Saw a good deal on a Blu-Ray Player, it is worth it?

I was at a local Best Buy checking out some TV's and saw a Samsung Bd-P1200 blu-ray player on sale for $169 (open item). I almost snapped it up, but hesitated and decided to check it out online. Some reviews say this player will not play some current and future blu-ray movies. Some say it's only a firmware update while others say it's hardware related and not upgradable. I've never looked into blu-ray players before, so I know very little about them.

I was planning on getting a new DVD player anyway with upconverting capability, but those run for anywhere from $50-200. Do you think this blu-ray player is a good deal, or a waste since it's possible new movies won't play?

I don't have that BD player, but mine has had regular firmware updates issued.

I think that most Blu-ray have firmware updates, I know when I wanted to get one I was looking at everyone out there, but I actually ended up buying a PS3 because it has one, and I actually ended up loading Linux on it, so basically got another computer out of it. So I would say go with a PS3

Blu-ray players will always need a firmware upgrade. The encryption of blu-ray discs will change from time to time to further prevent copying.

I would make sure the player is 2.0 compatible for all of the online features. Make sure upgrading the firmware is easy to do. See if it supports TrueHD or DoblyHD (I think) audio features. One of the big features of Blu-ray is the lossless audio. The difference is astonishing even with a decent 5.1 surround sound system.

Looking at my research the PS3 will give you most bang for your buck.

The PS3 is the best blu-ray player put there by a mile.

From what I've read this afternoon, it does seem the PS3 is the only Blu-ray player that offers up everything Blu-ray is capable of (and most HD DVD hardware was capable of). But I just don't want a "game console" in my home theater. Plus I've read it gets really hot and the fans are loud compared to stand-alone's which are basically silent.

I may just buy this unit to hold me over on infrequent blu-ray rentals until manufacturers get their act together by making units that do everything PS3 does, and at a more reasonable price.

I leave it standing up so it stays cooler. I only hear it when the room is silent.

I think the future models will use 45nm processors so they will be cooler. They also made a mistake putting the CPU and GPU heatsinks together. I think they found a way to get the heat out better.

But with all of its features and ease of use, it makes a great home theatre system. It will stream movies from your Mac, you could store all of your music on it, watch movies, and play GTA IV the way it is meant to be played.

If I could access media from an NAS with it (including iTunes DRM'd media) and access it remotely from my MBP while away from home, I'd snap it up in a heartbeat! That's all I'm trying to do these days. The Blu-ray is more of an afterthought. I recently ordered a huge HDTV and I'm going to want to use it at it's full potential.