Best Buy unleashes Insignia NS-BRDVD Blu-ray player for $349, PS3 yawns

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted May 24th 2008 at 2:03PM

What's this? Best Buy finally released the Insignia NS-BRDVD blu-ray player for an affordable $349.99. The design, like other in-house Insignia-branded products, is questionable, but if you were looking into the PS3 as a player, this could be a $50 cheaper option if games aren't your thing. The unit outputs at 1080P, decodes Dolby Digital Plus and DTS-HD, and decodes 2-channel Dolby TrueHD. Outputs include stereo audio, composite video, component video, optical Toslink, digital coax, and HDMI. No word on image quality just yet, but based on previous Insignia products, we're not holding our breath.

[Thanks, Jordan]

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Blu-ray, Players, Insignia

Tags: best buy, BestBuy, blu ray, blu-ray, bluray, insignia, ns-brdvd

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Doc @ May 24th 2008 2:39PM

It's a start, but wake me up when we get to $249 or less..especially when it's an insignia brand player we're talking about.

Neutral

SimbaDogg @ May 24th 2008 8:58PM

love the ted kaczynski icon

Neutral

JDS @ May 25th 2008 12:48PM

Father's Day @ Wal-Mart [$299 for a 2.0 player]

Playstation 3 $399 w/ $100 Wal-Mart Blu-Ray Gift Card

Use the $100 Wal-Mart Blu-Ray Gift Card on $15 Blu-ray movies:

*Flags of Our Fathers 2-Disc Special Edition in Blu-Ray - $15
*3:10 to Yuma in Blu-Ray - $15
*War in Blu-Ray - $15
*300 in Blu-Ray - $15
*Blood Diamond in Blu-Ray - $15
*Shooter in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Fifth Element in Blu-Ray - $15
*Training Day in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Last Samurai in Blu-Ray - $15
*A Knight's Tale in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Patriot in Blu-Ray - $15
*Syriana in Blu-Ray - $15

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=827856&p=11437594&highlight=blu-ray#post11437594

Highest Ranked

Mr. E @ May 25th 2008 4:49PM

Wow JDS, I love it when you show up with the deals. You ought to post this stuff in every thread! Nice going.

Highest Ranked

superklye @ May 24th 2008 2:45PM

Homer: [gasps] Look at these low, low prices on famous brand-name electronics!
Bart: Don't be a sap, Dad. These are just crappy knock-offs.
Homer: Pfft. I know a genuine Panaphonics when I see it. And look, there's Magnetbox and Sorny.
Salesman: [walking up] Listen, I'm not going to lie to you. Those are all superior machines. But if you like to watch your TV, and I mean _really_ watch it, you want the Carnivale'.
[shows Homer and Bart a TV very similar to their old one]
It features two-pronged wall plug, pre-molded hand grip well, durable outer casing to prevent fallapart...
Homer: Sold. You wrap it up, I'll start bringing in the pennies.

Highly Ranked

DustoMan @ May 24th 2008 3:03PM

BD Live? BonusView? It's retarded that I even have to contemplate asking...

Neutral

JDS @ May 24th 2008 3:12PM

yes it has Bonus View (1.1)

no to BD live

This is the same Funai player [Magnavox branded] @ Wal-Mart for $298.

Neutral

Sean @ May 24th 2008 3:06PM

yawn. pass.

Neutral

DrXym @ May 24th 2008 3:35PM

It's already $300 in Walmart, probably $250 in 3 months and $200 by Christmas. It's not meant to be a bad player assuming you have no need of analogue audio outputs.

Neutral

HD4ME @ May 24th 2008 8:24PM

Hahahaha, the BR gang just don't get it.
NO ONE is buying BR standalone yet they keep releasing these POS players. They are just a F'N DVD player with an improved picture but this isn't even a good one, $350 Lol, what a joke.

Yip, BR has licensed the Chinese to build POS BR players but priced them off the planet with there greedy over the top royalties and licensing fees. Toshiba struggled to sell good quality ones at half this price, BR is just a dirty joke played by the greed crazed sony corp hell bent on market domination, directed at the uneducated western market, we wont have to wait to long, BR has sewn the seeds of self destruction, just another typical sony F up.

Highly Ranked

DrXym @ May 25th 2008 4:41AM

That's an impressive angry and paranoid rant. The reality of course is that CEs wouldn't be onto their 2nd, 3rd, 4th generation players if no one was buying them. Walmart, Best Buy, Amazon etc. wouldn't be selling them if no one was buying them. But clearly they are, and with the second half of year about to begin, sales are only going to go. I can see how this could be a problem for the few crybabies (you included) who just can't get over the death HD DVD but that's your problem not mine.

