LG's BH100 hybrid Blu-ray & HD DVD player: $1,199

LG has set the price for its BH100 combination Blu-ray and HD DVD player at $1,199. Available in the first quarter of this year, the company thinks it can resolve buyer confusion and push both high-def formats using Broadcom's chipset. 1080p and DTS-HD audio support are present and accounted for, but no word yet on other features, like 1080p24 or HDMI 1.3, but for more information check our live coverage of LG's press event and demonstration.

Update: Home Theater Blog found more official pics of the unit on Best Buy's website. Continue on for shots of the back and remote.

[John Doe @ Jan 7th 2007 1:16PM]

or alternatively, for the same price, you could buy an HD DVD player AND a PS3...
But that would be too complicated, right?

[Attillia @ Jan 7th 2007 2:02PM]

Ugly!

[Dave @ Jan 7th 2007 2:05PM]

Excellent design!
Look HD DVD fans, what happens when Blu-ray even touches you :) Bang, and the ugly box is off :D

Yet very expensive but good. Now people should use it for BDs only cos they are cheaper...

[Tonicboy @ Jan 7th 2007 2:32PM]

Wait a second. Let me get this straight. Are you *actually* saying that this player LOOKS GOOD and, even more, that these "good looks" are due to the Blu-Ray influence? I'm not seing any telltale signs of satire - are you FOR REAL?! *lolololololol* *rotfl* My man, this is the ugliest player EVER!!!!

[Canuck21 @ Jan 8th 2007 8:54PM]

That thing is not good looking at all, it's darn ugly.

[nick @ Jan 7th 2007 2:21PM]

Wow, they finally did it. And it's about the same price as other Blu-Ray players. Now if only it were cheaper.

[Murc @ Jan 7th 2007 2:29PM]

I hope something impressive imerges fropm CES to beat both of these formats.

[MegaZone @ Jan 7th 2007 4:01PM]

From the officially press release it is HDMI 1.2, NOT 1.3, and it does not support iHD. So no interactive features on HD-DVD, just basic playback. It does have BD-Java for full featured Blu-ray. So this is mainly a Blu-ray deck with HD-DVD tacked on in a minimal form.

[3rdsun @ Jan 7th 2007 6:18PM]

it makes sense to make a player that supports both formats. less confusion for ordinary people. The price of the titles and features will prove who is the real king.

[Diogo @ Jan 7th 2007 8:03PM]

For the same price you can get a PS3 and a (XBOX360+HD DVD) bundle.

And the design looks like those VCR released on the 80's.

ugly as hell.

[E71 @ Jan 7th 2007 8:17PM]

LG = Traitor

[BULGARI @ Jan 7th 2007 8:25PM]

Great ! S.Korea... LG

[Rick Lyon @ Jan 8th 2007 3:47PM]

Sure it's expensive, but so are ALL BRD players. THe PS3 is a game console so I don't count that. I wonder how seething Sony, Pioneer, Samsung, etc are?

As for the design, it's simple, but are those buttons ON THE TOP SIDE!?!? Ah, people have racks and won't be able to reach the buttons. Dumb LG, dumb.

[Sam @ Jan 17th 2007 5:32PM]

Isnt that what the remote is for?

[steve @ Jan 9th 2007 10:33AM]

for everyone complaining on how this thing looks, let me ask you a question. Do you watch movies or sit and stair at the player? Common, this type of tech is proberly what will push hd/blu ray to success. Who cares who wins, as soon as these catch on, the prices will drop, every movie will be available in HD, and we can all do what we really want to do, WATCH MOVIES!

[dysonlu @ Jan 23rd 2007 1:14AM]

Yeah, get a PS3, an Xbox360 and the HD-DVD add-on, what a brilliant idea! Now let's connect those to your HDTV via HDMI. Let's see: HDMI IN #1 connects to your HD Satellite TV box, HDMI IN #2 connects to your PS3... ooops you're screwed: no HDMI INPUT for your Xbox360.

Regarding the buttons location, you should still be able to see and access the buttons even if the player is on a rack. Besides, we're in 2007, people use the remote 99.99% of the time.

[Mac @ Jan 26th 2007 12:36PM]

well.....after spending that much money on the unit...who has any money left over for batteries???

guess it is still better to wait for a 2nd generation to come out...heard the toshiba hd/dvd first generation had a lot of bugs where the 2nd generation seemed to be the perfect choice.