Samsung BD

Meet the new BD-P1600 ($199.99 – $299.99, aka BDP-1590), one of Samsung's CES Blu-ray player announcements. This relatively slim piano black deck slipped into many Best Buys around the country over the last few days. In fact, when I stumbled upon it Saturday, I didn't know what I was looking at… as (previously) only the BD-P25550 offered Netflix and Pandora streaming.

Supposedly Blu-ray player prices will be dropping across the board, and I believe Samsung is positioning the BD-P1600 as one of their lower-end models. I wouldn't call $300 cheap, but Netflix subscribers will probably find value in the unit. Which is how I almost walked out of Best Buy with a BD-P1600. However, "Wireless LAN Ready" was somewhat vague – so I journeyed back home for a Google expedition. Where I discovered wireless networking requires purchasing a Samsung USB accessory (yet to be released) and BD Live requires at least 1GB of external storage (USB). I may just wait for Samsung's higher end BD-P3600, which will incorporate the necessary flash memory and bundle a wireless dongle. Also, the 1600 has a flip-down face plate (which you can sort of see below, top left) that I’m not particularly fond of. I’d prefer fewer moving parts.