Sharp AQUOS BDHP20U Blu-ray Review
Reviewed on Jan 18, 2009
(10 votes, average: 7.8 out of 10)
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Joining the competition, Sharp introduced the Sharp Aquos BDHP20U Blu-ray disc player. Glossy black and mirror-reflective, the player definitely isn’t boring. There is a LED display in the center and another to the right, both of which can be turned off. This leaves a small green LED glowing on the Sharp Aquos BDHP20U player. There is only a power button and an open/close button on the player which means that the remote is indispensable. The remote is well-designed and easy to use.
The Sharp Aquos BDHP20U conforms to Profile 1.0 indicating that the picture-in-picture feature is missing. The player supports high-resolution audio with onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Digital Plus. It does not have bit-stream audio support for high resolution formats, making audio support incomplete. Connectivity is not a problem with the Sharp Aquos BDHP20U Blu-ray player. The HDMI output is capable of producing 1080p video at 24 frames per second with high resolution audio. There are component video, S-video and composite video outputs which can produce high-definition video. Audio is taken care of by 5.1 multi-channel analog audio outputs, standard stereo analog audio outputs and both optical and coaxial digital audio outputs. The Ethernet port is given a miss in this player.
The most special feature of the Sharp Aquos BDHP20U is the “Quick Start” which upgrades the load times. An average of 10 seconds is enough to load any movie. This is especially true for Blu-ray discs. Enabling “Quick Start” leaves the player on all the time, even after turning it off. However, this player is unable to pass the Film Resolution Loss test. There was a lot of strobe-like flickering in the images
The Sharp Aquos BDHP20U has been specially designed to work with the Aquos LCD TV. There is seamless interoperability and both can be accessed by a single remote. Despite its minor failings, the player has many advantages, the most important one being the “Quick Start” feature.
Sharp Aquos BDHP20U Key Features Review:
DVD Features
Media Type CD , DVD , BD-R , CD-R , BD-RE , CD-RW , DVD+R , DVD-R , BD-ROM , DVD+RW , DVD-RW
Audio D/A Converter 24 bit / 192 KHz
Built-in Audio decoders DTS decoder, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital, DTS HD Decoder, Dolby Digital Plus
Media Load Type Tray
Analog Video Signal S-Video , Component video , Composite video
Supported Digital Audio DTS, PCM, AC-3
Standards
Upscaling Yes
Output Resolution 1080p
Picture Zoom Yes
Video Noise Reduction Yes
HDCD Decoding Yes
MP3 Compatible Yes
Additional Features Parental Lock
Audio System
Sound Output Mode Surround sound
Digital Audio Format DTS Digital Output, Dolby Digital Output
Connections
Connector Type 1 x Composite video output (RCA phono) , 1 x S-Video output (4 pin mini-DIN) , 1 x Component video output (RCA phono x 3) , 1 x HDMI output (19 pin HDMI Type A) , 1 x Audio line-out (RCA phono x 2) , 6 x 5.1 channel audio line-out (RCA phono) , 1 x Digital audio output (optical) (TOSLINK) , 1 x Digital audio output (coaxial) (RCA phono)
Power
Power Consumption 25 W Operational
Power consumption 0.5 W Stand By / Sleep
Manufacturer Warranty
Service and Support 1 year warranty – parts and labor