Is there an advantage for expensive Bluray players?

[MacBH928]

Read the fine print. A lot of the lesser expensive 4K BR players merely up-convert HD to 4K. Some actually display/stream4K, but not HDR. Personally, if it can't display/stream true 4K HDR in at least HDR10 and Dolby Vision, then don't waste your money.

Well yeah obviously the $60 are cheapening out somewhere but the real wonder is what the $1000 do so much that they are worth $950 extra .They are about worth 17 of the cheap players!

I guess the best is the nice middle ground of $200-300

The really cheap blue ray players tend not to last. The very expensive players tend to have lots of smart features from what I’ve seen.

A good compromise is to spend 150-200 euros on a player, to avoid the cheapest and tacky build quality but avoid overspending on stuff you don’t need.

good advice

Just to add to your commments
All one has to do is look at a site that focuses against what coming out each week. A well know site is blu-ray.com. Here's a example of what is shipping this week. Be sure to hit the show all link below the images. You can also click Best Blu-ray Movie Deals, See All the Deals » near the top of site HTML page. While stores the last years have switched to more warehouse then in stores, every store where I am located has a sufficient amount of media for walk in buyers. (BB, Target), and you can always have it shipped to store or house. There are other online stores you can readily buy them from such as Amazon and others.

This week has several 4K UHD releases. The bit rate of the best owned 4K streaming peaks at 32 Mbps from movies anywhere/iTunes, which is less then a standard blu ray that runs up to 40 Mbps. A UHD 4K can scale up past 100 Mbps bit rate. Most of the normal 4k streaming you see online averages 11 Mbps, peak about 20 Mbps.

You are correct about bitrate. I watch netflix and though this picture is really good. One day I was watching a DVD I believe, then switched to Netflix and the picture quality was horrid, it was completely washed out in comparison.

I am not sure who is pushing BD sales so much when compared to the much cheaper entertainment of $10 or even if you join 2, $20 streaming services that has 30 day stream all you want entertainment which equals to about 1 new BD price.

A thing to note here, in the next couple of years we could see things changing. I read this online where I believe in 1998 there was a whole list of coming titles to LaserDisc. But 1999 something like half is gone.

 

[aliasfox]

The problem with reviews is that there is no one to trust. Reviews on retail sites are all fake, reviews on websites, blogs, youtube, are all sponsored and paid.

Currently the only one I kind of trust is TheWireCutter which is owned by NYTimes, a company that makes money by selling ads, and Consumer Reports which has a paywall. I even heard CR is affected by sponsors.



May ask what is the difference if its made from metal or plastic? how does this affect the bd drive or playback? I am assuming the drive itself is not affected by the body of the player being plastic or metal or even wood.

Plastic is generally lighter and is more likely to vibrate with a spinning disc - especially true with heavier or unbalanced discs. A steel chassis provides much more dampening.

Plastic gets brittle with heat and UV, so over time is more likely to break.

Metal conducts heat better, allowing the warm internal mechanism to stay cooler without a fan. Relatively speaking, plastic generally acts more like an insulator.

 

[aliasfox]

You are not wrong. Physical discs will be useless without the players. I am thinking of people who built a laserdisc collection or VHS collection. Now its problematic to get a working Laserdisc or VHS player, they might not be able to hook to a modern tvs that accept HDMI only.



The problem with physical media is the price. You pay easily for a new release $20 , currently Dune in 4K is $29. On iTunes it says $10 . For me I watch a movie once and thats it and $15 an hour is just too much , after that the movie basically becomes aa coffee coaster.

With digital I can also rent at reasonable $4-5 . Physical makes sense if the old model of video-rental stores still existed but completely buying a movie that I will watch once is just too much. I do tend to buy all time favorites or trilogies or series on physical.

One puzzling thing is that sometimes physical is cheaper than digital file, currently a double feature "watchmen+green lantern" is about $11 on Amazon meanwhile each movie is $10 on iTunes. Also BD Jurassic Park III is $10 and on iTunes its $15.

