Blu Ray Disc Players

With the ever growing popularity and eternal competition among Blu-ray players, manufacturers constantly strive to launch products that is at par, if not exceed consumer satisfaction. Samsung recently unveiled its next level of Blu-ray player that features Samsung Internet@TV combined with hi-def video. With their proven track record and efficiency in dealing with the future of digital media, the player sports internet connectivity that is brought directly to the TV sets. The Samsung BD-C6500 is one among the four players that has been lined up for 2010. Replacing the veteran BD-P3600, Samsung has come out with a host of features along, which includes converting DVDs to a whopping 1080p resolution.

Design:

Looks-wise Samsung has lavishly paid attention on this BD-C6500 Blu-ray Disc player with its sleek design (compared to a sharp and sleek samurai’s sword) and glossy jet black finish. Measuring 1.7 x 16.9 x 8.8 inch (HWD) the jet black cabinet sports a faux brushed metallic front panel. A mirrored display panel in the middle displays the Wi-Fi status, disc status and playing time using bright big LEDs. There are no protruding buttons that consumers would have to worry about that may spoil the looks of this sleek player. Furthermore, the disc tray is also barely noticeable as it is well covered smartly, behind some trim, that you will have to press the eject button to know the tray’s location.

Controls/Slots:

A drop down panel on the left reveals the disc drive with the front side consisting of touch sensitive Power, Play/Pause, Stop and Open/Close buttons, but then Samsung missed out on the equally important fast forward/reverse controls here. On the far right corner tucked away behind a rubber port cover there is a USB port sited near the power button. It illuminates a power light by switching the device ON that helps with easy access, even across a dark room. The rear side sports an assortment of A/V connections along with the video outputs to include HDMI component and composite ports. Other than the optical digital audio output/stereo analog jacks, there are 8 analog outputs offered enabling to connect to a 7.1 surround system – something that is highly appreciated by users of legacy A/V receivers and a noteworthy feature in this price range.

Ports and Connectivity:

Connectivity to external media includes Ethernet port, HDMI output, a full set of 7.1-channel analog outputs, component and composite video outs and digital/optical audio output. All of these in combination with a 1GB in-built internal memory which come in handy with accessing the interactive features of BD-Live. For those of you requiring more space try plugging in a thumb drive in the device’s USB port. The Samsung BD-C6500 Blu Ray player also has playback full hi-def 1080p video together with Dolby Digital sound with the same being output via 7.1 analog audio, S-Video, HDMI and Optical. It is also provided with a built-in Wi-Fi adapter giving users the convenience to connect it to their wireless network at home. For those wishing to have it connected directly to their network there is a Cat-5 cable provided by Samsung (a noteworthy feature of BD-C6500) called Wi-Fi Ready – meaning provision of a USB port that enables a Wi-Fi adapter to be plugged in.  Needless to say, this has to be purchased separately for it to be connected wirelessly.

The All New Remote:

The 8.5-inch long matte black remote with a tinge of glossy black trim has around 42 relatively large and evenly spaced out rubberised buttons. If you are the kind of person who that enjoys watching movies with lights turned off, you will fancy the translucent white main player controls that glows in the dark as against being backlit. A four-way rocker switch helps with navigation of the varied on-screen menus along with a prominent channel and volume control button at the base of the remote.

User Interface:

The Samsung BD-C6500’s user interface is relatively simple. The main menu choices that include internet @TV (Web apps), Photo, Movie, Music and Settings are identified using bright icons. The Settings menu helps with tuning the resolution and aspect ratio, configuration of wired and wireless settings, calibrating surround sound speaker levels, assigning parental controls and updating the firmware. It also gives you a choice of five skins, if you are looking at sparking up the menu background. A general setup wizard guide walks you through the basic screen settings if you are lethargic to go through the user guide that gets you up and running. Connecting to apps like Netflix and Pandora is made both quick and easy by the interface that allows searching and navigating the same. Watching videos is made easy by this BD-C6500 Blu-ray DVD player by connecting to YouTube via the 1.5M connection. A host of additional features have been included by the company to the existing Samsung Apps. While a few of them are already available on the player, the company promises to include a few more in the future. There is this glitch of a slight delay post navigation of Internet@TV with a few seconds wait for the next screen to show up, but this is just a minor quibble once you get the hang of it.

Features:

Connectivity and Streaming Media:

The inclusion of 7.1 analogue outputs places the BD-C6500’s connectivity a step above most competing players. Dolby true HD and DTS HD master audio at their true resolution is therefore available even for those with the older non HDMI receivers. However for an AV receiver, it has to be mentioned that the BD 6500 offers only optical output and not coaxial, though most receivers today should be compatible with the same. Ethernet connectivity exists in addition to the USB options though with one less USB port than the C5500.

Streaming Media:

Modeled after the iPhone App Store, the streaming media services present you with a different approach with Samsung, compared to its competitors. The streaming media services are excellent with support for netflix (subscription based) or Vudu (pay per view) or music from Pandora. DLNA compliance for the C6500 ensures that you can play audio, video or photo files from a networked PC or USB drive. Decoding is an on-board feature for both high resolution Dolby and DTS formats.

Gaming:

The approach to the applications, as mentioned above, goes true for games as well and that means you can add to the existing Kurakku, Texas Hold ‘Em, Sudoku, Drakula’s coffin and Rock Swap adventures.

Performance:

Quicker Boot Time:

The BD-C6500 Blu Ray Player from Samsung boasts of a rapid 15-second boot time with the setup being relatively easy and smooth along with a breezy firmware update. While the player is most favored for its online streaming features and other services, the forte is its playback feature and loading time especially with loading Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of The Black Pearl a Java heavy disc notorious for slow booting.

The all new GUI is a definite improvement in comparison the existing models with enhanced pictorial approach. Though initially it might be a bit tricky, you will get the hang of it after having navigated through the menus after a couple of tries. The player is seen to average a 15-second boot time in loading Blu-ray discs – something that is categorised as the fastest along with players like Sony BDP-S570. It would be worth mentioning that this is a 22-second improvement from Samsung BD-P1600 launched last year. The playback performance is top-notch. A good example of this being scenes from Mission Impossible II and The Dark Knight that were crisp and free of background noise and jaggies. The player’s capability of handling HD HQV benchmark was without incidence acing the video and film resolution, diagonal jaggies tests and noise reduction.

Finally with respect to streaming movies online the BD-C6500 does not seem to have issues with Netflix and Vudu; however, while using Netflix there seemed to be loss of account information a couple of days later that required re-activation. Guess Samsung needs to work on this or at least come up with a fix for it in their next firmware update. Vudu and Pandora works like charm and so did HDX and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio.

