Sony UBP-X700 (2017) vs Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019)

The Sony UBP-X700 (2017) is one of the very best Blu-ray Players that one can get for around $190. The Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019), however, while a very good choice at its $240 price point, falls just short of being remarkable.

The Sony UBP-X700 (2017) was loved by reviewers at CNET, a highly trusted source that performs reliable in-depth testing. It did great in its "Best Blu-ray Player for 2023" roundup where it was named its "Ranked 1 out of 4", which, in itself, makes it a product worth considering.

Moving on to the Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019): it was loved by reviewers at What Hi-Fi? and The Independent - two reliable sources that conduct objective in-depth testing. In fact, it was their "A great player for the money, despite a couple of peculiar traits." and "Ranked 3 out of 8", respectively, pointing towards it being a Blu-ray Player worth considering.

To get a better idea of how they fare when compared directly to each other, we analyzed review scores of sources that tested both. Top Ten Reviews and TrustedReviews, for example, preferred the Sony UBP-X700 (2017), while What Hi-Fi? rated both of them the same.

We also took a look at which sources had the best things to say about them. We learned that the Sony UBP-X700 (2017) got reviewed the highest by What Hi-Fi? - it gave it a rating of 10, while the Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019) most impressed reviewers at What Hi-Fi?, which gave it a score of 10.

Lastly, we averaged out all of the reviews scores that we could find on these two products and compared them to other Blu-ray Players on the market. We learned that both of them performed far better than most of their competitors - the overall review average earned by Blu-ray Players being 8.1 out of 10, whereas the Sony UBP-X700 (2017) and Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019) managed averages of 8.7 and 8.5 points, respectively.

Due to the difference in their prices, however, it's important to keep in mind that a direct Sony UBP-X700 (2017) vs. Sony UBP-X800M2 (2019) comparison might not be entirely fair - some sources don't take value for money into account when assigning their scores and therefore have a tendency to rate more premium products better.