If you think $29 in 2022 dollars is expensive…

Typical VHS releases were $39-49 back around 1990.
Typical DVD releases were $29-39 around 2000.
Blockbuster rentals were $5, and you only got 5 days with them, max.
Now get off my lawn!

If I like a movie and want to keep it in my library, I’ll buy it. If I’m almost certain it’s a throwaway, i’ll wait until it’s free on Netflix or Prime. Probably rented a streaming movie all of twice.

 

[w5jck]

Well yeah obviously the $60 are cheapening out somewhere but the real wonder is what the $1000 do so much that they are worth $950 extra .They are about worth 17 of the cheap players!

I guess the best is the nice middle ground of $200-300

Agree, the $200-$300 range is likely the best compromise. Just like automobiles, you can buy a reasonably priced dependable car to commute to work for maybe $20,000, or you can go in style with a Porsche 911 at over $100,000. Both will get you there and likely be dependable. It is all in what you want, or perceive you want. I think most of the expensive BR players are overpriced, even though they tend to include more features and better hardware. I'll stick with my streaming devices for 4K HDR and just use my older BR player for all my old HD discs.

Personally, I find a BR player a PITA to use when compared to streaming. The quality via a BR player might be a bit better in some cases, but not that noticeable to me. Streaming is way more convenient, and purchasing streaming content tends to be less expensive than purchasing BR disc content. But to each their own. I can find better things to spend $200-$300 on than a BR player that I won't actually use that much.

 

[Weaselboy]

The problem with reviews is that there is no one to trust. Reviews on retail sites are all fake, reviews on websites, blogs, youtube, are all sponsored and paid.

Blu-ray Players

This area covers Blu-ray & UHD Blu-ray players. Please note this is not the area for software chat.

www.avsforum.com

Check out AVS Forums. Lots of good advice from regular users. There is a sticky thread at the top of this forum that might help you.

 

[Allyance]

$1000 is well beyond the point of diminishing returns, but there are those who want brag about their expensive audio/videophile equipment and absolutely had to have the latest and greatest. Those who claim they could hear the difference between 10' and 25' of wire! They don't listen to the music, they listen to their equipment. Years ago I remember seeing a cartoon with two men walking out of a symphony hall and one says to the other "I think Bernstein sounded down 3db".

 

[MacBH928]

If you think $29 in 2022 dollars is expensive…

Typical VHS releases were $39-49 back around 1990.
Typical DVD releases were $29-39 around 2000.
Blockbuster rentals were $5, and you only got 5 days with them, max.
Now get off my lawn!

If I like a movie and want to keep it in my library, I’ll buy it. If I’m almost certain it’s a throwaway, i’ll wait until it’s free on Netflix or Prime. Probably rented a streaming movie all of twice.

you are correct but there are few things to consider here.

• I assume shipping and manufacturing was much more expensive especially when you consider things like making international orders for stores pre-internet days.
• Although the movie itself was $40 you could easily pick it up any video rental store which do not exist now. now its digital or physical purchase
• I thought vhs/dvd prices were insane then and still think they are insane. The $10-20 is more acceptable for things that will get multiple views by the family or say a kids favorite.
• Film and media was rarer back then so it was worth to pay the price of a movie. Now with $10 streaming services, combine 2, so thats $20 still 30% cheaper than $30 movie you will watch once and you get access to full library of entertainment. so its more like 30movies (1 a day) for $10 vs 1 movie for $30 in ownership. If you include the family members who can use the streaming services that can be 90 movies (30 each for husband, wife, and kid) for $10 vs 1 movies in disc for $30. This is not to mention the endless stream of free tv, youtube, and other forms of entertainment like videogames and social media that people rather do than say maybe watch a movie. Back in the 90s this didn't exist and movies was nearly the only form of entertainment.

