BluRay Player Advice Thread

[CRTGAMER]

BluRay Player Advice Thread
Got this PM from RCBH928.

Hey there, I wonder if you can advice me on a Bluray player. I am looking for a BD player that will work with 240V that will play region 1 dvd and A BD.

I was told to purchase this one:


But then i found I can get ones from the UK that are chip modded that will play anything:
http://www.220-electronics.com/toshiba- ... layer.html

but I wonder if these would brick or something because usually the new players get firmware updates.

Do you have any idea?

I do not own a BluRay Player. Have not moved up from DVD; 480p is clear enough and I want any movie I purchase work in all my rooms including the portable DVD unit for travel. I also have a Phillips Upscaler DVD player, but I leave it at 480p.

For my 32" HD CRT (can go up 720p and 1080i), the 480p for DVD movies is just fine, a very clear sharp picture. I think when one gets a huge screen such as a 60" LED is where the BluRay is a mandated investment to see all the detail without the upscale issues.

You are right concerning the mandated BluRay firmware update issues, some new movie releases will require yet another firmware update. Do I really want this wait risk just to watch a movie's extra features streaming from a two year limited online connection? Perhaps others who have Bluray can add recommendations. Maybe might jump in myself after "seeing" the advantages over a firmware no longer available on an older model Bluray player.

[casterofdreams]

If I remember correctly the firmware stuff is related to the extras and just general player software. If the player never hits the internet (assuming its internet ready) then you can still play the disc.

Think of it like the games consoles. You want to play single player? No problem. You want to play online? You need to download the latest update.

I currently have two BD players and a PC rig with two BD drives. In terms of regions I am not sure. The physical players I have are the PS3 (I don't use it as such) and an internet ready player that has apps like Netflix and Amazon Prime. The two in my rig can play what ever with the right software because of the nature of PC in general.

[isiolia]

The last couple years (I think) of Sony models have used AC adapters instead of internal power supplies. So, while a bit messier to plug in, that should mean you can sources a 240V capable adapter if the one they include doesn't already work.

Additionally, I would wonder about some of the other players they list on that site for region-free. Not so much for the modding, but for what they do out of the box. PS3s, for instance, list the regional power requirement on the outside, but iFixit's teardowns have shown the Slim/Super Slim (at least) as having a global PSU that's internally labeled for 50-60hz, 100-240V. So, I'd kind of wonder if other devices on the market might be similar.

I'd have similar concerns about region-free modded players, though I'd probably look at it as a secondary (or less) player and not hook it up to the internet unless I found it to be necessary. Most of the time, all a movie is pulling down are current previews.

For my 32" HD CRT (can go up 720p and 1080i), the 480p for DVD movies is just fine, a very clear sharp picture. I think when one gets a huge screen such as a 60" LED is where the BluRay is a mandated investment to see all the detail without the upscale issues.

Blu-ray is somewhat reliant on your setup to really see the benefit of it, yeah. A general plus is that the HD standard of 1080p/24 is worldwide, and conforms better to film. 'course, unless your display supports 24fps (plasma, 120hz+ LCD, etc), it winds up getting processed anyway. Still, the source is in that more direct-from-film format, when that applies. Obviously, content that was originally video is different.

Audio is usually significantly better as well, but only if running through HDMI due to HDCP requirements (I think you only get 1080i for video without that too). Can't even pull it off via connecting to the TV first or something since it's only allowed to send on two channel audio.

[fastbilly1]

I bought a refurb Panasonic DMP-BD75 in 2012 and it has not been online since 2013, and it played the 2014 Hercules bluray last weekend without any issue.

[flojocabron]

I got lucky last year and I got me a blu-ray player on the cheap.

At my job a Panasonic DMP-BDT230 3d blu-ray player went clearance.

I paid $30 for it when its original price was $130

I've hooked it up to my internet and there has been no problems. A few discs offer to download stuff, like extra content, but I dont even bother with that.

So in my opinion, If you can get it cheap enough, it wont matter if you lose something via an upgrade.

What I would be worried about is finding a defective encoding of bluray discs.

I bought a copy of the Remake of Total Recall last year and for some reason the audio would quit on it right in the middle of playing it. I thought my BD player was messing up. It was getting annoying.

Turned out the disc was a bad pressing. And the company that released it offered to replace it. But since I got it used, there's nothing I can do. And most likely the offer to replace it died long ago.

[RCBH928]

The thing is the BD players I want to buy are modded to play all regions. I am afraid that if I update the firmware it will brick the player.

updating the firmware is important because a lot of times it fixes errors and improves performance.

My other choice is the Seiki from USA which is region free and multi-volt:
http://www.amazon.com/Seiki-SR4KP1-Up-C ... ayforum-20

which is in a very low stock level, currently Amazon got only 2 as it says on their website.

[fastbilly1]

You have several people, myself included, who have not updated their bluray player in several years and have had no issues playing modern movies.

[isiolia]

Do you actually have a lot of mixed region discs?

To a fair point, it seems like just having multiple players would be an effective solution. That seems to be more what your original question was - a player for U.S. region discs that works on local power.

For Blu-ray particularly, the actual output tends to be the same, barring oddball entries like 1080i television content (some of the early BBC releases I think). Region protection is optional, and far as I know more Blu-ray discs are region free than not. It's not a 99.9% type thing like PS3 games, but still a majority (I think Wikipedia claims 70%). Standard 1080p/24 makes that a lot simpler, versus NTSC/PAL that actually need video signal conversion.

[RCBH928]

Do you actually have a lot of mixed region discs?

To a fair point, it seems like just having multiple players would be an effective solution. That seems to be more what your original question was - a player for U.S. region discs that works on local power.

Yes I am doing the multiple players thing. My B/Region 2 player is my ps3, and this will be region 1/A I just need multi-volt. In my country its very often that you find both discs availible not to mention I buy stuff online from USA. But if I can find a single player that will play anything that is even better!

I was told the only multi-volt region A players are Pioneer and those are very expensive $300 or so

[isiolia]

As I mentioned before, the past couple years or so of Sony players use a laptop style AC adapter. Those start at about $50. You could then find a compatible AC adapter that works on 240V, if the one it comes with doesn't (IE like this), or just find one locally.