Product Description
BD-P, Netflix HD, YouTube, CinemaNow Ready, BD Live, Advanced Audio,
Quick Booting, Instant Tray Open, 1080p up-scaling for DVD, USB Media
Host
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #2058 in Consumer Electronics
- Color: Gloss Black
- Brand: LG
- Model: BD550
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 1.80" h x
16.90" w x
7.90" l,
4.40 pounds
Features
- Blu-ray Disc Player with Pure Audio and Video Performance
- BD-P NetFlix HD BD live
- Full HD 1080p output via HDMI with Cinema mode at 24 or 60 frames per second USB Media Host
- Superior audio performance with 7.1 channels with Dolby Digital Plus & TrueHD & dts-HD
- Express reaction startup for instant tray opening
Editorial Reviews
From the Manufacturer
Open up a new world of entertainment with LG’s BD550 Network Blu-Ray
Disc™ Player. Whether it’s the newest Blu-Ray Disc™ or an up-scaled DVD,
this makes sure you see it all in the best possible Full HD 1080p video
with digital sound. Plus, Internet access brings NetCast™ to your
television, letting you stream movies, TV shows and more.
Innovative FeaturesEntertainment On Tap
The end of "there’s nothing on." NetCast™ Entertainment Access lets you
stream instant, and virtually endless, entertainment from Netflix®,
Vudu™, CinemaNow™, Pandora®, YouTube™, Picasa™ and AccuWeather® direct
to your TV from the Internet- no computer required. (Learn more)
Enjoy It at It's Best
Make the most of your HDTV. Blu-Ray Disc™ playback delivers exceptional Full 1080p video performance.
Making Old Just Like New
No need to go out and replace your old DVD collection. Even they look
better on Blu-Ray. Standard DVD Up-Scaling delivers exceptional image
quality from standard DVDs with 1080p Up-Scaling via HDMI™ output.
(Learn more)
Don’t just hear it. Feel it.
Great picture needs great sound. Get Superior Audio Performance that
supports surround sound up to 7.1 channels with Dolby® Digital Plus,
Dolby® TrueHD and dts-HD Advanced Digital Out technologies. (Learn more)
Don’t Wait To Watch
A quick-opening tray- ready to play before you hit the couch.
Memories on the big screen
Want to view a highlight reel of the family vacation in the comfort of
your living room? USB Media Host lets you view family photos, and listen
to music from USB storage devices. (Learn more)
All In One
Having a hard time keeping track of your remotes? With SIMPLINK™, all
your LG devices can be controlled with just one remote. (Learn more)
|
 | Netcast Entertainment
Now buying a Blu-ray player from LG can also mean getting access to
virtually endless entertainment and services from the Internet. Want to
watch your favorite action film? If you have an LG Network Blu-Ray Disc™
Player with NetCast™ Entertainment Access and an Internet connection,
select an onscreen service and you’ll be enjoying it in moments. Tapping
into virtually endless entertainment from the Internet no longer
requires a computer or messy wires. This is the future of entertainment,
and it’s available now with LG.
|
 | Roxio CinemaNow™
Now Hollywood’s latest hits can be viewed any time you want. With
CinemaNow™, LG consumers can get instant access to pay-per-view movies
from major studios directly to any LG Network Blu-Ray Disc™ Player. Find
major release titles, along with broadcast and cable television
programs. The entire premium content catalog can be browsed directly and
selections can be watched instantly. CinemaNow™ and LG have redefined
what can be expected of digitally available entertainment.
|
 | Netflix®
Make the most of the extensive offerings on Netflix®. Users with a
subscription can sit back and enjoy unlimited instant access to over
12,000 Netflix® movies and TV episodes* streamed directly to their TV
set. Most movies and TV episodes appear in standard definition and many
selections are not new releases.
Netflix® subscription required and sold separately. |
 | YouTube™
Now you can watch everything on YouTube™ right in your living room.
Blu-ray players with NetCast™ give you unlimited, direct access to the
millions of Web videos available through YouTube™, whenever you want
them. All you need is an active Internet connection. Watch that one
fellow making a fool of himself over and over again.
|
 | Vudu™
If you want major studio releases in Full HD 1080p and Dolby® Digital
Plus sound, Vudu™ is the only place you’ll find it. With 20,000 HD
titles available, and 2,000 in Blu-ray-quality HDX format, there’s no
better source for streaming HD movies on NetCast™.
|
 | Pandora®
Listen to a radio station made just for you. By entering artist or song
information, Pandora® will generate a playlist of similar
recommendations. Your new favorite song is waiting.
|
 | Picasa™
Edit digital photos so they look their best when shared on your
television screen, and create galleries and slideshows for easy
organization any time you want to enjoy them.
|
 | Accuweather®
Get up to the minute weather updates, plus forecast information to help plan ahead.
|
Standard DVD Up-Scaling
It's not just Blu-ray discs that look great on a Blu-ray player.
