Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player

• Blu-ray Disc/VHS combination player with SD memory card slot and USB
• Multi-media capability allows for convenient playback and up-conversion of content from any media storage format--VHS, DVD, CD and more
• 7.1-channel lossless audio decode and bit-stream output for exceptional sound
• VIERA Cast internet functionality for enjoying online entertainment from YouTube, Amazon VOD, and more
• Intelligent auto standby for more efficient power usage

Why would someone want to buy a video player that accepts both the latest Blu-Ray format and the perhaps obsolete VHS formats? Well, as someone who has their foot in both the past and the future, let me tell you why I love this player.

Yes, I can definitely appreciate the crispness and clarity of the high definition Blu-Ray format, and I wish to experience that format. But Blu-Ray discs are pricey, so I will likely choose to purchase only a few new select and favorite films in that format. I feel no need, and don't have the wallet, to replace my entire film library in a Blu-Ray format.

I also have a collection of nearly 500 VHS tapes, most of them unwatched, which I mostly purchased in thrift stores. (current standard price for VHS tape in a thrift $1) I also have a fair number of films that have not yet been released on DVD yet.

It is nice to have a player that will accept both VHS and Blu-Ray, along with standard DVD formats. No switching back and forth of cables, etc.

The DMP-BD70V upconversion of the VHS to 1080p is really quite amazing. My current television is a 42" HDTV (one year ago it was a 19 inch color set) When I connected my previous standard VHS player to the HDTV, the picture quality, as expected, was quite poor, with much of the image being rather pixelated it was quite painful and distracting to watch.

Then I hooked up the DMP-BD70V, and lone behold, the picture quality was much, much better and very watchable. At first I almost thought that the VHS tape had been replaced by a DVD the improvement was that great. There was no pixelation at all, and the colors were quite bright. The overall quality of the picture was much better than the picture obtained with my old 19" color TV and VHS player. The upscaling features of the DMP-BD70V is almost as if a magician had waved his wand over your entire library of VHS tapes, and suddenly replaced them, Cinderella-like, with a much higher quality product.

There are some things you cannot do with a VHS tape. The picture size remains at the older 4:3 format meaning there is considerable empty space at the left and right sides of the HDTV screen. You also won't get the added commentary tracks that appear on DVD and Blu-Ray discs, but sometimes all one really wants to do is simply watch a movie, with no other frills involved.

For a few years, I will have several options for my home movie viewing. On one end, the $1 VHS tapes (upgraded to 1080p), in the middle the standard DVD format, and on the high side, the Blu-Ray format. This DMP-BD70V allows me to watch all three formats, and allows me to choose whether I want to pay $1, $15, or $30 for each movie format. That is what I call flexibility.

I did a comparison price check for the DMP-BD70V model, versus a similar model without the VHS tape compatibility the difference was about $50 more. For me, it was well worth it.

Obviously those without VHS tapes do not need this DMP-BD70V model. But those who do have some older VHS tapes, and wish to still view them, will love this model.

Buy Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player Now

If you want a combination blu ray/vhs player, then this is the only game in town so you are kind of stuck right now. However, I must point out a number of limitations:

1.) As many pointed out (some of which are poor souls who didn't read carefully and bought without knowing this), there is no ability to record material on this. So if you record a weekly/daily program, you will still have to have a vhs or dvd recorder to do that.

2.) The component connection from this player to an HDTV did not work well with VHS tapes as the picture appeared all smudged. The tapes looked fine with an HDMI connection.

3.) I have trouble getting my remote sometimes to recognize I have a VHS tape in the player and often have to manually start the play. I have not had this problem when I want to play a disc, only VHS.

4.) This is not wireless, so to take advantage of the VIERA Cast if you are not close to your router, you must use an Ethernet adapter/access point (somewhere between $35 and $60 or more). I used an Asus WL-330gE purchased on sale at another site and chose the Ethernet adapater setting when configuring. I found this product worked perfectly with this blu ray player as it came with both the Ethernet cable as well either a plug-in power cord or a USB power cord. I used the USB power cord to plug into the USB slot on this blu ray player. Not only does using the USB power cord eliminate you having to plug another item into a power strip, but when you turn the player off, the USB power cord turns off as well, so you are not wasting electricity.

