blu-ray

Top 40 must-have Blu-ray discs

Apologies for being a little tardy on updating our long-running list of must-have Blu-ray movies, but here it is, refreshed for 2013. This month's updates entries include "Alfred Hitchcock: The Masterpiece Collection," "The Avengers," "Finding Nemo," "Jaws," "Lawrence of Arabia," and "Titanic."

Though my face is at the top of the column, the list was compiled with input from editors John Falcone, Matthew Moskovciak, and David Katzmaier, who look at a lot of video content in their day-to-day testing of products. We also keep an eye on AVS Forum's Blu-ray picture-quality and audio-quality threads, and have always appreciated the site's tiered rating system.

This list is not set in stone, and we'll be adding and removing discs as new ones come out. As always, feel free to make comments and suggest your own personal favorites. They may get added to the list in the future. … Read more

Keep your Blu-rays and DVDs, Hollywood -- I've gone digital

It had been years since I actually bought a DVD or a Blu-ray copy of a movie. But over Christmas, I bought one. I really wanted those extra features that a physical disk provides. Why not get a Blu-ray with a digital copy, I thought, and have the best of both worlds?

Why not turned out to be because redeeming digital copies is a nightmare. Are you getting a copy for iTunes? Or for Amazon? Or whatever on earth UltraViolet is supposed to be, something that finally crashed into my awareness as a new Blu-ray owner?

The film in … Read more

Sony's 2013 Blu-ray players stream media from iOS and Android devices

LAS VEGAS--Sony is holding most of its home theater announcements for its line show in the spring, but the company did announce its new lineup of Blu-ray players at CES 2013.

Sony's 2013 line of Blu-ray players comprises three new models, the BDP-S1100, BDP-S3100, and BDP-S5100. All three models have a fully encased optical drive, which Sony claims reduces internal dust. The two higher-end models include built-in Wi-Fi and all three can access Sony's full suite of streaming-media services, which includes Netflix, Pandora, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant, Crackle, and YouTube. That's a step up from most manufacturers, … Read more

Sony to launch 4K video distribution system this summer

LAS VEGAS--One of the big problems with 4K TVs right now, aside from the fact that it's tough to discern any benefit from their extra resolution, is lack of content. Sony, alone among TV or content providers so far, actually aims to tackle that issue around the same time it launches its full line of 4K TVs later this year.

This summer the company will set up a dedicated video distribution service to deliver 4K content to the home, complete with a hardware 4K Video Player that can feed the TVs directly.

Currently buyers who pony up $25K for … Read more

At CES, Panasonic leads with Viera smart TVs

LAS VEGAS--It was short and sweet, and if you blinked, you might have missed it. We're talking about Panasonic's press conference at CES today.

The star of the show, unsurprisingly, was Panasonic's 2013 line of Viera TVs. But the consumer electronics giant also showed off a range of other new products, from midrange LCD TVs, to new Blu-ray players, to Bluetooth speakers, to a range of micro home stereos, and finally a set of bone-conducting headphones.

It may not have been the shortest press conference of the day (Lexus called it quits at 13 minutes), but before … Read more

Panasonic rolls out new Blu-ray players, high-end models get Miracast

LAS VEGAS--Panasonic (along with Sony) has been one of the the biggest Blu-ray supporters since the format's inception, and the company continues to heavily support the format even as its importance fades.

Panasonic unveiled four new Blu-ray models at CES 2013: two 3D models (DMP-BDT330 and DMP-BDT230) and two 2D models (DMP-BDT89 and DMP-BD79). All of the models save for the the DMP-BD79 include built-in Wi-Fi.

The 3D models include Panasonic full Viera Connect suite of streaming-media services, as well as 2D-3D conversion and a Web browser. Both models also support Miracast (Panasonic calls it Display Mirroring), which makes … Read more

Walmart will convert your discs to digital from your home

Walmart will soon be able to convert your DVD movies to online digital content right from your own PC.

The company's Disc-to-Digital service already handles that type of conversion. But the current process requires you to hop over to your local Walmart store to get your DVD converted.

Starting sometime this month, the expanded service will handle the whole conversion with you driving it from your PC. Using its Vudu video streaming service, Walmart will convert your DVD and Blu-ray movies and TV shows into UltraViolet digital copies. Those copies are then stored in your own online libraries where … Read more

Toshiba's Media Boxes focus on streaming first, Blu-rays second

LAS VEGAS--One could argue that Blu-ray players have been misnamed for years. Yes, they play your Blu-rays, but they're even more about their embedded Smart TV suites that serve up streaming video and music.

That's the angle Toshiba is taking, rolling our four new devices curiously called "Media Box with Blu-ray Disc player capabilities." That's more awkward than it needs to be, but it's hard not to like Toshiba reversing the importance of Blu-ray and streaming capabilities.

The specific features are broken down in the chart to the right. Miracast is supported by all … Read more

LG's 2013 Blu-ray players include DIY wireless headphones feature

LAS VEGAS--Home theater evokes wall-shaking action films, but in the real world sometimes you can't watch your Blu-rays like you're actually at the movies.

The two higher-end models in LG's new 2013 Blu-ray lineup, the BP530 and BP730, have an interesting feature called "private sound mode" designed for those moments when you can't crank your system. Using an app on your smartphone, private sound mode lets you listen to the audio from your Blu-ray player, creating essentially a DIY wireless headphone solution. And while that may not exactly be a "breakout" feature, … Read more

Samsung's BD-F7500 flagship Blu-ray player upconverts to 4K, recommends content

It's hard to breathe new life into the stale Blu-ray category at CES 2013, but Samsung is giving it its best shot with the BD-F7500.

The Samsung BD-F7500 is the newly announced flagship Blu-ray player, including the company's new "S-Recommendation" feature, which suggests content based on what you watch. The BD-F7500's step-up features are rounded out by its 7.1 analog outputs and its ability to upscale content to 4K resolution.

Like most Samsung Blu-ray players these days, it has built-in Wi-Fi and access to Samsung's Smart Hub suite of streaming-media services. More importantly, … Read more