Standard DVD Up-Scaling delivers exceptional image quality from standard
DVDs to near full HD picture quality. That means even your older movies
and shows look better on an LG Blu-ray player.
Superior Audio Performance
Blu-Ray lets you enjoy the best sound available from your movies and
shows. Supports surround sound up to 7.1 channels with Dolby® Digital
Plus, Dolby® TrueHD and dts-HD Advanced Digital Out technologies.
 | USB 2.0 Media Host
Bring your digital library to life on your television with USB 2.0
Media Host. View family photos, watch videos and listen to music from
USB storage devices.
|
SimpLink™
Are your remote controls taking over the living room? Now with
SimpLink™, you can easily set up and control all of your HDMI™ connected
LG devices with just one remote.
Most helpful customer reviews
396 of 399 people found the following review helpful.
Great bargain BD player
By T. Le
I am a hardcore geek and have also worked in the streaming video
industry the past 4 years. So you may be surprised to hear that this is
the first BD player I ever own. I've tested plenty of BD, DVD,
streaming boxes, so I know all their strengths and weaknesses.
I waited till now because the early generation of BD players are
underpowered (that's why people complained about slow startup, slow to
load BD, sluggish menu/UI, etc.). Knowing the performance of that
generation, plus having tested the up-n-coming ones, I waited for
something that is worth spending money on.
I almost bought the LG BD-390, but that was still too expensive. So
I waited for the next gen after, which is the LG BD-5XX series. Since I
have wired ethernet to where my entertainment console is, I pick the
BD-550. For streaming video, I never want wireless (attested by people
commenting on quality, stutters, delays and re-buffering). If I
absolutely had to go wireless, I would use 802.11N (not G) and one that
supports the 5Ghz band. But that is another topic.
The 550 does everything I need and want. Fast CPU, boot up less
than 10s, load BD in about same amount of time (except for a few that
has BD-Live and more complicated content). Btw, to use BD-Live, you
will need to plug in a USB flash stick (I use a 4GB USB flash, one of
those tiny one. Make sure it is formatted as FAT or FAT32.).
Netflix - good UI, fast (I have 25Mb down/10Mb up). So no problem
streaming HD. Netflix requires 3.6Mb down for HD. Nice thing about
Netflix is that it dynamically adjust quality so you can actually watch
the movie. That does mean you won't always get HD if your internet
connection is not reliable, e.g. you are using wireless (see why I stick
with wired?) Also love the 550 ability to let me view Netflix movie
menu and add movies direct on the player (you don't need to go to a
computer to add movies to your Instant Queue! This is an awesome
feature on the LG BD!
VUDU - good UI, sluggish, there is a lag between pressing buttons
and getting results. I kept overshooting or getting wrong choice
because of this. Different selection of movies, cost more if I watch a
lot of movies (pay each time). So depending on your watching pattern,
could be expensive.
Pandora - good, although I don't want to turn on my TV just to listen to music. That's what my stereo is for.
Youtube - good, fun for times when you have parties. Pain having to
enter URL via the remote. Wish I can connect a real USB keyboard and
use that.
I think the 550 is a bargain for the price. Very happy with it.
Stay away from the 3D BD players and TVs. Bleeding edge stuffs, wait at
least a year for that to settle before wasting your money.
Last but not least. Make sure you update the firmware! And check
regularly. They fix various issues and add new features. I updated
twice within the first day of opening the box.
204 of 208 people found the following review helpful.
Best netflix streaming experience among other four similarly priced devices.
By C. LIU
Recently I have tried four BD players which have Netflix streaming
capability. LG BD370, Samsung BD P-1600, Sony BDP N460, and LG BD 550.
Earlier I also tried Roku HD player for netflix streaming. Except Roku,
all the BD players I tried all use wired Ethernet, no wireless.
(I have wired Ethernet in my house so I don't need wireless network.)
I could tell you guys: LG BD 550 is by far the best when it comes to
Netflix streaming. I ended up returning all the others. BD550's Fast
forwarding, fast rewinding is just way faster than any other unit I
tried. It is even faster than Roku! Among these units, Samsung BD P1600
is the slowest. Also BD 550 not only shows your movies in the netflix
instant queue, it also gives you option to pick movie you may like, what
you've recently watched (even after you removed it from your instant
queue), new arrivals, etc. It's just a perfect Netflix player. If you
like Netflix's GUI interface, then just don't buy Sony N460! Sony
completely screwed Netflix's GUI but Sony's GUI is just too awkward.