My memory might be failing me , but movie streaming world wide was not capable up until say 2011 at which internet speeds started to get fast enough to stream, so before that for most of the world streaming a movie was just not an option. Do not forget, devices for streaming like firestick and tvs weren't widely available either AFAIK.

Blu-ray Players

This area covers Blu-ray & UHD Blu-ray players. Please note this is not the area for software chat.

www.avsforum.com

Check out AVS Forums. Lots of good advice from regular users. There is a sticky thread at the top of this forum that might help you.

thank you.

$1000 is well beyond the point of diminishing returns, but there are those who want brag about their expensive audio/videophile equipment and absolutely had to have the latest and greatest. Those who claim they could hear the difference between 10' and 25' of wire! They don't listen to the music, they listen to their equipment. Years ago I remember seeing a cartoon with two men walking out of a symphony hall and one says to the other "I think Bernstein sounded down 3db".

to be honest, I think cassette tape quality is just fine . I probably can't tell if its tape or CD. I think it will only show if you blow up the the volume to the max which is not something I would do but probably will be done in huge halls and big events.

 

[phrehdd]

I'll simply say there are some differences between a low end player and even a middle of the line player. Most people shouldn't bother with the highest price systems unless they have a good audio system and video playback (monitor/project etc.). Match the player to the features of your audio and video.

There are some AV forums on the web, Youtube videos covering various players and such and it may help you get a feel for what is best for your needs.

Last serious system I had was an Oppo Blu-Ray 103, Marantz AVR match to a Goldenear surround speaker system (Tritons and AONs) all working with a Pioneer Kuro 50" plasma then a Panasonic VT50 65" plasma. Honestly, fantastic for movies and the player also served for playing both video and music files with brilliance. In my case, I think my match up made sense. Today, 4k players can be compared in features and honest playback. Not all with the same or near same specs create video or audio the same.

 

[MacBH928]

I am surprised many people here praise the Oppo player. I assume Oppo is a cheaper chinese electronic manufacturer. One would assume that best BD player would be Sony since they basically invented the Bluray Disc.

 

[cynics]

I am surprised many people here praise the Oppo player. I assume Oppo is a cheaper chinese electronic manufacturer. One would assume that best BD player would be Sony since they basically invented the Bluray Disc.

Chinese yes, definitely not cheap. Oppo was the first to the market with Dolby Vision disc support. Crutchfield claims its their prefer brand they use in the office (203 model) due to its 4k processor being to pull the most amount of detail from the video and audio....

They are expensive though. The model 205 is $1,300.

 

[Realityck]

The problem with reviews is that there is no one to trust. Reviews on retail sites are all fake, reviews on websites, blogs, youtube, are all sponsored and paid.

You just not looking in the right places. Yes ignore anything that uses Amazon product ranking or some other site. But not all websites, blogs are sponsored and paid. The Sony and Panasonic players I mentioned are based on numerous posts on multiple forums and well known. If you look at those typical search matches yep they will be flowery malarkey. The WhatHi*Fi site reviews have zero technical approach as a bad example. They are ones with that big thick shoppers mag with tons of ads. If you want a legit review you use columns from professional reviewers. Just need to ask and some will point you to some worthy ones.

 

[Realityck]

I am surprised many people here praise the Oppo player. I assume Oppo is a cheaper chinese electronic manufacturer. One would assume that best BD player would be Sony since they basically invented the Bluray Disc.

You are very misinformed. Go read these reviews

Oppo UDP-203 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Player Review

A review of the Oppo UDP-203 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player

www.avforums.com

http://download.oppodigital.com/UDP205/audioXpress-112017-OPPO%20Digital.pdf

These two players were so good back when they were sold, that even now they sell used for way more then new.

In China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan are lots of companies that make video and audio gear that is meant for serious fans, that’s not a joke.

