Lowest price BR player yet, I believe

[Mr Peabody]

Target will be selling the Olevia BD-100 for only $149.99.

Also, Pioneer dropped the Elite BD-05 to $550.00 for those going upscale a bit. No computer connectivity but 7.1 analog outs. Internal Tru-HD & DTS-MA as well as bitstream of both.

Looks like the new NAD 587 won't have any analog outs. I guess maybe that info may not be available but the video and other connections are shown. On the upside the 587 will have both ethernet and USB connectivity. Internal and bitstream HD audio formats.

Will the $149.99 unit make a difference? I read the lowering of prices by the name brand manufacturers has the entry level Chinese players sitting on the shelves.

I still say the biggest bang for the buck player considering price to performance and feature richness is the Samsung BD-P2550. If the Elite BD-05 had any of the intense video processing of their flagship, videophiles would have to take a long look at it now at $550.00 from $799.00. I think no internet connectivity will be a drawback though for some.

[02audionoob]

Speaking of Olevia and Target...Our local Target has a 50-inch Olevia LCD and a 50-inch Sony LCD side by side running the same program. The Olevia pales by comparison. Less contrast, less color, less nuance of color, more blur and more visible pixels. One thing I noticed about the Samsung player...it says on the box it doesn't play DVD+R, although I realize most people won't care about that.

[Woochifer]

That Olevia is likely the same Funai player that gets rebadged as Magnavox, Insignia, Memorex, etc. Funai's a Japanese company, and they're the only ones that actually manufacture the off-brand Blu-ray players. IIRC, the Insignia version had been selling for $150, and I've seen the Memorex variant selling for $140 to $170.

An off-brand player would have to undercut the name brand players by about $100 before people start taking notice. That's how Apex Digital briefly emerged as the #1 selling DVD player, before price cuts on name brand DVD players (and Apex's poor product quality) collapsed their market share. If the entry level Pannys and Samsungs are widely available for around $200, then $150 for an off-brand player won't be low enough.

[Ajani]

That Olevia is likely the same Funai player that gets rebadged as Magnavox, Insignia, Memorex, etc. Funai's a Japanese company, and they're the only ones that actually manufacture the off-brand Blu-ray players. IIRC, the Insignia version had been selling for $150, and I've seen the Memorex variant selling for $140 to $170.

An off-brand player would have to undercut the name brand players by about $100 before people start taking notice. That's how Apex Digital briefly emerged as the #1 selling DVD player, before price cuts on name brand DVD players (and Apex's poor product quality) collapsed their market share. If the entry level Pannys and Samsungs are widely available for around $200, then $150 for an off-brand player won't be low enough.

I agree... I can't see that many people being swayed to risk a potentially 'crap' brand just to save $50... now if the cheapo brands sell for $100, while entry level name brands are going for $200 - $250, then that might sway a few penny pinchers...

[Feanor]

Target will be selling the Olevia BD-100 for only $149.99.

....

Bestbuy.ca has a brand name, i.e. Samsung BDP1500 (http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10106636&catid=25174), on sale for Cdn $179.99 which as of today, (Dec 23/08), equals US$147.95.

Or you can get the player for C$100 with any Samsung 1080p LCD, e.g.
Samsung 1080p 40" LCD (LN40A530) (http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?langid=EN&logon=&sku_id=0926HDS0010099644).

[Mr Peabody]

If BB sells the 1500 for $147.00 Canadian, I wonder what they sell the Insignia for? If it's the same or just a couple dollars less and if the same scenario is in the U.S. BB, then you can see how the off brands are still sitting on the shelf.