Customer Reviews

Samsung BD-D6700 3D Blu-ray Disc Player (Silver)

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

Finally upgraded my 3-year old blu-ray player, and WOW what a difference! Blazing fast load and access speeds-no more waiting.

It has the very important 2 HDMI outputs. If you are using an AV receiver that is not HDMI 1.4 compatible (3-D), and yours isn't unless you bought it in the last 6 months, then this is huge. It allows on HDMI connection with 1.4 to a 3-D TV directly with the second HDMI passing 1.3 HDMI data to an AV receiver for your audio. (A non-HDMI 1.4 receiver will not pass the 3-D video signal on to a new 3-D TV, so on a single HDMI out 3-D blu-ray you would need to use the one HDMI out to go directly to your TV and use analog audio outputs to your receiver- a significant trade-off). This is one of only a couple of blu-rays with 2 HDMI outputs, and it saves you having to upgrade an expensive receiver. This is the smart and cheaper way to make your older (or even one-year-old) receiver work.

Great and intuitive menu system with Apps for stuff like news, weather and games, plus all the video service Apps like Netflix, Vudu, Cinema Now, Hulu, etc. Streaming worked flawlessly, as tested with the free movie offered in full 1080P by VuDu.

Easy Wi-Fi connectivity, so no need for Ethernet, but it has the hard-wired option if you have that ability as well.

Beautiful design! Slot-loading with no noisy drawer. Slick, contemporary cabinet with display that can be programed to dim or be off if desired.

Great, full-featured smart remote that can run multiple devices.

I research carefully before purchasing, this is the most fully featured blu-ray you will find, period, for $300 or less. And you will love the ultra-fast loading and playing of movies. Put an end to the minutes long (in some cases) start times and black screens in your home!

This is the third 3D Blu-Ray player I've brought home after our 6 year old Sony Carousel player began spitting discs, and it was quite the ordeal getting here. But that's a whole 'nother story, and you can read about it in the comments to my Sony S580 review, if you're so inclined.

I've got the Samsung BD-D6700 connected to a 2011-model Samsung D8000 plasma screen, the 59" model. I'm running it through a Denon 3311CI receiver, which is HDMI 1.4a compatible, using reasonably-priced AmazonBasics High Speed HDMI Cable. The player is compatible with the numeric side of Samsung's dual-sided QWERTY remote -- the one that comes with their higher-end televisions -- though I don't yet see that remote listed as an item available separately here on Amazon.

For starters, why choose the 6700 versus the less expensive 6500 (which is priced competitively with Sony's new S580)? There are 3 differences I can tell: 2 HDMI outputs, 2D to 3D upconvert, and the obvious styling differences. Otherwise, they appear to be identical players, and I would expect my comments here to apply to the 6500, too.

Prior to the D6700, I brought home last year's BD-C7900, Samsung's 2010 top of the line player. Besides there being a Netflix registration issue to contend with due to it being an open-box return, I felt for the price last year's model didn't deliver: the menu system wasn't quite polished, and the machine felt a bit lightweight and flimsy (particularly the slide-out DVD tray). Those are all addressed with this unit: The street price for this unit is less than the open-box price of last year's 7900 (the D6700 isn't this year's "top of the line" unit, but the C7900 defining features have trickled down to this unit), the player feels much more substantially built (due in part to the slot-load design; no tray), and while the menu system is familiar, it has most definitely been cleaned up and "de-confused" with just a single scrolling icon navigation bar along the bottom, and quicker screen-to-screen transition times (last year's had top and bottom nav bars plus some vertical elements that had the selection cursor flying around the screen.

Another complaint of mine was text entry with the included numeric-only remote, something common also to the Sony. This year's player includes the same remote. Initially I was led to believe Samsung's QWERTY keyboard TV remote would be compatible with this player, but have come to learn that the QWERTY side communicates via a Bluetooth link (not typical IR), and therefore there's no way for it to talk to the DVD player. A shame. However, when entering text with the number pad, options are provided for either the 1 press=A, 2 presses=B method, or alternatively the T9 predictive text entry found on many cell phones.

