#No. 1 Compact Blu Ray Player - 10,538+ 5 Star Reviews - Expert Advice

When setting up a new TV system, start with a clear vision of what you want to accomplish. You'll likely end up spending more money than you would have spent had you planned ahead. Start by considering how much space you actually have in your living room. Is your entertainment area located near an electrical outlet, or are you limited by where your wall outlets are placed? Are you planning on having multiple TVs in the same room? If so, what size should each one be? How large is your TV stand? Where will your speakers go? Will you be hooking up any additional components such as game consoles or DVD players? Most importantly, think about how you're going to connect everything together. A simple HDMI connection may not be enough for your entire system; you might need to add a video splitter or converter box to handle things like composite connections. And remember that you'll also need to make sure that all of your equipment supports the resolution of whatever screen you choose.

Internet connection is one of the most important features for most home users. It lets you stream media content from online sources, connect your devices wirelessly, and even allow your Blu-rays to update automatically. Most budget receivers don't come equipped with Wi-Fi capabilities, so check if yours includes that functionality before buying.

As home entertainment devices, Blu-ray Discs (BD) don't compete against smartphones or tablet computers for speed. However, they do need to be easy to operate.

We considered a number of factors in determining our rankings. Some include ease of navigation, interface design, speed of operation, reliability, and quality of sound. Our goal is to offer information that helps you select the best home theater system for your needs.

We assessed the design and build qualities of each player and its accompanying accessories. These specifications aren't as important as player performance, but they still affect everyday usage. Poorly-built remotes or players with poor build qualities can be inconvenient.

If you've got a 3D TV (or even if you don't), you'll want to make sure your projector can handle 3D Blu-rays so you can watch them on your big screen. Projectors stopped supporting 3D after 2016, but some models still include the capability.

If you want to watch movies on your TV without using an external device, consider buying a Blu-ray player that comes with a web browser, so you can stream content directly from online sources.

If you're an audiophile who likes experimenting with different audio formats when watching Blu-rays, then you'll probably be interested in buying a Blu-­Rays player that supports all of the most common audio formats, including Dolby TrueHD, DTS‑HD MA, Dolby Atmos and DTS:X — which offer better sound than regular digital audio files. You might even consider a high-end sound bar or a surround sound speaker set up for listening to these high-res audio formats.

Upscaling is the process of taking a lower-quality video file and increasing its size so that it appears larger on your display. Most Blu-ray players can upscale videos from DVD discs to 1080p screens, and some can also upscale videos from 720p sources to 4k displays. While upscaled video may not look nearly as crisp as the original version, it does make the picture much clearer. However, remember that upscaling is merely an approximate solution; no matter how high quality your source material is, upscaling will never replicate the exact experience of watching the actual movie on a 4K TV.