Picture quality:

Having discussed all of the above, when it comes to the question of picture – it is nothing short of top-notch quality with incredible sound to match. Images are crisp, clear and free of distortion with the black levels being impressive as well. One thing that adds to the deep blacks is the vibrant hues that make viewing experience blissful for consumers. On viewing the Star Trek Blu-ray disc, one would witness sharp and crystal clear picture with details in abundance. Even with trace of minor grains in dark space scenes all near-black nuances were revealed clearly even while maintaining brilliant contrast. Scenes like the steps of Starfleet Academy along with the vibrant hues of red uniforms, blue skies and green grass are a treat to the eyes in the background of dynamic sound of lossless 5.1 Dolby TrueHD audio track. You will feel the bass with torpedoes smashing the targets and starships taking off into wrap speed.

Up conversion:

DVD upconversion can be categorised as good though not outstanding due to mild background noise but without much of moiré, exaggerated smoothing or jaggies.

Speed:

Though the BD-C6500 HD Blu Ray Player is considered a player that is feature-packed the operational speed comes in as a disappointment. It is in the lowest tier among the players tested this year, even relatively behind the Vizio VBR200W. It would not be the first choice when it comes to speedy playback despite being the best priced player. It is a bit sluggish in comparison to the BD-C6900 which is one of  the fastest players being tested this year. The upside is that, the BD-C6500 works fairly rapid with the player being already turned on and on watching movies with basic menus. For eg: Mission Impossible: III loads in a rapid 11.74 seconds with the player being on and with it being off, the boot time spiked to 32.01 seconds. The BD-C6500 also seemed to plod on playing movies with more complicated menus like Spider-Man 3 and with chapter skip test that pinpoints its general operational sluggishness. So, the bottom-line being while the player still beats the PS3 Slim, it is comparatively a little behind the Vizio VBR200W.

Sound:

Sound is one feature where the BD-C6500 lacks ardor. Samsung tends to sound too hard and bright in comparison to other players that are felt to be more accomplished when it comes to sound quality.  A good example would be the chase sequence where Harry Potter and Ron Weasley confiscate a flying ford Anglia chasing the Hogwart’s train – the lively effects sound too boisterous and belligerent. Despite spinning the CD, these traits still seem to persist along with stressing the device’s lack of rhythm. There also seems to be some reticence in Samsung’s timing with a subsequent lack of connection with the viewer in the Florence and the Machine’s You’ve Got The Love show.

Power Consumption:

With today’s Blu-ray players being really effective in terms of energy consumption the BD-C6500 Built-in WiFi Blu Ray Player scores an ace in this regard, as it consumes on an average around 13 watts upon playing a Blu-ray disc. This works out to roughly 17 cents of operating cost monthly (assuming a 5-hour daily use). This is relatively less in comparison to Samsung’s last year release Model #BD-P1600 that consumed double the amount.

Warranty:

The Samsung BD-C6500 3D Blu-ray player comes with a standard parts and labour warranty for 12 months.

Verdict:

Compatibility, connectivity and image quality are great positives for the Samsung BD-C6500 Blu ray player. Considered a good catch for the price, the Samsung player also presents itself with a great design as well.
On the flip side, the operational speed has been found wanting in comparison with ‘peer’ products and a history that needs improvement. The summary however remains that high quality Blu Ray is now available at an affordable price with the Samsung BD-C6500 and it sure is not a compromise otherwise as well.

Samsung BD-C6500 Blu-Ray Player – Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Samsung
Model Name	Samsung BD-C6500
Model Number	BD-C6500
Product Type	Blu-Ray player
Form Factor	Table top
Dimensions H x W x D	4.3 cm x 43.3 cm x 22.3 cm
Weight	1.7 kg
Colour	Black
BD Profile	2.0
Media Type	3D Blu Ray
Video Decoding Format	MPEG2, H.264, VC-1, AVCHD, DivX HD, MKV, MP4, WMV9, and HD JPEG
Video Output Resolution	1920 x 1080 P, 1920 x 1080 I, 1280 x 720 P, 720 x 480 P (720x 576 P), 720x 480 I (720x 576 I)
Video Scaling	DVD Upconversion
Audio Decoding Format	Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD, DTS, DTS HD High Resolution Audio, DTS-HD Master Audio, LPCM, MP3 and WMA
Playback Media	Blu-ray Video, BD-R/RE, DVD-Video, DVD/ DVD±R/ DVD±RW, Audio CD, CD/ CD-R/ CD-RW and USB Storage
Features	BD-JAVA, BD Local Storage, BD BONUSVIEW, Full Screen, Internet@TV  and All Share
Warranty	One year

Onkyo, which means “Sound Harmony” is a Japanese consumer electronics manufacturer, specialising in Home Cinema and Audio Equipment. Though not as famous as Sony or LG or Panasonic, Onkyo has its own loyal set of consumers for their exceptional quality and consumer service. Today, we review, Onkyo’s 600 pounds BD-SP807 Blu Ray Player.

In an era where you can get a decent Blu ray player for 100 pounds, you might ask us, why would anyone want to pay so much for a player from a not very popular brand like Onkyo? Well, the answer lies completely on the quality of Onkyo’s machine. The player promises outstanding video and audio quality; you must also keep in mind that the other major brands charge a good deal more when it comes to their high end players. So, let us see if the BD-SP807 Blu Ray Disc Player proves to be the high end equipment at a mid range price as Onkyo advertises.

Design:

Bulky but attractive:

If you are one of those who feel that you are getting more for your money when you buy chunky AV equipment, then this one is for you. Though the BD-SP807 looks quite bulky, it has an adorable appearance. It weighs a hefty 5kg due to the reinforced chassis construction designed to minimise vibrations. Its funky disc tray possesses a cool shape and the overall look of the player is classy. Its robust bodywork is topped off by an elegant, brushed black aluminium fascia that gracefully curls forward at the bottom. Buttons are minimal, while the display is large and easy to read. Some might ask if any of the just mentioned facts matter? not exactly, but when you are paying a premium price of 600 pounds, you might expect the device to possess some kind of visual impact and, without any reservations, we would say that the Onkyo BD-SP807 does have it.

Wise construction:

Despite the reservation in size, Onkyo has made some sensible decisions with the BD-SP807. One of those wise decisions being, mounting the Blu Ray drive in the centre of the machine, which is supposed to drive away the vibrations and even avoid any of the unwanted distortion that tends to creep into the machine’s digital signal. Though there have not been any noticeable issues with signal noise in any of the previous Blu Ray players, we must mention that the BD-SP807 has an exceptional built quality with high quality components.

Remote Control:

As with most of the other Blu Ray players we had reviewed recently, the BD-SP807 too sports a remote control with all the visual appeal for Miss Ugly universe. It is bulky, unsightly, flimsy and non-descript, and does not look as if it belongs to a player that costs about £600. It also bears a striking similarity to the equally detestable remote controls that Toshiba supplies with its Blu-ray players. Onkyo and Toshiba have always enjoyed a close relationship, and we cannot help but wonder if parts of this player are Toshiba inspired.

