Samsung BD-P1600 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player

• Experience vivid, crystal-clear visuals that are more natural, more realistic and simply stunning with Blu-ray's full 1080p HD resolution
• Stream Blockbuster, Netflix, YouTube & Pandora
• Multi-format playback lets you enjoy Blu-ray Discs, DVD, CD, MP3/WMA, JPEG, AVCHD and more
• Enjoy BD-Live support for accessing fresh content
• Dolby TrueHD / DTS-HD MA technologies for high-definition audio

I received this blu-ray machine at the and of April, 2009, along with a Samsung HDTV. The player has worked fine playing discs, streaming NetFlix and Pandora until last month. An automatic firmware update which I accepted via the internet introduced a bug which renders the machine inoperable. The machine is now locked with the display only showing "LOAD." There is no main menu and discs in the player when turned on have no effect of 'jump-starting' the machine.

I discussed the issue with Samsung Tech Support ('support' being used loosely here) and they informed me that this is a known issue and their engineers are working on a solution. In the meantime, I've seen bulletin board discussions with people having the same problem. Samsung representatives continuously suggest the same, ineffective 'solutions' : hold down the FF button; install the latest firmware update which, a> is impossible since the player is locked and b> the original cause of the machine not working.

The final solution from Samsung representatives is to send the machine in for repair. During a support chat session with Samsung, I was informed that the price of this would be $160.00. I paid only $80 for it, as there was an Amazon discount of $200 on any player purchased with a qualifying TV.

The idea that Samsung is expecting customers to return the machine for repair and pay for those repairs is ridiculous. It is their own firmware, which they deliver to these machines, that is the cause of these problems.

As I mentioned earlier, the quality of the player when it was functioning is great. However, with it in its current state, and Samsung's fleecing of their customers, it has led me to "spread the word" and in no way, shape, or form can I possibly recommend this product or any other Samsung product until something is done.

Samsung should be offering a re-call of this product and replacing it at no cost to consumers. Until then, Samsung goes on my "Do Not Buy" list.

UPDATE (12/23/09): Finally got Samsung to resolve issue. See my comment below for details. Changed from 1-star to 3-stars. Can't go any higher than that based on original issues, though.

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This is a good value for a blu-ray player with the new online features available such as Netflix, Pandora, and BD-Live. It is small and easy to install and setup. I use the HDMI output to my Samsung HDTV and the Optical Digital Audio output to my AV receiver. The Anynet+ feature is convenient which helps the Samsung components work together reducing button pushing. I hooked up an ethernet cable and easily got it online and setup with my pre-existing accounts with Netflix and Pandora. I've read BD-Live requires a USB 1GB flash drive. I have download cable modem speeds in 6MB/s range so the picture quality is very good from Netflix, I'd say equivalent to upconverted DVD quality. Audio quality from Pandora is also excellent and the commercial-free music service is supreme. Blu-ray DVDs look fantastic and upconverted standard DVDs look great too. This does not have the higher-end HQV chip to my knowledge. The face pushbutton interface is cool and has a high-tech feel to it. Load time is very fast about 8 to 10s. The menus look good and are easy to navigate. No complaints here. I'm very pleased getting all these features for entry level money.

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I bought one of these to replace a PS3 because I hated that it looked like a wart in my setup, had a loud fan, and could not bitstream. Finally there is a small blu-ray standalone that is fast, has a great picture and can bitstream advanced audio. It looks great in the rack and the netflix/pandora features are a nice bonus. I won't be missing the PS3 at all.

BTW, it is known that a 1GB usb drive is needed for BD live enabled titles. If you do not have one installed, and are not internet connected BD-live titles will not play unless BD-Live is disabled under the settings. I don't know why it is enabled by default, but the couple of guys that had unplayable discs could have fixed that problem my disabling BD-Live or inserting a 1GB flash drive. A little research will yield a lot.

Since the player is brand new (almost pre-release) there may be hiccups, but expect firmware to address them as they are found. As is, the player is playing all my blu-rays spectacularly. This is a great player. Don't hesitate if the features meet your needs.

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This blu-ray player functions well and is reasonably priced. Blu-ray loading takes about 20 seconds. Picture quality is excellent. My only negative comment is that the motor is noisy, which makes for a rather distracting whirring sound much more noticeable than my standard dvd player that is ever present in the background. This would be fine if the unit were stored in a cabinet to muffle the sound.

I got this unit to replace an aging DVD player, relieve some stress from my PS3 and replace an older Netflix streaming video player. The price point for this unit makes it affordable to anyone wanting to enter the Blu-Ray market for the first time. The additional features such as Netflix make it a no brainer in my opinion. If you are already a subscriber to Netflix, why not watch the Instant Movies on your TV instead of your laptop or computer? The biggest issue I see people having is that the wording by Samsung about "wireless" is confusing since it does not have "wireless" access out of the box. They offer a dongle you can purchase separately (not yet available), but I found that for the same price you can buy an Ethernet Bridge Linksys by Cisco WET610N Wireless-N Ethernet Bridge with Dual-Band and just used the wired port. The advantage here is that the bridge can be used for any device, so if you change out the player with something else in the future, your investment in the bridge is protected. I also got the added bonus in that my TV is a Samsung so with their "Anynet" system I could do away with 3 remotes now (TV, DVD Player, Netflix Box) and just use this one.

Bottom Line: The unit is priced to sell and is a great value when you consider the included Netflix streaming video application (requires Netflix subscription). You don't have to worry about firmware updates if you utilize the network port since you can just have the system download firmware updates as required in the future.