This buying guide will help you decide whether a Blu-ray player is worth buying based on your specific needs, budget, and tastes.
Blu-ray Disc players can play HD (1080p) content in addition to DVDs and CDs, while 4K Ultra Blu-ray players can also play 4K Blu-ray videos. All Blu-ray players feature video upscaling, which provides a noticeable improvement, although the DVD doesn't look as good as the actual Blu-ray disc.
Most players can stream audio and video content from services such as Netflix and Hulu, local home networks (PCs and media servers), and compatible USB devices such as flash drives.
Some Blu-ray Disc players include screen mirroring (Miracast). Screen Mirroring allows you to share audio and video from a compatible smartphone or tablet to your TV and audio system.
Some players offer CD to USB ripping functionality, allowing music to be copied from a CD to a USB flash drive.
An HDTV is required to take full advantage of a Blu-ray player, while a 4K TV is required to take advantage of 4K Ultra Blu-ray video.
As of the time of this article's publication, some of the best Blu-ray or Ultra HD Blu-ray players cost between $80 and $1,000 or more. A higher price usually means more connectivity options, better video processing, a wider network, and more internet streaming options.
Another advanced feature is analog audio playback, suitable for those listening to audiophile target formats such as CD as well as SACD and DVD audio discs.
Consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X have built-in Blu-ray players that can handle both regular and 4K video. PS4 and Xbox One also have built-in Blu-ray players, but the PS4 cannot play 4K content.
Ultra HD Blu-ray players can output 4K resolution in addition to HD. If you have a 4K Ultra HD TV, a Blu-ray Disc player with 4K upscaling will make Blu-ray Disc (and DVD) content look better on your 4K Ultra HD TV. DVD upscaling is not the same as true HD (1080p), and 4K upscaling does not provide the same results as true 4K. Still, for many consumers, it's close enough.
You cannot play UHD Blu-ray format discs on regular Blu-ray Disc players. However, UHD players can play Blu-ray Discs (2D/3D), DVDs (both Blu-ray Discs and DVDs have 4K upscaling) and music CDs. Most players also provide access to streaming content (including 4K) and content from other compatible devices on your home network.
The Blu-ray Disc format has region encoding and copy protection systems. Players sold in specific regions of the world follow specific region codes. However, the number of regions is smaller than on DVD, and Blu-ray discs are not always region encoded.
All new Blu-ray Disc players have HDMI outputs for video output, but some models do include component output options. For audio, the player has HDMI and digital optical or digital coaxial audio outputs (and sometimes 5.1/7.1 channel analog audio outputs).
Here's what each connection looks like so you can understand what you have.
Some players have two HDMI outputs that send audio and video to different destinations.
High-end Blu-ray Disc players usually have 5.1/7.1 channel analog outputs, allowing the decoded surround sound signal to be transmitted to an AV receiver with 5.1/7.1 analog inputs.
All players (except some early models) have an Ethernet/LAN port for wired connections to your home network and the Internet (most players also have built-in Wi-Fi).
Blu-ray Disc players typically have one or two USB ports that you can use to load firmware updates and provide one or more of the following features:
- BD-Live memory expansion provides access to additional online content related to specific Blu-ray Disc titles.
- Access digital media files stored on flash drives.
Blu-ray Discs can play other audio formats, depending on the model, including
- Dolby TrueHD
- Dolby Atmos
- DTS-HD Master Audio
- Digital transmission:X
- Linear PCM
The player can decode some of these formats internally or pass them to a home theater receiver for decoding.
If your receiver is not compatible with these formats, the player will automatically detect this and default to standard Dolby Digital/DTS.
FAQThere is no specific type of HDMI cable required for 4K, as long as it conforms to the 1.4 or 2.0 HDMI standard. High-end cables like HDMI 2.1 will provide a more stable image, but as long as you don't experience video stability issues, you don't need a cable.
Unless you're particularly interested in visual 3D effects, 4K Blu-ray is the way to go. 3D TVs are all but dead these days, and 4K Blu-rays don't offer 3D, so any 3D Blu-rays you find won't match 4K resolution.
Blu-ray region codes (located on the back of the case) include regions A, B, C, and ABC. ABC says the disc is region-free, meaning it can be played anywhere without region restrictions.
