Top 8 Smart Blu-ray Players with WiFi Built-in & 4K Upscaling

Samuel J Tan Blu-ray Players, Entertainment, Home & Kitchen, Home Cinema 0

Late adopters save with these Smart Blu-ray Player that will turn your old flat screen TV into a connected entertainment hub, all for less than any video streaming dongle or set top boxes and and you still get catch-up TV, Netflix and Amazon Prime.

When it comes to Smart Blu-ray Player, there are two categories of smart, Advanced and Basic with the later having a fix set of apps typically for catch-up TV and streaming movies. The Advanced Smart players let you access the App Store for more apps and not limited to catch-up TV apps and streaming movies but social media apps (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter) and online radio as well as streaming music apps. Both categories of players will load reasonably fast and equipped for a connected TV experience apart from the Blu-ray and DVD playback.

These Smart Players will also upscale any Full HD 1080p Blu-ray discs to 4K resolution or Ultra HD (High Definition) when connected to a 4K TV. Majority of the Blu-ray discs out there are still Full HD and will benefit from 4K upscaling. If you have older DVDs, these players will also help upscale it to Full HD 1080p and beyond. Until Ultra HD 4K Blu-ray titles become more commonly available, these low cost players will give you the best picture quality for your 4K TV. Right now there are only a couple of Ultra HD disc players in the market and they cost 4 to 5 times more than the Smart Blu-ray players featured here.

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Best Smart Blu-ray & DVD Players with WiFi Connectivity and UHD (4K) Upscaling

We will be focusing mainly on Smart Blu-ray Players with Built-in WiFi, 4K Ultra High Definition Upscaling support and advanced media hub software.

Here is a closer look at each of these smart Blu-ray players.

1. SAMSUNG BD-J7500 Smart 3D Blu-ray & DVD Player £149.99

This high end player from Samsung has 2 HDMI connectors, 1USB port, 1 Ethernet port and 1 HDMI-CEC port. There is built-in WiFi, 2D support, Multiroom Link compatible, 4K upscaling and Screen Mirroring. In the sound department, the player supports Dolby True HD, DTS HD Master Audio with 7.1 Discrete Analog Audio. In the picture department, like other players with 4K upscaling capabilty, the Samsung BD-J7500 does a good job upscaling Blu-ray content for UHD TVs.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: Smart Hub full app store with Catch up TV & Movies (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Yupp TV, Hulu Plus, YouTube and more)
WiFi built-in
Multi-room via optional accessory
Screen mirroring

2. Sony BDP-S7200B Smart 4K Ultra HD 3D Blu-ray & DVD Player £169.99

The highest model in the range of Blu-ray Disc players from Sony, the S7200 features 4K UHD Upscaling, SBMV Super Bit Mapping Super Audio CD and High Resolution Audio support out of the box. Powered by Dual Core processor, the box starts up and connect quickly with Super WiFi and runs Sony Entertainment Network connected media hub. Access BBC iPlayer, Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime, Demand 5 and Facebook straight from the TV.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: Full app store with Catch up TV & Movies using Sony Entertainment Network (BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Youtube, amazon Instant Video, Demand 5, Facebook)
WiFi & Bluetooth with NFC
Screen mirroring
Dual Core CPU
Save

3. Panasonic DMP-BDT460EB Smart 4K 3D Blu-ray Player £149.99

Another player with quick loading and startup, 4K Upscaling and 4K JPEG playback for superb picture quality, the premium Panasonic BDT460 also comes with twin HDMI. The separate HDMI, fibre optic and phono (analogue) play back for sound let you connect it directly to your sound system without going via your TV. Standard DVDs also receive upscaling treatment for sharper and brighter images. Streaming app includes Netflix with HD support but not Amazon Instant Video.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: App store with Catch up TV & Movies
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring via Miracast

4. Sony BDP-S6700 Smart 3D Blu-ray & DVD Player £138

A step down from BDP S7200 above, the mew S6700 supports all the features that the S7200 is capable of delivering including 4K upscaling, SBMV Super Bit Mapping and Dual Core CPU. As it is a newer model, it also comes with Multi-room Capability, Bluetooth Connectivity and PlayStation Now support, features that are not available on the S7200. It does however lack High Resolution Audio and Super Audio CD features. Existing standard DVDs will also receive an upscale treatment to near HD quality and Super WiFi ensures online content are streamed quickly. Sony Entertainment Network, the media hub software comes with BBC iPlayer, YouTube, Netflix and Amazon Prime apps.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: Full app store with Catch up TV & Movies
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring & smartphone remote control

5. LG BP740 Smart 4K Ultra HD 3D Blu-ray Player £119

Another player that supports Ultra HD or 4K upscaling, a must for 4K TV owners, the LG BP740. There is a neat feature called the Private Sound Mode 2.0, that lets you enjoy your favourite movie or TV show in the evening without disturbing the rest of the family. It does this by sending sound from the player to a smartphone or tablet via WiFi. With SmartShare on blu-ray player, enjoy your personal photos, music and videos stored in digital devices on big-screen TVs wirelessly. SnartShare also supports content from USB devices, DLNA certified PCs and laptops.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
LG Smart with intuitive Magic Remote with point and scroll commands
Access 4K content on Netflix & Amazon Prime
WiFi built-in with WiFi Direct for easy wireless file sharing
Multi-room hub built-in.
Screen mirroring via Miracast using compatible smartphone or tablet

