R Seiber
This 4K player has THE most impressive image quality I have seen so far but that may not be saying much. 8K definition is in the near future. Other models I have used are the PHILIPS BDP7501 & BDP5502, SANYO FWBP807. The LG UP870 has a fascinating upscaling engine, it can smooth out a grainy picture and greatly increase detail without being over aggressive. This makes a high quality DVD look like a real Bluray and a quality Bluray is very close to 4K! The 4K images produced by this player are PHENOMENAL, the sharpest television images I have ever seen. Mesmerizing! 4K HDR discs are played automatically in this mode, if the disc doesnt ask you to choose SDR. I find some HDR discs to be too extreme for my taste but this player has image quality adjustments you can make during playback to suit yourself. I usually brighten the picture and dial back the color a bit. I dont think this player supports Dolby Vision at this time, I have a disc with this feature and it looks superb in standard HDR. This LG player will recognize my MP3 CDs & DVDs of classic radio programs, it lets you jump to any track anytime by entering its number. I also appreciate the ability to play Region 0 (ALL) PAL video format DVDs. The UP870 has an excellent PAL~NTSC converter, video is very smooth. There is a Multi Region version of this player available here at Amazon for around $200 at the time of this review, I am currently using a Multi Region PANASONIC DMP BDT270 for my Other Region collection. Another great budget player. The remote control is intelligent but smallish, very lightweight and easy to hold. It uses only one AAA battery. Build quality is impressive, I like the stylish front buttons shaped like their functions. I wish they were LEDs. One front LED I can do without is the BRIGHT RED standby indicator! It GLARES at me if I dont use it at night. Ominous. When I first plugged this player in I saw this light and waited for it to do something, I thought it was on! After a time I press the power button, RED light goes off, GREEN light comes on. I dont care for the blank screen during disc ejection, too bright at night. I do not like the onscreen Angle Icon. I see it often while watching my classic Star Trek TV series Blurays and I cant turn it off. Annoying. The disc tray isnt exactly Finger Friendly, I like to handle my discs by the edges but with this player I have to use the center hole carefully. There is an indentation on the right front but its awkward for me. My PHILIPS 4K TV gets along well with my LG UP870, but it refers to it as only Player 2. I have not noticed any noise issues whatsoever, player is very quiet at all times. I truly do believe this is the best 4K player you can find for less than $100. It is NOT engineered for Internet streaming however, and that is fine with me. I would much rather have more effort devoted to overall product functionality anytime. I bought a 4K Bluray player and that is what I want, NOT an Internet Hub. I am VERY PLEASED with this player and it is rewarding to use, impressively so! I printed out the Owners Manual for this and its 56 pages long! Please note this review is for the 2017 model.
