Confused between Blu Ray and HD Media players

[wave24]

Guys,

I am new to this media player technologies....
HD media players and Blu-ray players are same..?
My requirement is i just want to play my HD content(i mean all formats like mkv).

Which one i should go, either HD media players like WD/Seagate or Bluray players like sony/Samsung/LG.

I have a plan to go for Home theater also but not in near term..will HD media players works with home theaters?

P.S: my LCD does not support USB and can not play mkv..

Regards,
Wave.

 

[rajudhs]

i have a samsung BD C6900 - 3D player with wifi dongle

plays all formats that are common (doesnt play iso, flv etc, which in my case if nonissue)

i am very happy and sold my old HD media player

the above model (new sealed)is on sale for 16K by this forum member from delhi, may be u can buy as MRP is 30K and usually u get it in shop after bargain for 24K
(search for post in for sale section)

u can also consider BD C550, which doesnt have 3d and wifi dongle for 10K new in shop

u can consider sony BD C370 for 8K, but i hear that it doesnt support NTFS format on external HDD, which will be issue, as all MKV's are more than 4GB

 

[friendshpbells]

i have a best of both worlds solution for you


get a universal tech media player with 7.1 passthru and hd 1080p and pair it with an usb blueraay player frm buffallo

total price about 20k

thanks

 

[beauty55]

but where can we get this buffalo blu ray player?

 

[sam9s]

A decent HD player is far more used here (where we can download "stuff") then a Bluray player, A media player can play all formats available with full HD audio support.

 

[roseboy24]

I will suggest best rated Samsung BDP C6900 for internat application play almost every format and best part wifi youtube and other utlity live via internet

 

[wave24]

guys,
need little clarification..
are both these work for same purpose?
what are main advantages and disadvatages of both?

 

[venkatcr]

are both these work for same purpose? what are main advantages and disadvatages of both?

They are not. Let me explain.

A media player is a small device that has a single board based on chip sets from Sigma and Realtek. The primary task of a media player is to play literally every audio and video codecs that are there in the market. Media players have USB connections, an optional hard disk inside, networking capabilities, and some torrent downloading capabilities.

A media player's capability is defined by the software inside - what is called the firmware. New codecs and some issues are resolved by new firmware that are released either by the company itself, and in some cases, by public forums.

A media player, excepting a few, does not have any optical drive such as DVD or Blu-Ray drive. If you need to play a DVD or a Blu-Ray, you have to rip the media into a format that is understandable by the media player.

Media players have very limited processing capabilities such as scaling, up-conversion, DAC etc. They are best used with a digital connection with an external processor such as an AVR doing the processing. Almost all media players have digital connections such as S/PDIF and HDMI. On the other hand, media players have very good networking features and some even have browsers built in. Some new media players are being sold with full QWERTY keyboards.

A media player has a life span of some 5 odd years. Media players range in prices from around 5K and go upto about 25K.

A Blu-Ray player's (BRP) primary task is to play optical disks including Blu-Rays, DVDs and CDs. BRP's are all limited by region coding for Blu-Rays unless you use hardware mods that are available. BRPs do have networking capabilities but have limited torrents and other download features. Some BRPs also play media stored on an external drive using USB connections available. The number of media codecs supported depends upon the player and this has to be carefully checked. BRPs have good to superb processing capabilities and can output signals in both digital and analog domains. Some of the BRPs can decode a full 7.1 signal that can be amplified outside.

Since Blu-Ray is a new format, I would say the life of the current crop of BRPs is about two years. They are going up in features and going down in prices. Manufacturers are rapidly releasing new products at reduced prices. Prices of BRPs start from around 6K and go upto 40K.

Cheers

 

[vktyagi]

That was really informative and simple,just like a forum like HFV carry.
What I understood is, if you do not have a good internet connection or you are looking for simplicity of use, go for BDP, else Media player is a good option.

 

[vktyagi]

That was really informative and simple, just like a forum like HFV have.
What I understood is, if you do not have a good internet connection or you are looking for simplicity of use, go for BDP, else Media player is a good option.

 

[ashishkesarwani]

Why don't you look at an option like Dune BD Prime which is a dedicated media player and it also plays all your Disks too i.e Blu Rays, Dvds, Cds, etc. also its region free out of the box so you are free to source your disks from all corners of the globe.

 

[roseboy24]

pricing idea for dune HD player-3 ?