Connectivity:

The BD-SP807 offers plenty of outputs to keep the fans of connectivity happy. There is the 7.1 analogue audio outputs, which is for connecting the player to receivers that are not capable of dealing with HDMI audio or lossless codecs. Of course, the HDMI v1.3a output will do most of the donkey work, such as piping HD audio bitstreams to your receiver or passing on 1080p/24Hz pictures to your TV. It also sports gold plated terminals, both, component and composite video outputs and coaxial and optical digital outputs. Most consumers will be satisfies with these connectivity, and for those who are not, we think there are not many more options that Onkyo could have thrown in.

Interface:

The BD-SP807 Blu Ray DVD Player sports a breezy onscreen set up, with a main menu that has been split into Quick and Custom menus. There is a generic blue splash-screen and a setup menu reminiscent of the one found on Denon and Marantz players.  Options for optimising the audio output and tweaking the all-important HDMI settings are easy to find and react swiftly to remote commands. A separate menu can be accessed during playback by depressing the Mode button. Hit the mode button on the remote and a banner at the top of the screen provides four memory presets, and for each one you can set the levels of colour, contrast, brightness, sharpness and gamma correction as the movie plays and stores the results in five memory positions. This is very handy for making presets that account for different viewing conditions or the demands of various displays.

Features:

On the Onkyo BD-SP807, you will get all the core features you can expect from a player whose major purpose is movie playback. For instance, the1080/24p output is present as is DVD upscaling to 1080p, courtesy of Anchor Bay’s superb ABT1030 chip, nothing less. The Source Direct mode outputs video without any tampering, plus the deck can also fire HD audio bitstreams to your amp via HDMI and even decode and output them from the 7.1channel analogue outputs.  There is also a 297MHz/12-bit NSV digital-to-analogue converter (ADV7340) and 192kHz/24-bit audio DACs for all channels.

THX Certification:

Although we are used to seeing the THX logo emblazoned on the front of AV receivers and speaker systems, its appearance on a Blu-ray player is a lot more unusual.  The Onkyo BD-SP807 is one of the first Blu-ray players bestowed with the THX badge. The THX certification of BD-SP807 assures High-quality playback of movies. Their tests ensure that the player’s deinterlacing, upscaling, colour accuracy, contrast and black and white reproduction are all up to scratch, and to our eyes it does a fantastic job in each of these areas. The player has left the edge cutting to the bigger boys and focused on offering pin sharp pictures and scintillating audio.
In order to get the best out of the BD-SP807, you might have to calibrate your TV with a THX demo disc, or, for even better results, the player has to be connected to a THX-certified TV. In that way, you will be able to watch movies as the director intended you to. Some might not trust if a good equipment will make any difference with the impact of the film, trust us, when it comes to movies, watching it on a perfectly calibrated equipment makes a world of difference.

Hits and Misses:

The Onkyo BD-SP807 is a Profile 2.0 player, and as such can access BD Live web content through its Ethernet port. Onkyo’s strong desire to offer the best possible picture and sound quality leaves no room for the sort of Wi-Fi wizardry and PC streaming found on the latest players from Panasonic, LG and Sony. Low end manufacturers such as Onkyo do not have the kind of resources in order to in features such as these, you we hope you also agree to the fact that you get a great deal for your money than what the other bigger brands offer.

Memory woes:

The Onkyo BD-SP807 Blu Ray Player does have a range of interactive features, but it must also have some decent storage space for you to play around with it and hold files in. While some Blu Ray players manage with the Built-in storage, some other cheeky ones like the Onkyo BD-SP807 have an SD card slot into which you can slip in your own SD card if you wish to make some real use of the available BD Live features.

This kind of an omission can be forgiven in a budget player, but on a 600 pound player, it will get both you and us really cross. Onkyo says that the inclusion of built-in memory will place constraints on its performance. On the positive side though, you can even use it to play AVCHD, MP3 and JPEG files. However, the BD Live feature still remains to be a piece of crap, so, feel free to ignore it. An additional bonus will be, the player can play DivX HD from discs.

Slow disc load:

The Onkyo BD-SP807 has a load time of just under two minutes. Since there are discs that load under 40 seconds, anything over a minute is slow. Hence, the BD-SP807 cannot be said to have a respectable load time. If you feel that speed is mandatory, this might prove to be a deal breaker and you are on search for LG or Samsung player. However, as we had mentioned earlier, once the disc loads and gets going, the menus work speed and slick.

Performance:

Video Performance:

Moving on to the business end of the product, we found that the BD-SP807 managed to exhibit fantastic picture quality. The movie was a feast for our eyes, and the scenes, that involved some black and white mockery, were nothing short of brilliant. The deliberate grain in such circumstances looked quite natural. The picture was neither excessively corrected nor left to go wild and unwatchable.

Audio Performance:

Here is where the Onkyo really distinguishes itself from the budget pack.  On the very basic terms, the stereo downmix is appreciable, with a good deal of detail to make speech clean and clear to hear. The use of high-quality audio components and that sturdy, vibration-free bodywork result in remarkably sweet, detailed music playback and more importantly, breathtaking reproduction of HD movie soundtracks through the multi-channel analogue outputs.

You will be able to witness great deal of enhancements if you connect the BD-SP807, through HDMI, to AV receiver and speakers that are decent. Once that is done, you will be able to hear lossless soundtracks as the maker wanted, and, depending on the set-up of your speaker, you are likely to get detail you had not even noticed at the cinemas. It is well worth investing in your sound system, because, without a decent set-up, you are at risk of missing half of what makes this Blu-ray a great one.

Warranty:

Onkyo offers its BD-SP807 one year warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

The Onkyo BD-SP807 is a very likable Blu Ray player. Anyone looking for a beautifully made player that offers excellent picture and sound quality will consider the BD-SP807 money well spent, despite its relatively lofty price tag. When paired up with a decent amp and a good quality TV, you are in for a real treat. You must also that it has a wealth of high-quality video and audio outputs. That said, we are quite annoyed that the player does not have a quick load time. We also think that, given the machine’s price, Onkyo should have jolly well included some built-in storage. As far as performance is concerned, it is one of the best around. We give it a heartily recommendation.

