Talk about a super slim blu-ray player. Here is us thinking that only HDTVs can get slimmer. But Samsung is proving that you can give it anything, and it can find a way to slim it down and come up with a more modern design for it. Samsung BD-P4600 is truly a modern blu-ray player. It comes with the latest developments in the industry and is made to bring a more interactive blu-ray experience. Here are a few noteworthy features:

• Wi-Fi: network blu-ray players are the future of this business. Using Ethernet is not as convenient as streaming content through your Wi-Fi network. You get a Wi-Fi adapter with your blu-ray player, making it easier to have a more interactive blu-ray experience.
• Netflix Integration: watch Netflix movies right on your blu-ray without too much trouble. You need to have Netflix unlimited to take advantage of this feature.
• Streaming: you can stream Divx, images, and … to your blu-ray player.
• Storage: you get 1 GB storage for BD Live content. It’ll be probably enough for now, but I am sure newer models will add to this.

Samsung BD-P4600 is a very cool blu-ray player, but it will cost you close to $500. It’s a very fine looking blu-ray player, but if you are looking for a netbook blu-ray player, you may also want to consider LG 370.

Apple fans have been waiting for too long for the company to finally bring Blu-Ray functionality to Apple Macbooks. It seems Apple is finally softening its stance and getting ready to take the plunge. It’s just a rumor at this point but CNET is reporting that the recent changes in iTunes indicate that Apple is getting ready to bring Blu-Ray to Macbooks.

Let’s not kid ourselves. Steve Jobs has bee vocal about the licensing issues of Blu-Ray, and the technology may die sooner than its predecessors. At the same time, Apple can’t just keep ignoring this market. New laptops are now entertaining blu-ray players and writers which means Apple Macbooks will be in a significant disadvantage without these players. Apple computers are great, but at some point you can’t justify not having a blu-ray reader/writer. The challenge for Apple will be to introduce Blu-Ray devices without increasing the prices too much. After all, Macbooks are already premium laptops.

When will be see Blu-Ray on Macbooks? The earliest chance will be on WWDC. That’s going to be one exciting event.

Your take: would you like to see Apple add Blu-Ray to its Macbook line up.

Sony introduced BD Live a while ago to bring more interactivity to blu-ray. If you think you are getting the most out of your HD content without BD Live, think again. With BD Live, you can chat with the director, play internet games, chat online, and do much more.

Samsung BD-P1600 and LG BD 390 are just a couple of blu-ray players that support BD Live. You will need an Internet connection to take advantage of BD Live, but once you try BD Live, you’ll never want to watch HD movies without it.

Your take: is BD Live for it? Would you upgrade from DVD to Blu-ray for BD Live?

LG is one of those companies that tries to push the envelop and go where others have not gone yet. The new LG network blu-ray players are part of LG’s efforts to bring YouTube and other web content to your HDTV by using your broadband Internet connection. LG BD 370 is a cool blu-ray player that allows you to use your Ethernet connection to get YouTube and Netflix videos right on your HDTV. With Disc Player you can even use your LAN to get content on your HDTV. It comes with wireless N compatibility, and that makes things even more convenient.

With BD 390, you get Blu-Ray Player with 1GB memory  and NetCast for YouTube & CinemaNow capability. You can download Netflix content to your player with your wireless connection, so you won’t have to necessarily have an Ethernet cable close by. I do like to see more memory on future models, but this is a good start.

Welcome to Blu-Crunch, where you can catch up with the latest goodies in the blu-ray world. Our goal at Blu-Crunch is to bring you the very latest in the world of Blu-Ray. After having defeated HD-DVD in that epic war of formats, Blu-Ray has new challenges and opportunities to win over consumers. And you can be sure we will bring the very latest to you to help you make more knowledgeable decisions. Don’t forget to sign up for our RSS feed to get the very latest from this blog.