blu-ray disc in player drive
LG discontinues its entire range of 4K Blu-ray players in another blow to physical media fans like me in 2024. (Image credit: shutterstock / Proxima Studio)
LG discontinues all 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray players
It last released Blu-ray players (the UBK80 and UBK90) in 2018
2024 has been a wild year for 4K Blu-ray fans
LG has officially discontinued its range of 4K Blu-ray players and Blu-ray players, with units only available as stocks last going forward, according to FlatpanelsHD.
LG's most recent 4K Blu-ray players, the UBK80 and UBK90, were released back in 2018, coincidentally the same year that Panasonic released one of the best 4K Blu-ray players, the Parnasonic DP-UB820, and the same year Oppo stopped production of its wildly popular 4K Blu-ray players.
In FlatpanelsHD's report, LG Korea didn't fully confirm its exit from the optical player market, leaving the door open for a return to making the devices if the demand was there but for now, only LG players already in stock will be the last remaining units available.
In what has been a rollercoaster year for 4K Blu-ray, with reports of 4K Blu-ray sales rising according to one major UK retailer, but Best Buy and Disney's decision to stop selling 4K Blu-ray also impacting availability, LG's announcement to stop production is another blow to physical media fans as its another major brand that has pulled out of the Blu-ray player market.
2024 has been a tumultuous year for 4K Blu-ray
4K Blu-ray action movies splayed out on a kitchen counter
(Image credit: Future)
As a 4k Blu-ray fan, it's been a year of ups and downs. While I believed earlier this year that home theater fans were being starved of the releases they want, with acclaimed movies or other classics only made available through smaller distributors such as Criterion Collection and Arrow Video, 4K Blu-ray always seemed to be in a state of flux.
Every time there has been some bad news, such as Disney's decision to move away from home physical media, there has been som better news to follow, like when Sony came in and saved the day by agreeing to distribute Disney and its associated properties – Marvel, Star Wars, Fox – physical media releases. Indeed, there always seems to be another piece of worrying news waiting in the wings.
With LG leaving the Blu-ray player market, it's another major name that has exited after Oppo in 2018 and Samsung in 2019. Only Panasonic and Sony remain in the broader market (with more premium brands such as Reavon and Magnetar still around but a much higher price) and it's a worry for 4K Blu-ray fans as more brands seem to be severing ties with the physical media world.
This follows on from another worrying sign where gaming consoles, which some people use as their Blu-ray player, are now having cheaper models offered without the disc drive such as the new Xbox Series X which could lead people away from discs, including 4K Blu-ray, in favor of saving money.
While there have been signs that physical media sales are slowly on the rise, once again in retaliation to ad-riddled streaming services raising their prices, having a big name like LG leads to more vulnerabilities in an already tumultuous market. I'm just hoping as a 4K Blu-ray fanatic that brands like Panasonic and Sony continue to fly the flag for 4K Blu-ray and all other physical media.
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TV Hardware Staff Writer, Home Entertainment
James is the TV Hardware Staff Writer at TechRadar. Before joining the team, he worked at a major UK based AV retailer selling TV and audio equipment, where he was either telling customers the difference between OLED and QLED or being wowed by watching a PS5 run on the LG 65G2. When not writing about the latest TV tech, James can be found gaming, reading, watching rugby or coming up with another idea for a novel.