Latest Blu-ray Players Add Bonus Features

Philip's unit shoots to the top thanks to its balance of price and impressive image quality. Sony's PS3 remains a strong runner-up.

Melissa J. Perenson, PC World

Thursday, May 29, 2008, 04:00 PM PDT

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	Rank	Name
PID
	1 BEST BUY	Philips BDP7200/37 • Price when rated: $400 • HDMI 1.3 • Up to 5.1 channels of audio • Blu-ray BonusView Check latest prices Great image and sound quality make up for some weak design choices, such as the lack of an ethernet port. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review • Test Report
	2	Sony PlayStation 3 • Price when rated: $400 • HDMI 1.3 • Up to 7.1 channels of audio • Blu-ray BonusView Check latest prices 40GB Game console doubles as a competitive Blu-ray Disc player. Images look good, but often lack the depth and sharpness of other players. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review
	3	Sharp BD-HP20U • Price when rated: $550 • HDMI 1.3 • Up to 5.1 channels of audio • Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Digital Plus decoding Check latest prices Basic model has fast disc-loading and response times and terrific image quality, but lacks support for the newer features that Blu-ray BonusView enables. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review • Test Report

	4	Panasonic DMP-BD30 • Price when rated: $500 • HDMI 1.3 • Up to 5.1 channels of audio • Blu-ray BonusView Check latest prices Image quality is generally good, but images often look too bright and washed out. Offers high-resolution audio output over bitstream, but no on-board decoding. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review • Test Report
	5	Samsung BD-P1400 • Price when rated: $400 • HDMI 1.3 • Up to 5.1 channels of audio • Ethernet port Check latest prices Older-generation player consistently displays overly bright images; has on-board decoding of lossless audio codecs, but its audio sounds less full than that of other models. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review • Test Report
	6	Pioneer Elite BDP-95FD • Price when rated: $1000 • HDMI 1.3a • Up to 5.1 channels of audio • Media server Check latest prices Uberexpensive Blu-ray Disc player features solid images and top-notch audio, but it lacks newer features such as BonusView, and images occasionally appear too dark. (Last Rated: May 28, 2008) Full Review • Test Report

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