For other streaming sources, BD550 has Vudu, Roxio CinemaNow,
Youtube and Picasa. Among all the units I tried, this is the only unit
that has Vudu. Its Youtube and Picasa application UI and load speed is
just awesome. I am so happy I finally find one netflix streaming device
that works well.
As for BD player performance. Be honest, I really can't see much difference in terms of image quality.
============================
If you didn't get a chance to try other players, let me remind you
that all of them are SLOOOOOOW in loading BD disc. As for Blu-ray
playback video quality, actually to me as a normal user, they all
perform similarly well. For loading speed, I am not sure if it is
because the players all try to contact Internet first before playing (BD
link) but I feel it is just way too slow than DVD. Since I found none
of them outperform each other significantly, I landed on this LG BD550
becoz of its streaming speed and ease of use in GUI.
93 of 94 people found the following review helpful.
very pleased with the BD550
By C. Stephens
Let me get this out of the way up front: This is my first Blue-Ray Disc player.
I'm very pleased with this LG BD550 product. I wanted a product that
would (a) play Blu-Ray Discs, and (b) let me watch streaming
movies/shows over the internet using my Netflix account. This does both.
I considered the higher-end BD570 but decided against it because I
did not need the built-in wireless capability, so I got the BD550 which
just has the ethernet port, but no wireless (and saved about $70 doing
so). I already had an Apple Airport Express behind the media stand for
streaming music from iTunes to my stereo, and I was able to configure it
as a simple wireless ethernet bridge, so in order to connect the BD550
to the internet all I had to do was connect an ethernet cable from the
Airport Express to the BD550. Once that was done, everything internet
related simply worked "out of the box".
Blue-Ray audio/visual quality seems good to me.
The user interface is adequate and is reasonably responsive. I have no complaints with the remote.
One thing I didn't expect - the BD550 defaulted to 1080i. I'm not
sure if that is normal for BD players, but I switched it to 1080p for
playing BD discs.
Since it's connected to the internet, it will occasionally ask me if I want to update the firmware/software.
The unit does not generate much heat, and has no vents in the top or
sides of the case, i.e. no vents to block, so I figured it was OK to
place my Cable/DVR box on-top of it.
Of all the internet enabled functions (I think this is called "Netcast") I've tried four of them:
1. Netflix - Works as advertised. I have a 3Mbps internet connection
and I'm pleased with the quality of streaming netflix video. Certainly
it's not high-def quality, but good enough given the convenience. I wish
it were easier to search for titles though. I can't really complain, it
is good enough.
2. Pandora - This is really great. I'm a computer pandora user
though on the computer it will occasionally throw in an ad or pause to
ask you to confirm that you're still listening. I don't get either of
these when playing music through Pandora on the BD550. I do wish,
however, that one you've started a channel going that the interface
would show a different graphic (like a near full screen CD artwork, a la
iTunes, or any option besides the default screen).
3 & 4. Youtube and Picasa - I tried these out just for the heck
of it, and they work, but I do not envision using these on a regular
basis.
UPDATE: I recently upgraded from a 3Mbps internet connection to a
7Mbps internet connection. While Netflix was certainly usable with a
3Mbps connection, it is markedly better with the 7Mbps internet
connection. I read that Netflix requires 5Mbps or greater to stream HD
video.
UPDATE 2: I've tried out the Vudu service. As a new user, they were
offering a free rental for a while. I never got round to trying it
before they changed the free rental to a $20 credit (which gets you four
rentals at "HD" quality - even better). Just in case this is useful to
other users here is what I found. Vudu currently supports 3 levels of
streaming quality: SD (480p), HD (720p), "HDX" (1080p). What I've found
is that with about 7Mbps I just don't have enough bandwidth to reliably
stream HDX/1080p video. I've watched 2 full movies at HD/720p quality
and there were no problems, glitches, or stops to buffer whatsoever. Of
course SD works fine (requires even less bandwidth). Vudu allows you to
watch trailers for free in HDX, so that's an easy way to tell if you've
got enough bandwidth (if you don't, it will periodically stop the video
to buffer the stream). There appears to be an option to 'downgrade'
(e.g. from HD to SD) in the middle of a rental if you need to. I think
the Vudu HD stream looks better than my Netflix stream (to my knowledge,
Netflix sets video quality based on available bandwidth, so you don't
know what quality you're actually getting from them). Vudo offers more
recent titles than Netflix has, so I can see myself occasionally using
Vudu from time to time in addition to Netflix.
See all 242 customer reviews...
