The best Blu-ray players from Sony, LG and Panasonic

A good Blu-ray player doesn’t have to cost half a fortune these days to give you a great home cinema experience. We present you the best Blu-ray players as well as useful buying tips.

Where they were once only responsible for playing DVDs and Blu-rays, Blu-ray players now have numerous features that can turn your television into a Smart TV in no time at all. Playback of 4K content is now standard, as is HDR support and some devices even have Dolby Atmos support.

The best Blu-ray players: All recommendations at a glance

Price tip: LG BP450

Finding a reliable Blu-ray player under $100 doesn’t prove impossible because the LG BP450 (view on Amazon) guarantees you a presentable entertainment package at an extraordinary one low price. Of the Full HD player plays Blu-rays as well 3D Blu-rays off and can also thanks upscaling process the picture quality of DVDs to a high standard. The player, which was awarded an overall rating of 2.2 (“good”) by Stiftung Warentest, does not have WiFi support, but can be connected to the home network via a LAN cable and used as a smart TV receiver. It can also be controlled using a smartphone app.

LG BP450 Blu-ray Player

The price may be higher now. Price from 05/07/2022 09:50

In terms of connectivity, LG has only provided the device with the bare essentials, including a USB port, LAN jack, HDMI port and coaxial audio output. Navigation is fast and fluid, so there shouldn’t be any major difficulties here. During operation, the player also lets you hear a quiet whirring. So if you want to catch up on silent film classics, this could bother you.

advantages

• Sufficient image quality
• Reliable upscaling
• Fast navigation

Disadvantages

• No 4K resolution
• No WLAN

Test winner at Stiftung Warentest: Sony UBP-X700

According to the Stiftung Warentest, the perfect home cinema experience Sony UBP-X700 view on Amazon(). Of the test winner with an overall rating of 1.9 (“good”), it was able to score a smooth 1.0 in the sub-ratings for picture and sound quality with its 4K and Dolby Vision support. The UHD player supports this HDR10 – but not HDR10+. Thanks to the scaling function, you will also not experience any loss of quality when playing HDR content on an SDR television. The image quality is flawless and can be adjusted according to personal preference in terms of brightness, contrast and colour. The player can play the formats Blu-ray, 3D Blu-rayDVD, CD and SuperAudio CD.

The operation is also simple and intuitive, so that you can easily play content via a WLAN connection or using the screen mirroring function. With a width of 32 cm and a length of 25 cm, the model can also call itself the smallest UHD Blu-ray player. For the compact size, however, a display was omitted. In contrast to the previous model, the Sony UBP-X800, the USB socket is open and is therefore more convenient to use. The variety of sockets is also quite manageable with LAN and twin HDMI out with only audio and coax output. Only Bluetooth does not support the UHD player.

a notice: So that you can play 3D Blu-rays, not only the playback device has to support 3D functions, but also your connected television. The same goes for 4K content.

advantages

• Excellent image quality, supports HDR10
• Very good sound quality
• Very good scaling qualities

Disadvantages

• No Bluetooth support
• No screen

The alternative to the test winner: Panasonic DP-UB824

He landed a well-deserved second place Panasonic DP-UB824 (View at Otto) in a test by Stiftung Warentest. The UHD Blu-ray player shines with colourful, razor-sharp images and, thanks to the 7.1 connection with the corresponding audio device, also delivers great sound. Create dynamic contrasts HDR10, HDR10+ like them too Dolby Vision-Support. DVDs are raised to an appropriate level thanks to UHD upscaling, and those who want to control the device via Alexa or Google Assistant can do so thanks to the corresponding support. You can play Blu-rays, 3D Blu-raysDVDs and CDs.

When it comes to interfaces, the player has 2 HDMI outputs for an isolated image and sound output, two USB 3.0 ports, an analog 7.1 audio channel output and a digital audio output. The Internet connection is possible via LAN as well as WLAN. The front is also adorned with a display, and the buttons for the drive and switching the device on and off are also located on the top side. The only point of criticism among users falls back on the remote control with some unfavorably positioned buttons.

advantages

• Very good picture quality
• voice assistant connection
• HDR10+ and Dolby Vision
• UHD upscaling

Disadvantages

• Remote control partly impractical

Blu-ray players: How the recommendations were selected

A reliable Blu-ray is required so that the next movie night doesn’t have to be long in coming. Since the market has developed very quickly in recent years and you don’t have to search too long for the right model, I’ve put together an overview of the best Blu-ray players for you. In doing so, I relied on my personal experience, as well as user experiences and ratings from external test institutions. Sources used: Stiftung Warentest (Issue 06/2021), AllesBeste.de, 4kfilme.de

By the way: An old acquaintance led the Blu-ray charts in June 2021. The Indiana Jones 4 Movie Collection in 4K UHD was loud Blu-ray-Disc.de back then in 1st place.