Disc load times are good to excellent. I haven't held a stopwatch to them, and I don't have a copy of Avatar to test (which reportedly takes five minutes on some old machines), but my use of standard definition discs such as Tropic Thunder, Blu-Ray discs like Pulp Fiction and Inglorious Bastards, and the Shrek 3D discs, have spanned from "nearly instantaneous" to about 30 second load times, which is still minorly annoying (black screen eventually with a green progress bar plus the click and whir noise of the disc spinning up), yet perfectly reasonable compared to the waits some prior generation players required.

(Edit 4/19: Just upgraded my firmware and now it appears I'm getting ads during the disc load. In this case, for the Samsung iPhone/Android/Blackberry app. I'll try that to see if it addresses my text entry issues, then update my review.)

I mention the "click and whir" noise, but it's all I hear from the player. Once the disc spins up, the unit remains inaudible from the 6 or 8 feet away I sit.

I was a bit worried that standard def DVDs would look blocky and horrible on my 59" screen, but was quite surprised at the up-convert capability of the D6700 after loading up Tropic Thunder. The picture isn't super crisp with cleanly defined edges like you might expect with a Blu-ray disc, but I'd suspect if you didn't have HD and SD content to compare side-by-side, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.

3D playback couldn't be more simple: the disc is recognized immediately, the TV quickly switches to 3d mode, and there's really no fuss other than turning on the glasses. Of course, this is a Samsung player linked to a Samsung television, both of the same model year, so your experience may vary since 3D playback is more reliant on the television than on the BD player.

That 2D to 3D upconvert? Hmmm... I've only played around with it, and honestly didn't expect much from it, but it's surprisingly good. But it's not without flaws: the depth perception seems narrow, and there are harsh cut-offs such as a tuft of grass on the edge of the foreground immediately drops off to infinity, making the tuft look like it's a diorama cut-out. Focal changes from near to far field make things go wonky in a way that's hard to describe. Nevertheless, neat to play with if you're not expecting too much.

Wireless network setup was a snap on my non-encrypted WiFi, though I see all the provisions there for various password / encryption schemes as well. Of course, there's also a wired option, which I'll be switching to in a few months after we move; for now, audio and video streaming is hiccup-free using my antiquated Netgear RangeMax 802.11g router.

As pointed out by another reviewer, the dual HDMI outputs are only really necessary if using an older receiver not compatible with the 1.4a standard. Being used to analog connections, I expected to run separate HDMI video directly to my television, and audio to my receiver, but came to learn that there is really no benefit to doing so, as digital HDMI pass-through connections are considered lossless, especially with decent equipment. It's a pleasure to let the receiver handle the switching, and less of a chore running cables and programming remotes.

One last note: the D6700, like previous Samsung players, is button free -- the controls are all touch sensitive glass with illuminated icons underneath. Unlike last year's C7900, which placed these controls on the top surface of the unit, the D6700 keeps them on the front. The touch controls are mostly responsive, though sometimes I have trouble with the power button. Generally not an issue since more often than not I use the remote, but for those instances where I want to just hit On then Play (doing so automatically causes the TV to turn on and switch to the proper input), a little fumbling is involved. And once the unit does switch on, the Eject, Play/Pause, Select and Stop icons light up 1... 2... 3... 4 in sequence, forcing me to stand there for a few extra seconds and wait. Really, not a big deal and barely worth mentioning, yet I know some people *hate* touch controls.

Well there's a lot of advanced functionality on here, including 2D to 3D conversion, which I haven't been able to test yet. And I'll update this review and rating as soon as I do.

However, I would like to address some less-than-ideal things from the get go:

CONS

1) NO DISC "MEMORY"

Okay, I'm aware such a thing wasn't actually advertised. However, being spoiled on my old Sony DVD player, I just erroneously assumed this was commonplace.