As for Chinese players. When they start selling in earnest they'll sell on their own merits - price or performance. No one is forcing you to buy them.

Neutral

HD4ME @ May 25th 2008 6:25AM

2nd, 3rd and fourth generation and most of them still aren't profile 2.0, way to go sony ray

Neutral

DrXym @ May 25th 2008 7:42AM

Profile 2.0 is optional dumbass. And considering how marginal the feature is, it is not surprising. But of course you're about to tell me a single HD DVD which absolutely warranted hooking up your player to the internet to experience. A single one?

Highest Ranked

Mr. E @ May 25th 2008 4:53PM

@HD4ME: When your HD DVD was already in the corner starting to get seriously pummeled at this time last year, all we kept hearing from you guys was how the Chinese were going to swoop in with their bargain-basement players and save the day. Now the Chinese make nothing but crap? Nice switcheroo there.

I've said all along that these Chinese players are of questionable quality, but since J6P seems to love them at Wal-Mart, it can't do anything but help the Blu-ray adoption rate at this point.

Neutral

GhostDoggy @ May 24th 2008 4:00PM

Just like watching national brand grocery products being inched out of the super market shelves, I see the same for Bad Buy shelves. Why someone would spend $350 on a BB brand over a Sony for $50 difference is a wonder.

Highly Ranked

JDS @ May 24th 2008 4:25PM

It's $101 less if you get it @ Wal-Mart, not Insignia branded, Magnavox branded, same Funai player inside.

Neutral

jrlance @ May 24th 2008 4:16PM

Actually I work PT there and people have refused to buy the PS3 even when its explained as a BR player. Stand alone BR players are in short supply at BB till June, but thank god we got Insignia to tide us over.

Highest Ranked

Nfinity @ May 24th 2008 6:18PM

LOL.. what a deal.. crap name incomplete Blu-Ray player for $350.. what a deal.. NOT!

All these companies need to reinvestigate their brains.. I think greed sucked it up..

Neutral

DrXym @ May 25th 2008 4:43AM

Define "complete" please. Why is a profile 1.1 player incomplete? Why does the addition of internet connectivity make it complete?

Highest Ranked

kastonie @ May 24th 2008 6:59PM

this is so garbage.....im no hd dvd fanboy but seriously.....it was a complete product....found easily for under $200.....the cheapest blu ray player is the walmart POS...and this insignia garbage....consumers lost the format war..... low rank me and flame me all you want, its the truth...

Neutral

Nfinity @ May 24th 2008 7:22PM

amen brother.. amen

Highest Ranked

Mr_Pat @ May 24th 2008 7:57PM

I will never spend more then $100 on a DVD player......

Highly Ranked

David Susilo @ May 25th 2008 9:34AM

but you may spend more than $100 for a Blu-ray player. ;)

Neutral

mr.hidef @ May 25th 2008 11:58PM

Did you people honestly think, that you could just ease into HD movies, at the same price as DVD? Get real. " I want a $99.00 player".........wine........wine...wine
....wine. Dude.............your trailer is on fire!

Neutral

superklye @ May 27th 2008 2:50PM

@mr.hidef

I'm not much of a wine fan. Could I get whiskey with my $99 Blu-ray player instead?

Highly Ranked

HD4ME @ May 24th 2008 8:34PM

[J6P] Hmmmmmm, should I buy groceries this week, pay the rent and fill the RV up with gas, or should I buy this new fangled POS DVD player that offers me nothing extra on my 24" CRT instead??

Neutral

Nfinity @ May 24th 2008 10:12PM

bullseye!

it actually doesn't make a difference up to 32-37" HDTVs when viewed from a normal difference..

Neutral

mr.hidef @ May 26th 2008 12:00AM

Real cute.

Neutral

Mike @ May 25th 2008 12:04AM

Wake me when we can get a $100 player with full specs. Suuuuure glad HD DVD left so BD can "compete" with each other and drive these prices down fast.

I wish HD DVD waited just 3 more months to see BD can't take off and wait for movie studios to come back.

Neutral

HD4ME @ May 25th 2008 6:28AM

Oh come on Mr.Xym, even the other BR fans are calling this one crap, you must be on the BR payroll if you think you can try and convince people this POS is any good, even engHD which is very pro blu gave this one a bucket, give it up man, you look silly.

