HD DVD Blu-ray Combo Player help!

[themiz69]

im looking to go purple sometime in the near future. i have an a35 as my primary player. my question is are there any combo players that can compare to the a35, or the xa2/805(bitstreaming etc.) on the hd dvd side??? and how do they perform for blu's? also where can i go to find a list of combo players and their specs? thanks for ur time!
or
would it be beneficial for me to purchase another hd dvd player and purchase the blu-ray player seperately?

[The_Doctor]

There are basically 2 Combo players you should consider,

LG bh200 which does bitstream to the receiver and has very good dvd upconversion. Rumor has it that it will be one of the few Blu players out there to be capable of updating to profile 2.0.

UP5000 (i forgot the brand name) from most reportw is a very good player too, a better dvd upconverter than the LG becasue of the chip it has.

hopefully somebody else will fill in additional info for you.

[chris gerhard]

The LG BH200 and Samsung BD-UP5000 are the only two available now. I would pick up a separate Blu-ray player to go with your HD-A35 if you have two HDMI inputs. Both dual format players are fine, but separate players are even better. The Sony BDP-S350 or better would give you the best of both worlds.

Chris

[Centauri]

Originally Posted by themiz69

im looking to go purple sometime in the near future. i have an a35 as my primary player. my question is are there any combo players that can compare to the a35, or the xa2/805(bitstreaming etc.) on the hd dvd side??? and how do they perform for blu's? also where can i go to find a list of combo players and their specs? thanks for ur time!
or
would it be beneficial for me to purchase another hd dvd player and purchase the blu-ray player seperately?

http://forums.highdefdigest.com/cross-format-hardware-software-solutions-25/

[themiz69]

Originally Posted by chris gerhard

The LG BH200 and Samsung BD-UP5000 are the only two available now. I would pick up a separate Blu-ray player to go with your HD-A35 if you have two HDMI inputs. Both dual format players are fine, but separate players are even better. The Sony BDP-S350 or better would give you the best of both worlds.

Chris

yea but the thing is im looking to either purchase a combo player and save the a35 or keep the a35 as my primary, get a backup hd dvd player, and get a standalone BD player

so itd pretty much be worth it to go with standalones even if it take me a while?

[HD 335]

I've never owned a stand alone BD player and the BD-UP5000 is my first standalone hi-def format player. This player does have its own minor issues and will not play every single disc perfectly, especially some of the newest releases. With the recent firmware update, it's a very good player but appears to need another update soon. HD DVD playback seems more stable than BD playback. I've read some members say they have virtually no problems with the Sony S350 and Panasonic BD50 so I'm guessing these players might be a bit better. But I'm willing to live with some of the growing pains with the Samsung especially if they keep releasing updates that improve the player. I also own an A35 and PS3 as my back ups in case I have a problem with a disc.

[themiz69]

Originally Posted by HD 335

I've never owned a stand alone BD player and the BD-UP5000 is my first standalone hi-def format player. This player does have its own minor issues and will not play every single disc perfectly, especially some of the newest releases. With the recent firmware update, it's a very good player but appears to need another update soon. HD DVD playback seems more stable than BD playback. I've read some members say they have virtually no problems with the Sony S350 and Panasonic BD50 so I'm guessing these players might be a bit better. But I'm willing to live with some of the growing pains with the Samsung especially if they keep releasing updates that improve the player. I also own an A35 and PS3 as my back ups in case I have a problem with a disc.

does ur ps3 do a LOT better job playing bd's?

[HD 335]

The 5K's picture output looks just a tad bit better than the PS3 to me and it bitstreams HD codecs which to me also sounds marginally better vs LPCM (this only applies if you have the appropiate receiver and even then, it's subjective). However with the PS3, I feel confident it can play ANY BDs without hiccups. I've never ran into any playing or navigating problems when I use the PS3. Keep in mind if you want to use a Harmony or all in one remote, the PS3 won't be compatible.

I always feel, if you want a BD player than will give you virtually no problems, get a PS3. If you insist on a standalone, there maybe minor issues here and there. It's just something you have to deal with a maturing hardware.

This thread should be moved to the cross format hardware section, hopefully a mod can do this.

[themiz69]

and what about profile 2.0? how important is it? and in this respect would the LG be the more versitile player?

[HD 335]

Here's an article by HDD regarding profiles.
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/1186
If you desire online features, than get a 2.0 profile player but 1.1 will suffice if all you need is the discs' included PIP features. I'm not sure if it is confirmed that the Samsung is not capable of profile 2.0

[Centauri]

Both the LG and the Samsung have the hardware necessary for Profile 2.0. The question is whether or not Samsung cares enough about discontinued products to ever release firmware that would make the 5000 2.0.

From a business standpoint, it's not the smartest idea. So long as you can provide the functionality that your player was advertised as being capable of, you really have no further obligation. And introducing 2.0 capability, for both LG and Samsung, would only dissuade current owners from upgrading to new models that are sold as 2.0.

I still hope they do it though.

[themiz69]

so id be better off waiting longer and getting standalone units for both hd dvd and blu?

[Ph8]

Thread moved to proper forum...

[betona]

{shrug} I bought the LG and am absolutely pleased with it. I don't have a lot of shelf space so a combo made sense to me.

The downside is the cost of Blu-Ray movies which seriously need to come down. (Netflix to the rescue)

[themiz69]

Originally Posted by betona

{shrug} I bought the LG and am absolutely pleased with it. I don't have a lot of shelf space so a combo made sense to me.

The downside is the cost of Blu-Ray movies which seriously need to come down. (Netflix to the rescue)

space really isnt too much of any issue because i havent bought any furniture yet. and yea, blu's r pretty expensive but so were my hd dvd's at one point...gotta pay to play! the only thing i do need is for the player to get along with my receiver as far as the new audio formats.