With the Sony, if I'm watching 4 movies in various stages (e.g. one an educational video, another a movie, another an exercise thing, etc.), the player "remembered" where I was in each disc. So there was no need to try and remember, then find, my "spot" every time.

*In fact, every time you POWER DOWN the player, next time you're starting the movie over.* Rrrg.

Samsung, if you'd like my two cents, there's one.

2) FORWARD / REWIND SLOW

SLOW! Now why on EARTH would I want 7 DEGREES of fast-forward / rewind in tiny increments? E.g., 3 seconds, 6 seconds, then 12 seconds, then 18 seconds, etc. etc. ... what on earth's the point? You really want like "slow" (5 sec. jumps) "medium" (30 sec. jumps) "fast" (5 min. jumps) or "super fast" (10 min. jumps)

It takes a few awkward pushes of the button to get it all the way to "Speed 7," which is still REALLY slow, and it lags while you're pushing the button. So even at the fastest setting it's a long journey from one part of the disc to another. And no, not ALL discs have many or intelligently placed chapters.

3) UNLIT REMOTE?? WHY, SAMSUNG, WHY?

Most people watch movies ... guess where? Yes, in the dark. My TV remote (D6400 TV), which is illuminated, can control the Blu-Ray to an extent, as long as you don't care about being able to chapter skip (i.e., |<< and >>|), or menu access, which are pretty darned important.

So your options are 1) use 2 very similar-looking remotes, 2) use the Blu-Ray remote, which you CAN'T SEE, or 3) the TV remote, which doesn't have menu or chapter skip functionality.

Why, Samsung, why??


PROS

- 2D / 3D CONVERSION

Pretty good! Not "leap off the screen" good, but "actual depth" good, sometimes quite surprising. Seems to vary from feature to feature and shot to shot.

- CUSTOMER SERVICE

Samsung customer support answers the phone, and knows what they're talking about (in fact, I'M GOING FROM 3 TO 4 STARS based on this alone!)

- Picture quality is terrific

- WiFi is handy as hell.

OKAY, so I really want to give more stars.

But I know product developers read these reviews, and this is my honest feedback on what I find personally frustrating.

I agree this is a great player. Pictures have more "pop" than even last years best from Samsung. This means objects and faces are more clearly delineated.
I find the HDMI sound to be superior too as Samsung has succeeded in reducing jitter and EMI emissions.
The smart money alternative for those who don't follow the heard mentality and spend $500 on a new player, which will be obsolete next year.
Further it uniquely converts all 2D DVDs and Blu-rays to full-3D. This further added dimensionality looks incredible with a 3D display. All at less than half the price and the press of a button.
Its easy to predict that some here will trash this player to divert sales in an attempt to spend more.
For internet access I'd recommend using a htpc to access Netflix or Amazon movies, as Blu-ray manufactures are not in the business to provide firmware updates as technology changes.

Just added this Blu-Ray player to go along with my new Samsung UN55D8000. Previously used my PS3 for Blu-Rays and what a difference!!! So much faster and no more waiting for discs to load.

Even though the PS3 is 3D compatible with the software update, I decided to upgrade and get the latest technology to match my new television. This Samsung DVD player has 2 HDMI outputs, which is very important. One to attach to the TV, and one for your AV Receiver. You will also need to upgrade you AV Receiver to one with an HDMI 1.4 connection to allow the 3D signal to pass through. The 3D AV Receivers are fairly new to the market so unless you purchased one in the past year, chances are you do not have that capability. The two HDMI 1.4 outputs are nice because you aren't stuck using an analog audio signal to your AV Receiver anymore. HDMI all around!!!

This DVD player has the new Samsung Smart Apps menu. All the Smart TV's from 2010 and 2011 also include this. It's a nice feature to have because you can view things on the web, the news, weather, Netflix, YouTube, and various apps. It has wi-fi connectivity but I would recommend using a Ethernet cable. Wireless seems to work fine but if you are streaming a video you may want to use a cable to avoid buffering.

