HT Mag Review/Panny Blu Ray 35/55

[RoadRunner6]

I just received my December issue of Home Theater Magazine. They test the new Panasonic Blu Ray players, DMP-BD35 ($299) and DMP-BD55 ($399) (the 55 supports 7.1 channels of analog audio). For those of you that have one of these units on your short list, good news.

The headline states "Full complement of onboard audio decoding...exceptional video processing." Their review says: ".....These new players did outstanding in our new video processing test set. They support full deinterlacing of high-definition and standard DVD playback with great results. These players have definitely set the bar for video playback performance at these prices......a spectacular job in our video tests. These are the first Panasonic players that pass all of our video processing tests for deinterlacing. The UniPhier also did a great job with our resolution tests. It passed information to the very limits of what's available from the Blu-ray format in pristine fashion. You would truly be hard-pressed to find better video performance with Blu-ray and DVD playback at any price.....Overall these new Panasonics represent my top picks for standalone players on the market today....."

The review states that these players are faster than the previous Panny's but still a bit slower than the Sony PS3. They rated the scaling as excellent. The appearance is very different than the previous models 30 and 50. The new models are very thin (approx 2") and look more like a traditional DVD player.

Sound and Vision Magazine recently reviewed the DMP-BD55 and gave it a "highly recommended" review.

Looks like Panny has a couple of winners here at great prices. (Prices including shipping are down to $272 and $355 at Amazon)

http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-e...00000000005702

RR6

[Woochifer]

Now I'm curious to see how these models will fare when the Secrets of Home Theater testers get their hands on these models.

The previous Panny DMP-BD30 failed several of their key benchmark tests when they evaluated that model earlier this year. They were disappointed by the BD30 because Panasonic's DVD players routinely score very high on the Secrets site's benchmark tests -- they were consistently among the highest performing DVD players on the market, and the highest scoring players in their price range until Oppo came along.

If the newer players now fare better with the DVD playback, I wonder if this is particular to what Panasonic is doing, or if the standalone Blu-ray players from other companies will soon follow suit with raising their DVD playback quality.

[RoadRunner6]

Price on the Panny DMP-BD35K is down to $249.10 (6th Ave. with 6% coupon from Coupon Cabin) and the Panny DMP-BD55K is down to $328.82 thru Amazon.

[RoadRunner6]

Amazon $239.10 and $323.37

[RoadRunner6]

Saw the Panny DMP-BD35K today at Costco for $229.99.

[RoadRunner6]

See that Sears had the DMP-BD35 on sale for $149.99 with free shipping last Sunday only.

Wow! I missed that one!

[L.J.]

Man I probably would have snatched one up at that price. I wouldn't mind having a 2nd player.

[RoadRunner6]

It was only on for one day and they were out of it in hours.

Starting on Dec. 5th, Costco is going to have the DNP-BD35K at $279 with an $80 coupon for a net of $199. The coupon should be availblbe online or at the door or at customer service.

[MDL]

How does the 35 or 55 compare to the PS3 blu-ray?

[RoadRunner6]

Home Theater Magazine (Dec. issue not online yet) has a review on the new Panny 35 and 55. They say it is the best stand alone Blu-Ray player yet. It (a component style player) and the PS3 are different animals. If you do games get the PS3. If you don't then the Panny might be a better bet.

[MDL]

If the 55 does 7.1 and the 35 does 5.1, and most DVDs are in 5.1, why buy the 55. Save your money and wait till DVDs turn 7.1 in the future and tech gets better and prices drop on 7.1 players? Good deal at Costco, thank you for the info.

[Worf101]

Stil gonna wait for OPPO. Thanks for the heads up though.

Da Worfster

[dax]

If the 55 does 7.1 and the 35 does 5.1, and most DVDs are in 5.1, why buy the 55. Save your money and wait till DVDs turn 7.1 in the future and tech gets better and prices drop on 7.1 players? Good deal at Costco, thank you for the info.

In my case, I have an older pre/pro which does not have HDMI input/output. It does however, have 5.1 multi-channel anaIog inputs, which the DMP-BD55 provides. The DMP-BD35 does not. FWIW, I paid $299 for the BD55.

[nightflier]

If the 55 does 7.1 and the 35 does 5.1, and most DVDs are in 5.1, why buy the 55. Save your money and wait till DVDs turn 7.1 in the future and tech gets better and prices drop on 7.1 players? Good deal at Costco, thank you for the info.

I thought the DMP-BD35 did 7.1 through the HDMI outputs?

[RoadRunner6]

Yeah, it does. I think MDL confused the specs a little (he was under water for 32 years you know!).

[RoadRunner6]

Here's the review on the DMP-BD35 and DMP-BD55 from Home Theater Magazine.

http://www.hometheatermag.com/discpl...u-ray_players/

[RoadRunner6]

Another review on the BD-35 from our friends in the UK.

http://www.techradar.com/reviews/aud...-477508/review