Onkyo BD-SP807 Blu Ray Player – Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Onkyo
Model Name	Onkyo BD-SP807
Product Type	Blu Ray Player
Form Factor	Bulky
Dimensions W x H x D	435 x 108 x 312 mm
Weight	5 kg
Colour	Black and silver
BD Profile	2.0
Compatibility	BD-Video, BD-ROM (ver. 2.0), BD-R (ver. 1.1/1.2/1.3), BD-RE (ver. 2.1), DVD-Video, DVD-ROM/R/RW, Audio CD, CD-R/RW, DTS-CD, MP3 CD, WMA CD
Playable media	MP3, WMA, JPEG, CD-R, CD-RW, DivX, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R, DVD-RW, Blu-Ray
Upscaling	All Standard-Definition DVD Sources to 1080p (1080i, 720p, and 480p/576p) with Marvell Qdeo™ Video-Processing Chip
Picture features	HDMI 1.3a Output to Support 1080p, Deep Color, x.v.Color, and CEC
Disc playback	Fast Forward, Fast Reverse, Slow Forward, Step by Step, Repeat (Chapter/Title/Track/Group/All), A-B Repeat, Program, Random, Rapid, Angle
On-board decoding	Yes
Built-in decoders	Dolby Digital; DTS; Dolby TrueHD
Speaker outputs	7.1 analogue RCA jacks
Digital audio format	Dolby Digital; DTS; Dolby TrueHD; DTS-HD Master Audio Essential
THX® Certified	Yes
BD Live	Yes
Menu flexibility	Preset Video Adjustments for Contrast, Brightness, Sharpness, Gamma Correction, ICR (Red/Blue/Green), Color, Hue, Black Level, Noise Reduction, MPEG NR, Edge Enhancer, Qdeo True Color, Progressive Mode
Features	Gold-Plated Audio and Video Outputs On-Screen Display for Settings and Playback Source Direct Display Dimmer (Auto/Bright/Dimmer) RS232 Port IR Input and Output Aluminum Front Panel Remote Control
Connectivity	Coaxial audio, Component video, HDMI, Optical audio
Warranty	One year

The giant consumer goods manufacturer Panasonic is a dominating presence in the market of Blu-ray players. It has always believed in the blu-ray format from the very beginning and has done a great deal to improvise its machines with every new generation. For most part of 2009, Panasonic’s Blu-ray players had to play second fiddle to the Sony Blu Ray Disc Players that offered excellent performance at extremely competitive costs. The Blu-ray player market has been awash with £99 products since the last festive season, but Panasonic has been trying up the ante for some time now. The models in its latest 2010 range are smaller than its predecessors and use lesser power and can play anything and everything you throw at them. However, on the shop shelves, the DMP-BD65 costs around £270; this means that it is a fairly expensive mid range Blu-ray player. For this kind of price tag, it has got all the basics covered for you and it does not starve on a few perks too. Read on to take a magnified look at the player and find out if it is worth your money.

Design:

On a diet:

When the Blu-ray players were launched a few years back, the Blu-ray players were really giant, with twice the height of a DVD player and quite deeper too. The great news is that, Panasonic has started to reduce the dimensions of its players, and now, they are about the same size as a DVD player. It is a little sedate but handsome nonetheless. With its corporate commitment to improve the environment, Panasonic has reduced the depth of the DMP-BD65 Blu-Ray Player by 18%, resulting in a 15% reduction in the carton’s volume. It is only 7.8 inches deep which makes placement easy in smaller spaces. This is very good news for your wallets and earth, as smaller machines mean lower shipping costs and lower CO2 emissions from moving them around the world.

The Remote Control:

Panasonic has kept its remote control designs fairly small too, but this does not come at the expense of usability. The button controls on the remote that comes with the DMP-BD65  Blu Ray Disc Player are large enough for anyone to prod without accidentally depressing the adjacent keys. The navigation pad is also quite easy to use, and perfect for finding your way around the player’s menus, and those in a Blu-ray movie. One of the smaller buttons called drive select gives access to either a USB stick or SD card.

Connectivity:

The back panel is a simple affair with basic connectivity. Since the DMP-BD65 sit right in the centre of Panasonic’s range, it is not equipped with analogue 7.1 audio outputs; but there is nothing to worry about as that is just about the only omission on this player. The Profile version 2.0 functionality is available and you guessed it right, there is also an Ethernet socket on the rear of the machine to enable it. As you might expect from a decent Blu-ray player, HDMI is also available to get out those beautiful 1080p images from the disc to your TV. If you wish for lossless audio, you might need to use an external AV receiver to accept and decode the DTS-HD MA and Dolby TrueHD signals. If you are one of those consumers who need composite outputs, you are in some real luck, as the DMP-BD65 sports a set. We cannot really understand why anyone would buy a Blu-ray player and then use it with standard-definition connections, but we assume people might use, or they may not be included.

Slots:

Below the disc tray is a thin flap that conceals an SD card slot and USB port. You can view your digital photos and high definition videos shot on AVCHD format stored on the SD cards. Video files in the AVCHD format, which Panasonic cameras and camcorders record in, can be played back from either of these sockets. The SD slot supports SDHC cards from 4GB to 32GB and it is able to take the next generation of SDXC memory cards that promise to eventually reach a staggering 2TB in size. The SD card slot also plays some digital media files. The USB port offers a way of playing MP3 music directly and viewing your digital photos. The DMP-BD65 offers DivX support, but please do not expect the Hi-definition quality, because this functionality is SD capable only. This is a shame, but is not a massive surprise.

Installation of DMP-BD65:

Setting up the Panasonic DMP-BD65 Blu Ray Player is quite simple and will not take more than half an hour even for a novice user. The on-screen instructions are very easy to follow and the set up can be set to easy mode which makes it a breeze. You can even opt to go to the main menu at any time for more detailed adjustments on audio and video output. Setting up of the network connection is also easily done through the nice on-screen menu. Panasonic’s software dedicated to digital media is improving, though its basic blue/yellow/white interface now seems a tad old fashioned. Once connected, Panasonic’s VIERA CAST service works as a portal. Oddly, the Viera Cast interface now includes a central icon for Blu-ray, presumably to mask the lack of actual extra content, but if you select the icon with the remote, it simply takes you to a screensaver, and does not automatically play the disc, as we had hoped for.

Features:

Like most Panasonic products, the DMP-BD65 is a solid machine. It does not have as many features as some rivals, especially with the LG and Samsung machines, which have a seemingly endless supply of bells and whistles, but it will put an excellent quality image on your TV, and a smile on your face. There is a rather fussy approach to both BD Live and Wi-Fi networking. Despite it earning Profile 2.0 status, the DMP-BD65 requires a SD card to be inserted that is at least 1GB in size to store BD-Live downloads. This situation is nothing new, but Blu-ray players should have moved on from this by now to include some built-in storage; a single gigabyte would do the job.

Image Processing:

The Panasonic DMP-BD65 employs the PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus image processing. This is a feature that is developed in collaboration with Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory; this high image processing technology reproduces clear and vibrant colours that are faithful to the original film. It also possesses Adaptive Chroma Upsampling, which is all about making colour as detailed and nuanced as possible, which is a critical skill with Blu-ray.

Dialogue enhancement:

One of the features we would really love about the DMP-BD65 Blu Ray Disc/DVD Player is its ability to enhance movie dialogue, which is especially handy if you are listening to a movie through the speakers of your TV. Giving the soundtrack’s dialogue channel a boost will not be really required on a 5.1or 7.1channel home cinema system, but it is essential for the plain old stereo TVs.

