Samsung BD-P1600 Blu-ray player review

Samsung's sixth generation player is close to what some would call a complete player. It features support for all the audio codecs Blu-ray supports as well as internet streaming services such as Netflix and Pandora. The really interesting new feature is the fact that it supports a Wifi dongle, which to most means they can actually take advantage of the included internet features as well as BD Live -- this is because most don't have wired internet connections behind their TV. Of course the main point of the device is to play Blu-ray discs and we're happy to say that despite all the new features, the player doesn't lose focus on its core functionality.

BD-P1600 interface

The Good

• USB port in front and back is something that should be on every Blu-ray player.
• Remote is a definite improvement over the BD-P1500's.
• No problems with HDMI audio sync and bitstreaming works great on all codecs.
• To eject the tray when the player is off only takes 2 seconds.
• It only took 54 seconds to load a BD-J title (Ratatouille).
• The buttons on the front look and feel cool when you use them.
• It consumes less than 1 watt in standby, 13 watts at the home screen, 19 watts playing movie, and 14 watts playing Pandora.
• The sounds that the player makes for Touchkey and Power can be disabled.
• LEDs on front are adjustable as well as the on screen scrub bar.
• There are lights to indicates when USB, HDMI and 24p are in use on front panel.
• Dynamic compression can be enabled/disabled for those who don't like loud explosions -- not us.
• The bitstream re-encode setting is great if your AVR doesn't do TrueHD.
• Internal codec decoding sounds great, and useful too if you like PiP (BonusView).
• Network test is a great feature if you're having network issues.
• Pandora is easy to setup and sounds pretty good, but there aren't any visualizations or a screen saver.
• Making a new station on Pandora is easy and something you would actually use.
• We like it when the player features a screen saver.
• At less than $300 we really like the price.

The Bad

• Remote feels flimsy and isn't back-lit.
• Buttons are on the front are under the flip down door.
• No coax digital output.
• Delay between songs via Pandora could be shorter.
• You have to stop the disc to change settings like PCM to bitstream, resume works good though.
• Main menu navigation is annoying.
• Player should have an easy way to tell which codec it is decoding.

The Ugly

• The door on the front gets in the way, especially if you want to use an IR blaster.
• No discrete IR codes.
• There is no built in storage for BD Live.
• Loud fan, not as loud as a 360, but can be heard from across the room when not inside furniture.
• At $80, the Wifi dongle costs twice what it should.

The flip down door
We're not sure who thought it would be cool to put a flip down door on this player, but they were wrong. This door does nothing but get in the way, and to make things worse, the player looks terrible when the door is down. If we did own this player, we'd probably figure out a way to take it off completely, but even then you're left with an ugly player.

Conclusion
Although the BD-P1600 isn't our favorite player there is a lot to like about it, and more importantly, it is an improvement over the BD-P1500. The best part is that even though it is better than last year's, you're going to pay less for it too. We really wish Samsung would do some simple things though, like add discrete IR codes, built in storage for BD Live -- what's a gig of flash memory cost these days anyways? -- and price it's Wifi dongle appropriately, but no one's perfect. Ultimately we are very satisfied with the feature list in this entry level player, especially since internet streaming features like Netflix and Pandora were about a $100 upgrade in the last generation of players. At this point though, it is still too early to predict how it will fare against the other new entry level players, but the fact that Samsung had its new model to market first should speak volumes for the company's ability to continue to be the first to get the latest technologies to market.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 11:17AM]

Yeah, but the flip down door get's in the way of an otherwise great product. You would think that Samsung would have figured this out! C'mon People!! how hard can it be to design a user friendly bluray player.

[ohpleaseno Posted May 20th 2009 11:32AM]

I know its been said before, but you seriously could do with a quick dusting of the area you're taking a picture of. Especially if you are going to drag the feet of the BD player and cause a gully of clean wood across the sea of dust.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 11:48AM]

Lol...I was thinking the same thing looks like someone was smoking while testing the tray open time.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 2:15PM]

Jeez, I feel sorry for whoever has to live with you. I hope nobody has to. I've heard Ben admit to not being a clean freak. Besides, can you really not appreciate the look of a product because of some dust on someone else's cabinet?

