Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray Disc Player - Product Review And Rating

The DMP-BD60 provided a very good well-balanced image with excellent detail, color, contrast, and black levels with Blu-ray Disc playback. This was confirmed on several Blu-ray Disc examples. On example of good detail reproduction is the Blu-ray Disc of Transporter 3 with the close-ups of Jason Statham and the heavily freckled face of his co-star Natalya Rudakova. I haved used this disc in several Blu-ray Disc tests and the DMP-BD60 did well on this one.

With regards to more technical testing, the BDP-60 met almost all the tests on the Silicon Optix HQV Benchmark DVD, which measures DVD video performance with regards to video processing and upscaling.

The test results revealed that the DMP-BD60 does good to very good with progressive scan (3:2 pulldown), jaggie elimination, noise reduction, detail, motion adaptive processing, and moire pattern detection and elimination.

On the other hand, although the DMP-BD60 provided very good performance, it was slightly below that of the OPPO DV-983H upscaling DVD player and DVDO EDGE Video Scaler used for additional video upscaling reference.

For a look at other Blu-ray Disc player video performance test results, check out previous tests of the OPPO Digital BDP-83, Insignia NS-2BRDVD, Samsung BD-P1500, Sherwood BDP-5003, Pioneer BDP-95FD, and the Yamaha BD-S2900.

Also the DMP-BD60 did not have a problem converting HDMI to DVI. Using the DVI input option on the Westinghouse LVM-37w3, which required the HDMI output of the DMP-BD60 to be converted to DVI to make the connection, there was no problem with recognition. Also, rerunning the HQV tests, no detectable performance difference was detected.

Audio Performance

On the audio side, the DMP-BD60 offers complete onboard audio decoding, but also provides undecoded bitstream output for compatible home theater receivers.

In terms of audio performance, The DMP-BD60 delivered excellent audio performance on both Blu-ray and DVD soundtracks When playing standard DVDS, CDs. I noticed no audio artifacts that could be attributed to the DMP-BD60.

Surround imagery and vocal presence in movie soundtracks, such as Iron Man, The Dark Knight, and Nigh at the Museum (Blu-ray), and Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Moulin Rouge (DVD).

In terms of standard 2-channel CD playback, Heart's Magic Man, with its distinctive bass slide to the extreme low end of the audio range, was spot on and Joshua Bell's recording of West Side Story Suite sounded like it was being performed live.

The DMP-BD60 demonstrated very good audio performance with Blu-ray, DVD, and CDs. On the other hand, the lack of 5.1 or 7.1 channel analog audio outputs does limit access to high resolution audio with older, non-HDMI equipped home theater receivers.

1. Extremely compact physical design. This Blu-ray Disc player is so slim, on first glance it is easy to mistake for a standard DVD player. The sizesof Blu-ray disc players has certainly shrunk in just the past couple of years. Translation: The BD60 takes up very little shelf space.

2. Very good Blu-ray Disc performance, Good DVD upscaling performance.

3. Provides onboard decoding and Bistream output options for all Dolby and DTS audio formats.

4. Easy-to-use onscreen interface. The onscreen menus are colorful, easy-to-read, and informative.

5. Viera Cast and SD Card slot are nice bonus features that increase media playback flexibility.

What I Didn't Like About The Panasonic DMP-BD60

1. No 5.1 or 7.1 channel analog audio outputs. This decreases audio connection flexibility with older-non-HDMI equipped receivers.

2. No SACD or DVD-Audio capability. Not a deal breaker, especially at this price level, but it would be nice to include this capability.

3. No provisions for wireless network connectivity. Network and internet connectivity is only available via wired ethernet connection.

4. Remote control not backlit. This makes it more difficult to use the remote control in a dark room.

5. External memory (via SD Card) required for BD-Live feature access. With the price of memory these days, it would be nice if all Blu-ray Disc players included the required minimum 1GB onboard memory to access BD-Live content instead having to insert USB Flash drive or, in the case of the BD60, an SD Card.

The DMP-BD60 provides very good detail, color, contrast, and black levels with Blu-ray Disc playback.

With regards to more technical testing, the BD60 passed the majority of tests on the Silicon Optix HQV Benchmark DVD, which measures DVD video performance with regards to video processing and upscaling.

The test results revealed that the DMP-BD60 does good to very good with progressive scan (3:2 pulldown), jaggie elimination, noise reduction, detail, motion adaptive processing, and moire pattern detection and elimination.

On the audio side, the DMP-BD60 offers complete onboard audio decoding, but also provides undecoded bitstream output for compatible home theater receivers.

In terms of audio performance, The DMP-BD60 delivered excellent audio performance on both Blu-ray and DVD soundtracks, and also from audio-only CDs. I noticed no audio artifacts that could be attributed to the DMP-BD60.

On the other hand, the lack of 5.1 or 7.1 channel analog audio outputs does limit access to high resolution audio with older, non-HDMI equipped home theater receivers.

Another feature of note is the incorporation of Viera Cast, which provides direct access to select internet content from YouTube, Bloomberg Television, and Picassa. However, as of this time Netflix and other video streaming services are not included. On the other hand, this type of feature is definetely becoming a trend in Blu-ray Disc players and may actually serve broaden its appeal.

For additional perspective on the Panasonic DMP-BD60, also check out my Photo Gallery and Video Performance Tests.

Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.