LG BD550

• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 16 reviews
• My rating: 0 stars

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• 8 stars

  Best blue-ray player with affordable price

  by xiache on May 5, 2010

  Pros: Superb quality, 1080/60p resolution just blew me away. Absolutely satisfying by any standards.

  Cons: This is interesting. I was going to say no wireless connection, and no built-in memory. However, I don't want to say that anymore. The wireless connection for instant streaming (Netflix) at DVD resolution of 720p at this point is a joke.

  Summary: Highest performance-price ratio, wonderful 1080/60p resolution, you won't regret that you bought this one. You don't need to spend money on extra wireless connection, or 250 GB ...

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  Summary: Highest performance-price ratio, wonderful 1080/60p resolution, you won't regret that you bought this one. You don't need to spend money on extra wireless connection, or 250 GB of memory. If you want to see streaming with a DVD player, go with a wire connection, no matter how long the wire is. I just bought a 75 ft CAT5e Ethernet cable. It cost me only $9 online. If you want wireless LG Blue-ray, add $100 to this unit. Which way do you prefer? To me, I would just use the cable. I don't mind to set it up every time when I watch Netflix DVD streaming.
  
  Updated on May 11, 2010

  After receiving my 75-ft Ethernet cable in the mail, I immediately hooked it up. Clicking on NetCast, Wow, you will see Netflix (equivalent to Blockbuster but with online streaming at lower price), Vudu (HD video that you can buy or rent), Picasa (free site with tons of beautiful pictures including your own if uploaded), Pandora (an online HiFi music site), YouTube, CinemaNow (similar to Vudu except loaded with new movies still in the movie theaters) and AccuWeather. I tried each of these except for Pandora (I am not into just music; I am more of a video-audio combo fan). The quality of these blew me away. I had to say this because I tried using Wii to view online streaming and not satisfied with that. The default Wii video cable is composite cables and resolution is not enough for washing movies. I ordered a component cable for Wii online for only $4.92, and it has yet to come from Hong Kong. When I get it I'll do an update. Wii can see Netflix and Weather. The sound is only stereo.
  
  Updated on May 13, 2010

  I'd like to describe my Wii experience before I compare it to my LG BD550.
  Finally got my Wii component cables. For those that didn't know, component cable comes in 5 connectors, red and white for audio, and green, blue and red for video. Replaced the original composite cables. Significant improvements can be noticed, although may not be that drastic, considering the source resolution is still 480i. The improvements are more noticeable on larger screen TVs or when watching movies. You will be happier watching a Netflix movie streaming using Wii with a component cable than a composite cable. However, the video quality is definitely inferior to DVD, but acceptable. Watching a streaming with Wii using a composite cable is unacceptable to me. Your best bet is still watching it with LG BD550, where the video quality is equivalent to DVD; the sound is still stereo (I wish I could tell you it's digital), although the sound is almost just as good, except there is no surround sound.

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  4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 9 stars

  Great player for the money!

  by egbert567 on March 20, 2010

  Pros: Bought this unit to replace a Vizio unit that I had for 2 weeks. There is no comparison between the performance of this unit compared to the Vizio!

  Cons: None as of yet!

  Summary: $30 dollars more and I recieve net connection and a unit that loads a Blu Ray in 1/3 of the time that the Vizio did.

  Summary: $30 dollars more and I recieve net connection and a unit that loads a Blu Ray in 1/3 of the time that the Vizio did.

  3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 10 stars

  Great, especially compared to the one it replaces

  by kbrown127 on March 13, 2010

  Pros: Plays Blu Ray discs with ease
  Decent Loading time
  Great Picture
  Many options

  Cons: None so far

  Summary: This replaces our Sharp Blu Ray player that we got for free with our tv. If the Sharp was not free, it would have been returned long ago. This player ...

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  Summary: This replaces our Sharp Blu Ray player that we got for free with our tv. If the Sharp was not free, it would have been returned long ago. This player is leaps and bounds above the Sharp, simply because it plays all of the discs I throw at it so far, it upgrades the firmware over the ethernet connection, and it has many options to take advantage of being connected to the internet like netflix and pandora.
  
  My old blu ray player would not do any of the above, so this LG was a breath of fresh air for sure!

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  3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 8 stars

  Excellent entry level player with great bang for the $

  by copanewbe on October 2, 2010

  Pros: -Internet capable
  -Easy to use Application navigator
  -Zero problems with either DVD or Blu-Ray playback
  -Sleek and simple design

  Cons: -Application navigation is somewhat laggy, almost feels unresponsive
  -USB is behind bay door
  -Power-on time takes a while

  Summary: This is my first Blu-Ray player. I was looking for something in a lower price range that was internet capable and performs playback without glitches. If you are in this ...