Upgrades:

The BD65 will upgrade your collection of DVDs to 1080p and it also provides 1080/24p output, reproducing cinema images from a Blu-ray disc in their original 24p form with no need for any kind of conversion. This allows you to enjoy movie like images in the same format used in cinema if you have a 1080/24p compatible TV or projector.

VIERA CAST:

We really like the idea of streaming video to your Blu-ray player, and Panasonic’s Viera Cast service offers a ‘walled garden’ approach to doing so on the DMP-BD65. Content is king and Viera Cast has not progressed at all in the last 12 months since we reviewed the first batch of Viera Cast-endowed Blu-ray players. Not that we want to see an online portal as streamlined as this crammed with icons and apps for the sake of it, but Panasonic had promised so much. Essentially, the DMP-BD65 has a portal that gives you access to a limited number of sites, including YouTube, Picasa, Bloomberg and a Weather Channel. Twitter and Fox Sports have been added to the VIERA CAST functionality, providing you with two premium movie sites, a music service and a sports site to enhance the entertainment quotient. On-demand films would be welcome; in the States it is possible to stream content from Netflix and Amazon VOD on this very machine.

Since it also comes with a USB port and a SD Memory card slot making it easy for you to view and share both digital photos and high definition video. Typing in the name of the YouTube video you want to watch is rather tricky, but, since the DMP-BD65 supports user sign-in, as always, your favourite videos will be available for you to watch. Blowing a video up to full-screen size will not be an issue, and most clips are watchable in this mode – going full screen is not recommended if you have a TV over 26” in size. Naturally, the final image quality depends on the clip you are watching.

It is also worth noting that, if wired Internet access is not available to you, then you can also opt to purchase an optional Wi-Fi dongle to access the Viera Cast services and Blu-ray online content. Though this seems to be a handy solution, we would rather prefer to see built-in Wi-Fi, especially at this price range. In previous models, Panasonic deliberately held back Wi-Fi connectivity as an option because the quality and reliability available for hi-def streaming was not very stable. But this is no longer the case with Panasonic’s new 802.11a/b/g/n wireless USB Wi-Fi Adapter. And according to Panasonic, only their adapter will work on the player.

It is interesting to note that the DMP-BD65 is DLNA compliant, which means it will play nice with other similarly compliant devices over your home network.

Audio:

On the audio front, the BD65 comes with a high definition audio decoder capable of decoding the latest formats like Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. As we mentioned earlier, complimenting the HD audio codecs, the BD65 comes with 96kHz surround re-master, a function that enhances the sound quality of CDs, and even improves the quality of the multi-channel audio data on Blu-ray discs and DVDs.

Performance:

Speedy:

We will come on to the DMP-BD65′s silky pictures in a moment, but it is worth first considering the sheer speed of its loading of Blu-ray discs. Unlike most Blu-ray players, the DMP-BD65 loads discs at a decent speed, so you will not have to wait around for very long before the movie springs into life on your TV set. The marketing focus for Panasonic in their new players is the half-second boot time. Without a doubt, Panasonic has made great strides. With the new ‘quick start’ feature it saves about 6 to 8 seconds off the booting of most discs. This brings the BD65 into Oppo BDP-83’s speed class. With ‘quick start’ enabled the BD65 loads notoriously slow-loading discs with Java heavy features, loads in 22seconds. Do note that with the quick start feature enabled there is an additional 7 Watts of power consumption.

Image quality:

Following the footsteps of the excellent BD60, the new BD65 oozes quality in picture and sound. The image quality of Panasonic DMP-BD65′s image quality is simply superb. The test discs looked as perfect as we had anticipated. We could not see any problems with the colours, and the good news is that the player was not artificially sharpening the picture. The rich contrast and ink-like blacks give the image a vibrant character. Shadow delineation is well defined, with even the darkest blacks still revealing small, subtle details and fine textures. Flesh tones are accurate and natural, and the rich colours free from any noise. Drop down to DVD and the Panasonic shows similar strengths, although again the very best rivals pip it for precision. Motion handling is good by usual budget standards, but it is certainly not flawless.

Navigation around the disc menus is quite a snappy experience. Press the directional control button and you can expect things to change as you expected quickly. Machines of old took their sweet time with this sort of thing, so the DMP-BD65 is a breath of fresh air. As with the rest of the machine, the Viera Cast functionality is snappy, and we did not experience any long waits while pages loaded. There were some connection complaints at times, but the overall functionality is just fine.

Sound Quality:

Sonically, the BD65 opts for an open, airy presentation with strong dynamics and a decent amount of weight to low frequencies. Spin Beyoncé’s Single Ladies and there is just ample punch and drive, although timing can be bettered by its competitors. The excellent balance of music and effects delivers a 360 degree sound field that really is just about as close to perfection as you’re likely to get outside of a state of the art cinema.

Power Efficiency:

The BD65 has been designed to reduce power consumption in line with the company’s ‘go green’ objective. The Power Save Mode function automatically turns the player off when you return to TV operation using the VIERA Link menu.

Warranty:

Panasonic offers its DMP-BD65 Blu-ray Player one year warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

The Panasonic DMP-BD65 is one of the likable Blu ray players and the manufacturer has yet again come out with a player that delivers in performance and value for money. It is a solidly built machine and it has promising high quality images with enhanced networking functions, including VIERA CAST’s improved and expanded Internet functionality with wireless LAN capability. You get a host of features including BD Live, a USB port and Video On Demand services such as Netflix and YouTube. Its picture and sound quality are great, it has been well designed, and is quite swift too. If YouTube access appeals to you, then the DMP-BD65 offers another good reason to select it over the other rivals. Having said that, you can also take the cheaper LG BD370 in to consideration, as it offers YouTube access and manages to play back high-definition video in the MKV format too. Overall, the Panasonic DMP-BD65 Blu-ray player is a terrific piece of kit and you will simply adore it.