[ohpleaseno Posted May 20th 2009 2:46PM]

@squeeg well, if the product itself were something to look at I wouldn't be forced to look at the dust farm on Ben's cabinet

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 12:22PM]

i really don't get why they'd put a flip down face on this. it boggles the mind. other than that, it seems a pretty impressive entry-level player.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 12:54PM]

I hate to do it (not really), but Ben, here's a quick grammar refresher:

"Your" is the possessive form of "you."

You're using it correctly when you say this:

"The bitstream re-encode setting is great if your AVR doesn't do TrueHD."

However, you're using it incorrectly when you say the following:

"Network test is a great feature if your having network issues."

and

"If we did own this player, we'd probably figure out a way to take it off completely, but even then your left with an ugly player."

Talk about ugly.

You're is a contraction for "you are."

Clean up your table and clean up your grammar if you're man enough.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 2:17PM]

Seriously, dude - get over yourself (or "you'reself" just to piss you off).

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 2:34PM]

Yeah, it's hard not to come off as holier-than-thou when you correct someone's grammar online. Still, I'm gonna fight the good fight. I'm sure Ben appreciates my efforts...

[(Unverified) Posted May 21st 2009 9:50AM]

GrammarPoliceConstableTim, I'd have to agree with you here. I don't know if Engadget writers technically qualify as professional writers but the difference between "you're" and "your" is very simple.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 1:14PM]

doesn't this thing have UPNP/DLNA?

[MiggityMikeB Posted May 20th 2009 2:02PM]

Yeah it does.

[MiggityMikeB Posted May 20th 2009 2:11PM]

check that. im thinking of the 3600. i dont know.

[glennS Posted May 20th 2009 1:54PM]

No discrete codes is a deal breaker for me. Otherwise, this player has everything I am looking for. (or for you grammar police, "everything for which I am looking").

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 2:34PM]

Solid work, Glenn.

Got to think of an easy way of explaining an end of sentence preposition to Ben...ah forget it.

[andysexton Posted May 20th 2009 3:19PM]

There's a deal on Amazon right now for this and 4 DVDs for $181 I just saw on one of the tech deal sites...

http://dealspl.us/product/samsung-bd-p1600-1080p-blu-ray-disc-player

Tempted, but the lack of discrete IR codes is annoying. Think I'll wait.

[MiggityMikeB Posted May 20th 2009 4:00PM]

Whoa. Hell yes. Thanks! Was looking to buy the 3600 anyway!

[andysexton Posted May 20th 2009 4:41PM]

Err, meant 4 blu rays.

[(Unverified) Posted May 20th 2009 3:48PM]

I got this last friday.. Played with it over the weekend and took it back on Monday.
It was OK, didnt provide Divx HD or some other codecs I was trying out. Ended up getting the LG BD390. Same price, much better support for other codecs.

Love it so far...

[(Unverified) Posted May 21st 2009 6:31PM]

Im thinking about getting a Blu ray player but I just dont see that its worth the extra $200 bucks over a
normal DVD player.



http://www.squidoo.com/apple_iphone_download

[(Unverified) Posted Jun 21st 2009 7:46AM]

2 words:

Pledge. Rag.

[(Unverified) Posted May 21st 2009 1:56AM]

YES! Finally! Someone else who thinks Gattaca is AWESOME!

[(Unverified) Posted May 21st 2009 1:51AM]

Seems to start skipping after a few hours of play. My big box store had one demoed for a week and it started skipping after the 2nd, or 3rd day. The 1500 was doing the same thing when we had it featured in the front. The Samsung rep informed us that they weren't meant to be played for hours on end. Sounds a bit off to me. We had a Sony at the front at one point and it did just fine on the 'hours a day' aspect.

[(Unverified) Posted May 21st 2009 10:17AM]

I have the 3600 and it is awesome. Get it instead. It includes the wi-fi dongle, internal storage for Blu-Ray Live and 7.1 audio output for older receivers.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 1st 2009 6:57PM]

I've had this for a couple of weeks and it's been great with the Netflix streaming but I allowed them to do the firmware update (which took around 20 minutes) and then when turning it on after the update it asked for which language I wanted; 1 for English, 2 for Spanish, etc. I entered 1 and it just sat there doing nothing. Finally I unplugged the ethernet line and re-connected it and it went to the main menu. I selected Netflix and then selected a TV show I had in my queue. It took forever to "retrieve" and then when I started playing it, it stopped every 4 or 5 minutes. It became totally unwatchable. I called Samsung and they basically told me I'm stuck, you can't undo the update and they don't have a new one. Has anyone else experienced this??