# Panasonic’s Announces Surprising Price Point for 4K UHD Blu-ray Player (DMP-UB900)



## Todd Anderson (Jul 24, 2009)

The 4K UHD Blu-ray player model landscape is quickly taking shape, and it appears that shoppers will have at least four choices come this September. Samsung’s UBD-K8500 (available now) and Philips’ BDP7501 (which missed a June launch) are both priced under $400. We also recently learned that Microsoft’s Xbox One S gaming console (due in August, $300) will support 4K Blu-ray disc playback. That leaves Panasonic, the only other confirmed 2016 4K UHD Blu-ray player manufacturer, which recently revealed its DMP-UB900 will be available in September for the hefty price tag of $699. At nearly double the cost of the competition, Panasonic is taking square aim at high-end craving AV enthusiasts.

Spec-wise, Panasonic’s THX certified DMP-UB900 appears to offer quite a bit more than the competition. Not unlike the Philips and Samsung players, the UB900 ships with the ability to playback 4K/60 fps video and offers High Dynamic Range support. However, it also has audiophile features such as separate stereo and 7.1 analog outputs, separate audio and video HDMI outputs, and Hi-Res audio playback of FLAC, DSD (2.MHz/5.6MHz), WAV, and ALAC formats. Panasonic says the player has large-capacity electrolytic capacitors, a LAN Common Mode Filter (to reduce external noise), and a192 kHz/32 DAC to deliver the best sound possible.

Panasonic has also given attention to video playback with a unique HDR to SDR feature that allows the player to convert HDR material for playback on SDR televisions.

Other manufacturers, such as Sony and Oppo, may have some sort of 4K UHD Blu-ray player by the holidays. Sony has opted not to release a standalone 4K UHD Blu-ray player during 2016, instead its sites are set on 4K streaming. It might, however, release a new iteration of its popular Playstation gaming system with 4K Blu-ray playback capabilities. At this point, the new Playstation is receiving plenty of attention in the world of internet speculation, but the company has yet to make any official confirmation. Oppo is confirmed to be designing its own 4K UHD Blu-ray player, but a release date has yet to be set.

_Image Credit: Panasonic_


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## typ44q (Apr 7, 2008)

Back in the early days of bluray Panasonic had some of the best players on the market but they were much more competitively priced than this is. I am sure this will be a great player but personally I am waiting for the Oppo.


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## Todd Anderson (Jul 24, 2009)

I agree... at that price point it's worth waiting to see what Oppo delivers


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## Spidacat (Nov 21, 2015)

I'd probably spend the extra money for the Panasonic over the Samsung, but I'll also wait and see what the Oppo looks like and what it costs before making a decision. I have a 4K non HDR TV and like the Panasonic's converter feature as well as several of the other mentioned options, but if the Oppo is $500-700 it would be hard to pass up.


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## Todd Anderson (Jul 24, 2009)

The good news is that standard Blu-ray still looks really good... so waiting isn't a bad option!


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