Panasonic DMP-BD65 Blu-Ray Player – Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Panasonic
Model Name	DMP-BD65k
Product Type	Table top, Blu-ray disc player
Dimensions (H x W x D)	49 x 430 x 207 mm
Colour/Finish	Black
Weight	1.9 kg
Compatible media formats	CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD, CD, DVD+R DL, BD-R, BD-RE, BD-ROM, DVD-R DL
Video DAC	12bit / 148.5MHz
Audio DAC	24bit / 192kHz
Memory card compatible video formats	AVCHD, JPEG (HD), MPEG-2
Media Load Type	Tray
Video features	Viera Cast, PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus, P4HD Precise Pixel Generation, 16-Level Motion Detection with Pixel-Based Motion Adaptive, Diagonal Processing, 3:2, 2:2 Pull-Down Progressive Processing, Up-conversion to 1080p Playback, Progressive Scan, Digital Noise Reduction (3D-NR/ Integrated NR), Picture Adjustment, NTSC Output Selectable.
Built-in audio decoders	DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus
Supported audio formats	DTS digital output, Dolby Digital output, DTS-HD digital output, Dolby True HD digital output
Audio details	Audio D/A Converter: 192kHz/24bit, Sound Output Mode is Surround Sound, Surround Sound, Decode and Bitstream Output, Decode and Bitstream Output, Night Surround Mode, 96kHz Surround Re-Master, Dialogue Enhancer and Dynamic Range Compression
Remote control	Yes, universal remote control
Output Resolution	480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
Dynamic range	100dB
Input and output connectors	1 x 7.1 channel audio line-out ( RCA phono x 8 ) – Rear, 1 x HDMI output ( 19 pin HDMI Type A ) – Rear, 1 x Ethernet ( RJ-45 ) – Rear, 1 x SPDIF output ( RCA phono ) – Rear, 1 x Component video output ( RCA phono x 3 ) – Rear, 1 x Composite video output ( RCA phono ) – Rear, 1 x SPDIF output ( TOSLINK ) – Rear 1 x USB Slot (USB 2.0 High Speed) SD Memory Card Slot
Convenient features	VIERA Link (HDAVI Control 5), VIERA CAST, Wireless System, and Audio/JPEG Navigation Menu
Digital audio output	1 Optical and 1 Coaxial

The idea of 3D photography came to reality in the nineteenth century. From then on, several evolutionary sequences had paved the way for the first motion picture and subsequently the first 3D picture. With special glasses and hot pop corns, watching such films in theatre was an awesome experience. Samsung this year made 3D movie watching a home experience through their first 3D TV (visit our other review site http://www.3dtvreviews.org.uk/ to know more about the 3D TVs and latest 3D TV Reviews, Prices). There is none like Samsung who have specialised in giving a complete home experience. Holding this trend Samsung has come up with yet another beauty. Any guesses?? Well, imagine a 3D TV with a digital cable coupled with a beautiful Blu-ray disc player? Does it sound perfect? Known for its clarity and large capacity the blue ray disc is one thing that drives film fanatics crazy. There have been blu-ray players in the market. What difference does this new players contain? Does this product stand by the expectations of the makers and millions? Read on further to know.

Design:

Funky design:

It is said that good things always comes in small packages. Samsung must have thought to give a shot on this, thereby making the BD-C6900 3D player refreshingly smaller. You can watch your favourite blu ray movie spinning through a window. With a pulsing blue light that pretty much spooks you out this design is really impressive. The fascia, as usual holds the concealed drive tray, simple LED display, and along with a USB socket. Mind a few touch sensitive buttons mounted on top which really simply makes the design rich. The only possible disadvantage one could have with the buttons is when you want to stack something on the top of the player.

Ports and Connectivity:

The rear of the BD-C6900 3D Blu-Ray Disc Player holds a variety of sockets. When it comes to Samsung, you could expect a few hidden surprises. Here, we have an Ethernet jack for taking the advantage of Samsung’s networking and Internet TV options, built in Wi-Fi and what not? Component and composite video output, 7.1 analogue audio out for connecting the machine to an AV receiver. The RCA style jacks for lossless audio.  HDMI socket which is actually an HDMI 1.4 connector, that lets your TV switch on automatically to the 3D mode when you play a 3D movie.

Redesigned Remote:

Compared to the glossy remote designed last year Samsung has designed a rather wider flatter one. It comes with a simple, straight forward finish with buttons like directional pad and play back controls which are easy to manage with your thumb.  This can also double to control a TV.

User Interface:

The user interface of Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu Ray Player is quite nice, with large icons for different media types and with a visually appealing background. There is a wide variety of services available and as a user you can easily jump into which ever service you would like. But custom change is one thing that is not possible here. This could disappoint you if you wish to change the order of, or a particular service if you wanted to.  The online offerings by Samsung App platform lets you browse and download new applications like video, game, sport or lifestyle.  Navigate through the digital media files easily through this menu. The response times to menus has sufficiently improved compared to the previous generation Blu ray players.  When it comes to the choice of menu selections this Samsung player is much faster and more responsive.

Features:

Ready to use 3D:

We all must be familiar with the ready to eat noodles or the ready to serve side dishes; now, we have a ready to use 3D which begins right from the word go. From the moment you unpack it you have a 3D logo to remind you of this fact. The movie is played in no time once you insert your 3D discs in this.  But, make sure that you have the right number of glasses because this player does not come with 3Dglasses. Glasses costs range from GBP 60 to GBP 100 so, rather expensive. They are very fragile and so, if there are young kids, its better to insure your glasses. Apart the expense and other concerns the glasses are comfortable and give you a very good movie experience.

Download movies:

Greek idea of accessing the internet portal using Samsung’s BD-C6900 Blu ray player came from which brain is an unknown fact but, what we know is that it sounds relatively cool and worth. With this portal, you can access, You Tube, BBC or plenty of such sites down load movies and updates. The few setbacks are that, the claims here mostly, are just theory and the movies you are likely to download need not necessarily be of high definition.

Advanced Playback:

With portable hard discs and USBs flying around, there is no need to wonder why the makers have included the pins to support them. The BD-C6900 can support a wide variety of video formats. Play your favourite media file even using your memory sticks, seriously we have an advanced playback option here.

Performance:

From the performance point of view, the Samsung BD-C6900 3D Player gives you a good overall performance. It is true that performance and Samsung are related as hand and glove. Both jell so well that no product delivered by the makers would under perform. Speed is the first aspect that pops up. Truly, this is one of the fastest players so far. It loads movies in matter of seconds. Boot up time is yet another remarkable achievement. Even without a quick start mode this player could load movies in about 15 seconds. The overall image quality is good. With 1080p single pixel test patterns, the player produces sharp renderings through its HDMI port. The internal processor does a good job of up converting HD video. Its zoom gives you a stunning 3D experience though it produces occasional jaggies while loading or playing movies.

Picture quality:

The sole motto of Blu-ray players is to enhance the picture quality. The Samsung BD-C6900 is no different, giving you an awe-inspiring picture quality detailing movies like epic and animating them with beautiful colours that one could expect. The picture quality is so sharp that once you switch the mode to full screen the image you see could simply melt your face off, because you get a 2.35:1 zoom of the image. Equally important is the quality of the screen we use. With a very good screen and a player like this, look forward for a more stunning and joyful 3D experiences.

Up conversion:

The player excels in DVD up conversion and playback. The common problem spotted with many players is with layer change. The transitions this player takes to change the layers are so smooth that you wouldn’t even feel the change.

Speed:

The way Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray Disc player reads discs reminds us of the ‘Need For Speed’ game in which we buy cars, and win by finishing the laps as quickly as we can, to gain more money. Comparing with it, the drive works at BMW speeds and simply plays any movies in matters of seconds. No matter how intrinsic and complex the movies are written, the BD-C6900 plays it with ease. Additionally, it also moves through the menus and play lists very smoothly. Definitely this player is no slouch.