Neutral

carlos @ May 25th 2008 12:12AM

Ok this is crappy quality, but next week best buy will put up the new Panny BD50, and for you boys that want to give 700 dollars you could get it (lol). It is a shame that the first complete player of this disease called Bluray will cost 700 dollars when you could put another 700 dollars more and buy a decent 40 inches LCD TV. This format is in serious trouble.

Neutral

DrXym @ May 25th 2008 5:14AM

Actually this player is not "crappy quality". Funai is an OEM for Philips and other CEs and the player shares much of the hardware found in the new Philips BDP7200. Reports from people on the AVS forum who have bought it say it has excellent picture and responsiveness. Where it might be faulted is in its audio output which is bitstream. As long as you are playing straight into an HDMI TV or have an amp with decoder this is not an issue. It is a basic but functional player which is only going to get cheaper as the holidays kick in. Read for yourself.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1026390

As for "complete", you are adopting the same arbitrary definition of "complete" as Nfinity to suit your arguments. As shocking as it sounds, some people (myself included) couldn't give a damn about being able to hit a generic studio portal. Of course perhaps you can persuade me of the feature's importance by telling me a single HD DVD where the benefits were so compelling that they justified trailing CAT5 to your TV area to get them?

Of course if you want a 2.0 player you can buy a PS3 for $400. Or indeed the recent Samsung BDP1500 is currently $350 and supposedly profile 2.0 ready, whatever that means (probably a later fw update). Even the $700 you claim for the Panasonic is the MSRP, not what it will sell for retail.

Highly Ranked

David Susilo @ May 25th 2008 12:54PM

have you ever bought Denon DVD player? How about Denon blu-ray player? They are made by Funai. Does it mean Denon is crap?

Neutral

mr.hidef @ May 26th 2008 12:06AM

Obviously you do not follow the world wide sales numbers like I do each week vs. dvd, so get educated before you even try to act like you know what the @#$% is going on...........a typical winer cause daddy won't buy him one. P.S. players have sold Millions

Highest Ranked

Raydeen @ May 25th 2008 1:41AM

It probably will have better firmware updates than Samsung provides.

Highest Ranked

JDS @ May 25th 2008 12:35PM

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=827856&p=11437594&highlight=blu-ray#post11437594

*Panasonic Blu-Ray DVD Player $448 w/ $100 Wal-Mart Blu-Ray Gift Card
*Playstation 3 $399 w/ $100 Wal-Mart Blu-Ray Gift Card [$299 for a 2.0 player]
*Flags of Our Fathers 2-Disc Special Edition in Blu-Ray - $15
*3:10 to Yuma in Blu-Ray - $15
*War in Blu-Ray - $15
*300 in Blu-Ray - $15
*Blood Diamond in Blu-Ray - $15
*Shooter in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Fifth Element in Blu-Ray - $15
*Training Day in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Last Samurai in Blu-Ray - $15
*A Knight's Tale in Blu-Ray - $15
*The Patriot in Blu-Ray - $15
*Syriana in Blu-Ray - $15

Low Ranked

Truth Teller @ May 25th 2008 2:23PM

Here in UK/Europe the PS3 isn't $299/£150.

The 40gb model is £280/$560 and the 60gb model is £424/$848.

Most of those movies are fairly old & have been out on HD DVD a long time
(and are currently much cheaper than that).

JDS if that little list was meant to appeal as a bunch of bargains then I'm sorry to say that it merely reinforces what I've been saying about the horrible 'value' Blu-ray continues to be.

Right now if you're into high def & being completely sensible about it all then you'd have to be insane not to be buying yourself a very inexpensive and nicely spec'd HD DVD player and hoovering up all the excellent and very inexpensive HD DVD movies
(many of which are not out on Blu-ray and have no sheduled release date).

If the thought of breakdowns or breakages scare you then buy another brand new HD DVD to put away, they're cheap enough to be doing that and even then still coming to far less cost than any serious Blu-ray alternative.

There's just no need to take a chance on Blu-ray & suffer their prices.

Highest Ranked

JDS @ May 25th 2008 5:04PM

Truth Teller

Your wrote: "JDS if that little list was meant to appeal as a bunch of bargains then I'm sorry to say that it merely reinforces what I've been saying about the horrible 'value' Blu-ray continues to be."

That "little list" is what Wal-Mart is advertising for their "Father's Day week sale" Maybe if you clicked the link you would be better informed.

You aren't the only person that reads this blog. Many readers of this blog have yet to buy a Blu-Ray player. They may be interested in either player on sale & to perhaps use the $100 gift card on some Blu-Ray titles.

Your problem is that you only see things as they pertain to you and from you own narrow perspective.

Stop making yourself the issue.