6. SONY BDP-S6500 Smart 3D Blu-ray & DVD Player £99.99

A predecessor to the S6700 but no less impressive and a favourite give its price, the S6500 comes complete with WiFi built-in. The box supports over 3000 streaming apps including Netflix, YouTube, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video and more. The new WiFi module offers excellent stability and speed for improved streaming. Enjoy HD sound with Dolby and DTS Master audio. Upscale Full HD 1080p Blu-ray Disc playback with 2D to 3D conversion support to 4K and upscale DVDs to near HD quality for better picture quality on Ultra HD TV. Triluminos technology makes 3D Blu-ray movies look even better. PlayStation now enabled, the player lets you access hundreds of streamed PS3 games, simply connect a DUALSHOCK 4 controller to the USB port and start gaming.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: Full app store with Catch up TV & Movies using Sony Entertainment Network (BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Youtube, Amazon Instant Video, Demand 5, Facebook)
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring via Miracast & smartphone remote control. Play select PS3 games with PlayStation now (no game console required).

7. SAMSUNG BD-H6500 Smart 3D Blu-ray Player £89

An affordable Blu-ray player that also supports 3D Blu-ray discs, the Samsung BD-H6500 is not the latest player from Samsung but has everything anyone could wish for on a Smart Blu-ray player. Load and run apps built for TV, stream from your favourite streaming service, share your content on the big screen and upscale everything you watch on the UHD TV, there is nothing the player can not do. Samsung UHD’s 4K upscaled resolution is 3 times the resolution of 1080p HD so see everythin with detail and clarity like you have never seen before. Enjoy 3D viewing experience with 3D Blu-ray disc in the player, paired with a 3D TV and Samsung active 3D glasses. In the sound department, the H65000 supports Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby True HD and DTS Surround. Additionally there is a Full Web Browser built-in and the box features a Quick Start Mode, booting up in as little as 0.5 seconds. Allshare lets you share computer and mobile content to the big screen. And if you would rather not use another device, there is a USB port for flash and external drives.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Advanced Smart: Smart Hub App store with Catch up TV & Movies (Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube)
WiFi built-in
Multi-room via optional accessory
Screen mirroring

8. Panasonic DMP-BDT380EB Smart Network 3D Blu-ray Player £129.99

Besides 4K upscaling and 4K photo/video playback, this high-performance model reproduces high-resolution audio sound. In addition, the BDT380 is filled with Smart Network functions. 4K upscaling make Blu-ray movies look even better on a Ultra HD TV. The player with its powerful processor add millions of extra pixels to the original Full HD content making it up to 4 times more pixels for a sharper, more textured and detailed viewing experience. Built-in WiFi makes streaming online content and sharing content on the big screen easy. With the right TV, 3D glasses and 3D Blu-ray titles, the player offers 3 dimensional viewing experience.

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4K upscaling
Access content on Amazon and Netflix
WiFi built-in, DLNA support
Screen mirroring

BONUS: PANASONIC DMP-BDT280EB Smart 3D Blu-ray & DVD Player £99.99

Plays Blu-ray and DVD with 4k upscaling
Advanced Smart: Full app store with Catch up TV & Movies
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring

Other Smart Blu-ray & DVD Players

Here is our list of smart Blu-ray & DVD players with built-in WiFi minus 4K Ultra HD upscaling support, just your standard Full HD 1080p resolution.

Don’t have an Ultra HD 4K TV and just want a player to access Blu-ray or DVD titles, here are five of the best Smart Blu-ray players on a budget.

These entry to mid-level Blu-ray Player from Sony, LG and Samsung may not have all the bells and whistles of its bigger siblings, but it is still one of the more popular smart player owing to price and simplicity.These Blu-ray Player allows you to watch your favourite films in Full HD Blu-ray clarity. No 4K upscaling here though, just straight up Full HD 1080p resolution with upscaling for standard DVD to near Full HD quality. A wide range of online content is also at your fingertips including BBC iPlayer, YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Prime. Most players support DLNA to access content on your local network and screen mirroring to share content from your mobile phone, tablet or other connected devices.

SONY BDP-S3700 Smart Blu-ray & DVD Player £89.99

Plays Blu-ray & DVD (Full HD 1080p)
Smart: Fixed apps with Catch up TV & Movies using Sony Entertainment Network (BBC iPlayer, Netflix, Youtube, Amazon Instant Video, Demand 5)
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring & smartphone remote control

LG BP350 Smart Blu-ray & DVD Player £89.99

Plays Blu-ray & DVD (Full HD 1080p)
Advanced Smart: Full app store with Catch up TV & Movies
WiFi built-in
Multi-room hub built-in
Playback from USB

SONY BDP-S5500B Smart 3D Blu-ray Player £75

Plays Blu-ray & DVD (Full HD 1080p)
Advanced Smart: App store with Catch up TV & Movies (BBC iPlayer, YouTube,Neflix,Amazon and the Sony Entertainment Network)
WiFi built-in
Screen mirroring & smartphone remote control