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  Summary: This is my first Blu-Ray player. I was looking for something in a lower price range that was internet capable and performs playback without glitches. If you are in this category, you should consider this unit. After 3 weeks I have had no issues with DVD or BR playback. The applications are easy to use and manage. However, during application navigation the response time from the remote has considerable lag. Other than the lag time, I have had good luck using Pandora and youtube applications.
  
  If you are someone looking to utilize internet features often, I would look elsewhere. If basic playback and internet usage are your criteria, look no further. For the price range, this unit is hard to beat.

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  2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 2 stars

  Ok if all features; movie, photo, music, NETCAST, work.

  by oncebittenbylg on March 30, 2011

  Pros: If all features work, as advertised on the outside of the box it, (LG BD550) comes in,....no complaints.

  Cons: I bought two BD550's at the same time, (AT wal-mart) early December, 2010. The cashier told me I had 90 days to come back, if I decided to buy an extended warranty. I had given one unit to a friend, in early January, 2011. After the second day of his usi

  Summary: I bought the LG BD550 for the NETFLIX instant movie watching capability only. If it did not have the NETFLIX logo on the list of 'Netcast abilities' that it performs, ...

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  Summary: I bought the LG BD550 for the NETFLIX instant movie watching capability only. If it did not have the NETFLIX logo on the list of 'Netcast abilities' that it performs, listed its the box, I would not have bought it. I have plenty of DVD players, and can wait on blu-rays. In the middle of this month, (March, 2011) after slightly more than ninety days of being able to watch NETFLIX instant movies, that feature suddenly, completly stopped working....When I click on the NETFLIX logo, as I had done countless times before, when things were working fine, what shows, is a red screen, with a NETFLIX logo and a message that says ..."loading" for approximately 40 to 50 seconds,...then the machine completely turns itself off. I tried whatever the LG customer service had to suggest, (which was only de-activate and, or re-activate, and re-register) several times. Still, the only feature that I had paid my hundred, and two dollars for is not working. When I asked the LG guy on the phone, about the 'warranty',...he simply said,...send us sixty-nine dollars, and ninety-nine cents. I (very condensed version) told him that I would have to think about it. At this point of my story is the part that really raises a bigger question, or two.....After being told it would take $69.99 to take advantage of my warranty on the LG BD550, I went back to Wal-Mart to see if they had any more BD550'S and for what price. They had less than five left in one of the two local stores. Both Wal-Marts had taken down their display models of this model, and one had none in stock, I wonder why. Out of curiosity, as much as anything, I decided to pay $98.** for a new LG BD550 fresh in the box, rather than send a check to LG customer service, and wait for who knows how long... I got the new machine home, out of the box, all hooked up, guess what? It worked exactly as much as my first LG BD550, (it's less than four months old) so this brand new, right out of the box, LG BD550 played DVD's ok, in the 'Netcast' functions, it played Youtube fine, it ran the 'Accuweather' feature fine, (even let me select a city, and started to give it's weather)...the DIVX TV, works fine, just like on my'old machine', as well as the VUDU, and Cinema Now, pay to watch movie features worked...So both machines, one bought a few days ago, in what appeared to be an unopened box, and one that worked 100% for about ninety days, both appear to have good ethernet connections for all the 'Netcast' features except for NETFLIX, the only feature that i bought the machine for. At least I can get my money back on the one I bought last week, unless Wal-Mart changed their policy since then. So far the second machine that my friend got still works...When I talked to someone at NETFLIX today ,they were nice enough, but could not offer any real help, other than saying they were putting a 'feed' alert on it,or something like that....Needless to say, if you still feel compelled to get an LG blu-ray player, pay for at least two years extended warranty in your initial transaction. But that's not even fair, because I have had computers, DVD players, and other electronics devices longer than ten years, and they still work, completely...My conversations with LG, AND WAL-MART are to be continued....March 29th 2011...
  
  Updated on Mar 30, 2011

  I think the LG BD550's that LG sold to Wal-Mart,... came off of the LG 'TRAINEE' PRODUCTION LINE... Why do I think this?....Out of three of the LG BD550'S that I paid for new, out of a box since December, ('10)...all three lost, or never had the function of playing NETFLIX instant movies. Which was the only reason, I spent the $100.** for each machine at all anyway.

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  1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 8 stars

  I was finally pressured by the boss to get something.

  by Mot_the_Hoople on February 11, 2011

  Pros: I'm still probably going to get the PS3 because of it's flexibility, but, the LG BD550 is serving it's purpose very well. The reason I went with the 550 is well, first because it was on sale, but really because it plays MKV files.

  Cons: Slow menus and doesn't always want to recognize the USB right away.

  Summary: Considering that this very same technology was $500 a few years ago, I'm thrilled! I've searched and researched everything out there on the consumer markets, hung around the ...

