Insignia NS-2BRDVD photos

The Insignia NS-2BRDVD is an underfeatured and slow-loading Blu-ray player, but it provides basic Blu-ray playback at a bargain.

Matthew Moskovciak

Feb. 17, 2009 1:01 p.m. PT

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Insignia NS-2BRDVD

When you opt for a budget product rather than a name brand, it usually means you're looking for "good enough" instead of perfect. The Insignia NS-2BRDVD, from one of Best Buy's in-house suppliers, is a classic example of the former. The Blu-ray player lacks step-up features (such as Profile 2.0 compatibility and full high-resolution soundtrack decoding) and speedy, glitch-free performance seen on top players like the Samsung BD-P2500 and the Sony BDP-S550.

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Design

The Insignia NS-2BRDVD has a traditional boxy shape, with the front face plate covered in glossy black. The gloss doesn't extend beyond the very front, which makes it less slick than the Samsung BD-P1500's "block of obsidian" look.

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Front panel

Front panel controls include the handy chapter forward/backward buttons. Off farther to the left (not pictured), there's also a nicely sized LED screen that's easily readable from about 8 feet back.

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Rear panel

Connectivity is standard. There's an HDMI output, capable of outputting high-definition video up to 1080p resolution, upscaling standard DVDs to 1080p, and handling high-resolution multichannel audio.

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Connectivity

There's also a component-video output, which can output Blu-ray Discs at 1080i and DVDs at 480p, along with a legacy composite-video connection. Audio connections include both optical and coaxial digital audio outputs, as well as a stereo analog audio output. You'll also notice the NS-2BRDVD has an Ethernet port, but as of right now it doesn't have any use.

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High resolution audio decoding

The NS-2BRDVD's high-resolution soundtrack decoding options are below-average. While it does feature the Dolby TrueHD logo on the outside, closer examination reveals that it can only supports the format in stereo; it supports the step-down Dolby Digital Plus in full surround. It also lacks DTS-HD Master Audio decoding, although it does support the step-down format, DTS-HD High Resolution.

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Remote

The included remote will look familiar to anyone with Samsung home theater gear (it's a near clone), which means button placement and differentiation is pretty good. One nice touch is that the main playback buttons glow in the dark, which makes it easier to use in a darkened home theater.