Looking for an HDTV with built-in DVD and Netflix streaming.

January 3, 2010 3:26 PM

Lazyweb: Anyone have an HDTV that has both Netflix streaming and a dvd player built-in? Are you happy with it? I'm interested in sets with only the streaming feature too, I have a spare DVD player and might want to upgrade to blu-ray in the future anyhow...

I want to hang the set on the wall in my bedroom, so absolute minimum clutter without having to go crazy with punching holes and running cables is the goal... I don't need it to be huge. For $1700 I can hang a 27 inch iMac on the wall, and if it's going to cost more than a grand, I guess I can probably do it myself with a cheap HTPC and seperate lcd...

posted by mzurer to Technology (4 answers total)

Well, if you're open to getting a separate player, I really recommend the wall-hanging Samsung BD-P4600. It is a sleek black blu-ray player with Youtube, Blockbuster, Pandora, and Netflix streaming support. We have its cousin, the non wall-hanging BD-P3600 and it was really easy to use and to set up. From the Samsung website, it is priced at $349.99 and includes a wireless network adapter to make the movies stream wirelessly. We have no troubles with movies hanging (although other internet usage slows a little while streaming) and it puts out really good graphics. That hooked up to a decent set shouldn't outrun your budget and upgrades you to blu-ray, which you said you were considering.
posted by Night_owl at 5:21 PM on January 3, 2010 [1 favorite]

Building on the idea of a separate player, you should seriously consider a Playstation 3. Its $300, has built-in Wifi, downloadable movies via the Playstation Network, works with streaming Netflix (via a disc currently, but rumor has it an app is coming this year) and has a built-in Blu-ray player.
posted by tundro at 6:14 PM on January 3, 2010

Seconding the PS3 rec. Hubby works as a Blu-ray programmer and says it's the most future proof you can currently get in BD players because of the updates and what not. I stream Netflix via disc on it and the quality is pretty damn good. Comparable to an upsampled DVD.

For reference, my PS3 is coupled with a 50" Panasonic Viera plasma TV.
posted by arishaun at 10:33 PM on January 3, 2010

Nthing the suggestions for getting a separate Blu-ray player instead of an integrated TV. I can't tell if your budget is $1700 or not, but the Samsung and LG Blu-ray players come with Netflix and Youtube for ~$120 to ~$200 depending on feature sets, leaving you $1500 for a decent-sized (37" or larger) TV.

I personally use the PS3, but I just bought the LG BD-370 for my parents and they're digging it. Make sure you pay attention to the specs, since the cheaper models like the BD370 tend to only have wired LAN connections as opposed to a wireless connection (like its big brother the BD390). You can make the cheaper models wireless if you have a wireless bridge, or if you're even more tech-savvy and have a spare router lying around, hack the router firmware using DD-WRT.
posted by zombieflanders at 6:47 AM on January 4, 2010