How many manufacturers

[SatelliteGAL]

How many manufacturers are there of the Blu Ray players?
Are there quality differences between the different manufacturers or are they all pretty much the same?

 

[navychop]

Here's a link. Not sure if it's up to date, but the links do go to specific products.

 

[SatelliteGAL]

Well, that's a list of them but......
Are all manufacturers the same? I have heard the Samsung was "not very good". Is that fact/fiction. Are some players better than others the same way that different tv manufacturers are of different quality?

 

[navychop]

Well, I don't know. I'm sure you've read the same things here I have about the Samsung- soft image, firmware updates. Hopefully someone will chime in with first hand knowledge. How many of the other BD players are actually shipping?

 

[GeorgeLV]

Well, I don't know. I'm sure you've read the same things here I have about the Samsung- soft image, firmware updates. Hopefully someone will chime in with first hand knowledge. How many of the other BD players are actually shipping?

Panasonic DMP-BD10
Philips BDP 9000
Samsung BDP-1000
Sony BDP-S1

Those ones are all shipping from Amazon.

 

[SatelliteGAL]

Best Buy has the Sony and the Samsung. Each was on display with a tv but they were really far apart and playing different movies. I kept thinking the Sony looked better but I couldnt be sure under the circumstances.

 

[rockaway1836]

The 2nd generation Sammy should be out next month. You may want to hold off so you can take a look at it.

http://www.samsung.com/Products/Blu_ray/Blu_rayDiscPlayer/BD_P1200XAA.asp

 

[AllieVi]

Best Buy has the Sony and the Samsung. Each was on display with a tv but they were really far apart and playing different movies. I kept thinking the Sony looked better but I couldnt be sure under the circumstances.

I always wonder about the side-by-side comparisons we make in stores.

If a retailer wants to move a particular product (let's say it's overstocked or the store makes a better profit on it), our perception of relative quality can easily be swayed by how each TV is "fine tuned." Customers typically just look at what's presented and don't really know if each set is showing its best picture.

Even if a minor difference truly exists, the only time we'll be aware of it is in a store. When the set is in our living rooms, we don't see the side-by-side.

 

[navychop]

I'd recommend not buying one that does not have an ethernet connection. This will be the quickest and easiest way to update the firmware, and there will likely be many firmware updates over the first year.

 

[SatelliteGAL]

I'd recommend not buying one that does not have an ethernet connection. This will be the quickest and easiest way to update the firmware, and there will likely be many firmware updates over the first year.

Thats a good point. I would not have thought to check for that. I probably would have "assumed". That's one of the reasons I am getting info first.
My son bought the HD DVD and I figured we would get the BluRay for us. That way we have both formats available and can see any titles we want somewhere in the house.