Went HDTV, now want HD movies

[Oyeve]

So, now that I am finally in the HD world I want to go Blu-ray. I have my 360 hooked up via VGA, looks great and the DVD upscalling is pretty decent. I have my PC hooked up to my HDTV via HDMI. Now I want to get Blu-ray as HD-DVD is dead and some decent movies are finally coming out on Blu-ray. I am just torn between what player to get. I already have too many game systems and to be honest, the PS3 game line-up is not appealing to me (except any Square-Enix games coming out). But, looking at the cost of standalone Blu-ray players it sorta doesnt make sense NOT getting a PS3 because its not much more than the players. Also, I assume, correct me if I am wrong please, its probably better to get a PS3 even if I only use it for Blu-ray movies because the PS3 will upgrade better than a stand-alone player as far as Blu-ray ver changes. Yay? Nay? Also, really dont want to fork out 400 or so bucks if there is gonna be a price drop on either PS3s or stand-alones. Are there any PRE-holiday pricedrops planned? Or is now the time to buy?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Shawn]

It depends on whether you care about bonus view or BD-Live and if you you have a receiver that can decode the latest HD codecs or not.

See here: http://www.idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

If you don't care about Bonus View or BD-Live you can pick up a Samsung BD-P1400 for under $300. It has 5.1 analog outs and can decode true HD internally. It can bitstream all of the codecs.

 

[Oyeve]

Originally posted by: Shawn
It depends on whether you care about bonus view or BD-Live and if you you have a receiver that can decode the latest HD codecs or not.

See here: http://www.idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

If you don't care about Bonus View or BD-Live you can pick up a Samsung BD-P1400 for under $300. It has 5.1 analog outs and can decode true HD internally. It can bitstream all of the codecs.

By Bonus View I assume you mean extra content? If so, then yes I care about that feature.

 

[pennylane]

Originally posted by: Oyeve

Originally posted by: Shawn
It depends on whether you care about bonus view or BD-Live and if you you have a receiver that can decode the latest HD codecs or not.

See here: http://www.idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

If you don't care about Bonus View or BD-Live you can pick up a Samsung BD-P1400 for under $300. It has 5.1 analog outs and can decode true HD internally. It can bitstream all of the codecs.

By Bonus View I assume you mean extra content? If so, then yes I care about that feature.

If you care about that content, the PS3 is certainly a worthwhile option because it's upgradeable to be a Profile 2.0 player (or however that works).

Potential negatives about it are:
-No analog outs.
-To get the HD lossless codecs, you need HDMI. Even there, there are issues because the PS3 seems to always output the maximum channels you list that your system can support (ie, 7.1 if you have full 7.1 set-up) via HDMI no matter what. For example, if you're watching a 5.1 movie, the PS3 outputs 7.1 channels, but the rear 2 channels will be "blank." This is a problem when you want to create a 7.1 output out of a 5.1 source with DSP's like Dolby Pro Logic IIx because the receiver thinks it's getting a 7.1 source when you're really only experiencing 5.1 channels. You can change the settings depending on the movie (ie, say you have a 7.1 system, you can tell the PS3 you only have a 5.1 system and the PS3 will output 5.1 channels so your receiver can create a 7.1 output, but that may be tedious for some people. It also may not be a big deal to you.
-No IR, so you need a workaround or have to deal with the PS3 controller or a blu-ray remote.
-Not as pretty as standalone players. This may not be a big deal to you but it's something people have complained about.

But overall is a very good blu-ray player and if you're interested in Square-Enix games anyway, it's certainly worth considering.

As for a price drop... I don't think there will be one this summer. But what do I know. I haven't heard much rumors. There always seem to be rumors for price drops with consoles. FWIW, today I heard that the 360 may drop in price soon (which makes sense given how saturated the market is for it) so perhaps a PS3 price drop will follow? It's all speculation so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[Oyeve]

Originally posted by: fanerman91

Originally posted by: Oyeve

Originally posted by: Shawn
It depends on whether you care about bonus view or BD-Live and if you you have a receiver that can decode the latest HD codecs or not.

See here: http://www.idoblu.co.uk/page2%20Blu-ray%20Players.html

If you don't care about Bonus View or BD-Live you can pick up a Samsung BD-P1400 for under $300. It has 5.1 analog outs and can decode true HD internally. It can bitstream all of the codecs.