Another nice feature is the Samsung Any-net+. This allows all Samsung Smart devices to work together seamlessly. My remotes all work with each other. Even cell phones are compatible. When you fire the DVD player up, the TV automatically notices and changes to the correct input for you! Pretty sweet!

The player itself matches my 2011 TV. Stainless silver in color and very sleek. It is a slot-loading player. Touch buttons and auto-dimming can be turned on/off. And boy is this baby fast! My Blu-Rays used to take 20-30 seconds to load up and start playing on my PS3. Not anymore!

This is light years ahead of last years model. Just take a look at the reviews here on Amazon. The price is right too! There is a newer model out for twice the price but with the same features and it's getting some poor reviews here on Amazon. That is why I chose this model. You can't go wrong! I highly recommend this player it is a very nice addition to my home entertainment center!

I purchased this product in June, 2011. Two months after purchase, it was back in the box for repair by a third-party Samsung affiliate. (I had to pay for shipping to their facility.) While the repair resolved the major problems I was having, many annoying glitches remain to this day. Here they are:

1. There are far too many screen freezes during streaming videos, esp. those from Netflix. Very few freezes occur during my Blockbuster and VuDu streams. (These apps are available for download with the device. For the longest time, the device would update these apps and every time it did my Blockbuster account had to be re-installed and I had to go through a new account set-up every time. Since early November, the Blockbuster app seems to be more stable.)

2. The main screen will sometimes freeze when trying to move from it to the apps mentioned above and also upon exiting those apps.

3. When the screen does freeze, the only button that will work is on-off, which means I have to shut down the device without its having completed a proper shut-down cycle.

4. This device does NOT support CLOSED-CAPTIONING on any streaming app. (It does support physical DVD CC.) If you rely on CC as I must, YOU WILL BE STRANDED, esp. when it comes to any series produced in England. I am unable to watch any of those streams because I cannot understand their speech without CC-assist. Just awful for those of us with a hearing impairment. I did read online that HDMI does not support over-the-air CC, so I am in a hopeless situation when it comes to any streaming videos from Netflix, Blockbuster, etc. In fairness, I suspect that there is no blu-ray device of this type that will allow the user to enable streaming CC.

I am sorry to say that I remain extremely disappointed in this product. If you are in the market for a similar blu-ray player, choose carefully. When this player works, it works well. But every time I turn it on, I hold my breath.

All I can say about this product is "Wow !!! it's samsung again !!!"
I have two blu ray players at home with Sony BDP S550 and Samsung BDp 1500 but I wanted to have a 3D
blu ray player, So I ordered LG BD670 first as the review looked so good but it was disappointing for me
as it was pretty complicated to set up with wireless internet and my UBS didn't work with it but Most of
all, the picture quality can't be compared with that of Samsung Blu ray player. So I had to
return it and reordered for this model of Samsung which is just fantastic in picture quality + the
convenience of usage ( WIFI) as I expected.
Guys !!Samsung BD-D6700 3D Blu-ray Disc Player (Silver)! I have the most trust on
Samsung Blu ray disc players when it comes to the picture quality specially. I believe there's no other
Brand on the market yet to compete with Samsung at this point.
Just go for it you'll never fail to choose for your valuable momey.

UPDATE 1-19-12
The review below is still true except I've discovered another major flaw. This player does not play ANY DVD-R/RW or DVD+R/RW, regardless of format. Yes, the manual says it can, but it can't. Many long talks with (terrible) customer service and that is the end result. If you want to be able to play discs you have burned, look elsewhere.

Netflix blacks out. You'll be watching a movie and the screen will go dark for a quarter second or so, then reappear. A few seconds later, same thing. Disappointing. And yes, I have way more than sufficient internet speed (18-20 Mbs, confirmed through the exact cable that plugs into the 6700).

I'm not sure if there is a genuinely good BD player out there, but I do know that this one ain't it!

