BD50

Following on from the massively successful blu-ray dvd player, the DMP-BD30 this new DMP-BD50 model has even more features and many more benefits. And all for a sensible price too.


The DMP-BD50 is BD ROM Profile 2.0 enabled, and it also has an Ethernet connection which means you can access all the interactive features of BD-Live online and download updates. There is also a SD memory card slot - so you can download content for compatible Blu-ray titles onto the DMP-BD50, including subtitles and BD-Java applications.

There is also onboard decoding for DMP-BD50 HD audio, that is Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. This means the BD50 can still provide HD quality sound even for those of us who don't have a receiver equipped to decode these formats. This is done via either HDMI or the player's 5.1 multichannel analogue output.

To this end the DMP-BD50 is equipped with an HDMI (V1.3) output, which can upscale standard definition DVDs to 1080p and output a 1080p/24fps signal.

BD50

This certainly does a cracking job, the Blu-ray images having excellent edge definition and crispness. The DMP-BD50 really does make films very realistic.

Play the construction site chase scene from 'Casino Royale' and the level of detail the BD50 shows is phenominal. And it's as good on a plasma as a projector.

Even when up-scaling a normal DVD such as 'The Bank Job', the DMP-BD50 still displays an image which is easily the best in class.

As well as decoding the HD audio itself, you can still send the raw audio data as bitstream over HDMI and letting your receiver do the decoding. It does produce a better sound this way but at least you have the choice.

BD50

The DMP-BD50 is certainly better than the PS3 when it comes to both picture and sound quality. Unless you have money to waste then this is as good as you need.

To be honest the BD50 CD playback isn't great and a stand-alone CD player at even half the price would be better but that is no surprise.

Accessing the BD-Live and BD-Java features is very easy - plug the player into your router via Ethernet, test your connection through the on-screen menus and off you go.

The BD50 brings together an excellent specification with excellent performance. It really is a hard act to beat.

Home | BD50 Info | Panasonic DMP-BD50 Spec | DMPBD50 Reviews | Sitemap