Samsung BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Player

Got this machine as part of a promo with my Sammy 4661F LCD 1080p. Paid $1499 for both the TV & player. Deal of the century. If I had to pay for this machine – prob would not buy Samsung. Would have gone for Sony. Seems like they have less problems playing new & old disks.

Despite being the 3rd generation Blue Ray, this machine is not refined. Too many kinks now – constant firmware updates remind me of my new ipod. But I doubt Samsung is a diligent as apple in updating firmware.

Other comments:

Door is not smooth opening and closing – big clunk noise
Upgrade of firmware didn't update easily. Had to try 2-3 times before it worked. Do the CD method vs Ethernet way.
Up conversion is ok. A 1080p up conversion is no diff from 1080i up conversion of my Home theater player
Hooked the audio out (optical) to my home theatre to get 5.1 sound. It works!
Some old movies froze on this player. Had to power down and restart then try again.
If you get impatient waiting and press too many buttons – the unit will freeze
Not very pleasing look compared to other blue ray machines
Used HDMI 1.3 cables to connect but feature of 1.3 are not being utilized

Blue ray movies look as good as 1080 sattelitte if not a tad better. Can't really tell diff. The key is the movie you buy. Check blueray.com for comments by people. Some movies are better viewed on blue rays and other make little diff from a regular DVD. This is esp the case with animation. Computer graphic movies look better. Don't expect old movies to look amazing. It really depends on the transfer of the production.

Not sure why blue ray disc require such a large premium. The industy is just milking the consumer right now. How much can a disc really cost!!! Movie rights don't cost more!

Remote is similar to TV remote . There is a direct link when you press play on the dvd. It switches the TV source and tv on.

Prices on these babies are dropping fast. Seen it a month ago at $599 then now on sale for $399. I'm sure it's a matter of time when they are $199. Hopefully disc will come down too as they are definitely inflated. I think Blue ray is the way to go as it's backed up by the major players in the market (SONY, SAMSUNG, SHARP, PANASONIC, PHILIPS, versus TOSHIBA). No contest.

If you are not itching for one. I would wait and get it when all prices come down.
If you are like me and don't buy too many DVD (as I can't watch movies over and over except animation for kids) then not sure if it's worth buying this player right now at the premium).