Indiana Jones: 4-Movie Collection (4K UHD Blu-ray)

The price may be higher now. Price from 07/05/2022 21:42

Alternatives: These devices are suitable as Blu-ray players

PS3, PS4 and PS5

If you not only like to watch films, but also want to play games, you can also use one of Sony’s home consoles. Because since the dawn of the 7th generation of consoles, i.e. from the PS3, Sony consoles have had a Blu-ray drive. If you have the PS3 or PS4 with the corresponding Firmware update supplied, you can also play 3D Blu-rays with the consoles. With the 2020 published PS5 Sony even updated their latest home console to one UHD Blu-ray Player donated. Playing 4K content with HDR and smooth 60 fps is therefore no problem with the latest console if you own the disk edition. If you select Bitstream under the playback settings, you can also enjoy your UHD Blu-rays with Dolby Atmos. However, it should be noted that the consoles have a higher power consumption than the standalone players and Dolby Vision as well as HDR10+ are not supported.

Xbox One X/S and Xbox Series X

Unlike the Sony consoles, Microsoft only gave their devices a Blu-ray drive from the 8th generation of consoles. Accordingly, you can watch both the regular Xbox One and the successor models Xbox One S/X Blu-rays and 3D Blu-rays. For this, however, you must first Blu-ray app Download and install from the App Store. The Xbox One X/S can even be used as a UHD player just like the Xbox Series X as it can play 4K content. In addition, the devices support HDR10, Dolby Vision and HDR10+, just like Sony’s devices. So we can only hope that the console manufacturers will deliver these features via firmware updates.

Xbox Series X console

The price may be higher now. Price from 07/05/2022 21:48

a notice: If you want to avoid using the controller when watching films, you can use a media remote or connect and control the console with Logitech’s Harmony system.

Buying a Blu-ray player: what do I have to consider?

Supported video formats

Blu-ray player is not always the same as Blu-ray player. Because the devices now support various resolutions from Full HD up to 4K and various disc formats, including DVD, Blu-ray and 3D Blu-ray, as well as burned discs such as BD-RE and BD-R. All common Blu-ray players should support at least these formats, if you want to play other video formats, you should pay attention to the manufacturer’s information when buying. Also, Blu-ray players only support discs with the appropriate region code. In our guide to the region codes, we explain which discs are supported.

Supported audio formats

When it comes to sound, some Blu-ray players also support different formats. While many models already support Dolby True HD and DTS-HS, some top models even offer Dolby Atmos support. In addition, some models are even suitable as an alternative to the music system and play CDs, Super Audio CDs or MP3 files. If you want to upgrade your home cinema experience in terms of sound, you can use a subwoofer or a soundbar.

scaling function

Many films, especially art house films or older works, are not always available on Blu-ray, but often only on DVD. If you still want to watch those films in high resolution, you need a player with a reliable upscaling function. This upscales the resolution so that you get an HD resolution despite the SD quality of the DVD. Although this HD resolution does not quite match the picture quality of a Blu-ray, it offers you a much more pleasant viewing experience. If you have any questions on the subject, you will find the right answers in our guide on upscaling.

interfaces

In terms of connectivity, entry-level models usually only have the bare minimum of connections, while devices in higher price ranges offer more leeway and, for example, have additional analog audio outputs, additional HDMI connections and USB ports or even XLR sockets. Depending on your requirements, you can select your Blu-ray player and turn it into a true multimedia device.

certifications

As with many electrical devices, Blu-ray players are also certified with various seals. For example, the DivX certification guarantees that your player is able to compress large video files without significant loss of quality, while the THX seal of approval is awarded to high-quality cinema and home theater products and guarantees that the respective content is displayed with the same clarity and detail, as in the studio of the respective production. With Blu-ray players, a THX certification ensures that the respective film is also played back at home in the quality that the filmmakers had in mind.

Additional functions

Some Blu-ray players turn out to be true multifunctional machines that, in addition to their playback function, also allow the recording or burning of content. Some devices also have an integrated receiver with which you can receive HD TV. Depending on your personal requirements, you can keep your eyes open for the corresponding additional functions.