 

[Realityck]

Hey look at what this 203 is going for on Amazon

OPPO UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Player

The New Standard in Home Theater - The OPPO UDP-203 provides an unmatched A/V experience to home theater enthusiasts. Drawing from over a decade's worth of experience in advanced image processing technology and high fidelity audio performance, the UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray player is the ideal sour...

www.amazon.com

 

[aliasfox]

The last gen Oppos are often considered better than what’s currently on the market. Even my first gen Oppo BD-83 was regarded as having the best video upscaling available at the time, as well as one of the best analog audio sections. So good, in fact, that Mark Levinson put their own faceplate on the 83 and sold it as their own for something like $3k.

It was truly a sad day when Oppo left the Blu-ray player market…

 

[MacBH928]

You are very misinformed. Go read these reviews

Oppo UDP-203 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Player Review

A review of the Oppo UDP-203 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player

www.avforums.com

http://download.oppodigital.com/UDP205/audioXpress-112017-OPPO%20Digital.pdf

These two players were so good back when they were sold, that even now they sell used for way more then new.

In China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan are lots of companies that make video and audio gear that is meant for serious fans, that’s not a joke.

yeah well forgive me, I never heard of the name Oppo in the a/v space and their website does not seem to have any A/V products to sell at all so I did not assume they would excel at it over other manufacturers that have been doing this for decades like Sony, Panasonic, Philips, and Pioneer.

Am not sure what makes it so good its worth the $700 extra , probably just a collector's thing.

 

[Realityck]

yeah well forgive me, I never heard of the name Oppo in the a/v space and their website does not seem to have any A/V products to sell at all so I did not assume they would excel at it over other manufacturers that have been doing this for decades like Sony, Panasonic, Philips, and Pioneer.

Am not sure what makes it so good its worth the $700 extra , probably just a collector's thing.

The earliest 1997 DVD players were from Panasonic and Toshiba. Panasonic ones were very expensive like $750 and $1000 with first models. For that price that were nicely built but electronics didn't live very long. From that point until last 3 years their players were most low end to very recently. Still not offering the same build or feature set. They have fared very well with their HDR10 optimizer, they only recent have a $1000 player again that appeals to fans of better players. Toshiba is like bad choices and picking the wrong standard. Yep they were the main backer to the looser HD-DVD, Blu-ray which Sony backed was the winner. Sony had some expensive players earlier, but they approached market more from the low end ultimately. Phillips was never a good brand, like LG they tend to make not so great players.

Like anytime buying a player, a AVR, a TV the quality and performance varies a lot, along with how long lasting the quality of electronics and parts. I have a couple of Oppo players, they are several years old haven't quit playing.

The problem back in the early day of DVD players was that reading the digital content involved a lot of video reproduction errors and artifacts dependent on the quality of the players processing, they was before HDMI, so you used the RCA phono for video or S video. That meant the player had to convert the bitrate digital stream to analog for TVs. The s/n level of video circuitry was poor and there was a lot of noise and artifacts present all added by how poor the DVD players conversion quality was. You may have watched the 300 movie, well that came out in 2006. All kinds of players were outputting pretty grainy picture quality, but this new company Oppo stared to work with Mediatek and began designing players that were a lot cleaner with video quality. I was in need of a new player in 2008 and it was shocking the performance differences were between players costing a few hundred back then, you could try a Sony (lots of conversion artifacts), Samsung was even more grainy image (they never could make good players LOL), Oppo came out with a DV-980 and damn it was almost clean. From that day on Oppo kept making better and better players. 2009 brought BD-Players, 2016 brought 4K UHD Players. They got heavily involved making smart phones so they bailed a couple of years later.

 

[phrehdd]

yeah well forgive me, I never heard of the name Oppo in the a/v space and their website does not seem to have any A/V products to sell at all so I did not assume they would excel at it over other manufacturers that have been doing this for decades like Sony, Panasonic, Philips, and Pioneer.

Am not sure what makes it so good its worth the $700 extra , probably just a collector's thing.

