OTHER TECH

The Overall Picture:

Media streaming has elevated the basic Blu-ray Disc player into a virtual entertainment portal. With your player plugged into a home network, be it a hard-wired, Powerline, or even a Wi-Fi one, you can now maximize your Netflix account's value by tapping the Watch Instantly option, rent movies through CinemaNow, listen to music on Pandora Internet Radio, view videos on YouTube, and look at photos online through Google's Picasa. That's in addition to watching DVDs and Blu-ray movies with high-resolution video and audio. And if you happen to choose one of these three players, you can have this all for under $300!

Panasonic's DMP-BD60 offers great picture quality, plenty of desirable A/V features, and solid, reliable performance. If I were shopping for a Blu-ray player, it would be at the top of my list. Still, its content-streaming options pale in comparison with the Samsung and LG models - a situation that will change if Panasonic's promised Amazon Video on Demand update comes through. Since I'm a regular user of both Netflix and Pandora, the Samsung BD-P1600's feature set was right up my alley. And I also appreciated that player's quick, responsive handling and very good overall video performance. Next up is LG's BD370. This player was the best looking of the bunch, and it has a great range of streaming options, including Netflix and CinemaNow. But video performance lagged somewhat behind the other two players, and its front-panel-only USB port configuration has definitely gotta go.