Panasonic DMP-BD77EB-K Smart Network Blu-ray Disc Player - Black

I'm really impressed with this this Blu ray player and can't recommend them enough. So much so that I own two of them and purchased another for a family member. I own both this model and last years (2011) DMP-BD75 which you can currently buy on Amazon £10 cheaper. This is my first review on Amazon but I felt compelled to write this as there is currently only a few review for this model (DMP-BD77)and they contain information that is misleading. So I thought it would be helpful to clear a few things up and highlight some of the players good features. This player DOES support BBC iPlayer. A number of earlier reviews were rather upset over the lack of support for BBC iPlayer which I can only assume was added at a later date or they had not updated the firmware on their player. I can confirm BBC iPlayer is working through this player with firmware version 1.33, Oct 2012. As well as BBC iPlayer there is also support for You Tube, Netflix and Acetrax Movies. This player has great support for different file types, it will play all your old movies on DVD and it has played all blu ray disc I have rented and purchased without any issues what so ever (latest firmware installed). The USB support is very handy and this player supports NTFS file system as well as older FAT32, FAT16 etc. There is support for DivX HD, xvid, BD live and it will play files in avi and MKV format. AVI files play fine and are very reliable, some files in mkv format don't play but most do. MP4 files don't play at all with this player. I'd highly recommend updating the firmware on any modern blu ray player to get the best out of it. Updating the firmware (software) gives you maximum compatible with all new blu ray features and fixes any bugs. This player currently ships with firmware version 1.00 so it's good to get this updated. Really simple to update, if you have it connected to your network just go to the appropriate menu options in settings and it will update itself for you. If you don't want to connect the player to your network it's still very easy to update, just go to the Panasonic support website and download the latest firmware for this model. Burn the file to a blank CD and then insert into player, normally takes about 8 minutes to update after inserting the disc. This player is really compact and the build quality is excellent as with all Panasonic products. Blu ray discs are fast to load and there is even a mode you can switch on to make booting even faster. I'm really pleased with my players and think they are great value for money. This player will appeal to people looking for a quality product at a good price and who are not bothered about 3D movies. Some people have commented that their player is noisy. I really don't have a problem with any of mine, there are some initiation noises when you first turn on/put a disc in but no noise that would spoil enjoyment whilst watching. If you're wondering whether to buy this model DMP BD77 or last years DMP BD75 here are a few differences: DMP BD-75 does not have the network support to play content from the internet like BBC iPlayer/You Tube or play files from your local network via a DNLA enabled device. The eject button is very easy to press when you're not intending to do so on the DMP BD75, this newer model has a redesigned eject button which is a good improvement. You can see folders straight away on this model when accessing your files via USB, last years model folders are always hidden until you press the option button which is slightly irritating. This new model support profiles so you can have different settings for different family members. I'm not a fan of the default white wallpaper on the settings screen on this new model but it is easily changed to another colour of your choice. Basically if you like playing files via network/USB buy this new model and if you don't think you'll ever use those features then save yourself £10 and buy the still excellent DMP BD75 (2011 model). Amazon delivery and service was excellent as always. --------------------------------------------------------------- Update: December 2012 - I'm still a big fan of these players and think they're great for the money. Just a quick update with some more useful information. I tried using a USB stick formatted with exFAT but this is not supported with these players which is a shame but not a big deal. I'll continue to use NTFS format on my USB sticks when using this player. The reason this is important is that most USB sticks will come formatted in FAT16/32 and you'll encounter problems trying to copy large files to them, anything over 2GB/4GB. You'll see a message saying there is not enough space even though you know there is plenty of free space on the drive. This is a file size limit of the older FAT formats and you can easily hit this limit with today's HD movies. The answer is to format your USB stick into NTFS which should be pretty straight forward to do but there is one step you may need to know about to be successful (Optimize for performance). [...] Using exFAT would have been nice if supported as it has a lower overhead than NTFS and still supports large file. exFAT is also more compatible between MAC and PC as MACs can read NTFS but can't natively write to NTFS.

Have had one of these for some time now and never had any problems with it and so just purchased another for my study. They are easy to set up and produce a great picture. Mine are linked to Panasonic TV's. Watch out though, although it's got network capability you have to purchase a rather expensive dongle to link to wiifii, hence the 4 rather than 5 stars

I already have a Panasonic BR and wanted another for the bedroom. This is going in the bedroom as it is not as high tech as my other one. EASY to use in EVERY way. Does an excellent job for a great price! BUY ONE TODAY!!

I am very disappointed with my 6 month old BD-77 blu-ray player and I do not recommend it. 9 times out of 10 it will not connect to the web services via LAN or wi-fi connection, even though both are working correctly. It cannot be updated (it locks up when I try). It even locked up today when playing a standard DVD. When it locks up you have no option but to unplug it from the wall socket to reset.

Review immediately after purchase in June 2012: I bought this player, connected it to the internet installed the latest firmware update. IT DOES NOT OFFER BBC IPLAYER AS A SERVICE only Netflix and Youtube! It is OK as a pure dumb Blue Ray play and looks smart - that's why it managed to get one star ... otherwise it would be zero stars. REVISION IN OCTOBER 2012: Thanks to Amazon user - Mercurybay - I connected the box back into my network, downloaded the October Firmware update and BBC iPlayer now works! So I have now up improved the items rating to 3 stars.

Very happy with this Blue-ray Player,fab picture and sound,loads very fast and is quiet in operation,looked at other more expensive players but they offered no real improvement in pic or sound.

Pretty good so far. Got it all working so it accesses my computer in the other room via the router I couldn't get into my computer at first and needed to go into the windows 7 settings to allow access to the DLNA system (found the advice on google - nothing in the product instructions).- "How to use DLNA with Windows 7" This document explains how to use DLNA functions of Windows 7 with BT110/210 year 2011 Blu-ray Disc players. 1.Connect the BR player to Network by using wired or wireless connection. Refer to manual of BR Player regarding rooter/access point and other network device specifications within the player settings options. 2. Enable DLNA function of Windows 7 - Select "Choose homegroup and sharing options" of "Network and Internet" from Control Panel. Enable the contents such as Pictures, Music and Videos that you want to share, from "Change homegroup settings" screen. If you want to use Stream media option of Windows Medial Player12, enable "Stream my pictures, music. Also the player has 4 preset internet options - Netflix, BBC Iplayer and youtube + one other - I have tried two and both work ok. Would have liked Cannel 4 OD and ITV Player but seems very few boxes offer all the catch up TV sites built in yet.

Top selling product, very good quality, ease of use. Works well on all dvd and blu ray discs. Slim design and bright displayed.