Blu-ray has been around for nearly 20 years, offering a higher quality viewing experience than DVDs.
It’s no good buying a Blu-ray disc without a Blu-ray player, but is there a future for such hardware in the age of streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+, Paramount Plus, Foxtel and Stan?
A story suggesting LG was withdrawing from the Blu-ray player market has triggered another round of debate about whether the Blu-ray will go the way of the blacksmith, the Streets Choc Burger and the bricks and mortar video rental store.
“LG has discontinued all Blu-ray players, including the UBK80 and UBK90 UHD Blu-ray players, with remaining units only available while stocks last,” FlatpanelsHD posted.
“The announcement echoes similar moves from Oppo in 2018 and Samsung in 2019, when both companies exited the optical disc player market.”
The website said multiple sources had confirmed the move by LG to exit the Blu-ray and UHD Blu-ray player market, but that LG had not confirmed a “definitive global exit from the optical disc player market, leaving the door open for a return if demand picks up”.
“LG’s departure from the optical disc player market is unsurprising, as its players were not very popular to begin with. Sales of Blu-ray players have been declining for years, with UHD Blu-ray player sales peaking in 2017, just one year after the UHD Blu-ray format debuted.”
Any whiff of Blu-ray’s days being numbered rouses some of the world’s cinephiles, who have invested in Blu-ray players and a library of movies, and can’t handle the visual quality of streaming.
The arguments come thick and fast on comment sections. Without Blu-ray, what’s the point of watching a movie? What’s the point of Blu-ray if the best movies aren’t issued in that format? Just because LG is leaving, it doesn’t mean the party is over – other companies manufacture Blu-ray players. Don’t be a snob, streaming is fine. No, streaming is not fine. Streaming is an affront to the senses. And so on, and so forth.
JB Hi-Fi currently lists six Blu-ray players on its website. They are all made by Panasonic and range in price from $169 to $899.
At the premium end of the market are products such as the Magnetar UDP900 4K Universal Disc Player (around $4,000) and the Reavon UBR-X200 Flagship 4K Ultra HD Universal Disc Player (about $3,000).