I constantly read posts complaining about pricing.

This sale offers a 2.0 player for $299.

Regarding your statement: "Right now if you're into high def & being completely sensible about it all then you'd have to be insane not to be buying yourself a very inexpensive and nicely spec'd HD DVD player and hoovering up all the excellent and very inexpensive HD DVD movies
(many of which are not out on Blu-ray and have no sheduled release date)."

Why would anyone that currently doesn't have a high def player buy an HD DVD player? Regardless of the cost, no matter how cheap, what is the value of an unsupported product with a limited number of titles?

And regarding HD DVD exclusive titles...which titles "haven't" been announced for Blu-Ray? [With better audio & more special features coming on the Blu versions]

Highest Ranked

Mr. E @ May 25th 2008 5:01PM

Sure Truth Teller, I'm sure you were loving The Fifth Element on HD DVD, right? Here's a news flash for you... Brand new release DVDs are pretty expensive too. The DVDs that are cheap are the ones that are old and have been out awhile. Imagine that!

We all know that the U.K. is the land of $8/gallon gas and cars that cost at least 50% more than in the U.S. ALL of your goods are priced higher than the U.S., including HD DVD when it was alive. I imagine it's due to outrageous VAT tariffs, and it sucks for those who live in Europe. Give us a break with the unfair pricing whine, because it's certainly not limited to Blu-ray.

Neutral

Truth Teller @ May 25th 2008 9:25PM

@ JDS

I was fully aware that the sale you posted was a Fathers day special.....where do I say different?

It's still true that many of those titles are available now on HD DVD for less.

If you can tell me different then go ahead but as far as I was aware Universal (almost all HD DVD exclusive) has not announced a day and date release schedule of all their titles on Blu-ray yet.....right?

As for why buy HD DVD?

It's pretty obvious.

It's a very inexpensive means to numerous classic movies right now in high def for very very little money, to play on well spec'd players currently available for very very little money
(so little money that even buying a 2nd player to tuck away in case of breakages & damage is a sensible and very inexpensive measure to take).

No need to risk Blu-ray taking a dive or it's high prices.

If nothing else it'll tide us all over until Blu-ray manages to get some sensible pricing ($100/$150 properly & fully spec'd players) $15 movies and ditching the DRM cr@p they are trying to push.
If that happens maybe I'll take a look.
I can wait.......but I'm pretty sure Blu-ray as a format can't wait on a lot of people waiting.

I have no intention of buying most new releases on high def.......what the hell for when so many if not most of them are truly awful, totally worthless cr@p?

So for me I am more than happy to buy the back-catalogue releases that I actually want.
I'll take the likes of The Matrix Trilogy (with Dolby True HD :P ) over any number of the latest releases which I would never have bought on HD DVD had they been available anyways.

I'm hardly alone in that...........and given that this is a blog where we relate out own views and experience what the hell are you on about "making myself the issue"!?
Get a grip man.

@ Mr E

The Fifth Element is hardly a choice to be crowing about (even the re-release wasn't exactly stellar quality).

......and like many I don't buy new release DVDs either, I like my movies but I'm not that dumb.

Yeah we have VAT and higher prices - but we all know it's not quite that simple you have various little taxes too, state taxes and sales taxes of various kinds and we have free health care etc etc which you guys have to pay for if you want it.

.....and what?

Does that make my comments about the PS3 prices here any less true?

Neutral

captainjy @ May 28th 2008 4:43AM

This is exactly why the studios should have let consumers decide rather than make the decision themselves. Bluray is not selling well at all now that the competition has been killed. What a waste. HD-DVD was so much cheaper and still better than BD.

Neutral

Mike @ May 26th 2008 7:56AM

$299 is still too high. BD 2.0 isn't worth buying till under $100 and if I get an upscaler before then (right now waiting on more info on that super scaler nifinity was talking about) I would wait till $50-$70 before buying BD.

Neutral

PaulF @ May 28th 2008 9:40AM

DVD: "Prices for the first players in 1997 were $1000 and up. By the end of 2000, players were available for under $100 at discount retailers" - DVD Demystified FAQ

Blu-ray: "The first BD-ROM players were shipped in the middle of June 2006" - Wikipedia

So...BDA has ~ 1 year left to drop the price of players like this by $250 or more...anyone think it will happen? Ahahahaha!

BTW, I'm format nuetral with an LG Combo Drive in an HTPC. I loves me my HD DVD *and* Blu-ray....but Blu-ray IS A RACKET!

"Hey, little videophile...wanna see some Blu-ray...the first look is free, on me..."

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