--------------------------------

The title says it all. For playing discs, it works well. Good picture quality, decent load speed, good configurability, and so on. It does what one would expect....

...except with Hulu. Hulu plays well for a while then freezes for a while, plays for awhile, freezes again. Our internet speed is much higher than even the highest bandwidth requirement for Hulu yet this Blu-ray player makes it seem like we are on dialup. I have been in repeated contact with the (excellent) tech support at Hulu and, to make a long story short, there is some as yet unknown problem with Samsung blu-ray players trying to play Hulu. Big bummer. We are already on our second unit and may need to return this one, too.

The other gripe is the Samsung still does not offer an app for Amazon videos. Not sure why--must be a licensing issue but combined with the unacceptable Hulu support, this player, and all others from Samsung, may end up on our "do not buy" list.

If you only want support for discs, this player is great. If you want more than that, you may want to look elsewhere.

I upgraded my 3-year old Samsung DVD Up-convert player, and due to the fact my PS3 was stolen. I researched for almost a 3 weeks carefully before purchasing, this is the most fully featured blu-ray you will find, period, for $300 or less. And you will love the loading and playing of movies and the USB feature

my main reason i bought this unit was for the USB Hard Drive function. After getting all the firmware updates out of the way and getting the WIFI (Easy Wi-Fi connectivity but it has the hard-wired option if you have the need to use that. I headed straight after the USB function. I coped 4 types of files, jped, avi, mov, mkv on a hard drive. I plugged the HD into the player and unit detected the HD, selected the unit and boom came up all the file folders and files i copied on. Everything was just plain awetastic. The mkv files played try HD quality. the avi files were great and the JPEG was as clean as the picture. I literally had a PC in front of me.

They system menus are very clean with downloadable Apps for stuff like news, weather and games, plus all the video service Apps like Youtube, Netflix, Vudu, Cinema Now, HuluPlus etc. So if you have heard of itunes or android marketplace, the samsung app store functions the same way.

I havent tested the streaming capability or netflix - since at the moment i dont have a need for this.

The smart remote that can run multiple devices and it has big buttons, but the only con is the fact its not lit up. but it does take a little getting use to.

Other than that, i love this thing, and you will definitely feel the same way. Great price too. if i would have bought this locally - i would have paid about 270 plus tax.

This is a great 3D blu ray player. Although the load times are not as fast as say, my home computer's lightning quick blu ray player...it is fast enough. Whereas my HTCP burns through load times in a few mere seconds...this one can take just upwards of 20-30 seconds per blu ray. Not a big deal

One of the best features that makes this Blu Ray Player stand out is the 2D to 3D conversion. I also have 2D to 3D conversion on my 2011 Samsung flagship tv...but it doesn't even compare to how good the conversion on this player is

Maybe that's because the source of the image (the BD player) is also what is converting the image and outputting it...rather than the TV which has to receive the image and then process and convert it into the 3D. Otherwise, I don't know why it's miles better on the blu ray player but it is...especially with Blu ray content. Just hit the 2D to 3D button on the top left of the remote and you're good to go

The 7.1 audio out is perfect via HDMI. There are even two HDMI outputs in case your receiver is not 3D compatible but your TV is. The DVD playback is fine and the upconversion makes them look as good as possible

I owned one of last year's Samsung BD players and had a hard time getting it to detect my Wifi network. Since then I have added a standard router into my network and the new BD player connects to the Wifi network easily. Maybe using a cable modem/router combo alone was not the way to go because my new router gets everything running quickly and easily (its plugged into the modem via a standard ethernet cable and I connect everything to it via Wifi rather than the modem)

I found a lot of the Samsung apps to be useful but I have all the same apps and more on my TV, so having Netflix or Hulu on the BD player wasn't a big deal. I don't usually use it for that

The 3D image you get from this BD player is sharp and clear. As good as you'll get on anything else...and maybe slightly better. There are a lot of useful settings that you can tweak to your liking on the player and it really feels top of the line

Don't hesitate...well worth the money