I can understand your take on the Oppo in the a/v space but have you looked for article/reviews or perhaps at Youtube for older reviews?

While I had an earlier version (103), here is a good video that references Oppo for UHD and talks of other makers -

 

[Aggedor]

I know people have been posting links here, but I'm surprised at the lack of discussion of things like HDR and audio codecs that expensive players support, versus cheaper players. There are also other things, like support for multiple frame rate outputs, and chroma settings, dynamic range, and high-quality, high-bit DACs.

Not all of that is important if you don't have a matching high-quality TV or projector. Like buying an expensive MacBook Pro, if you don't know what the M1 Pro or M1 Max are for, you don't need them.

 

[Realityck]

I know people have been posting links here, but I'm surprised at the lack of discussion of things like HDR and audio codecs that expensive players support, versus cheaper players. There are also other things, like support for multiple frame rate outputs, and chroma settings, dynamic range, and high-quality, high-bit DACs.

Not all of that is important if you don't have a matching high-quality TV or projector. Like buying an expensive MacBook Pro, if you don't know what the M1 Pro or M1 Max are for, you don't need them.

The OP question is very common, it’s just most of the web sites don’t cater to explaining the basics at all. Crutchfield has dozens of articles but neglected to explain what blu ray players are about, what they are good for. Got questions ask us is not answer. There was some articles early when blu ray first came on the market, but those articles are so old and not updated. So he posted the question here, because all the best player recommendations web sites are for the birds. Authored by people trying to make money from Amazon or other like deals.

What people need to look at is home theater setup articles that cover what does it take to put together a simple setup, or something better.

 

[phrehdd]

The OP question is very common, it’s just most of the web sites don’t cater to explaining the basics at all. Crutchfield has dozens of articles but neglected to explain what blu ray players are about, what they are good for. Got questions ask us is not answer. There was some articles early when blu ray first came on the market, but those articles are so old and not updated. So he posted the question here, because all the best player recommendations web sites are for the birds. Authored by people trying to make money from Amazon or other like deals.

What people need to look at is home theater setup articles that cover what does it take to put together a simple setup, or something better.

I can appreciate the notion that some reviewers do it for reasons that are suspect but some do provide data and we* can choose to use that data to our advantage. One need only put together a list of features mentioned and decide which features are important then move forward with narrowing down the choices. Most will find middle of the road players are sufficient for most playback.

 

[MacBH928]

One thing I like to mention is that bluray players feel more like a mini computer than an appliance. Its slow to load and has loud fans , maybe not all but that is not something I saw with DVDs or Audio CDs.

The earliest 1997 DVD players were from Panasonic and Toshiba. Panasonic ones were very expensive like $750 and $1000 with first models. For that price that were nicely built but electronics didn't live very long. From that point until last 3 years their players were most low end to very recently. Still not offering the same build or feature set. They have fared very well with their HDR10 optimizer, they only recent have a $1000 player again that appeals to fans of better players. Toshiba is like bad choices and picking the wrong standard. Yep they were the main backer to the looser HD-DVD, Blu-ray which Sony backed was the winner. Sony had some expensive players earlier, but they approached market more from the low end ultimately. Phillips was never a good brand, like LG they tend to make not so great players.

You are scaring me because I assumed Panasonic is a very high quality brand. One has to mention that in 1997 the digital media was new, dvd was new, and tech was not as advanced as it is today. I am sure chips and electronics has advanced now and components are much more reliable. Also at that time expensive tech is expected, just compare it to prices of computers of the time (surprisingly videogame consoles were relatively cheap, Playstation was onlny $300 but I believe it was subsidies by game sales)

I can understand your take on the Oppo in the a/v space but have you looked for article/reviews or perhaps at Youtube for older reviews?

