Sony BDP-N460

Sony may be the "face" of Blu-ray, but the company's standalone Blu-ray players have been a step behind those of Panasonic, LG, and Samsung, which featured extensive streaming media functionality early in 2009.

The Sony BDP-N460 is Sony's attempt at catch-up, released just a month before the holiday season and Netflix-enabled a few weeks afterward. Yes, the BDP-N460 is overdue, but it's largely worth the wait. It has a suite of streaming services (Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand, YouTube, Slacker, and NPR) that challenges the media-rich LG BD390 at a substantially lower price.

The BDP-N460 can't compete with the BD390 when it comes to hardware features, though; it's missing built-in Wi-Fi, onboard storage, multichannel analog outputs and media streaming over your home network. The PS3 Slim is also available for about a hundred dollars more, which is worth it if you want a high-definition gaming console and media streamer.

Still, the BDP-N460 offers a compelling combination of streaming functionality and solid Blu-ray playback at a more affordable price, making is a strong choice for buyers on a budget.