It was a revelation in the ongoing decline of physical media – and, as someone who values their 4K Blu-ray library, it was the update I’d been waiting for.
A recent report from the Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) confirmed that after a long period of decline, 4K Blu-ray sales have returned to growth in the United States, with a 12 percent increase in 2025 compared to 2024.
While physical media sales fell overall, this was only 9.3 percent. That is undoubtedly still a drop, but much less than expected; and it may be a sign that optical media is coming back into fashion.
With broadcast fatigue set in from the multitude of services available, all of which offer different tiers that lock features behind paywalls and subscription costs that rise slightly overall, the rediscovery of physical media seems a natural step.
In addition, many people strive to get the best picture and sound performance from their TVs, projectors, soundbars and surround speaker systems – and 4K Blu-ray is the best way to achieve this.
However, there is one small issue, and I have drawn attention to it before. It’s undoubtedly good to see sales prices for 4K Blu-rays increasing; but what will people play with?
Very few manufacturers still produce dedicated 4K Blu-ray players. Sony and Panasonic are the only brands left in the mainstream, while Magnetar is one of the options for enthusiasts who don’t want to scour eBay and pay more than the odds for a discontinued Oppo or Pioneer player.
We’re willing to bet that many people feed their UHD Blu-rays to PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. They are the most easily available and current 4K Blu-ray players on the market – and, of course, they have the dual purpose of being attractive and being game consoles.
Unfortunately, in our testing, we found that these consoles don’t perform at the same level as a dedicated Blu-ray player – although they’re not bad options.
Everything on our list of the best 4K Blu-ray players was introduced in 2018 or 2019, except for the Sony UBP-X700, which had an incremental update last year to remove streaming features. There has been no official word from Panasonic about whether it will update its 4K players anytime soon.
Couple that with prices that have actually gone up rather than down since launch (Panasonic’s entire range has gone up in price since our first review), and I can see why 4K Blu-rays haven’t caught on. i the most compelling option for consumers in recent years.
I have done my best to promote the format to anyone who will listen, but these producers also need to show their commitment to ensure that the format continues with this reported growth.
While we’re at it, I’d be happy to see the likes of Samsung and LG return to the optical disc player market. They came out years ago despite offering impressive disc players.
The chances of this happening are very slim, but I will continue with my new player campaign regardless.
MORE:
Read our full Panasonic DP-UB820EB review
And ours Sony UBP-X700 review
Also check out our selection of best streaming devices
