Blu-ray players Home video

The Bottom Line: The Sony BDP-S550 offers excellent image quality and a solid feature set, but only consider it if you need the multichannel analog outputs.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Surround Sound, 7.3 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Samsung BD-P2550 adds Netflix and Pandora to an already well-featured and top-performing Blu-ray player, with only some minor disc compatibility issues giving us pause.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Universal remote control, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, Surround Sound, 6.8 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Panasonic DMP-BD35 represents the best value in standalone Blu-ray players, with excellent image quality, a comprehensive feature set, and a price that's significantly lower than the PS3.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, Dolby Digital, DTS decoder, Dolby True HD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD, Stereo, Black, 5.7 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Panasonic DMP-BD55 is the best standalone Blu-ray we've tested and it's a good choice for those with older receivers, but most people will get the same performance out of the cheaper DMP-BD35.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Universal remote control, DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Surround Sound, Black, 5.7 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Insignia NS-BRDVD is competent as a relatively cheap, barebones Blu-ray player, but better players are coming and the Sony PlayStation 3 is a superior option for those with just a little more cash.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Stereo, 9 lbs

The Bottom Line: The combination of its small design, solid feature set, and excellent image quality make the Sony BDP-S350 a worthwhile standalone Blu-ray player--especially if you can find it for less than $300.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Stereo

The Bottom Line: The Samsung BD-P1500 offers generous Blu-ray functionality at a budget price, thanks to several firmware updates and aggressive retailer discounts.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Universal remote control, DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Stereo, 8.6 lbs

The Bottom Line: Excellent soundtrack support and Profile 2.0-compliancy make the Panasonic DMP-BD50 the most recommendable standalone Blu-ray player to date, but the PS3 is still better and cheaper.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Stereo, Black, 7.3 lbs

The Bottom Line: The BDP7200 has a unique design and is Profile 1.1 compliant, but subpar Blu-ray image quality and the lack of onboard audio decoding options limit its appeal.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, Dolby Digital, Surround Sound, 9.3 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Sharp BD-HP20U is a decent Blu-ray player that can load some discs superfast, but there are better options out there.

Specs: Blu-Ray disc player, Tabletop, Remote control, DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS-HD decoder, Dolby Digital Plus, Surround Sound, 8.8 lbs