Loewe Blu-tech Vision Blu-ray player

German marque Loewe Opta may not be the first name that springs to mind when it comes to Blu-ray. But the manufacturer has beaten rival Philips to become the first Euro brand to support the format, with its stylish-looking Blu-Tech Vision player. Like the brand’s TVs, this deck has been designed specifically with the most  fashion- and image-conscious consumers in mind.

Standing just 67mm tall, it’ll barely take up more space in your rack than a standard DVD player. It looks great – but is its performance up to snuff? Image quality from Blu-ray is great. The action adventure Hitman is rich in explosive detail, with vibrant colour fidelity and tangible textures. But then I’d expect no less of BD

Where this deck seriously lets itself down is in the audio department. Despite the prestige pricing, Loewe offers buyers only the most rudimentary of hi-def audio options. Dolby TrueHD soundtracks can be output from the player as Linear PCM over HDMI or 5.1 phono audio, depending on how your AV amplifier is equipped to receive them. Be careful with the menu system – it offers two options, Auto and PCM, and if you select Auto, the player will bitstream out only regular Dolby Digital 5.1 or DTS core. There is no support for the lossless DTS codec.

To read the full review on Tech Radar click here.