Oppo announces affordable solution for HD playback, BDP-80 Blu-ray Player

Oppo makes some high-quality disc players, but often buyers must stuff also swallow the hefty prices that accompany its products.  However, the company has announced the arrival of the BDP-80 Blu-ray player, a much more affordable companion to its highly-reviewed BDP-83 (which has been recently involved and reported here in a Lexicon design scandal).

Oppo provides a comparison chart on its website that allows prospective buyers to see the differences between the new BDP-80 and the BDP-83, but to sum it up, the 80 includes most of the key features of the 83, from DVD-A & SACD playback and Blu-ray Profile 2.0, to 7.1 audio output and the full gamut of audio decoding chips.  However, it does have a lower-end video processor, as well as IR I/O and RS-232 ports.

The BDP-80 will sell for $289, which makes it the least expensive universal Blu-ray player to market, besting the $499 BDP-83 by $210 and other models from Denon and Marantz by upwards of $1700-$4200.  This should be a solid option to consider for home theater fans or cinephiles looking for fine performance, but on a budget.