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Denon DVD-2500BTCI: Review

Posted to Video Components 2009-06-06

If you want a Blu-ray Disc player that takes advantage of all of the features this new format has to offer, then the Denon DVD-2500BTCI deserves a close look. Built from the ground up to support Blu-ray playback, the unit features true 1080p/24fps HD output. It has separate power and video circuits to minimize interference, a new precision drive mechanism developed specifically for Blu-ray playback and HDMI (only) output with up to 36-bit color.

The DVD-2500BTCI also features Dolby 7.1 channel TrueHD, DivX format playback, picture-in-picture and Blu-ray secondary video and audio data playback. When coupled with an HDMI-compatible A/V receiver, this unit can take advantage of all of the extra features that Blu-ray has to offer. Supported disc formats include BD Video (Blu-ray video), DVD/DVD+R/RW, CD, CD-R/RW, MP3, WMA and JPEG. It also supports MP3, WMA, and JPEG formats on SD, SDHC, miniSD and microSD multimedia cards.

Rating:

4.6 out of 5

Features

If you're looking for the latest in Blu-ray technology, the DVD-2500BTCI has all the features you're likely to want. You'll need an HDMI-compatible A/V receiver to take advantage of all of them, as HDMI is the only output available. But you still get some advanced features and stunning display quality when this unit is connected directly to your HDTV. It's missing some features available on less expensive models, such as 1080p upscaling of existing DVDs and Dolby DTS support, but it takes better advantage of the Blu-ray format than most similarly-priced players.

Performance

Performance of the DVD-2500BTCI is outstanding when used with Blu-ray discs. Picture and sound quality are excellent. And the new drive mechanism delivers outstanding performance with all of the supported formats. The lack of upscaling is a bit disappointing, but the number of supported formats helps make up for this. The support for advanced Blu-ray features is as good as it gets in this price range, and the included remote is actually usable, which is something you don't usually expect from Denon.

Summary

If you're ready to dive all the way into Blu-ray, or already have, then this player definitely deserves to be on your short list. It's price is quite high when compared to players with more overall features, but the support for the Blu-ray format can't be beat in this price range. If most of your collection is still on DVD, or you need any other output besides HDMI, then you need to look elsewhere - you can get a Blu-ray player with upscaling, analog output and alternative digital outputs for less than the cost of this unit.

Pros

Supports advanced Blu-ray features well
True HD 1080p/24fps output
Good format support for DVDs and CDs
Good multimedia support for SD cards

Cons

HDMI only output