If you are using Oppo for playing physical media (like BlueRay or CDs) sell it and buy a very decent BlueRay player for 20% of the money you will fetch. You will not notice the difference and pocket between 1.5-2k U$. However, if you are playing content from the hard drives, DLNA or other streaming sources there is nothing that comes close to Oppo. And I am not talking just about the quality of sound or picture, although that too.
The quality of how Oppo handles network and WiFi connectivity, shared storage, deals with congestion, error-correction and multitude of other things does not exist throughout the industry. After my friend sold his 205, he tried B-ray players from 2 prominent brands. They played blue-discs perfectly fine, with proper Atmos sound and delivered baskets full of 4k goodies. However, none provided Oppo’s quality when used as a network-attached unit. I know it first-hand as I was trying to help him getting things solved. And pretty much nothing we stepped on could be solved. Even though we’ve got long email conversations with manufacturers support. The list is surprisingly long and a subject for a separate post.
I personally own BDP-105 and would only part with it if something like Oppo shows up in the market but so far, nothing on the horizon. Its DAC section can still be considered a reference for audio and I am fine with movies in 1024p. The build quality is great and I anticipate another 5 - 8 years of seamless work.The only thing I regret is I had not catch my friend’s sale of 205 in time...
If you take into consideration quality of build, design and features they were sold for laughingly low price. Those players set up a benchmark that, I am afraid, we will never see again. They also scared the industry sharks to death and created a lot of friction not to say tension in the market. There is really nothing you can compare them to. So, there is a reason 203 and 205 boxes sell far above their shelf-price, 3 years after they were discontinued. People who pay current price do not do it because they feel sentimental. They have far more tangible reasons to do so.
The quality of how Oppo handles network and WiFi connectivity, shared storage, deals with congestion, error-correction and multitude of other things does not exist throughout the industry. After my friend sold his 205, he tried B-ray players from 2 prominent brands. They played blue-discs perfectly fine, with proper Atmos sound and delivered baskets full of 4k goodies. However, none provided Oppo’s quality when used as a network-attached unit. I know it first-hand as I was trying to help him getting things solved. And pretty much nothing we stepped on could be solved. Even though we’ve got long email conversations with manufacturers support. The list is surprisingly long and a subject for a separate post.
I personally own BDP-105 and would only part with it if something like Oppo shows up in the market but so far, nothing on the horizon. Its DAC section can still be considered a reference for audio and I am fine with movies in 1024p. The build quality is great and I anticipate another 5 - 8 years of seamless work.The only thing I regret is I had not catch my friend’s sale of 205 in time...
If you take into consideration quality of build, design and features they were sold for laughingly low price. Those players set up a benchmark that, I am afraid, we will never see again. They also scared the industry sharks to death and created a lot of friction not to say tension in the market. There is really nothing you can compare them to. So, there is a reason 203 and 205 boxes sell far above their shelf-price, 3 years after they were discontinued. People who pay current price do not do it because they feel sentimental. They have far more tangible reasons to do so.