Since the birth of Blue Ray technology (year 2000) the demand for this new face of future compact disc medium, has outplayed its counterpart, the HD DVD. As we know a Blue-Ray Disc (BD) can store upto 128 GB of data (which is equal to the combined capacity of 27 DVDs), can process high definition 3D data to maximum amplitude (supporting comfortably a resolution of up to 1920 x 1080 pixel) and can produce crystal clear sound. But the point here is that to harness all these benefits of a BD you’ll need an equally capable Blue-Ray Player.
Today’s market is reasonably crowded by brands which claim to produce a class-apart range of Blue-Ray players. One brand has laboriously carved a place of its own in this market of electronic-media warfare, known by the name ‘LG’. LG has been the pioneer in the field of electronics and telecommunication for more than a decade. It has been titled as ‘the worldâs largest electronic conglomerates’ and itâs the leading brand in the field of Blue-Ray technology. It would be interesting to plot a succulent discussion based on LG’s latest BD670 3D Blu-ray player.
What is it?
In today’s tech-savvy world, people have become more meticulous about every gadget they buy. In short we have reached to the point where, to judge any TV show or movie, the factor of audio and video qualities HAS to play a steering role. This is where the Blue-Ray Players step in. This gadget has already become a ‘must-have’ artifact.
LGs BD670 3D Blu-ray player sits on a higher ground in the BD market, where it encounters a handful of counterpart brands which produce Blue-Ray players, Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, Toshiba, and Vizio to name a few. With lead features like veridical 3D output, a smart net access module, a blitzkrieg wireless connectivity, compatibility with a vast array of media file formats, free access to a pool of productive LG apps, a bolstering HDMI output, a nice low-profile power consumption mechanism and an affordably competitive price, LG BD670 3D Blu-ray player stands taller in the crowd of Blue-Ray market.
Key features
Taking a step further, let’s construe the key features listed earlier, in brief.
Design
At the first look, BD670 does little to win accolades from the beholder, agreed. The body of this player is a black matte finished, simple and clutter free, as compared to other rivals which offer a flashy package. LG’s point here makes sense, ‘accentuating function over form’. The front digital display panel has a shiny glossy and translucent look and feel and the controls are buttonized instead of recessive touch screen-like which you can see on Samsung BD. The gadget comes in a manageable size of 16.9″ x 7.9″ x 1.9″ as length, breadth and thickness respectively and weighing 4lbs. Disc tray is simple and standard in operation. You get a patent LG style remote control which again is basic in looks and use. The aspect which the remote control misses is the direct button for launching media portal.
Connectivity
Wi-Fi: BD670 comes with a built-in WiFi adapter which is a plus, as it doesn’t need any additional component. Optionally there is a LAN connector socket on the rear side. This is helpful when there is no or poor WiFi signal in near proximity.
Unlike the physical look of this gadget, the inside user-interface is quite techno and polished. BD670 offers a wide range of Internet channel providers. The sweet topping delight here is the access to DivX TV which hosts 45 channels for movies and video watching. A replete native app store for LG apps adds to the list of pros for this swanky gadget. After plugging BD670 with WiFi or connectivity cable, playing photos, music and movies is just a snap second away as you get a separate control to maneuver DLNA media server through this device as it is a DLNA certified player. Additionally you get ‘Nero Media-Home-4 essentials suite which facilitates the creation of DLNA compatible server on PC.
Reliability and format compatibility
The device is 100% reliable and can play any DVD or Blue-Ray Disc without any issues. In case of format compatibility, the device is generous, allowing media files of the following formats.
- Video File Types: avi, divx, mpg, mpeg, mkv, mp4, asf, wmv, m4v etc.
- Audio File Types: avi, divx, mpg, mpeg, mkv,mp4, asf and wmv.
- Photo File Types: jpg, jpeg and PNG
USB Port or SD card slot
the back panel the device houses all types of connectivity cables and cards slots. You get one USB port and one SD card slot. So when you download any video or music you have a space allotted for storage.
Power Consumption
Generally any BD player uses 17 watts in running state and nearly 1.5 watts in the stand-by state. But in BD670’s case the average power consumption as per their home website is 13.1 watts in running state and 1.15 watts in the stand-by state, meaning LG BD670 wins over its rivals in the power consumption factor. In addition BD670 offers a firmware application called Quick Start which is built-in feature.
What’s Innovative?
LG has appended an innovative feature which you won’t get in any other Blue-Ray player out in the market coined as ‘Smart-TV’ suite. This feature caters the access to a host of scrumptious services. Some of these include, countless movies, loads of music videos, n-number of songs playback and a gamut of resourceful apps and add-ons. Apart from these goodies the Smart-TV suit also provides access to all other communicable devices like PC, Cellphone, Tablet, MP3 Players etc. Looking at the second innovative aspect, you get a ‘cut-n-bleed’ edge over the video output facility. BD670 is the only Blue-Ray player which has 3 options for video outputs namely, composite, component and HDMI. Invariably all other makes offer only one or two of these output options, meaning either single HDMI or component and HDMI.
Price and availability
Comparing with other contenders of the Blue-Ray market, LG BD670 is worth every penny you did pay to bring it home. The price varies from retailer to retailer but the price bracket starts from $147.77 and ends at $199.99. The best-buy price is $147.77, which you’ll get at the Amazon Marketplace. A quick reference to the availability along with quoted price follows:
- Vanns.com – $179.97
- Dell Showroom near you – $179.99
- Conn’s e-stores – $169.99
- Abe’s of Maine local outlet – $169.00
- US appliance – $179.00
- Sears mall – $199.99
- Tiger Direct E-Hub – $179.99
- Amazon Marketplace – $147.77 and
- Kmart – $199.99
The upside
Built-in Wi-Fi
As discussed earlier, there are a very few brands which offer inbuilt WiFi kit. Precisely Samsung’s BD player is the only other brand with this facility.
Smart TV suite
This becomes the major factor of differentiation between all other BD players and LG BD670. Eventually, as LG is already been looked upon as a benchmark in BD market; other brands have to follow LG’s footprints. But then there are no signs for now or in the near future as to when will other brands incorporate a similar service like Smart TV.
Solid Media Streaming
LG BD670 wins laurels against all other BD makes for its solid and top quality media streaming capabilities. (remember the verdict-‘accentuating function over form’.)
The Downside
The external Look
In todayâs showbiz world most of us have certain reservations regarding the look and the jazziness of any product prior to buying (the rest of the exceptional class don’t). Ex-cogitating on this note. LG BD670 lags behind for the hoary and insipidly plain looks which it sports.
Disc Loading Tray
This one is specifically for the impatient videophiles. This device is noticeably slow to eject the empty tray for loading a disc and also to process, read and start the video on screen.
USB Sockets
On the contrary to the kind of package which LG loads into LG BD670, it has just one USB socket located on the far left of the rear connectivity panel, which gives you those blue-woes at those times when you need to attach a Pen-drive loaded with media files for immediate playback.
The bottomline
LG BD670 makes a lasting impact on us after we have our fill of melodious music and next to reality kind of videos. A feature-loaded device which is easy to setup and dead simple to use. Having reviewed thoroughly, there is no good reason why you should not choose LG BD670 over other flashy, pricey and persuading assemblages. LG BD670 has to be a smart and the best choice for at least a dozen months from now.
