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How to Choose and Buy a Blu-Ray Disc Player

As the Blu-ray disc player is new to the UK market, there are currently only a few models available for you to choose from. However, here are some hints and tips to help you to ensure that the model you are considering is the right one for you:

Sound Quality

If you’re planning to connect your Blu-ray disc player to your home cinema system for the ultimate home movie experience, make sure that you check the product specifications to ensure that you buy the most suitable model for your system. Most models offer Dolby Digital and DTS decoding, but some models offer Dolby 5.1 channel surround sound whereas others offer Dolby 7.1 channel surround sound, for example.

Style and Size

Although there are only a few models of Blu-ray disc player available at the moment, there are different styles and colours on the market, so make sure that you choose a model that will suit your living room and, if possible, match the rest of your audio-visual equipment.

Playable Formats

Most models of Blu-ray disc player are backwards compatible, so you’ll be able to watch your old DVDs as well as new Blu-ray discs. However, if you are likely to want to watch other disc and file formats, such as DVD+R/RW, JPEG or MP3, check the product description of any model that you are considering carefully to ensure that you’ll be able to play these formats on it.

Price

Even though the range of Blu-ray disc players available at the moment is limited, some models are far more expensive than others. You can also find the same model of Blu-ray disc player available from different online retailers at different prices, so it’s well worth shopping around. Visit our Where to Buy section for details of some of the leading online retailers.

Guarantee

As a Blu-ray disc player can be fairly expensive compared to a standard DVD player, it’s worth checking the terms of the manufacturer’s guarantee carefully before buying a particular model. You may want to extend the guarantee.

Further Information

You can find out about some of the most popular brands and models of Blu-ray disc player on the market in our Brands and Top Models sections.

For details of some of the top online suppliers, including details of their delivery times and post and packaging costs, visit our Where to Buy section.

You can learn more about other types of DVD player in our Types section.

To find out about some of the different types of accessories that you can buy to go with your new DVD player, visit our Accessories section.