LG Electronics LG BH200 Blu-ray/HD-DVD Player

Reviewed by: artman1

Duration of ownership:

Strengths: Plays HD-DVDs and Blu-rays, outputs Dolby True HD and DTS(with firmware update), looks great, has come way down in price.

Weaknesses: Will no longer be available by the end of the year.

Overall Evaluation: What to do, what to do. Get rid of my HD-DVDs, knowing that my HD-DVD player will go south some day, or buy myself a backup that will also allow me to watch Blu-rays(the format on which many of my favorite movies have been released)? If the BH200 was still 800.00, I would have bailed on HD-DVD for sure. But for less than 500.00 at Circuit City(with an 8% off coupon from AAA), I decided to stay in the game. When you can get HD-DVD's for less than $10, why not?Anyway, the BH200 is a very nice-looking piece of equipment. The buttons on the front panel are circular and are surrounded by blue lights that light up in sequence when you power it on or off. When you press the buttons, a pleasant chime is heard. Asthetically, this one of the nicer pieces of equipment I've ever owned.Functionally, I haven't tested it extensively, but it's had no problem recognizing any of the HD-DVD's or Blu-ray's I've fed it so far. With a firmware update(that can be downloaded from LG, and which you can install via a USB thumb drive, or CD), it can output Dolby True HD and DTS to a receiver that can decode it(I bought the Onkyo TX-SR606). The setup allows for a nice variety of configuration options, including a few types of video noise reduction.Unfortunately, LG will no longer be producing any hybrid HD players after this year, so, while this has resulted in the price of this player coming way down, it has also resulted in these units disappearing from a lot of stores. So if you're inclined to get one, and can get a good deal, you might want to grab one while you can. In any event, I would definitely recommend the LG BH200.