I am starting a new section today talking about different products and services we use/see out there. This is the first post in this direction and hopefully it will generate some discussions around products and services people like/dislike. I would love to hear your comments on these items and your personal experiences with them.

I have spent a number of years helping consumers and businesses pick out Audio/Video devices to integrate into their homes/business. A number of people have been asking about Blu-Ray players and what I recommend. I have been reticent to offer any suggestions because so many different services and devices are going online (Apple TV, Roku, Hulu, etc) . It’s hard to justify jumping to a new platform for video when more content is finding itself legally online. However, I did find one that blends a lot of what we like into a solid device.

The Samsung Blu-Ray BD-P2550 is your normal every day Blu-Ray player that can support 1080p, etc for playback. What makes this one different is it also integrates Netflix streaming and Pandora in one device. You would not need another device for Netflix, wait for DVDs to arrive in the mail or to allow you to stream audio throughout your house. It also supports firmware upggrades so we may see things like support for Hulu or other online services in the future. It just makes it a lot more flexible than other players out there and is a big differentiator. It is just one of those devices that makes a better case to upgrade than a stand alone player and it gives more options than others out there.

If you are looking at upgrading then it is definitely worth a look over the rest of the standalone players. I am picking one up for a friend now and will update this if I have any specific feedback about it in the future. If you want to pick one up it is available at Best Buy or Amazon