Nowadays, movies and TV shows are filmed with higher resolution, greater frame rates and excellent graphics.
The best Blu-ray player delivers a buffering-free, sharp, cinema-style movie-watching experience with genius surround sound quality using a much higher bitrate.
It is still the best way to enjoy Full HD or 4K content at the fullest for hardcore movie enthusiasts.
Why does having a blu-ray player make sense in 2022?
Technology is growing at an astronomical pace and has dramatically changed the way we used to watch movies. One can simply take out the smartphone from their pocket, open Netflix and start watching their favourite TV show or movie while travelling, having coffee or feeling bored.
Streaming movies is good but not fit for everyone because it mainly depends upon WiFi strength. In the event of poor connection, you may get frustrated because of the low picture quality and infinite buffering.
Even it may sound okay to people on the go or casual movie watching.
But what if you have invested thousands of dollars into a high-end home theatre setup? You probably don’t wish to face buffering, low sound and picture quality due to poor broadband connection. So even if we live in the live streaming age, it still makes sense to have a Blu-ray player for serious home cinema lovers.
If you have a 4K or 3D TV, getting a Blu-ray player allows brilliant picture quality (without any loss) and top-notch audio quality. Moreover, the best Blu-ray player is backward compatible, which means you can enjoy old DVD and CD collections.
List of Best Cheap Blu-ray Player
- SONY BDP-S1700 – Lowest Price
- SONY BDP-BX370 – Best Affordable
- LG BP175 – Best Sound At Lowest Price
- LG BP350
- SONY BDP-S6700 – 4K Upscaling
- Panasonic DP-UB150-K – Cheapest 4K Player
- SONY UBP- X700/M – Best Budget 4K Player
- Panasonic DP-UB420-K
In 2022, you can find an excellent Blu-ray player for under $100. Though the price tag is low, this range includes blu-ray players from popular brands like Sony, LG, Samsung, Panasonic, etc. So do not worry about the picture quality and performance of the device.
If you are looking for a 4K Blu-ray player, stretching your budget by $30-$50 is a good idea to find an excellent 4K UHD blu-ray with best-in-class picture and sound quality.
#1 – SONY BDP-S1700
Affordable price, fast boot up and Full HD Blu-ray disc playback are the selling points of the Sony BDP-S1700. If you are searching for a budget-friendly Blu-ray player to revive your old blu-ray disc and DVD collection, then BDPS1700 is the right choice.
It comes with an intuitive user interface and access to 250+ apps, including Netflix, Amazon, Hulu Plus, etc. You can enjoy HD content available on these streaming services.
The BDP-S1700 can be easily connected to your TV with an HDMI cable. You can enjoy photos and videos from your smartphone through the USB port. It supports Dolby Digital, Dolby TrueHD, DTS®, and DTS-HD Master Audio formats.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Coaxial Digital Audio Output
- Resolution: Full HD (1080p)
- Live Streaming: Yes
- Dimensions: 231x220x38 mm
- Weight: 08 kg
#2 – SONY BDP-BX370
The BDP-BX370 is Sony’s top-selling Blu-ray player in the $100 category. It is a value-for-money deal.
In contrast to the cheapest BDP-S1700 discussed above, the BDP-BX370 has the following features,
- Built-in WiFi
- Miracast Screen Mirroring
In other words, you will enjoy wireless streaming and screen mirroring by spending an additional $15-$20. But both (BDP-S1700 & BDP-BX370) are perfect for Blu-ray and DVDs from Redbox or your own library.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Coaxial Digital Audio Output
- Resolution: Full HD (1080p)
- Live Streaming: Yes
- Dimensions: 230x195x38 mm
- Weight: 0.8 kg
#3 – LG BP175
The LG BP175 is one of the excellent Full HD Blu-ray players you can purchase in 2022. It is famous for offering impressive surround sound quality compared to its rivals at the same price. All of the popular sound formats including DTS, DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, and Dolby TrueHD are supported by this device.
It is shipped with a premium 6-foot HDMI cable by Orgoo so that you do not have to worry about purchasing a separate HDMI cable.
You can enjoy live streaming from popular providers like Netflix, YouTube, and CinemaNow in Full HD.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Optical Audio Output
- Resolution: Full HD (1080p)
- Live Streaming: Yes
- Dimensions: 270x195x43 mm
- Weight: 0.8 kg
#4 – LG BP350
Have LG Music Flow Speakers at your home?
Smart HiFi compatibility is the only reason to include LG BP350 on this list. It lets you connect this device to your home network using WiFi and enjoy high-fidelity surround sound effects by LG Music Flow Speakers.
