Samsung's trio of Blu-ray HTIBs get DLNA, Wi-Fi, apps

Samsung HT-C6730W

(Credit: Samsung)

LAS VEGAS--We liked most of the Blu-ray home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) systems we reviewed in 2009, but the Samsung HT-BD1250 stood as the best, thanks to its excellent sound quality (for an HTIB, at least). Samsung has announced a new line of Blu-ray HTIBs at CES 2010, adding features like DLNA-compatibility, Samsung Apps, and Wi-Fi. Here are the details.

Key features of the Samsung HT-C6500:

• 5.1 home theater system
• Built-in Blu-ray player
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• 1GB onboard storage
• Supports Internet@TV/Samsung Apps, which will provide content from Netflix, Pandora, Vudu, Blockbuster, Picasa, and Twitter
• Automatic speaker calibration
• No release date or pricing announced

Key step-up features of the Samsung HT-C7530W:

• Nature-inspired "Touch of Color" design
• Wireless rear speakers
• The HT-C7530W requires a USB dongle for Wi-Fi, unlike the other two models
• No release date or pricing announced

Key step-up features of the Samsung HT-C6730W:

• 7.1 home theater system
• 1330 total watts
• No release date or pricing announced

Internet@TV and Samsung Apps are Samsung's new proprietary content portals for home theater products. As of now, it's not perfectly clear exactly how it will work; Samsung says that the first free apps will launch in the spring, with premium apps following in the summer. When we talked to a Samsung rep at the booth, he said that standard services like Netflix, Pandora, and Vudu would all be free; he used Tetris as an example of something that would be a premium app. We get the feeling that a lot of the particulars still have to be worked out.

From first glance, the specs look to be mostly comparable to the recently announced Blu-ray HTIBs from LG. The main difference is that Samsung hasn't detailed if these HTIBs will have any HDMI connectivity; all of the LG systems have at least one HDMI input for an additional device, like a cable box.