I need you guys/ladies opinions on whether I better off buying a dedicated blu ray or buy a ps3. I'm considering a sony bd 470s blu ray for $245 and not sure if they're any good. My kids want me to stick to ps3 so I could replace thier ps3 with xbox..hmmm interior motive...stores around here are bestbuy,futurecshop and vision.maybe costco.thx

I guess some people over here would definitely advise you to get the ps3. Chris if I am not mistaken can give you lots of reason why. I am using my PS3 as a blu ray player and I have to say I am quite satisfied with it. Some people over here faced the same dilemma as you, since they also have children they stick up to the PS3. I will let the pros do the talking, since I am just a noobie.

I just handed my PS3 down to my son and replaced it with a stand alone Panasonic BD85 and am really digging the move. I never personally liked using the PS3 and thought more often than not it was a pain in the backside ... the blue tooth remote, setup menus, needing to have the TV on to play CDs and etc. Comparatively speaking the Panasonic is simple to use, is easy to setup and the picture (to me) is equally as well as the PS3 *and* I incorporated it into the rest of the system via the IR emitters and universal remote.

IMO, the PS3 is great for my teenage son since he's a gamer and watches movies. But for my main viewing room, I would not want it. I prefer a stand alone, dedicated device. I highly recommend Panasonic as well.

If you get a stand alone, your kids will still want an xbox. If they eventually get one will the PS3 just sit there?

No experience with the PS3 but I do like my Panasonic BR player.

Hi Axopar,

I also switched from a PS3 to a Panasonic DMP-BD55 for my Home Theatre Room. At the time, the main reason was that I needed the 7.1 analogue outputs to feed the signal to my Newcastle P-965 preamp/processor. I also needed a Blu-ray player for my other demo room (Family room), so the PS3 was all indicated. Might be my imagination but Blu-ray discs seemed to be better looking and also were regular DVDs on the Panasonic.

When I will be upgrading from my Newcastle P-965 to a preamp/processor with HDMI capability I'm looking forward to switch to a Universal player such as the OPP0 83BD or soon to be released Marantz or Denon models.

By the way, my PS3 is on its way to Sony for repair (out of warranty - minimum charge over $150.00); it had started freezing on games and Blu-ray discs.

If your kids want to play games on the PS3 then definitely get that as your Blu-ray player. The dvd upconversion, load times, and blu-ray playback are still among the top players available.

There are some advantages to a stand alone player however. They run quieter, come with a proper remote and are less clunky looking.

If you are looking at standalone, I would also second looking at players from manufacturers such as OPPO and Panasonic. I currently use the exact same model as JC, the Panasonic BD55 and have been very pleased with the entire package - how quiet it runs, load times, dvd upconversion, Blu-ray using multi-channel analog, Blu-ray video playback etc.

PS: Panasonic does not make the model 55 anymore, their new model numbers are in the 60's and 80's.

The new PS3-Slim can bitstream DTS-MA and other formats so that's a good thing.

The Oppo 83 Blu-Ray player can do all that plus play DVD-Audio and SACD's. It think it also cooks you breakfast in the morning and tucks you in at night.

I think everyone has well covered the bases of the pluses and minuses of the PS3 vs. a stand-alone.

Another plus of the PS3, it is entirely software defined, so it isn't limited by the chips in it. It was one of the first BD players on the market. Yet, it has grown to be Profile 2.0 compatible (they added Java and network connectivity to it, something no stand-alone could accomplish). And now Sony is going to add BD 3D to it. So if you want a future-proof player it's good for that.

The new Slim models are virtually silent, especially when playing a movie. But they are odd shaped. If you want something which looks like a component, that isn't it. The new one also bitstreams, but I don't see that as an actual plus, just a box to be ticked.

People complain about the Blue Tooth remote. Sure it makes replacing it with a universal difficult (needs an IR to BT converter). But as remotes go, it's my favorite one to use. I don't need to point it anywhere. Just be within about 30 feet (even through walls) of the player and push the button, it'll respond. Of course there are UHF universals which allow you to do the same thing.

October will bring Netflix as a real application, rather than a Profile 2.0 Blu-ray disc. So things will work much smoother then. Although it's not bad now.

It really comes down to what you (or your family) want from a player.

I knew Chris would be along and chime in on the benefits of the PS3, definitely our number one source for PS3 information!

Chris I think the biggest problem I personally had with the PS3 is that it is based on 21st technology and I'm still stuck in the 20th Century.

I'm quite happy with my older PS3. I was in your situation and decided to kill two birds with one stone. Its not Purdy, but it works really well.

I just upgraded from a Panasonic BD30 to a BD65 for $150 at Best Buy. It's quiet and the tray opens/closes when I push the button, instead of waiting 10-15 seconds like before. It also sends advanced codex to the receiver, which the BD30 never seemed to do.

Oh well the oppo 83 is 2 much money for me...and none sell here in alberta locally so I might /will pick up the panasonic bd65 in the next days. I think its still on sale for $199...hopefully I could get my Ep350 to work by then ..still playing with my onkyo3007 setting ..no sub sound so far but have power and plug all the in...hmmm

Axopar,

Make sure the sub is set to yes or on in the receiver settings and that you are not using direct mode This is where the speakers play full range without the use of a sub.

Ax, as Dr. Horse points out, don't use any sort of "direct" mode. Use stereo or a surround mode such as DPLII. The speakers shouldn't be set at "Full Band", but instead with a crossover, typically at 80Hz.