The LG BP350 has identical specifications and features compared to other similarly priced Blu-ray models on this list. But we do not recommend it to our readers due to its sluggish boot-up time.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI and USB
- Resolution: Full HD (1080p)
- Live Streaming: Yes
- Dimensions: 268x195x43 mm
- Weight: 0.8 kg
#5 – SONY BDP-S6700
The Sony BDP-S6700 is made for people with a 4K TV and a collection of old Blu-ray and DVDs. Note that it doesn’t support 4K Blu-ray disc playback, but it is capable of upscaling 1080p Full HD video to near 4K resolution.
At just $98, you will get 3D playback with built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and Miracast screen mirroring. You can access popular streaming apps and services, including apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and more.
The remaining features like intuitive user interface, fast boot-up time, DVD upconversion, DLNA streaming, and high-fidelity surround sound with Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD are the same compared to others on this list.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Coaxial
- Resolution: Full HD (1080p)
- 4K Upconversion: Yes
- Live Streaming: Yes
- Dimensions: 254x203x38 mm
- Weight: 0.9 kg
#6 – Panasonic DP-UB150-K
This is a true 4K Blu-ray player with HDR10+, HDR10 and HLG support. It delivers cinematic audio quality with Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio formats.
The Panasonic DP-UB150-K is the cheapest 4K Blu-ray player of 2022. Of course, the price of this device is slightly higher than $100 but don’t worry because it won’t break your bank.
In contrast to premium 4K Blu-ray players, the DP-UB150 from Panasonic doesn’t include Dolby Vision support, built-in WiFi, live streaming and screen mirroring. But you should not expect much from a 4K Blu-ray at this price.
It is capable of Full HD 3D playback. So if you have a 3D TV at home, then the DP-UB150 can be a great choice.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: HDMI, USB, Ethernet
- Resolution: 4K UHD
- 4K Upconversion: YES
- Live Streaming: NO
- Dimensions: 320x193x46 mm
- Weight: 1.1 kg
#7 – SONY UBP- X700/M
The Sony UBP-X700/M is our top pick for the best budget-friendly 4K Blu-ray players of 2022. It offers immersive picture quality with the highest resolution, excellent contrast, deeper blacks, brighter whites and vibrant colours.
You have to spend more than $150 for this device, but it is a value-for-money deal.
Thanks to its sleek and compact design, it can easily fit into the narrow spaces on the shelf.
The Dolby Vision support, 3D playback, dual HDMI ports, live streaming, built-in WiFi and screen mirroring are the selling points of this Blu-ray player.
Unlike others (Full HD Blu-ray players) on this list, the Sony UBP- X700/M allows you to enjoy 4K movies and TV shows available on your favourite streaming apps.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: Dual HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Coaxial
- Resolution: 4K UHD
- 4K Upconversion: YES
- Live Streaming: YES
- Dimensions: 320x215x45 mm
- Weight: 1.4 kg
#8 – Panasonic DP-UB420-K
Looking for top-notch picture quality from the Blu-ray player with the lowest price tag, then the Panasonic DP-UB420 is made for you. It quips Panasonic’s high-performance HCX video processor found in top-tier models.
Panasonic is a well-known brand in the electronics industry. They have a range of high-quality home appliances and entertainment products. When it comes to Blu-ray players, Panasonic has excellent contenders in the lower and higher end of the market.
It is slightly costlier than Sony UBP-X700/M (discussed above) but delivers a best-in-class 4K video-watching experience.
Also, the audio quality of this Blu-ray player is worth highlighting here. It offers cinematic surround sound effects with high fidelity.
The dual-band WiFi allows super fast and reliable 4K streaming from your favourite apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.
Specifications
- Connectivity Options: Dual HDMI, USB, Ethernet, Coaxial
- Resolution: 4K UHD
- 4K Upconversion: YES
- Live Streaming: YES
- Dimensions: 325x198x45 mm
- Weight: 1.4 kg
Conclusion
As streaming is gaining more and more popularity, the Blu-ray market is becoming saturated. You will find that hardly 1 or 2 new Blu-ray players are launched yearly. So finding the best Blu-ray player is easy because there are very few options to choose from.
The SONY BDP-BX370 remains our top pick on this list. But if you want to enjoy 4K Blu-ray discs or streaming, then choose SONY UBP-X700/M.
A few gaming consoles like Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 include disc slots for gaming discs. But you can also enjoy standard, 4K, 3D Blu-ray discs and DVDs. Note that such devices are costlier and may cost somewhere around $500.