While I had an earlier version (103), here is a good video that references Oppo for UHD and talks of other makers -

Well, I am not doubting you I am just saying its not a brand one would think of when it comes to A/V. One must question, if they were so good at a/v why not continue in that path? I know physical media are diminishing slowly but there are lots of room in TVs, camera, audio, and I do not know what else.

Another question is why Pioneer is not making the best players? Surely they are the most expensive, but are they expensive for a reason or just brand name? I always felt they are like the LV of electronics selling on brand name alone.

I know people have been posting links here, but I'm surprised at the lack of discussion of things like HDR and audio codecs that expensive players support, versus cheaper players. There are also other things, like support for multiple frame rate outputs, and chroma settings, dynamic range, and high-quality, high-bit DACs.

Not all of that is important if you don't have a matching high-quality TV or projector. Like buying an expensive MacBook Pro, if you don't know what the M1 Pro or M1 Max are for, you don't need them.

I am not sure if those features are important for 90% of the people. Like Chroma settings, who fiddles with that? most people do not know what Chroma is. My rule of thumb is if I can not notice it immediately it does not matter, no need for 400X zoom in to clarify that one player is better than the other.

For example, with my eyes I can tell the difference between SD sitcoms from the 90s and a current 1080P film. If you can see the difference , this is where it matter imo.

 

[Realityck]

You are scaring me because I assumed Panasonic is a very high quality brand. One has to mention that in 1997 the digital media was new, dvd was new, and tech was not as advanced as it is today. I am sure chips and electronics has advanced now and components are much more reliable. Also at that time expensive tech is expected, just compare it to prices of computers of the time (surprisingly videogame consoles were relatively cheap, Playstation was onlny $300 but I believe it was subsidies by game sales)

Another question is why Pioneer is not making the best players? Surely they are the most expensive, but are they expensive for a reason or just brand name? I always felt they are like the LV of electronics selling on brand name alone.

Panasonic is not what I call a premium brand anymore. A lot of their products were cheaply made the last ten years. They really bungled their TV choices and disappeared from the US marketplace. Read whats under this spoiler. Really the recent much improved 4K players is about the only thing selling from them here in the states. (820, 9000)

Spoiler: What Happened to Panasonic TVs

Things started going downhill for the TV division when Plasma TV sales began to plummet alongside improvements in LCD TV technology. Lower power consumption, LED Backlighting, fast screen refresh rates, and motion processing, as well as the introduction of 4K Ultra HD, resulted in a sales explosion for LCD TVs. Since Plasma was the claim to fame and the main focus of its TV marketing strategy, these developments did not bode well for the company's sales outlook. Consequently, Panasonic ended Plasma TV production in 2014.

Although LG and Samsung also used to feature Plasma TVs in their product lines (both brands also ended production in late 2014), they did not emphasize Plasma over LCD, so its demise did not have as big of a financial impact.

In addition, with increased competition from LG, Samsung, and the aggressive entry of China-based TV makers, Panasonic found itself in a corner as consumers failed to warm to the company's own LCD TV product lines, even though the sets were definitely deserving of consideration.

Despite obstacles, the company continued to make efforts to stay in the market. In 2015 and early 2016, it displayed and delivered budget-priced 4K Ultra HD LCD TVs and hinted at its own OLED TV product line. If this plan had continued, the move would have made it one of the only TV makers, along with LG and Sony, to market OLED TVs in the U.S. Unfortunately, it reversed course on both OLED and LED/LCD. As a result, Panasonic TVs (including OLED) are only available in select markets outside of the U.S.

Pioneer Electronics very recently was almost insolvent. They were sold to Onkyo awhile back. They had some factories shut down for awhile during the pandemic. About the only thing selling of their is some low end AVRs nothing else. Gone are lots of their expensive AVR and components. Onkyo is in sad shape too. So there you have three brands that there isn't that much left of them.

 

[phrehdd]

One thing I like to mention is that bluray players feel more like a mini computer than an appliance. Its slow to load and has loud fans , maybe not all but that is not something I saw with DVDs or Audio CDs.