5.) Now, this is my biggest problem with this player. VIERA Cast. I specifically bought this player as a secondary blu ray for my bedroom (my primary player is in my family room), for two reasons-the vhs component (I record off my primary player, so didn`t need to record on this one) and the announcement last year that VIERA Cast would have Netflix. I currently stream Netflix through my other player and was looking forward to streaming in my bedroom with this one as Netflix lets you stream on a number of devices with the same account. I now read (which was NOT in the announcement I read last year), that Netflix will be on Panasonic Blu Rays ONLY built in 2010 or later. Why? Because they completely re-built the technical infrastructure within the blu rays and only those with the new infrastructure will host Netflix. I guess they used up their "old parts" making this player figuring the VHS crowd wouldn't be interested in the newest technology.

I don't quite get the "usefulness" of VIERA Cast. The weather and stock parts are next to useless--if I really wanted to know the weather, I'd simply click to one of numerous weather stations that I get over the air. With regards to the stock market updates--I'd go to something on the internet as I would want to track my specific holding not just look at a generic stock market update. With NetCast (on the LG BD 90 blu ray player I have) I get YouTube, Netflix streaming (obviously have to have a Netflix account to take advantage of), as well as Vudu and CinemaNow that have pay per view rentals (most with option to buy). You do not get Amazon Video on Demand on the LG player as you do this player, but I would wonder how many movies Amazon might have that the other movie rental view options would not.

So, my best take on this player is if you need to record programs, or want to stream Netflix, do NOT buy this player. If you need to connect wirelessly, you must factor into the cost of this player an Ethernet adapter.

Am I keeping mine? Yes, because I bought at super sale price (around 165 dollars), so the cost of adding an Ethernet adapter was not prohibitive. It does eliminate the need for a vhs in my bedroom, and since I record through a dvd/vhs recorder in my family room, the lack of recording in this player does not affect me. However, I must now either choose not to stream Netflix to my bedroom, or buy a Roku.

If I do read that Panasonic has decided to add Netflix to the players with the "old" infrastructure (they are receiving some complaints obviously), I will update my review. If someone else reads such an announcement, please post a comment to my review with the source of the announcement.

Read Best Reviews of Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player Here

As far as I know this is the only combo of this kind on the market, and I couldn't be happier. Despite the outdated format and my dwindling videotape collection, I wanted to replace my old Magnavox VCR instead of abandoning VHS altogether. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that I not only could still do that, I could additionally upgrade to Blu without having to find more shelf space or another power outlet. Since it isn't really all that versatile otherwise, this player is a snap to hook up. There are no inputs (except LAN) and the outputs consist of HDMI, component and composite video, with analog and digital audio (fiber optic only). It only comes with a set of RCA analog audio/video cables, so plan ahead. I am only using the HDMI video and optical audio and it plays discs flawlessly. Pop in a videotape and it automatically switches to VHS mode and reformats itself to 4:3, while still outputting only through the digital ports. Yes, this is only a player--I prefer DVD-RAM for recording these days, anyway--but if you want the ultimate in all-in-one playback, including USB devices and SD cards, this device is for you.

Want Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player Discount?

Have about 300 movies about 70-80% VHS and the rest DVD. After a lot of research chose this make and model. I'm using this with a Monster HDMI connected to a new 46" Samsung 640. Tested with 3 movies: DVD of Parenthood, VHS of Gilda, VHS of Lion King. Lion King looked exactly like HD quality from cable company. The other two weren't as perfect as Lion King VHS, but despite that, I was thrilled at the quality of those two movies. My VHS does play full screen without any black bars. So, I'm happy with the up conversion. As for set up and programming: this unit is very easy to set up and fine tune in the programming features. As a female who hates all this tech stuff, the manual was very easy to follow and understand. I'm so pleased with this unit and it's ease of use that I just ordered a 2nd unit for my bedroom to use with the new 32" Samsung 640. EDIT: Just started playing blu ray and this model does freeze periodically for a about 5 seconds like the other models without the vhs. Also this model does not have any firmware updates like the other models. So, if allowed, I would reduce the stars from 5 to 4.

This unit does what it says it will do, with one exception you won't know until you buy it and delve deep into the manual. It WILL NOT upconvert the resolution of standard DVD's or VHS tapes unless you connect it to your TV with an HDMI cable. If you have an older HDTV that uses composite cables instead of HDMI, you will get standard resolution DVD and VHS (it does stretch 4:3 VHS into 16:9 screen format, however).

Also read the manual carefully when selecting your output format (e.g. 1080p, 720i or whatever). If you set it for an output your TV can't display, you can't see the menu to fix the problem! Again buried in the manual, is the fix: hold down the "stop" and "play" buttons together for several seconds until the unit reverts to its default output (480i) and you can read the menu again.