Choosing a Blu-Ray Player

If you feel you are ready to buy a Blu-ray player then it is well worth spending a little time getting to understand the basic Blu-ray features and terms. There are subtle differences between players and it's best to know what you're looking for.

Blu-ray is the standard high definition (HD) format now adopted by the whole domestic movie market. High definition means that the picture you see is at a far higher resolution than the older DVD standard.

DVD (NTSC) standard resolution is 720 pixels across by 480 pixels down the screen.

DVD (PAL) standard resolution is 720 pixels across by 576 pixels down the screen.

Blu-ray 1080i and 1080p refers to the best vertical resolution that Blu-ray provides which is 1080 pixels down and 1920 pixels across.

Most current LCD and plasma TVs will display the full Blu-ray resolution but it is best the make sure that your TV can achieve this. Firstly your TV must have an HDMI socket on the back and secondly check the user manual for reference to 1080i or 1080p. If either is missing you probably won't be able to achieve full Blu-ray resolution. HDMI is the connection down which the HD video and audio is transmitted.

That's the basics of HD explained, now for the more subtle differences between Blu-ray players.

Upscaling to 1080p via HDMI means that you are playing a lower resolution media like DVD on a Blu-ray player which is then scaled up to the 1080 resolution. The picture is slightly better than the original DVD if it were played through a DVD player but doesn't reach full Blu-ray clarity.

As with DVD players, there are regions that players will cover. DVD uses regions 1 to 8 and 0 is region free.

Blu-ray uses regions A, B and C.

Region A: North and South America, South and South East Asia, including Japan, Korea and Malaysia.

Region B: Europe, Australiia, New Zealand, Africa, Middle East and Greenland.

Region C: Central and South of Asia including China; Russica and Mongolia.

Virtually all Blu-ray players have online functionality. This is provided either through a LAN or Wi-Fi interface to your internet router. Internet connectivity is completely optional as it is not always convenient to connect. If you do decide to get connected then there are several services available to you depending on the make and model of player you decide to purchase.

Sony's BD-Live lets you download additional movie content.

Samsung and LG players provide access to YouTube movies and MKV files.

Panasonic has Viera Cast, it's on demand TV service and, more services are appearing all the time as manufacturers bring constantly evolving services via the internet.

Now for me, online functionality is of very little advantage as I live out in the country and my bandwidth is quite poor but, for those of you who have access to good bandwidth then the online services available to you through your Blu-ray player are well worth it.

The features available are very extensive but I hope the ones I have shown you above are helpful and give you a good starting point from which to choose your Blue-ray player.

Now if you're looking for a player that gives you great value for money then the Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray Disc Player is a great choice so why not take a look by clicking HERE.