Holy Moly Blu-Ray Disc Players below $300

I agree with those that say HD players are clunky. However, the image quality is anything but clunky. On a full 1080p resolution screen it is stunning.

"Planet Earth" is absolutely stunning - incredible - amazing - you are there! The WOW factor exists in High Def 1080P but you need the entire kit and caboodle....a Blu-ray connected to a screen with LESS than the requisite 1920 by 1080 pixels is NOT high def and will lessen the WOW between regular DVD and the new format! (This is not hyperbole, as I agree fully with those that say that the Wow factor is totally absent for SACD or DVD-A versus CD)

If you're looking at BluRay, the way to go is the PS3, even if, like me, you have no interest in games. The brain of the PS3 is much more powerful than any standalone machine, be it HD DVD or Blu Ray, and the architecture permits Sony to upgrade the machine's features, which Sony does on its website about once a month or so. The PS3 also plays CDs and SACDs. In a recent upgrade, it permits double and quadruple oversampling of CD playback. It will soon be upgraded, I've read, to internally decode the lossless Dolby and STS soundtracks found on many Blu Ray discs. In my 18-month ownership, I've watched dozens of Blu Ray movies rented from NetFlix and have encountered not a single freeze-up, which I attribute to the extremely fast cell processor. The picture quality, as you might imagine, is superb. If you're not a gamer, you can buy the 40GB version, since you don't really need the extra capacity found in the units with 60 or 80 GB hard drives. Frankly, I can't imagine why someone interested in HD disc playback would be looking at anything else. It is by far the most bang for the buck of any CE product I've ever purchased, and I don't even use it for its main function.

Interesting point there Pzuckerman..........is the PS3 also an upsampling player with respect to std DVD? If this is the case then this may be the route that I look at for my new DVD player just in that it is sort of inexpensive and potentially one of the best low cost options to get you some really high def video while the other players evolve to where they should be. It is also interesting to me that since this is in fact more of a computer that it is so easily reprogrammed/upgraded.

ej

Interesting point there Pzuckerman..........is the PS3 also an upsampling player with respect to std DVD?

If by "upsampling" you mean can the PS3 upscale a standard DVD image to 720p or 1080i or 1080p, the answer is yes. When originally introduced, it could not; but this capability was part of an update sometime ago. I should also point out that the PS3 from its introduction was an HDMI 1.3 device, meaning if and when HDMI 1.3 deep color HDTVs are ever introduced, this player will be able to deliver the goods from such blu ray discs. You have it exactly right: the ps3 is a computer with the fastest commercially available processor available to consumer, even faster than processors in "real" computers. It has built in wireless and an ethernet ports, turning your TV into a web browser. One caveat: it has no multi-channel analogue outputs, only a Toslink digital and HDMI output in the digital domain. For SACD, you have to use the HDMI output, since Toslink does not transmit the SACD bitstream. Otherwise, I haven't begun to list all the features. Go to Sony.com, click on PS3, then Support, then Manuals. Read the Manual on line. You'll learn what this machine can do. I guarantee you you'll want one.

I have both PS3 and XBox HD players. I rent mostly. I cringe everytime I encounter a dual format HD DVD disc since I have encountered a number of defective ones. I have no use for dual format other than the fact that the DVD side works when the HD DVD side does not. I certainly am not willing to pay $35 and upwards for a movie even if quality control was not a concern. These dual format discs are overpriced and I think the studios project a desire for dual format that may exist for studio execs but does not exist at the consumer level. It makes little difference if HD DVD players are cheaper if you get gouged for the movies.