By Bonus View I assume you mean extra content? If so, then yes I care about that feature.

If you care about that content, the PS3 is certainly a worthwhile option because it's upgradeable to be a Profile 2.0 player (or however that works).

Potential negatives about it are:
-No analog outs.
-To get the HD lossless codecs, you need HDMI. Even there, there are issues because the PS3 seems to always output the maximum channels you list that your system can support (ie, 7.1 if you have full 7.1 set-up) via HDMI no matter what. For example, if you're watching a 5.1 movie, the PS3 outputs 7.1 channels, but the rear 2 channels will be "blank." This is a problem when you want to create a 7.1 output out of a 5.1 source with DSP's like Dolby Pro Logic IIx because the receiver thinks it's getting a 7.1 source when you're really only experiencing 5.1 channels. You can change the settings depending on the movie (ie, say you have a 7.1 system, you can tell the PS3 you only have a 5.1 system and the PS3 will output 5.1 channels so your receiver can create a 7.1 output, but that may be tedious for some people. It also may not be a big deal to you.
-No IR, so you need a workaround or have to deal with the PS3 controller or a blu-ray remote.
-Not as pretty as standalone players. This may not be a big deal to you but it's something people have complained about.

But overall is a very good blu-ray player and if you're interested in Square-Enix games anyway, it's certainly worth considering.

As for a price drop... I don't think there will be one this summer. But what do I know. I haven't heard much rumors. There always seem to be rumors for price drops with consoles. FWIW, today I heard that the 360 may drop in price soon (which makes sense given how saturated the market is for it) so perhaps a PS3 price drop will follow? It's all speculation so take it with a grain of salt.

Hmmm, seems like the PS3 may be the way to go. I have a 7.1 set up so no issues there. Well, time to look for a used PS3. Thanks for all the info!

 

[JackBurton]

Originally posted by: Oyeve
Hmmm, seems like the PS3 may be the way to go. I have a 7.1 set up so no issues there. Well, time to look for a used PS3. Thanks for all the info!

The PS3 is one of THE baddest Blu-Ray players on the market now. And for $199, it's a no brainer.

 

[Shawn]

Bonus View = Profile 1.1 = Picture in Picture Commentary (instead of just hearing someone talk you can see them too, including whatever behind the scenes stuff they want to show you)
BD-Live = Profile 2.0 = Internet Access (it's usually pointless, but you can download extra stuff)

All other bonus features should work with Profile 1.0 players. I just watched Jumper on my Samsung BD-P1200 which is a Profile 1.0 player and since mine doesn't have PiP it gave me the option of watching the commentary separately.


Does your receiver have HDMI? If not you won't get high def sound from a PS3.

 

[sivart]

I bought for $450 a Bonus View (profile 1.1) LG Combo Player (HD DVD and Blu-ray). It upscales better than my PS3 and will bitstream all codecs (HD included) to my receiver. A comparable Blu-ray only player (1.1/Bitstream) was just as much if not more, so it was a no brainer. There is a rumor that my LG BH200 will be 2.0 complaint soon, but I'll believe it when I see it. The Samsung UP-BD5000 is also about the same price with the same features.

PS....as an added bonus I'm picking up a lot of good HD DVD's for $3.99-$5.99 each. My last purchase averaged $5 each for titles such as Meet the Parents / Meet the Fockers, Eternal Sunshine of a spotless mind, etc.

 

[Shawn]

Originally posted by: sivart
I bought for $450 a Bonus View (profile 1.1) LG Combo Player (HD DVD and Blu-ray). It upscales better than my PS3 and will bitstream all codecs (HD included) to my receiver. A comparable Blu-ray only player (1.1/Bitstream) was just as much if not more, so it was a no brainer. There is a rumor that my LG BH200 will be 2.0 complaint soon, but I'll believe it when I see it. The Samsung UP-BD5000 is also about the same price with the same features.

PS....as an added bonus I'm picking up a lot of good HD DVD's for $3.99-$5.99 each. My last purchase averaged $5 each for titles such as Meet the Parents / Meet the Fockers, Eternal Sunshine of a spotless mind, etc.

Yeah, I just got the BD-UP5000 for $400 which has 7.1 analog out and internal TrueHD decoding. I think it's upgradable to profile 2.0 as well.