Sound:

Sound is one aspect that lacks a little bit of weight, punch and the fervour. So, for an action packed film the soundtrack would just be normal. The other problem with the sound comes with the inability to pass the BDC6900s 3D signal. We would need to buy a 3D enabled receiver or an analogue multi output channel. An additional HDMI port for sound would have been better.

Power Consumption:

BD-C6900 lacks a quick start mode and therefore consumes little power in stand-by mode. With a low consumption design this beauty is sure to save you a few bucks.

Warranty:

The Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray player comes with a standard parts and labour warranty of 12 months.

Verdict:

Samsung has hit the market rightly this time with the right product. BD-C6900 is seriously a tough customer for other competitors to compete. It has an excellent 3D capability and internet functionality. Though it seems to be more expensive, it has features which make it worthwhile for purchase. It gives you an above par performance if you do not have a 3D TV and completes your 3D home experience if you have. With features of menu selections which combine graphics and text loaded separately and then merge into the viewable image; it gears up the disc menu and text selections to slide horizontally to and from the left in a slow and jerky fashion.

The pros in favour are the 3D Blu ray compatibility, Blu ray image quality; You tube access, Samsung Application platform, built in Wi-fi, 1 GB onboard storage and last but not the least7.1 analog outputs.  Now, coming to the cons the first point is the premium high price which affects any decisions to buy it. The sound is relatively weak and not up to the mark. With only a few minor flaws to its name overall this has excellent Blu ray performance and with an overall 3D functionality, it is a definite yes if you want a complete 3D home experience.

Check other Samsung Blu Ray Players Reviews in this website.

Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu-Ray Player – Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Samsung
Model Name	Samsung BD-C6900
Model Number	BD-C6900
Product Type	Blu-Ray 3D player
Form Factor	Table top
Dimensions H x W x D	43.3 cm x 20.5 cm x 4.3 cm
Weight	1.8 kg
Colour	Black
BD Profile	2
Media Type	3D Blu Ray
Video Decoding Format	MPEG2, H.264, VC-1, AVCHD, DivX HD, MKV, MP4, WMV9 and HD JPEG
Video Output Resolution	1920 x 1080 P, 1920 x 1080 I, 1280 x 720 P, 720 x 480 P (720x 576 P), 720x 480 I (720x 576 I)
Video Scaling	DVD Upconversion
Audio Decoding Format	Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD, DTS, DTS HD High Resolution Audio, DTS-HD Master Audio, LPCM, MP3 and WMA
Playback Media	3D Blu-ray, Blu-ray Video, BD-R/RE, DVD-Video, DVD/ DVD±R/ DVD±RW, Audio CD, CD/ CD-R/ CD-RW and USB Storage
Features	BD-JAVA, BD Local Storage, BD BONUSVIEW, Full Screen, Internet@TV,  and All Share
Connectivity	1 x HDMI output ( 19 pin HDMI Type A ) 1 x 7.1 channel audio line-in ( RCA phono x 8 ) 1 x USB 2.0 ( 4 PIN USB Type A ) 1 x composite video/audio output ( RCA phono x 3 ) 1 x component video output ( RCA phono x 3 ) 1 x network ( RJ-45 ) 1 x digital audio output (optical) ( TOS Link )
Warranty	One year

Blu-ray has not changed the way we watch movies at home like DVDs have, but it is certain that they represent the future of home movie viewing. Now, there are 2 types of Blu-ray players in the market these days; Models that cost around the 100 pounds range and those that cost 200 pounds and above. The former models are pretty basic and sell in large numbers. The latter is a segment that most people would not want to buy because there is literally not much difference between them and their cheaper counterparts in terms of features or performance. At last year’s IFA in Berlin, the Philips BDP7500 was one of the very few models that managed to leave a lasting impression. Easily one of the best looking blu ray players in the market, it could set a new bench mark for aesthetics for its segment. Featuring 7.1 channel discreet audio sockets (one of the very few devices to do so), does the device do justice to the rather hefty price tag? Read on to find out.

Design:

Impressive Impressions:

The Philips BDP7500 Blu-Ray Player looks absolutely stunning and is different from any other player we have seen this year.  While it does not deviate from the conventional set top box shape, its curved edges set it apart from the usual dull and boring boxy designs.  Also unlike its plastic contemporaries, it is made of 3mm thick of aluminium giving the player a plush look. The mirror fascia and the slim silver highlights add to the style quotient and a raised ‘lip’ at the bottom makes it look a class apart. A blue light placed right under the lip and the rows of touch sensitive illuminated buttons steal the limelight.

Amazing Built Quality:

Not only does the BDP 7500 have an impressive design, it also features build quality that surpasses the cheap plastic models by miles. The case is made up of rigid aluminium and feels rather robust.

Stylized Body:

The front side has a centrally mounted drive with the Philips logo displayed in silver letters. Right beneath the tray is a bridge where a blue light is present to emphasize the fact that the device is capable of playing ‘Blu-ray’ discs. To the left of the tray is a single dot matrix LED display. While that does not sound really attractive, it looks very pleasing in reality. It does not display much information apart from the play time and the other occasional updates. We loved the fact the display showed what type of digital audio is being played before a movie started. On the right side of the device are the delicious touch sensitive controls. While they are dimmed during normal usage, they glow brightly when touched.

Plasticky Remote Control:

The Remote Control that complements the device is decent but is made of plastic and looks rather cheap when compared to the player itself. But sub standard remotes are rather common these days, so we forgive Philips here. While the layout is pretty logical, clear and responsive, it is not really easy to use. There is a dedicated button for Bonus View material as well as a Home button. Too bad it lacks backlight.

Simple and Animated User Interface:

The BDP7500 Blu Ray Disc Player Features a user friendly experience as good as it was on the BDP3000 and the BDP 7300. The main menu features options like Play Disc, USB and settings. Each of these is denoted by animated icons and makes it look livelier. There are features like the EasyLink which allows control of several blu-ray player decks and TVs using just one remote. There are several picture presets such as Vivid, Action, Animation, and cool that are pretty handy as well. To make things easier for the technologically challenged, hovering over an option for a couple of seconds opens up a dialogue box that explains what it means. But for demanding users, the lack of options to adjust contrast, brightness and other settings would be an issue.