 

[Lakozy Electronics]

Dune BD Prime retails at 36.5K without the HDD and for 41K with internal HDD.

 

[shredder]

That was really informative and simple, just like a forum like HFV have.
What I understood is, if you do not have a good internet connection or you are looking for simplicity of use, go for BDP, else Media player is a good option.

Boss, neither HD player nor BDP are optimized for internet use. If you have a really fast internet connection then I'm sure you have a laptop or PC to do all the downloading.
To keep it really simple.... if you are a very very rich man then go in for BDP. Each disc is very costly. For every movie title you are going to watch you will have to shell out around 1000 bucks..... but if you are rich then I'm sure you won't feel the pinch. If you are not going to buy Blu ray movies then go in for HD media player.

 

[KrishnaG]

will this WD TV Live play 3D content on 3D tv?
(Just to chk as a future proof, some where i heard that it should be Hdmi 1.4, where this WD TV Live is only1.3).
Any idea?

 

[terence_fdes]

A media player has a life span of some 5 odd years.
Cheers

Thanks Venkat, u always do a good job of explaining things in a simple way. Now pray tell me whay do u fell that Media Players have a life-span of 5 odd years :sad:

Is it that in 5 odd years it's technology will get outdated or "hardware" lifespan ???

 

[akhil7j]

How good are Dune (Smart D1), TViX (Slim S1), Xtreamer Pro, HDx and ACRYAN? My requirement is, the media player should go bitstreaming of HD Audio for movies. It should have good audio quality too if i play my FLAC n APE collection. Although i think it will not use its internal DAC when i will plug HDMI with it.
Few players have Realtek and few have Sigma chipset. Which one is good?

 

[venkatcr]

Thanks Venkat, u always do a good job of explaining things in a simple way. Now pray tell me whay do u fell that Media Players have a life-span of 5 odd years :sad:

Is it that in 5 odd years it's technology will get outdated or "hardware" lifespan ???

I am assuming you are asking why ONLY 5 odd years. This has to do more with the media and the software than the hardware. Let us look at the major components of a media player:

1. The CPU - limited to special chips from Realtek and Sigma Designs. Though some companies have started using the Atom processor, I believe this is an attempt by Intel to get into this market and break the iron grip that Sigma Designs has.

2. Audio Codecs - There are a large number of audio codec and the media players have covered them all. New codecs that come will be covered by a firmware update.

3. Video Codecs - Again like the audio codecs, the players have covered most of the video codecs. Some of the manufacturers are struggling with HD Audio, but it is only a matter of time before that is also cracked. Audio pass through is available for most HD Audio in some of the better players.

4. Video Resolution - Both Sigma and Realtek have covered upto 1080P, and I don't see any new resolution coming into the market for a few years. The only thing missing is 3D.

5. Connectivity - HDMI will slowly destroy all other connectivity excepting maybe the original two channel audio. All media players support 1.3, and new one will start supporting 1.4 variants. The other connectivity that will become ubiquitous in media players is USB. New players will start delivering USB 3.0

6. HDD Support - Media players are able to support most of the file systems that are there (this includes FAT16/FAT32, EXT2/EXT3, NTFS) in the computer market excepting maybe the 3 and 3+TB drives. As the methodology is finalised in the computer market, the media players will simply update their firmware.

7. Network - Media players are already Network savvy with IP address capabilities. This includes PC and NAS in local network (SMB, NFS, UPnP, HTTP), and other Internet and local network media sources (HTTP, multicast UDP/RTP, etc). Some manufacturers (such as WD) are trying to make their players act as servers, and I am not sure that is a good idea. NAS, Torrents, Internet Radio, IPTV, and digital TV support is already there.

I don't see any earthshaking change in any of these areas that will make the media player technology obsolete over the next few years. Minor changes and bugs will be covered with firmware updates. Bigger changes could include faster processors, larger memory with buffering, and maybe the addition of entry level scaling.

The day the current crop of media player technology will become obsolete is when the industry introduces 2160P or higher and a completely new audio codec. I don't see that happening for at least 5 years.

Cheers

 

[theironhorse]

simple.. if you are a download guy.. go for a media player.. no two thoughts.. coz media player will give you the freedom to watch your downloaded stuff like anything else..

if you will rent or buy bd.... bdp is the way...

two of them does a similar job but leagues apart..

 

[baccilus]

Can't you consider an HTPC? It will do everything much better and will be upgradable. You can add a Blue Ray drive later when they become cheaper.