at the moment.

[phlip]

Just to add to what is said above the Sony 350 is a very good player for the price it is also a VERY VERY Good DVD player with very good de-interlacing and upscaling (It can also be made multi regions for SD dvd very easily).

I admit I'm in the minority of having very good eyesight but even on a HD ready 32" screen the difference between DVD and BluRay is very clear to see. OK it's not the jump between VHS and DVD but it's a good upgrade. Along with the extra resolution something overlooked is the extra colour depth on HD which makes a big difference.
RE film prices as long as you buy online and maybe pre order then the prices aren't that bad EG my BluRay of The Dark Knight was 2 quid more than the DVD on release and well worth the extra, the IMAX full screen scenes are so 3d looking you feel you could fall into the TV.

The Other benefit of Bluray is the films are not longer sped up by 4% to fit into the PAL standard, this really used to bug the hell out of me it doesn't bother some people but it drove me nuts...

I think this image shows nicely the difference between upscaling and HD (Upscaled with a Oppo player which is regarded as top notch when it comes to upscaling)



RE Screen calibration buy WallE (Great looking film) and use the BlurRay optimizer on the disk to set up your TV

[indysmith]

I'm sick of people telling us that Blu-Ray isn't worth it, or that it's a pretty indistinguishable difference.
The difference is HUGE. MASSIVE. ENORMOUS. Anyone who says otherwise needs new glasses or a television made this century![/rant]