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  Summary: Considering that this very same technology was $500 a few years ago, I'm thrilled! I've searched and researched everything out there on the consumer markets, hung around the AVS forum and other blogs trying to get my head wrapped around the various combinations of hardware and software, file formats, media players, etc.. It's mind boggling. I thought I might go with a home media player like POPCORN TIME or BOXEE BOX or even the PS3, meanwhile the "boss" wanted to play her Jane Fonda workout DVD's she got for Chistmas, now! The BD550 fit the bill.
  I'm no media guru but I noticed that most hi-res video is MKV and a lot of the files I have are hi-res. I'm still going to hack it eventually to get the wireless and other features like DLNA. Which essentially makes it the BD570. I was impressed by the number of formats the 550 works with. I was also impressed that you can plug in an external hard drive and start playing media. I have an Onkyo receiver that handles the outputs and it always sounds great! No problems so far!

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  1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 1 stars

  Terrible, does not work

  by Immilling on January 21, 2011

  Pros: The player with some tweaking and a whole lot of patience does work. Netflix is more accessible, showing more than the watch instant cue, but still no search function.

  Cons: the device was built bad, the user has to change the resolution settings of the player out of the box to get it to work. My unit would not hold onto changes made. really skip this unit, buy another brand.

  Summary: Why would LG manufacture a product that ports the user menu in 480i which is not compatible with the HDMI output? It should switch the resolution to 480p automatically when ...

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  Summary: Why would LG manufacture a product that ports the user menu in 480i which is not compatible with the HDMI output? It should switch the resolution to 480p automatically when the HDMI is in use. The user has to know to open the tray, and hold the stop button for a few seconds to change the resolution. This is not documented in the user manual, and customer support although aware of the problem is not willing to change the issue. My player would not even hold onto the change made, because there was a physical problem. I called LG, they demanded proof of purchase, even though I could not comply because it was a gift. They were unwilling to help me, even when I informed them I would not buy their products as a result. When I started this review I was going to give them three stars, but because they were not any help I reduced it to half a star. I can't believe they expect me to go to the gift giver, ask for the receipt, "thanks for the gift, it does not work, I have to show proof that I bought it, so receipt please..." Is it not bad enough the unit does not function out of the box? I am so sick of these companies treating the consumer that all problems are the fault of the consumer. LG failed to build this thing right, and as a result I have to jump through their hoops to make it right? They would not even give me a new one, just repair this one. Like I would want a product that was defective from the start, that needed to be repaired. That does not instill confidence in the manufacturer. I then sent it for an exchange at a popular big box store, the new player still did not work. I had the same problem with the new unit. I say skip this product, indeed all LG products.

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  1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.

• 10 stars

  Far exceeds my Sony DVD player/recorder - Great!!!

  by parbilo on May 14, 2011

  Pros: Works great.

  Cons: Don't like the up/down/left/right buttons on the remote; but, they work fine

  Summary: I picked this unit up on clearance. My Sony DVD player skips on 10% of the disks - it is only two years old. I put the same problem disks ...

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  Summary: I picked this unit up on clearance. My Sony DVD player skips on 10% of the disks - it is only two years old. I put the same problem disks in this player and NO SKIPPING. I don't have high speed internet right now so I haven't used the LAN connection. The picture even seems clearer than my Sony. Overall, I am very satisfied.

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• 4 stars

  Buy a Samsung or Sony Blu-ray player before LG

  by ssluck on April 22, 2011

  Pros: Blue-ray and standard DVD play fine. Wifi is awesome for connecting to DLNA compatible NAS.

  Cons: NETFLIX's INTERFACE SUCKS. For example.. So someone tells you a movie is now available on Netflix to "watch now". Great, let's watch it. Oh wait, there is no search option and it isn't in the preselected genre menus which are limited to 75 movies each

  Summary: If I could throw my Blu-ray player at the designers I would. Anyone want a LG BD570? Half price? :) I'm assuming the newer 2011 models have the same interface ...

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  Summary: If I could throw my Blu-ray player at the designers I would. Anyone want a LG BD570? Half price? :) I'm assuming the newer 2011 models have the same interface also.
  
  Updated on Apr 22, 2011

  Ok, not sure why the rest of my review got cutoff?? So basically, get ready to use your computer when you need to search for a movie that isn't already in the Netflix preselected movie titles. This is probably the same for the newer 2011 models also. Samsung and Sony players both have a seach option. Wake up LG!!

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• 1 stars

  The WORST!

  by dblteez on April 16, 2011

  Pros: No pros. A total dud!

  Cons: 4 months old & it stopped working. LG wants to charge me to fix it. I'm going out to purchase a BETTER brand!!

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