Features:

An Assortment of Sockets:

Does Philips deliver in this segment as well as they do in the looks department? Yes, they do. The device includes HDMI, component and composite video outputs, optical/coaxial digital audio, analogue stereo and a set of 7.1 channel analogue outputs. The presence of the latter allows channeling of high resolution audio to an AV receiver without any HDMI inputs. The number of digital audio outputs have been doubled which is something we do not usually see. The HDMI port supports the 1.3 standard enabling it to output the full bit stream of Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio tracks. There is a HDMI cable included as well.  There is an in built decoder that allows one to output the sound tracks via multichannel out gibing the full benefit of a blu-ray player audio.  There is an Ethernet port on the back as well that allows one to download BD live. Mind you, it does not allow you to access multimedia content over a network.  For multimedia purposes, there is a USB port on the front that allows one to play audio, video and other files. However, it is not FAT32 compatible and hence cannot handle files larger than 4 GB.

No Wi-Fi:

Sadly, the BDP 7500 lacks Wi-Fi unlike its counterparts such as the LG BD390. The only way to access the Internet is the Ethernet port. While it is not really a big deal, most people would rather want to connect to the BD Live wirelessly.

No Resume Mode:

Most Blu-ray disc players have resume mode that allows one to play the movie from a point where it has been stopped. However, the BDP7500 does not have resume mode making things harder for users who need to tweak often.

Subtitle Shift: Perfect for 21:9

This unique function allows users to adjust a movie’s subtitle positing for better visibility. Using the remote control, users can shift the subtitles either up or down on the screen. This is highly handy because on wide screen displays such as 21:9, the subtitles get cut off and one has to change the display ratio to view them, thereby defeating the purpose of a wide screen. With the Subtle Shift feature, one can retain the display as well as the subtitles on the screen without any issues.

1GB Inbuilt Memory:

Because of the presence of 1GB memory inbuilt in the player, there is no need to leave a USB stick plugged in to the device to store downloads all the time. It also means that the USB port on the front can be used for better tasks such as playing music, video and photo files.

Networking Issues?

When we started playing a disc on the BDP 7500, we noticed that there was no prompt to adjust the network settings and we were left waiting to access the BD Live content. Even when it did get on to the network, the machine did not seem to access BD Live. It does not have advanced network set up options making diagnosing the problem even tougher. But if interactive online features never really matter to you, it is not a problem. Otherwise, you should avoid this player.

Media Playback:

Another test for a Blu-ray player is its ability to play videos downloaded from the Internet. Be it the trailers from the QuickTime site or anything else. Philips BDP7500 Blu Ray DVD Player is capable of playing files of virtually every format. Yes, even the MKV format. We checked out trailers in 1080p on the Apple site without a problem.

Formats Supported:

The BDP7500 supports MP3, WMA, DivX Ultra, WMV, XviD, JPEG and WMHVD and AVHCD formats. The player is also capable of playing X.264 files but we were unable to play the format.

Performance:

Picture and Audio Quality:

When connected to a HD TV, the BDP 7500 delivers a brilliant picture quality in standard mode. The content remains true to the encoding on the source disc without any visible deviation in colours. The details are vivid and the edges are sharp and clear. Fine patterns and complex designs are reproduced without any visible pixel crawl. The strong colour saturation ability of the player make things look even more vibrant and fabulous. When we played Up, the blu-ray player demonstrated some incredibly black levels. This amazing performance was not restricted to the blu-ray discs but also television as well. There was no sort of judder and the details were presented incredibly well.  Thanks to the presence of 7.1 channel analogue outputs, one can enjoy improved sound quality even if you have an older AV receiver that is not capable of decoding audio codecs. While the player is good acoustically, it has a hint of thin treble and muddy bass when a CD is played.

Upscaling:

DVD Upscaling is as brilliant as it was on its predecessor, the BDP 7300. The action scenes in a test DCD were upscaled without any judder and no artefacts at all. The straight and sharp lines, the reduced compression artefacts and the vivid & graduated colour make it worth playing your DVDs on the player.

Speedy Loading Times:

Another benchmark for determining how good a blu-ray player is its disc load speed. The faster the load speed, the better the player is. When we played Vantage point on a couple of blu-ray players, the BDP 7500 managed to take 30 seconds making it one of the fastest blu-ray players in the market.  For DVDs, it beats all other competitors. It takes a little under 10 seconds for the movie to start.

Silent:

The BDP 7500 does not have a fan present inside making it pretty quiet. The only sounds you can hear are the playing of the Blu-ray or DVD disc.

Power Consumption:

Philips has vowed to be more energy efficient and the BDP 7500 lives up to the promise. The device is very efficient on standby mode burning a meager 0.05W. When used, it consumes 15-20W depending on how demanding the content is. A point to note is that the player consumes the same amount of energy even when it is switched on and not playing anything.

What’s in the box?

The BDP7500 comes packed along with an audio/video cable, User manual, remote control, a Quick start guide, a Product registration card, 2 AAA batteries and a CD-R (User Manual).

Warranty:

The BDP7500 comes with a warranty of one year.

Verdict:

Philips has done a great job once again. The BDP 7500 is a worthy successor to the BDP7300 and the BDP 3000. It has a wonderful user interface, jaw dropping loading speeds, amazing looks and near flawless performance.  While it is an awesome bargain for its price, it has competition in the form of LG BD390 which also features Wi-Fi, PC streaming and superior media support. All these for roughly around the same price tag. But if you decide to go in for the BDP 7500, you would not be disappointed.

Check other Philips Blu Ray Player Reviews in this website.

Philips BDP7500 Blu-Ray Player – Technical Specification Table

Make	Philips
Model Name	BDP7500
Product Type	Blu-Ray Discs Player
Dimensions ( H x W x D)	509x285x56mm
Form factor	Table top
Number of disc trays	One
Weight	2.9kgs
Aspect ratio	21:9, 16:9, 4:3
Audio D/A converter	24bit / 192 kHz
Built-in audio decoders	Dolby Digital
Supported digital video standards	H.264, MPEG-2, DivX, WMV
Supported digital audio standards	MP3, WMA
Picture enhancement	High Def (720p, 1080i, 1080p), Video upscaling, Progressive scan
D/A converter	12 bit/150 MHz
Playback Media	BD Video, BD-R/RE 2.0, DVD, DVD-Video, DVD+R/+RW, DVD-R/-RW, DivX, Video CD, CD, CD-R/CD-RW, USB flash drive
Compression formats	H.264, VC-1, MPEG2, DivX Ultra, AVCHD, WMV, XviD
Video Enhancement	Deep Color, x.v. Colour, Video Upscaling, Progressive Scan
Upscaling	Yes
Digital audio format	DTS-HD Master Audio Essential, Dolby True HD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS, Dolby Digital
MP3 compatible	Yes
Remote control	Yes
Connections	HDMI output, Component Video output, Digital optical out, Digital coaxial out, Analogue audio 7.1 channel out, Composite video (CVBS) output, Analogue audio Left/Right out, Ethernet and USB port
BD LIVE storage	1GB
Accessories included	HDMI cable, Audio/Video cable, User Manual, Remote Control, Quick start guide, Product Registration Card, 2 x AAA Batteries
Power Consumption	15-20W
Warranty	1 Year