LG BD550

The LG BD 550 is LG’s new entry level model similar in features to the BD570 except for the lack of Wi-Fi capabilities. It features a sleek crystal-edge design; smooth 1080p 24/60hz high-def video and high resolution 192khz surround sound for an immersive home entertainment experience.

Latest Update: Limited stocks of LG BD550 now available at Amazon.com. Click here to view the latest offer price.

LG BD 550 | Player Details

Design

The new LG line is designed to balance the look of LG’s latest generation of HDTVs. The BD 550 Blu-ray player sports an ultra slim look and compact design allowing you to easily blend it into your existing home decor.

The front panel is a simple affair with the disc tray on the left and control buttons on the right. A USB 2.0 port on the front allows playback of media like music MP3s and digital photos directly. The USB is also needed if you want to download BD-Live bonus content like movie trailers. The USB storage must have at least 1GB free space.

Being an entry level player, connectivity options have been reduced to the basics. You get a HDMI output, component video out, composite video out, digital audio out, analog stereo outputs and a LAN port.

Features

Related Netcast Services

This player can be connected to a local area network (LAN) via the LAN port on the rear panel. By connecting the unit to a broadband home network, you have access to services such as software updates, BD-LIVE interactivity and streaming services. Once connected the BD550 offers convenient access to a virtually endless array of entertainment content options with a large variety of content options. LG’s NetCast Entertainment Access allows instant access to Netflix, CinemaNow, Vudu, YouTube and Pandora. LG has also added new content partners like weather forecasts from AccuWeather and Picasa online photo service which allows you to share photo albums with friends and family.

To take full advantage of the Blu-ray format, the BD 550 will also provide convenient access to BD Live, which offers a wide variety of content, such as movie scene extras, new previews and the ability to read synopses and rate movies. Also included are Bonus View features which provide picture-in-picture access to Blu-ray Disc special features, allowing you to toggle between your favorite movie scenes and bonus features on the disc. If you have a library full of DVD movies, the BD 550 will upscale it to 1080p for a near high definition viewing experience. To give you a variety of options to choose content from, the BD550 uses Netcast to access sites like Netflix and CinemaNow where you can purchase your choice of movies. You can browse, search and watch YouTube videos over the internet to your TV via the BD550. The player can access Gracenote’s Media Database for music information such as track title, artist name and other text information to be displayed. Also with Gracenote’s Music ID-Stream you can play back a song found in a movie by matching the song’s audio waveform with its database. Interesting features but doing this constantly may affect the flow of the movie.

The LG BD550 is also capable of decoding all the high resolution audio codecs such as Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus and DTS-HD Master audio. These audio codecs are supported with maximum 7.1 channels if you use HDMI connection for the audio output of the unit. It is also capable of handling high resolution audio signals up to 192kHz.

If you already own an LG TV with SimpLink, you can Play, Pause, Scan, Skip, Stop, Power Off the BD550 with the TV’s remote.

Bottom Line

As an entry level player sub $200 player, the LG BD550 sure packs in a host of features that will satisfy and perhaps overwhelm the first time user. At this price point it will win a lot of converts to the world high definition entertainment.

Click Here for Latest Offer on LG BD 550
Enjoy Free Shipping & Secure Shopping