You are scaring me because I assumed Panasonic is a very high quality brand. One has to mention that in 1997 the digital media was new, dvd was new, and tech was not as advanced as it is today. I am sure chips and electronics has advanced now and components are much more reliable. Also at that time expensive tech is expected, just compare it to prices of computers of the time (surprisingly videogame consoles were relatively cheap, Playstation was onlny $300 but I believe it was subsidies by game sales)



Well, I am not doubting you I am just saying its not a brand one would think of when it comes to A/V. One must question, if they were so good at a/v why not continue in that path? I know physical media are diminishing slowly but there are lots of room in TVs, camera, audio, and I do not know what else.

Another question is why Pioneer is not making the best players? Surely they are the most expensive, but are they expensive for a reason or just brand name? I always felt they are like the LV of electronics selling on brand name alone.



I am not sure if those features are important for 90% of the people. Like Chroma settings, who fiddles with that? most people do not know what Chroma is. My rule of thumb is if I can not notice it immediately it does not matter, no need for 400X zoom in to clarify that one player is better than the other.

For example, with my eyes I can tell the difference between SD sitcoms from the 90s and a current 1080P film. If you can see the difference , this is where it matter imo.

Pioneer for a few years made the top of the line plasma televisions and though it had quite a following, Pioneer stopped producing them because the returns were small based on real numbers sold and cost to make the product. Oppo was not that far from the same situation in that the market was niche and Oppo elected to focus on other markets that bring far more profit. Recall, that IBM used to sell a very popular laptop and did 'okay' with their business desktop computer and left that market (Lenevo picked up their factories in China). Thinkpads was a well known laptop that was used by a lot of businesses as a no nonsense quality laptop. In short, quality and being top notch has little to do with real markets and profits. I'll stand by what others have said about the quality of Oppo players. All top players shortly after were compared to the standard - Oppo's standard and top players.

I would agree that the average person may be satisfied with a lower quality unit that turns out a reasonable picture and audio. One might also conclude that people are used to video and sound quality from streaming services and no matter how many tests show that discs are better, many will insist that streaming is just fine.

 

[MacBH928]

Panasonic is not what I call a premium brand anymore. A lot of their products were cheaply made the last ten years. They really bungled their TV choices and disappeared from the US marketplace. Read whats under this spoiler. Really the recent much improved 4K players is about the only thing selling from them here in the states. (820, 9000)

I dont know, I assumed Panasonic was the last of quality AV producer. HDTVTest on YouTube here announces its the HZ2000 is the best TV for 2020, and here loses to the Sony A90J by less than 1 point for 2021.

Who would you say builds quality TVs? I dropped Samsung since they seem to be pumping out TVs like McDonalds pumps burgers. Family bought a huge Samsung TV for near $3K and started to have some sort of vertical bars of discolouration in about a year or so . it has a name but I forgot what this defect is called.

I would agree that the average person may be satisfied with a lower quality unit that turns out a reasonable picture and audio. One might also conclude that people are used to video and sound quality from streaming services and no matter how many tests show that discs are better, many will insist that streaming is just fine.

To be fair, there is a lot of diminishing returns. A lot of those "pro" A/V guys seem to scan and use tools just to prove that one equipment is higher quality than the other. At this point it doesn't matter imo. To give a similar example, a PS5 is clearly superior to PS3 this does not mean the PS3 is not fun or the game looks bad.

I am a bit ashamed to say I have been watching LaserDiscs lately and thinking the picture looks quite impressive , no its not as good as 4K BD disc but still really nice!

 

[Aggedor]

Who would you say builds quality TVs? I dropped Samsung since they seem to be pumping out TVs like McDonalds pumps burgers. Family bought a huge Samsung TV for near $3K and started to have some sort of vertical bars of discolouration in about a year or so . it has a name but I forgot what this defect is called.

LG. Their OLED televisions are still class-leading.