Five Blu-ray HTIBs compared: Incredible bang-for-your-buck

DVD home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) systems seem to offer a lot of value from the spec sheets, but are often seriously disappointing in use, with lackluster audio and video being the norm. Our experience with Blu-ray HTIBs has been the exact opposite; almost all of the systems we've tested this year offer a legitimate home theater experience often for only a couple hundreds dollars more than a standalone Blu-ray player.

The Samsung HT-BD1250 is the standout system, largely because of its best-in-class sound quality. Usually we find that HTIBs just don't sound good with music, but the HT-BD1250 upset our prejudices, handling even a solo piano CD with finesse. When you add in Netflix and Pandora streaming, excellent Blu-ray image quality, and load times as fast as the Samsung BD-P3600, the HT-BD1250 is tough to beat.

Right on its heels is the LG LHB953. The LG matches Samsung's Blu-ray playback, has a slick pull-out iPod dock, and features even more streaming services, including Netflix, Pandora, YouTube, and CinemaNow. It doesn't quite sound as good as the Samsung, nor does the design look as slick, but with a street price of about $70 less, it's a good choice for those on a tight budget.

We tested the two Panasonic systems first and expected, based on how much better they sounded compared with typical DVD-based HTIBs, that they would be the best-sounding of the Blu-ray bunch. While they do deliver credible home theater sound, they fell a bit short of the Samsung and the LG, although the ultrasmall speakers are definitely decor-friendly. The Panasonic systems don't have the popular Netflix and Pandora streaming services, but they do feature Amazon Video On Demand, Picasa, and YouTube.

Rounding out the list is Sony's BDV-E500W. It's certainly not a bad system and it's the only one that includes wire rear speakers out of the box. On the other hand, it's the most expensive, lacks any streaming media services, and its sound quality was only average. While we liked the Sony's style, we found it hard to justify its price premium over the other excellent options.