Samsung BD-D5700 3D Blu-ray Disc Player (Black) [2011 MODEL]

Up until this point we have been Blu Ray holdouts. But now that these players are able to stream a lot of services that my wife and I enjoy over XBOX Live (Netflix, Hulu), as well as services I've typically used my computer for (MLB.tv), I wanted to go ahead and jump in.I'll start by saying that this unit does wifi, but I'm currently not utilizing that feature. I purchased this particular unit because it's listed on Samsung's site as being capable of running the MLB.tv app, while some of the non-wifi devices did not list that particular app. That was a deal breaker for me, so I paid the extra money despite the fact that our router is located right next to our entertainment system. Just to make sure everything was set up correctly, I did log in to the network, and it worked just fine on this unit. But ultimately, I feel like if I can hardwire something that I'm going to be streaming content from on a daily basis, I might as well.Set up was simple, and the unit is phenomenally sleek. With both the TV and Blu Ray player off, when I turn the Blu Ray player on, it also turns on the TV. On top of that, it also turns the TV's input to the HDMI that the unit is hooked into. Technology is making us lazier, but when it comes to something like this, "Thank you, technology". After receiving this player, I immediately hooked it up and tried a Blu Ray that we had from one of those combo packs, and it looked fantastic. Better than the DVD that we had previously purchased the movie for. Like, significantly better. Why have we been holding out, again? It DOES take a little bit of time to load. I'd say 20-30 seconds, maybe? Some people might be bothered by this, but for the last few years we've just used the XBOX for DVD playback, and I don't really feel like that's THAT much faster of a choice.What I really purchased this for was the streaming/internet functionality. I won't lie: The UI for the Netflix and Hulu Plus apps is not as clean as it is on XBOX Live. On Netflix, titles display in a grid as opposed to a long line of titles in your queue. It's just not as nice, IMO. But it's definitely functional. And the picture looks just as great as it does on my XBOX.I'm going to take a moment to focus on the MLB.tv app, because when I was researching Blu Ray players, that info was a little harder to come by. Samsung, LG and Sony are the only manufacturers who offer an MLB.tv app on their Blu Ray players, and even then, not all of their players offer it. In fact, I believe Sony only makes it available on their PS3. And with Samsung and LG, it's absent from some of their lower end (IE, non-wifi equipped) players. I set up my account, but it gave me an error message immediately. Turns out I needed to download the newest firmware, to a USB key, and then load it to my player. This is the type of thing that will turn off others from a purchase and possibly have them sending the player back to Amazon. I don't know why, when I first turned this player on and it downloaded a new firmware update, it didn't download the NEWEST firmware. Granted, according to Samsung's website, it had just released, but even when I manually searched for the firmware on the player, it didn't find it. But I will say that downloading it to a USB key and loading it in was fairly simple. Maybe just a little more than some might like. Regardless of all that it took to get working, the app works great. And the picture is ridiculous. HD quality 95% of the time.All in all, we're very happy with this player. It's really sleek and fits in great with our entertainment system. It takes a little bit extra to set up some of the streaming features, but you won't devote an entire evening to set this thing up.Also, for anybody coming from something like an XBOX to play movies: this player is SO quiet. Like, not even realizing it's on sometimes quiet. So much different than the XBOX.

It surprises me how many negative reviews I read about Blu Ray players in general that have nothing to do with the player, but has everything to do with the person's lack of knowledge about electronics. While researching for a Blu Ray player for my parents, I came across a guy who gave a player a negative review because the player's box didn't tell him that the cable modem that he was using wasn't capable of supporting two Ethernet connected devices and that he would need a router for the player and his home computer to be hooked to the internet at the same time. It is not the Blu Ray manufactures job to inform the customer of basic facts. That would be like getting mad a car dealership for not telling a customer that the automobile needs gasoline to work correctly.The next one that drives me crazy is when people complain about firmware updates. Wake up people. Your player is a dumbed down computer that is made especially for videos and will need updates from time to time. Do you get mad at Microsoft every time your home computer gets updates? No, you don't. It may be annoying, but you do it anyways because you know it will make your computer run better. Also, whining about needing an update right out of the box is plain stupid. In fact, it makes me feel more secure about my purchase. It lets me know that the manufacturer is still working to make my device better even after they have my money. And it lets me know that if any new apps are released, my player may be able to handle them and, once again, make my home theater experience better.The Samsung BD-D5700 was purchased because of the Built-in WiFi (I really have no idea why they even make WiFi Ready Players). I researched and compared all of the mid-priced Blu Ray players with Built-in WiFi and it came down to either a Samsung or Sony. I wanted the Hulu Plus App and these were the only two with that option. Both the Samsung and Sony models had decent reviews but each had a few negative aspects. The Samsungs had a slow load time reviews (time it takes to power up the player and play a movie) and the Sony models apparently had some spotty WiFi video steaming (Netflix, Hulu, YouTube). This player was going to be used at my parents on an N wireless router, so the Sonys were out. But a few weeks later I ended up buying a Sony that I hooked up to a hard line in my own house. Both work amazingly and have not had a single issue. But then I knew what situation each was going to be used for and planned ahead. And just so this review is complete, the Samsung does not load as fast as the Sony, but it is nowhere near the wait time as the earlier Blu Ray players.